KLS Keeping Law Simple Legislation in plain English

Straight-ahead summaries built from the official bill text. We keep the source links front and center and leave the decision up to you.

Back to California

AB-2385 • 2026

Local reconstruction agencies.

Local reconstruction agencies.

Taxes
Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
Petrie-Norris
Last action
2026-04-23
Official status
From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 10. Noes 0.) (April 22).
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The bill does not specify how long reconstruction agencies can exist beyond the 45-year limit from bond issuance or loan approval.

Local Reconstruction Agencies

This law allows cities and counties to prepare disaster recovery plans before disasters and establish reconstruction agencies after disasters with specific powers.

What This Bill Does

  • Requires cities or counties that prepare disaster recovery plans to ensure their general plan is consistent with the disaster recovery plan.
  • Expands the types of recovery actions included in contingency plans, including short-term, intermediate, and long-term recovery.
  • Allows local governments to create reconstruction agencies after a disaster by adopting an ordinance before the disaster happens.
  • Gives reconstruction agencies powers like making contracts, selling bonds, and accepting financial help from public or private sources.
  • Requires reconstruction agency boards to include members of legislative bodies and the public.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Cities and counties that prepare for disasters by creating recovery plans.
  • Local reconstruction agencies created after a disaster.
  • People living in areas affected by disasters who benefit from coordinated recovery efforts.

Terms To Know

Disaster Recovery Plan
A plan made before a disaster to help with quick and organized recovery afterwards.
Reconstruction Agency
An agency created after a disaster to coordinate rebuilding efforts in affected areas.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill requires local reconstruction agencies to cease operations within 45 years of bond issuance or loan approval.
  • It is unclear what specific taxes local reconstruction agencies may collect and under what conditions.

Bill History

  1. 2026-04-23 California Legislative Information

    From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 10. Noes 0.) (April 22).

  2. 2026-04-15 California Legislative Information

    Re-referred to Com. on L. GOV.

  3. 2026-04-14 California Legislative Information

    From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on L. GOV. Read second time and amended.

  4. 2026-04-14 California Legislative Information

    From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on L. GOV. (Ayes 6. Noes 0.) (April 13). Re-referred to Com. on L. GOV.

  5. 2026-04-09 California Legislative Information

    Re-referred to Com. on E.M.

  6. 2026-04-08 California Legislative Information

    From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on E.M. Read second time and amended.

  7. 2026-03-19 California Legislative Information

    Re-referred to Coms. on E.M and L. GOV. pursuant to Assembly Rule 96.

  8. 2026-03-09 California Legislative Information

    Referred to Coms. on L. GOV. and E.M.

  9. 2026-02-21 California Legislative Information

    From printer. May be heard in committee March 23.

  10. 2026-02-20 California Legislative Information

    Read first time. To print.

Official Summary Text

AB 2385, as amended, Petrie-Norris.
Local reconstruction agencies.
The Community Redevelopment Law established redevelopment agencies in each community and granted specified powers to those redevelopment agencies for the purpose of promoting redevelopment in blighted areas. Existing law dissolved those community redevelopment agencies in 2012.
Other existing law, the Disaster Recovery Reconstruction Act of 1986, authorizes each city, county, or other local subdivision, as provided, to prepare, prior to a disaster, plans and ordinances facilitating the expeditious and orderly recovery and reconstruction of the area in case of a disaster. Existing law authorizes the plans and ordinances to include, among other things, a contingency plan of action and organization for short-term and long-term recovery and reconstruction to be instituted after a disaster. Existing law authorizes the plans and ordinances to
include the authority and proposed organization for establishment of a local reconstruction authority with powers parallel to those of a community redevelopment agency, except as specified.
This bill would refer to those plans as a disaster recovery plan and would require a city or county that
adopts
prepares
a disaster recovery plan to
ensure that its general plan is consistent with, and references, the disaster recovery plan.
amend its general plan, if necessary, as provided, to ensure consistency between both plans.
The bill would revise the contingency plan of action and organization
to include intermediate recovery and reconstruction, in addition to the short-term and long-term recovery and reconstruction, and would specify elements that may be included in the contingency plan of action and organization. The bill would require the Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation, in consultation with other specified state and local entities, to assess the recovery and rebuilding needs of jurisdictions across the state and develop model ordinance language, as provided. The bill would also require the Office of Emergency Services, in consultation with the Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation, to prepare guidance on disaster recovery plans, as provided.
This bill would authorize a city, county, or other local subdivision of the state to adopt an ordinance
prior to a disaster, which could be invoked as soon as possible after a disaster, that would establish
establishing
a local reconstruction agency, rather than a reconstruction authority, to coordinate disaster recovery efforts in the areas impacted by
the disaster.
a disaster and would require the ordinance to include procedures for determining the boundaries of a local reconstruction area, as defined.
The bill would authorize the ordinance to grant the reconstruction agency specified
powers, similar to those previously authorized for a community redevelopment agency,
powers,
including, among other powers, to sue and be sued, to make and execute contracts, to issue or sell bonds, and to accept financial assistance from any public or private source. The bill would also authorize a reconstruction agency to
accept, through a dedication by the city, county, or other taxing entity, incremental
accept certain
tax revenues derived from
local sales and use taxes or from transactions and use taxes,
specified taxes levied upon taxable property within the local reconstruction area each year,
as provided.
This bill would require the local reconstruction agency to have a board with a membership consisting of members of the legislative bodies of participating affected taxing entities, as defined, and members of the public, as prescribed. The bill would deem the board a local public agency and make it subject to the Ralph M. Brown Act, the California Public Records Act, and the Political Reform Act of 1974.
This bill would require a city, county, or other local subdivision of the state to ensure that it specifies a date on which the local recovery agency will cease to exist, and would prohibit that
date from being more than 45 years from the date on which a bond is issued or the issuance of a loan is approved, as provided.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
Download Bill PDF