2009 California Government Code - Section 17572-17574.5 :: Article 1.5. Legislatively Determined Mandate Procedure

17572.  The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
   (a) Early settlement of mandate claims will allow the commission
to focus its efforts on rendering sound quasi-judicial decisions
regarding complicated disputes over the existence of state-mandated
local programs.
   (b) Early settlement of mandate claims will provide timely
information to the Legislature regarding local costs of state
requirements and timely reimbursement to local agencies or school
districts.
   (c) It is the intent of the Legislature to provide for an orderly
process for settling mandate claims in which the parties are in
substantial agreement. Nothing in this article diminishes the right
of a local agency or school district that chooses not to accept
reimbursement pursuant to this article from filing a test claim with
the commission or taking other steps to obtain reimbursement pursuant
to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.

17573.  (a) Notwithstanding Section 17551, the Department of Finance
and a local agency, school district, or statewide association may
jointly request of the chairpersons of the committees in each house
of the Legislature that consider appropriations, and the chairpersons
of the committees and appropriate subcommittees in each house of the
Legislature that consider the State Budget, that the Legislature (1)
determine that a statute or executive order, or portion thereof,
mandates a new program or higher level of service requiring
reimbursement of local governments pursuant to Section 6 of Article
XIII B of the California Constitution, (2) establish a reimbursement
methodology, and (3) appropriate funds for reimbursement of costs.
For purposes of this section, "statewide association" includes a
statewide association representing local agencies or school
districts, as defined in Sections 17518 and 17519.
   (b) The statute of limitations specified in Section 17551 shall be
tolled from the date a local agency, school district, or statewide
association contacts the Department of Finance or responds to a
Department of Finance request to initiate a joint request for a
legislatively determined mandate pursuant to subdivision (a), to (1)
the date that the Budget Act for the subsequent fiscal year is
adopted if a joint request is submitted pursuant to subdivision (a),
or (2) the date on which the Department of Finance, or a local
agency, school district, or statewide association notifies the other
party of its decision not to submit a joint request. A local agency,
school district, or statewide association, or the Department of
Finance shall provide written notification to the commission of each
of these dates.
   (c) A joint request made under subdivision (a) shall be in writing
and include all of the following:
   (1) Identification of those provisions of the statute or executive
order, or portion thereof, that mandate a new program or higher
level of service requiring reimbursement of local agencies or school
districts pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution, a proposed reimbursement methodology, and the period of
reimbursement.
   (2) A list of eligible claimants and a statewide estimate for the
initial claiming period and annual dollar amount necessary to
reimburse local agencies or school districts to comply with that
statute or executive order that mandates a new program or higher
level of service.
   (3) Documentation of significant support among local agencies or
school districts for the proposed reimbursement methodology,
including, but not limited to, endorsements by statewide associations
and letters of approval from local agencies or school districts.
   (d) A joint request authorized by this section may be submitted to
the Legislature pursuant to subdivision (a) at any time after
enactment of a statute or issuance of an executive order, regardless
of whether a test claim on the same statute or executive order is
pending with the commission. If a test claim is pending before the
commission, the period of reimbursement established by that filing
shall apply to a joint request filed pursuant to this section.
   (e) (1) If the Legislature accepts the joint request and
determines that those provisions of the statute or executive order,
or portion thereof, mandate a new program or higher level of service
requiring reimbursement of local agencies or school districts
pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution, it shall adopt a statute declaring that the statute or
executive order, or portion thereof, is a legislatively determined
mandate and specify the term and period of reimbursement and
methodology for reimbursing eligible local agencies or school
districts. If no term is specified in the statute, then the term
shall be five years, beginning July 1 of the year in which the
statute is enacted.
   (2) For the purpose of this subdivision, "term" means the number
of years specified in the statute adopted pursuant to this
subdivision for reimbursing eligible local agencies or school
districts for a legislatively determined mandate.
   (f) When the Legislature adopts a statute pursuant to paragraph
(1) of subdivision (e) on a mandate subject to subdivision (b) of
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution, the
Legislature shall do either of the following:
   (1) Appropriate in the Budget Act the full payable amount for
reimbursement to local agencies that has not been previously paid.
   (2) Suspend the operation of the mandate pursuant to Section 17581
or repeal the mandate.
   (g) The Department of Finance, or a local agency, school district,
or statewide association shall notify the commission of actions
taken pursuant to this section, as specified below:
   (1) Provide the commission with a copy of any communications
regarding development of a joint request under this section and a
copy of a joint request when it is submitted to the Legislature.
   (2) Notify the commission of the date of (A) the Legislature's
action on a joint request in the Budget Act, or (B) the Department of
Finance's decision not to submit a joint request on a specific
statute or executive order.
   (h) Upon receipt of notice that a joint request has been submitted
to the Legislature on the same statute or executive order as a
pending test claim, the commission may stay its proceedings on the
pending test claim upon the request of any party.
   (i) Upon enactment of a statute declaring a legislatively
determined mandate, enactment of a reimbursement methodology, and
appropriation for reimbursement of the full payable amount that has
not been previously paid in the Budget Act, all of the following
shall apply:
   (1) The Controller shall prepare claiming instructions pursuant to
Section 17558, if applicable.
   (2) The commission shall not adopt a statement of decision,
parameters and guidelines, or statewide cost estimate on the same
statute or executive order unless a local agency or school district
that has rejected the amount of reimbursement files a test claim or
takes over a withdrawn test claim on the same statute or executive
order.
   (3) A local agency or school district accepting payment for the
statute or executive order, or portion thereof, that mandates a new
program or higher level of service pursuant to Section 6 of Article
XIII B of the California Constitution shall not be required to submit
parameters and guidelines if it is the successful test claimant
pursuant to Section 17557.

