The Earthquake Safety and Public Buildings Rehabilitation Fund of 1990 is hereby created. The proceeds of bonds issued and sold pursuant to this chapter for the purposes of the programs established in Article 3 (commencing with Section 8878.60) and Article 4 (commencing with Section 8878.90) shall be deposited in the fund and shall be available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for expenditure pursuant to this chapter for the following purposes:

(a) Two hundred fifty million dollars ($250,000,000) for the following:

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(1) Financing the costs of retrofitting, reconstruction, repair, replacement, or relocation of state buildings or facilities which are seismically unsafe or have other safety deficiencies. For these projects, allowable costs include the cost of abating falling hazards; the cost of engineering, architectural, financial, and legal services; preparation of plans, specifications, studies, surveys, and estimates; administrative expenses; land acquisition for replacement projects, direct construction, or rehabilitation; and costs necessary or incidental to the project.

(2) Investigating state buildings which have been determined to be, or are suspected to be, inadequate for earthquake safety and associated fire and life safety deficiencies, asbestos, other toxics, or falling hazards, and handicap accessibility deficiencies.

(b) Fifty million dollars ($50,000,000) for the following:

(1) Financial assistance to local governments for the costs of retrofitting, reconstructing, repairing, replacing, or relocating earthquake-unsafe buildings or facilities, including, but not limited to, the abatement of falling hazards.

(2) Financial assistance to local governments for the costs of working drawings, plan reviews, and inspections to effect a significant life-hazard reduction. The costs of preliminary plans may be reimbursed upon the appropriation for the project. Reasonable administrative costs of administering state agencies may be appropriated from this source.

(c) Projects approved pursuant to subdivision (b) shall be limited to buildings or facilities which provide essential services or emergency or public safety services which meet the requirements of Section 8878.99 and for which local matching funds equaling at least 25 percent of the total cost of the seismic rehabilitation portion of the project are guaranteed.

(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the Seismic Safety Commission may, to further the objectives of subdivision (a) or (b), and if appropriated by the Legislature, use up to 1 percent of the proceeds of the bonds issued and sold pursuant to this chapter that are deposited into the Earthquake Safety and Public Buildings Rehabilitation Fund of 1990 to research methods, techniques, and technologies to identify and analyze existing potentially hazardous buildings and facilities, including, but not limited to, unreinforced masonry construction, as well as for the additional purposes of researching and developing methods, techniques, and technologies for seismic safety retrofitting of the buildings, as well as helping to develop and prepare building standards and administrative regulations relating to the retrofitting of the buildings for seismic safety purposes.

(1) All research funds appropriated pursuant to this subdivision shall be administered and disbursed according to guidelines established by the commission.

(2) These guidelines shall set forth the terms and conditions upon which the commission is prepared to fund research projects pursuant to this subdivision. The guidelines do not constitute rules, regulations, orders, or standards of general application.

(Added by Stats. 1990, Ch. 23, Sec. 2. Approved in Proposition 122 at the June 5, 1990, election.)