18 ATTACHMENT 09 - Laserfiche WebLink

Joint City of Pleasanton and Pleasanton Unified School District Liaison Committee December 12, 2016 Page 2 H. SCHOOL FACILITIES FEES A. Historical Context' Before the 1970's, school districts supported their activities mainly by levying ad valorem taxes on real property within their districts. In the early 1970's,in the wake of increased resistance throughout California to rising property taxes,local governments began the practice of imposing fees on developers to cover the costs of new schools made necessary by new housing based on their police powers under the California Constitution. In 1977,the Legislature passed the School Facilities Act,which granted local governments specific legislative authorization to impose school facility impact fees. This Act,however, was somewhat limited. It did not authorize school districts to impose school impact fees themselves. Under the Act, school districts were authorized to make findings that their schools were overcrowded and there was no feasible method of reducing that condition. If the city concurred with such findings,it could impose a fee to provide only temporary classroom facilities. In 1986,the Legislature substantially revised and expanded the School Facilities Act by authorizing the governing boards of the school districts themselves to impose school impact fees subject to certain limitations. It was at that time the Legislature made it clear that the state preempted the field of school fees and development requirements to the exclusion of all local measures. Subsequent court decisions however,concluded that the limitations contained in the School Facilities Act only applied to adjudicative decisions of local governments,such as the issuance of subdivision maps and conditional use permits. Under these holdings,developers that were requesting legislative actions,such as general plan amendments or rezonings,were not protected by the provision that limited mitigation measures to the capped school facilities fees. B. Senate Bill 50("SB 50") In 1998, the Legislature passed the Leroy F. Green School Facilities Act of 1998,creating a framework for school funding that combined state bonds,local school district bonds,and developer fees. ((Ed. Code, § 17070.10 et seq.)("SB 50").) As it relates to developer fees, SB 50 made at least three important changes in the law. First, SB 50 contains a state-wide cap on the amount of fees,charges,dedication or other requirements which can be levied against new development to fund construction or reconstruction of school facilities. Three different levels of fees are authorized by SB 50. Level 1 fees are applicable state-wide where the need for new school facilities is triggered by new development—these fees are capped at$1.93 per square foot for residential development and$.3 I per For a more comprehensive background of the early legislative history of school facilities fees,see Grupe Development Company v. the Superior Court of San Bernardino County(1993)4 Cal.4t 911.