California Assembly Bill AB504 Amended / Bill

 BILL NUMBER: AB 504AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 14, 2011 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Williams FEBRUARY 15, 2011 An act to add Section 50079.2 to the Government Code, relating to taxation. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 504, as amended, Williams. School districts: County of Santa Barbara: special taxes. Existing law authorizes any school district to impose qualified special taxes, as defined, within the school district pursuant to specified procedures. This bill would, when any school district in the County of Santa Barbara is in any manner merged with one or more school districts so as to form a single district, as specified, authorize the district so formed to continue to impose any qualified special taxes imposed in any  of the predecessor school districts   former district, as defined,  provided that specified conditions are met, and would authorize the district so formed to also impose  a  new special  tax   taxes  , as provided. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the County of Santa Barbara. Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 50079.2 is added to the Government Code, to read: 50079.2. Notwithstanding any other law, when any school district in the County of Santa Barbara is in any manner merged with one or more school districts so as to form a single district pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 35542 of the Education Code, the district so formed may do both of the following: (a) Continue to impose any qualified special taxes imposed in any  of the predecessor school districts   former district as defined by Section 35516 of the Education Code,  provided that the revenues derived from those qualified special taxes remain segregated on a geographical basis conforming to the former boundaries of the school districts prior to unification. (b) Subject to Section 4 of Article XIII A and Article XIII C of the California Constitution, impose a new special tax   new special taxes  pursuant to the procedures established in Article 3.5 (commencing with Section 50075). The revenues derived from the imposition of the new special  tax shall   taxes may  be segregated on a geographical basis conforming to the former boundaries of the school districts prior to unification. SEC. 2. The Legislature finds and declares that a special law is necessary and that a general law cannot be made applicable within the meaning of Section 16 of Article IV of the California Constitution because of the unique need to allow  noncoterminous  school districts in the County of Santa Barbara that have merged  in any manner  to form a unified school district pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 35542 of the Education Code  to continue to impose qualified special taxes imposed in any  of the predecessor school districts   former district as defined by Section 35516 of the Education Code,  in order to provide critical program support in the unified school district in areas such as music, art, mathematics, and technology.