This chapter shall be known as the school facilities dedication and fee ordinance.

This chapter is adopted pursuant to the provisions of Section 66478 of the California Government Code. In the case of any conflict between the provisions of this chapter, and those of the California Government Code, the latter shall prevail.

This chapter is intended to implement the school facilities dedication and fees legislation in the city and to provide authority whereby the city, affected school districts, and applicants for land development approvals may undertake such reasonable steps as the City Council determines to be necessary to alleviate overcrowding of school facilities.

The City Council may from time to time, by resolution, issue regulations to establish procedures, interpretations and policy directions for the administration of this chapter.

The City Council of the city finds and declares as follows:

The general plan of the city provides for the location of public schools. Those interim school facilities to be constructed from fees paid or those lands to be dedicated for school facilities as required by this chapter shall be consistent with the general plan of the city.

Whenever the following words are used in this chapter, unless otherwise defined, they shall have the meaning ascribed to them in this section:

A residential development shall be exempt from the requirements of this chapter when it consists only of the following:

The city shall notify all potentially affected school districts of an application for any residential developments proposed for location within their boundaries. Such notice shall not be required if said district has already made the findings listed in Section 21.55.100 or for developments for which a grading permit or building permit are the only required city approvals.

If the governing body of the school district which operates an elementary or high school in the city makes a finding supported by clear and convincing evidence that (a) conditions of overcrowding exist in one or more attendance areas within the district which will impair the normal functioning of educational programs including the reason for such conditions existing; and (b) that all reasonable methods of mitigating conditions of overcrowding have been evaluated and no feasible methods for reducing such conditions exist, the governing body of the school district shall notify the City Council. The notice of findings sent to the city shall specify the mitigation measures considered by the school district. After the receipt of any notice of findings complying with this section, the City Council shall determine whether it concurs in such school district findings. The City Council may schedule and hold a public hearing on the matter of its proposed concurrence prior to making its determination. If the City Council concurs in such findings, the provisions of Section 21.55.120 shall be applicable to actions taken on residential development by a decision-making body.

Any notice of findings sent by a school district to the City Council shall specify:

Within the attendance area where it has been determined pursuant to Section 21.55.100 that conditions of overcrowding exist, no decision-making body shall approve an application for a residential development within such area, unless such decision-making body makes one of the following findings:

For the purpose of establishing an interim method of providing classroom facilities where overcrowding conditions exist as determined pursuant to Section 21.55.100, the city may require, as a condition to the approval of a residential development, the dedication of land, the payment of fees in lieu thereof, or a combination of both, as determined by a decision-making body during the hearings and other proceedings on specific residential development applications falling within its jurisdiction. Prior to imposition of the fees and/or dedications of land, it shall be necessary for a decision-making body acting on the application to make the following findings:

Only the payment of fees shall be required in subdivisions containing fifty lots or less and in residential developments where a building permit or grading permit are the only required city approvals. Sections 21.55.160, 21.55.170, 21.55.180 and 21.55.190 shall not apply to residential developments for which only fees may be required.

The standards for the amount of dedicated land or fees to be required shall be determined by the City Council and set by resolution. The governing board of each school district where a determination has been made pursuant to Section 21.55.100 that conditions of overcrowding exist, shall recommend standards for their attendance areas to the City Council. Such standards and the facts supporting them shall be transmitted to the City Council within sixty days of a request therefor by the City Council or within sixty days following the issuance of the initial permit for the development. Failure to provide such recommendation shall constitute a waiver by the governing body of the school district of the fees. If the City Council concurs in such recommended standards, they shall, until revised, be used by decision-making bodies in situations where dedications of land and/or fees are required as a condition to the approval of a residential development. Nothing in this section shall prevent the City Council from using standards other than those recommended by the school district in the event the City Council is unable to concur in those transmitted by the district.

At the time of filing an application for approval of a residential development located within an attendance area where the findings required by Section 21.55.100 have been made, the applicant shall, as part of such filing, indicate whether he or she prefers to dedicate land for school facilities, to pay a fee in lieu thereof, or do a combination of these. If the applicant prefers to dedicate land, he or she shall suggest the specific land.

Upon receipt of an application for a residential development within an attendance area where the findings required by Section 21.55.100 have been made, the City Planner shall notify the affected school districts thereof. Said notification shall be made no later than thirty days prior to consideration of the application by a decision-making body.

Following the action by a decision-making body to require the dedication of land or the payment of fees, or both, the City Planner shall notify each school district affected thereby. The governing body of the school district shall then submit a schedule specifying how it will use the land or fees, or both, to solve the conditions of overcrowding. The schedule shall include the school sites to be used, the classroom facilities to be made available, and the times when such facilities will be available. In the event the governing body of the school district cannot meet the schedule, it shall submit modifications to the City Council and the reasons for the modifications.

When land is to be dedicated, it shall be offered for dedication to the affected school district in substantially the same manner as prescribed in Title 20 regarding streets and public easements for subdivisions. Dedicated land which subsequently is determined by the school district to be unsuitable for school purposes may be sold with the approval of the City Council. The funds derived therefrom must be used in accordance with this chapter.

If the payment of a fee is required, such payment or the pro rata amount thereof shall be made at the time a building permit within the residential development is approved and issued.

Fees paid under this chapter shall be held in trust by the city. Such fees, plus accrued interest, less a reasonable service and handling charge of no more than the accrued interest, shall be transferred to the school districts operating schools within the attendance area from which the fees were collected from time to time as the City Council may determine.

All land or fees, or both, collected pursuant to this chapter and transferred to a school district, shall be held in trust and shall be used only by the district for the purpose of providing interim elementary, junior high or high school classroom and related facilities in the attendance area from which the land or fees were collected.

If a residential development approval is vacated or voided, and if the affected school district has not made use of the land and/or fees collected therefor, and if the applicant so requests, the governing board of the school district shall order the land and/or fees returned to the applicant.

If two separate school districts operate schools in an attendance area where the City Council has concurred that overcrowding conditions exist for both school districts, the City Council will enter into an agreement with the governing body of each school district for the purpose of determining the distribution of revenues from the fees levied pursuant to this chapter. In the event the school districts do not agree, the city shall retain all fees until an agreement is secured.

Any school district receiving funds pursuant to this chapter shall maintain a separate account for any fees paid and shall file a report with the City Council on the balance in the account at the end of the previous fiscal year and the facilities leased, purchased, or constructed during the previous fiscal year. In addition, the report shall specify which attendance areas will continue to be overcrowded when the fall term begins and where conditions of overcrowding will no longer exist. Such report shall be filed by August 1st of each year and shall be filed more frequently at the request of the City Council.

When it is determined by the City Council that conditions of overcrowding no longer exist in an attendance area, decision-making bodies shall cease levying any fee or requiring the dedication of any land for that area pursuant to this chapter. Action under this section shall not affect the validity of conditions already imposed for levy of fees and dedications of land and such conditions shall remain binding.

This chapter shall become operative on October 5, 1978.

Residential developments for which the only city approvals required are a grading permit or building permit are exempt from the provisions of this chapter, provided the application for such grading permit or building permit has been accepted by the city as complete and was on file with the city on September 5, 1978.