(a) A commission may initiate a proposal for the dissolution of a district that is eligible for the protest threshold under Section 57093 if both of the following conditions are satisfied:

(1) At a public hearing for which notice has been published and posted, the commission approves, adopts, or accepts a study prepared pursuant to Section 56430 that includes a finding, based on a preponderance of the evidence, that one or more of the following conditions is met:

Ask a legal question, get an answer ASAP!
Click here to chat with a lawyer about your rights.

(A) The district has one or more documented chronic service provision deficiencies that substantially deviate from industry or trade association standards or other government regulations and its board or management is not actively engaged in efforts to remediate the documented service deficiencies.

(B) The district spent public funds in an unlawful or reckless manner inconsistent with the principal act or other statute governing the district and has not taken any action to prevent similar future spending.

(C) The district has shown willful neglect by failing to consistently adhere to the California Public Records Act (Division 10 (commencing with Section 7920.000) of Title 1) and other public disclosure laws to which the agency is subject.

(D) The district has failed to meet the minimum number of times required in its principal act in the prior calendar year and has taken no action to remediate the failures to ensure future meetings are conducted on a timely basis.

(E) The district has consistently failed to perform timely audits in the prior three years, or failed to meet minimum financial requirements under Section 26909 over the prior five years as an alternative to performing an audit.

(F) The district’s recent annual audits show chronic issues with the district’s fiscal controls and the district has taken no action to remediate the issues.

(2) (A) At a public hearing for which notice has been published and posted, the commission adopts a resolution of intent to initiate dissolution based on one or more of the required findings in paragraph (1). The resolution shall provide a remediation period of not less than 12 months during which the district may take steps to remedy the specified deficiencies and also specify a date upon which the district shall provide the commission a mid-point report on such remediation efforts at a regularly scheduled commission meeting.

(B) At the conclusion of the remediation period, at a public hearing for which notice has been published and posted, the commission shall take one of the following actions:

(i) If the commission finds the district has adequately remedied the deficiencies, the commission shall rescind the notice of intent to initiate dissolution and no further action is required.

(ii) If the commission finds that the district has failed to remedy the deficiencies, the commission may adopt a resolution to dissolve the district making the determinations in paragraph (1) and in subdivision (b) of Section 56881.

(b) (1) Any public notice required pursuant to this section shall be published and posted pursuant to Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 56150) of Part 1.

(2) The public hearings required under subdivision (a) may be combined into a single public hearing for which notice has been published and posted.

(c) The commission’s power to initiate dissolution of a district pursuant to this section is separate from and in addition to the commission’s power to initiate dissolution pursuant to subparagraphs (B) and (G) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) of Section 56375.

(Added by Stats. 2022, Ch. 89, Sec. 2. (SB 938) Effective January 1, 2023.)