17574.  (a) A local agency or school district agrees to the
following terms and conditions when it accepts reimbursement for a
legislatively determined mandate pursuant to Section17573:
   (1) Any unpaid reimbursement claims the local agency or school
district has previously filed with the Controller pursuant to Section
17561 and derived from parameters and guidelines or reasonable
reimbursement methodology shall be deemed withdrawn if they are on
the same statute or executive order of a legislatively determined
mandate and for the same period of reimbursement.
   (2) The payment of the amount agreed upon pursuant to Section
17573 constitutes full reimbursement of its costs for that mandate
for the applicable period of reimbursement.
   (3) The methodology upon which the payment is calculated is an
appropriate reimbursement methodology for the term specified in
subdivision (e) of Section 17573.
   (4) A test claim filed with the commission by a local agency or
school district on the same statute or executive order as a
legislatively determined mandate shall be withdrawn.
   (5) A test claim on the same statute or executive order as a
legislatively determined mandate will not be filed with the
commission except as provided in subdivision (c).
   (b) If a local agency or school district rejects reimbursement for
a legislatively determined mandate pursuant to Section 17573, a
local agency or school district may take over a withdrawn test claim
within six months after the date the test claim is withdrawn, by
substitution of parties and compliance with the filing requirements
in subdivision (b) of Section 17553, as specified in the commission's
notice of withdrawal.
   (c) (1) Notwithstanding Section 17551 and subdivision (b) of
Section 17573, a local agency or school district may file a test
claim on the same statute or executive order as a legislatively
determined mandate if one of the following applies:
   (A) The Legislature amends the reimbursement methodology and the
local agency or school district rejects reimbursement.
   (B) The term of the legislatively determined mandate, as defined
in subdivision (e) of Section 17573, has expired.
   (C) The term of the legislatively determined mandate, as defined
in subdivision (e) of Section 17573, is amended and the local agency
or school district rejects reimbursement under the new term.
   (D) The mandate is subject to subdivision (b) of Section 6 of
Article XIII B and the Legislature does both of the following:
   (i) Fails to appropriate in the Budget Act funds to reimburse
local agencies for the full payable amount that has not been
previously paid based on the reimbursement methodology enacted by the
Legislature.
   (ii) Does not repeal or suspend the mandate pursuant to Section
17581.
   (2) A test claim filed pursuant to the authority granted by this
subdivision shall be filed within six months of the date an action
described in subparagraph (A), (B), (C), or (D) of paragraph (1)
occurs.
   (d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, a local
agency or school district shall not file a test claim pursuant to
this section if the statute of limitations specified in subdivision
(c) of Section 17551 expired before the date a legislatively
determined mandate was adopted by the Legislature pursuant to Section
17573.
   (e) Notwithstanding the period of reimbursement specified in
subdivision (e) of Section 17557, a test claim filed pursuant to this
section shall establish eligibility for reimbursement beginning with
the fiscal year of an action described in subparagraph (A), (B),
(C), or (D) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (c).

17574.5.  The determination of a legislatively determined mandate
pursuant to Section 17573 shall not be binding on the commission when
making its determination pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section
17551.