Santa Barbara County Municipal Code Art. VII Park or Recreation Charges in County Service Areas

The purpose of this article is to provide a procedure for collection of charges for local park, recreation or parkway facilities and services provided in county service areas.

(Ord. No. 3930, § 1; Ord. No. 4965, § 1, 5-10-2016)

The ordinance codified in this article is provided for in section 25210.66a of the Government Code.

(Ord. No. 3930, § 1; Ord. No. 4965, § 1, 5-10-2016)

(a) For any county service area or zone of a county service area providing services under article 6 (commencing with Government Code section 25210.60) of the County Service Area Law, the board of supervisors may fix and collect charges to pay, in whole or in part, for the costs of providing the services. The revenue obtained thereby may be in lieu of, or supplemental to, revenue obtained by the levy of taxes or other methods. The charges may vary by reason of the nature of the use to correspond to the cost and the value of the services. The charges may be determined by apportioning the total cost, not otherwise offset by other available revenue, of the service to each parcel therein in proportion to the estimated benefit from the service to be received by each parcel. Alternatively, the board of supervisors may apportion the total cost by using any method it determines to be fair and reasonable in apportioning benefit.

(b) This article provides a procedure for collecting charges for local park, recreation, or parkway facilities and services on the tax roll in the same manner and at the same time as general ad valorem taxes are collected.

(c) Once a year the board of supervisors shall cause written reports to be prepared which shall contain a description (by assessor's parcel number) of each parcel of real property within a county service area which receives services, together with the amount of the charge for each parcel for the ensuing fiscal year, computed on the basis of estimated benefit to each such parcel of real property from each such service. Such reports shall be filed with the clerk of the board of supervisors.

(d) Upon the filing of such reports, the clerk of the board of supervisors shall fix a time, date and place for a hearing on the reports and for filing objections or protests thereof. The clerk of the board of supervisors shall publish a notice of such hearing, as provided in Government Code section 6066, prior to the date set for hearing, in a newspaper of general circulation, printed and published in the County of Santa Barbara.

(e) At the time, date and place stated in the notice, the board of supervisors shall hear and consider all objections or protests, if any, to the reports and may continue the hearing from time to time. Upon conclusion of the hearing, the board of supervisors may adopt, revise, change, reduce or modify any charge and shall make its determination upon each charge as described in the reports and thereafter may, by resolution, confirm the reports. The board of supervisors shall not, however, impose a charge upon a federal or state governmental agency or another local agency.

(f) A copy of the confirmed reports shall be delivered to the county auditor for inclusion into the appropriate tax bills.

(g) The charges set forth in the reports, as confirmed, shall appear as a separate item on each tax bill. The charge shall be collected at the same time and in the same manner as ordinary county ad valorem property taxes are collected and shall be subject to the same penalties and the same procedures and sale in case of delinquency as provided for such taxes. All laws applicable to the levy, collection and enforcement of county ad valorem property taxes shall be applicable to such charge and it shall become a lien against the real property, except that, if for the first year such charge is levied, the real property to which such charge relates has been transferred or conveyed to a bona fide purchaser for value, or if a lien of a bona fide encumbrance for value has been created and attached thereon, prior to the date on which the first installation of such taxes would become delinquent, the charge confirmed pursuant to this section shall not result in a lien against such real property, but instead shall be transferred to the unsecured roll for collection.

(h) Whenever a railroad, gas, water, or electric utility right-of-way or electric line right-of-way is included, within the service area, or zone of the service area, the railroad, gas, water or electric utility right-of-way or electric line right-of-way shall be subject to the charges authorized only if, and to the extent that, it is found that it will benefit from the particular extended service, and the railroad, gas, water, or electric utility right-of-way or electric line right-of-way shall be subject to the same penalties, and the same procedure and sale, in case of delinquency as other properties in the service area or zone. In determining whether or not the railroad, gas, water, or electric utility right-of-way or electric line right-of-way benefits from extended service, its use as a right-of-way for a railroad, gas, water or electric utility shall be presumed to be permanent.

(Ord. No. 3930, § 1; Ord. No. 4965, § 1, 5-10-2016)

The provisions of this article shall remain in effect even if the provisions of article 6 of the County Service Area Law are repealed so long as charges such as those provided for in article 6 continue to be authorized in county service areas.

(Ord. No. 3930, § 1; Ord. No. 4965, § 1, 5-10-2016)