Napa County Municipal Code Ch. 3.12 Assessments—county Service Area No. 4

A. The purpose of this chapter is to set forth the methodology which shall be used in the annual setting and levying of benefit assessments on properties containing one or more planted vineyard acres within County Service Area No. 4 to fund the cost of providing to those properties located within County Service Area No. 4 those services of acquiring, constructing, leasing, maintaining or operating, or any combination thereof, farmworker housing authorized by law to be provided within said service area under the provisions of Government Code Section 25213.2.

B. This chapter and the procedures set forth herein are adopted in accordance with the provisions of California Government Code Section 25215.5, as such may be amended from time to time, and shall apply after an assessment, not to exceed ten dollars per planted vineyard acre per year, has been approved pursuant to Article 4.6 (commencing with Section 53750) of Chapter 4 of Part 1 of Division 2 of Title 5 of the Government Code. Annual assessments levied under the authority of Government Code Section 25213.2 may remain in effect for a period not exceeding five years, and may be reauthorized for additional five-year periods pursuant to that Article 4.6.

(Ord. 1208 § 1 (part), 2002)

(Ord. No. 1354, § 11, 3-1-2011)

For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply:

"Assessment" means those amounts assessed to properties located within County Service Area No. 4 in accordance with the procedures set forth in this chapter.

"Assessor" means the assessor for the county of Napa.

"Clerk" or "clerk of the board" means the clerk of the board of supervisors of the county of Napa.

"Commissioner" means the county agricultural commissioner-sealer or the commissioner's designee.

"CSA No. 4" means County Service Area No. 4 within the county of Napa.

"Fiscal year" means the Napa County fiscal year commencing on July 1st and ending on June 30th.

"Parcel of real property" means a unit of real property having a separate assessor's parcel number as shown on the local secured tax rolls of the county and consisting of one or more planted vineyard acres.

"Services" means the acquiring, constructing, leasing, or providing maintenance or operations for farmworker housing owned or leased by a public agency as authorized by Government Code Section 25213.2.

(Ord. 1208 § 1 (part), 2002)

(Ord. No. 1354, § 12, 3-1-2011; Ord. No. 1399, § 5, 3-24-2015)

Benefit assessments may be imposed on parcels of real property within CSA No. 4 consistent with the provisions of this chapter and Government Code Section 25215.5. The cost of the services may be charged to each parcel of real property within the service area.

The amount of each assessment levied under this chapter shall be determined by apportioning the total cost to provide the services in proportion to the estimated benefit from the services to be received by each parcel of real property so assessed. No assessment shall be imposed on any parcel of real property which exceeds the reasonable cost of the proportional special benefit conferred on that parcel.

(Ord. 1208 § 1 (part), 2002)

(Ord. No. 1354, § 13, 3-1-2011)

A. Each fiscal year, on or before July 1, the board shall cause to be prepared a written report which shall contain the following:

1. A description of the services provided by CSA No. 4;

2. Identification of each parcel of real property within CSA No. 4 and the services each such parcel receives;

3. The assessment to be levied against each such parcel for such services provided.

The report shall be filed with the clerk of the board on or before July 10.

B. Upon the preparation and filing of such report, the clerk of the board shall publish a notice that such report has been filed. The notice shall also fix a time, date and place for public hearing on the report. The notice shall be published as provided in Government Code Section 6066, and shall state that objections or protests to the report may be filed in writing with the clerk of the board at any time until the conclusion of the hearing on the report. To the extent required by Section 4 of Article XIIID of the California Constitution and/or Government Code Section 54954.6 and in accordance therewith, the clerk shall also give written notice by mail to the record owners of all parcels of real property subject to the proposed assessments.

C. At the time, date and place given in the notice, the board shall hear and consider all objections and protests, if any, to the report, and may continue the hearing from time to time. Upon conclusion of the hearing, the board may adopt, revise, change, reduce or modify any assessment to be charged, and after such modifications as the board deems appropriate, if any, the board shall adopt and confirm the report by resolution and order the assessments as described therein to be levied and collected as provided in this chapter.

(Ord. 1208 § 1 (part), 2002)

(Ord. No. 1354, § 14, 3-1-2011)

The assessments as confirmed and levied pursuant to this chapter shall be set forth separately on the bill for taxes levied against the respective parcels of land and shall be collected at the same time, in the same manner, and by the same persons as the general taxes for the county, and shall become delinquent at the same time and be thereafter subject to the same delinquency penalties and other provisions as according to law. All laws applicable to the levy, collection, and enforcement of county ad valorem property taxes shall be applicable to such assessment; except that if for the first year such assessment is levied the real property to which such assessment relates has been transferred or conveyed to a bona fide purchaser for value, or if a lien of a bona fide encumbrancer for value has been created and attaches thereon, prior to the date on which the first installment of such assessments would become delinquent, the assessment confirmed pursuant to this chapter shall not result in a lien against such real property but instead shall be transferred to the unsecured roll for collection. When collected, such assessments shall be placed in the county treasury to the credit of the county service area.

(Ord. 1208 § 1 (part), 2002)

A. The owners of parcels of real property who present proof to the commissioner that they are providing housing for their own farmworkers shall be exempt from the assessment.

B. Government Property. The assessments established in accordance with this chapter shall be imposed upon real property owned and operated by a federal, state, or local agency unless the agency can demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence that the publicly owned parcel at issue in fact receives no special benefit. Assessments imposed on governmental parcels hereunder, however, shall not be collected by the tax collector to the extent such collection is prohibited by law.

C. If exemption under subsection (A) or (B) of this section is sought, the exemption may be granted only upon written request filed with the clerk of the board. The commissioner may then order the assessment levied herein on any particular parcel of real property to be canceled, corrected, or refunded in order to effect the provisions of this section. All requests for exemptions must be received by the clerk of the board no later than three months after the date of the real property tax bill which shows the assessment for which an exemption is requested.

D. The decision of the commissioner under subsections (A) and (B) of this section may be appealed to the board in accordance with the procedures of Chapter 2.88, except the provisions of subsection (B) of Section 2.88.050 shall not be applicable.

(Ord. 1208 § 1 (part), 2002)

(Ord. No. 1354, § 15, 3-1-2011; Ord. No. 1399, § 6, 3-24-2015)

In addition to any corrections, cancellations, or refunds ordered upon the granting of an exemption under Section 3.12.060, the commissioner may order any assessment levied under this chapter on any particular parcel of real property to be corrected, canceled, or refunded if such assessment was imposed in error and the nature of the error could not have been reasonably ascertained by the county or by the property owner prior to the action of the board on the report imposing the assessment. Application for correction, cancellation or refund under this section shall be made in writing to the clerk of the board within three months after that first date when the property owner reasonably could have known that the assessment was imposed in error. The decision of the commissioner under this section shall be final.

(Ord. 1208 § 1 (part), 2002)

(Ord. No. 1354, § 16, 3-1-2011; Ord. No. 1399, § 7, 3-24-2015; Ord. No. 1465, § 15, 12-15-2020)

All funds collected from assessments imposed under the procedure set forth in this chapter shall be expended only to provide the services for which the amounts were levied, including a reasonable administrative fee.

(Ord. 1208 § 1 (part), 2002)

(Ord. No. 1354, § 17, 3-1-2011)

Any unexpended residue of funds raised pursuant to this chapter which remain unspent at the end of the fiscal year for which such funds were raised shall be carried over for use only to partially offset the costs of providing the same type of services within CSA No. 4 during the next fiscal year.

(Ord. 1208 § 1 (part), 2002)

(Ord. No. 1354, § 18, 3-1-2011)