Downtown revitalization and economic recovery financing districts.

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not specify the exact distribution of incremental tax revenues or the specific labor standards for commercial-to-residential conversion projects.

Downtown Revitalization and Economic Recovery Financing Districts

AB-1445 allows cities, counties, or city and county governments (except San Francisco) to create special financing districts for commercial-to-residential conversion projects using incremental tax revenues.

What This Bill Does

• Allows other cities, counties, or city and county governments besides San Francisco to form downtown revitalization and economic recovery financing districts.
• Requires these new districts to follow the same rules as San Francisco's existing district when setting up their own district.
• Modifies the requirements for preparing a financing plan in these new districts.

Who It Names or Affects

• Cities, counties, or city and county governments that want to create special financing districts for downtown revitalization.
• Commercial property owners who convert their buildings into residential properties in these districts.

Terms To Know

Incremental tax revenue

The extra money collected from taxes after a commercial-to-residential conversion project is completed and starts generating more tax income than before.

Certificate of occupancy

A document issued by the city or county that says a building is ready to be used for its intended purpose, like living in if it's a residential property.

Limits and Unknowns

• Does not specify how much ad valorem property tax revenue must be allocated to local governments.
• Removes the requirement for commercial-to-residential conversion projects to comply with labor standards adopted by San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors and instead subjects such projects to specified labor standards.

Official Summary Text

AB 1445, Haney.
Downtown revitalization and economic recovery financing districts.
Existing law authorizes the legislative body of a city or a county to establish an enhanced infrastructure financing district to finance public capital facilities or other specified projects of communitywide significance, including the acquisition, construction, or rehabilitation of housing for persons of very low, low, and moderate income.
Existing law authorizes the City and County of San Francisco to establish a downtown revitalization and economic recovery financing district for the purpose of financing commercial-to-residential conversion projects with incremental tax revenues generated by commercial-to-residential conversion projects within the district. Existing law requires the City and County of San Francisco to establish a board for the district at the same time that it adopts the resolution of intention to form the district, and
requires the district to prepare a downtown revitalization financing plan (financing plan) that includes specified information and requirements, including that the first distribution of incremental tax revenues distributed back to a commercial-to-residential conversion project commence with the fiscal year that begins after the project is issued a certificate of occupancy. Existing law, among other things, requires a district to establish a process for eligible commercial-to-residential conversion projects identified in the financing plan to opt into receiving incremental tax revenue generated by the respective project.
Existing law specifies that the commercial-to-residential conversion
projects that opt in to receive incremental tax revenue are public works for which prevailing wages are required to be paid, as specified, and requires the commercial-to-residential conversion projects that opt in to receiving incremental tax revenue to comply with labor standards adopted by the Board of Supervisors of the City and County of San Francisco, as provided.
This bill would additionally authorize any city, county, or city and county, except the City and County of San Francisco, to establish a downtown revitalization and economic recovery financing district for the purpose of financing specified commercial-to-residential conversion projects with incremental tax revenues generated by commercial-to-residential conversion projects within the district. The bill would require the district to meet the requirements imposed on the City and County of San Francisco when establishing a downtown revitalization and economic recovery financing district described
above and would modify the required components of the district’s proposed financing plan, as provided. The bill would make various conforming changes to the above-described provisions in this regard and would also make technical changes.
This bill would further specify that, for purposes of the preparation of a financing plan, if the city, county, or city and county does not issue certificates of occupancy, the first distribution of incremental tax revenue to a commercial-to-residential conversion project shall be made with the fiscal year that begins after the project completes a final inspection. The bill would
remove the requirement that commercial-to-residential conversion projects that opt in to receive incremental tax revenue comply with labor standards adopted by the Board of Supervisors of the City and County of San Francisco and would instead subject such projects to specified labor standards.
Existing law requires a certain portion of any ad valorem property tax revenue annually allocated to the local government that is specified in the adopted financing plan, as described, to be allocated to and, when collected, apportioned to a special fund of the district for all lawful purposes of the district. Existing law also requires those revenues to be allocated and apportioned to the local government when the district ceases to exist pursuant to the financing plan.
This bill would remove those provisions.

Current Bill Text

Download Bill PDF