Section 17998.1 Of Chapter 8. Code Enforcement Incentive Program From California Health And Safety Code >> Division 13. >> Part 1.5. >> Chapter 8.
17998.1
. The Department of Housing and Community Development, upon
appropriation by the Legislature for this purpose, shall make funds
available as matching grants to cities, counties, and cities and
counties to increase staffing or capital expenditures dedicated to
local building code enforcement efforts. The funds shall be subject
to all of the following provisions:
(a) Grants shall be made to grantees that operate local building
code enforcement programs for more than three years.
(b) The city, county, or city and county shall provide a cash or
in-kind local match of at least 25 percent in the first year, at
least 50 percent in the second year, and at least 75 percent in the
third year.
(c) The maximum grant to a single recipient shall not exceed one
million dollars ($1,000,000). The department may establish minimum
grant levels and lower maximum grant levels, depending on the amount
and uses of funding sources.
(d) Funds may be used to supplement, but shall not supplant,
existing local funding for code enforcement related to housing code
maintenance. The applicants shall demonstrate an intent to ensure
cooperative and effective working relationships between code
enforcement officials and local prosecutorial agencies, the local
health department, and local government housing rehabilitation
financing agencies.
(e) Within six months after completion of each program cycle
approved by the department and funded by the Legislature, grant
recipients shall submit a report to their local legislative bodies
and to the department regarding the results of the expanded housing
maintenance code enforcement efforts and recommendations for changes
in state or local laws and regulations related to code enforcement.
The department shall summarize the results and transmit the reports
to the Legislature within six months after the grant recipient's
submission date. The department may require submission of interim
progress reports.
(f) The department may use up to 5 percent of the funds
appropriated by the Legislature for administering the programs
authorized by this chapter.
(g) The department shall award the grants on a competitive basis
with criteria to be established and specified in a "Notice of Funding
Availability." The criteria shall be weighted for local government
applicants with neighborhoods populated by high percentages of lower
income households, with significant numbers of deteriorating housing
stock containing reported or suspected housing code violations and
often owned by absentee owners. The criteria shall also be weighted
for applications that propose to identify and prosecute owners with
habitual, repeated, multiple code violations that have remained
unabated beyond the period required for abatement. In addition to
those criteria, the department shall attempt to award grants to
cities, counties, and cities and counties in order to obtain a wide
range of population sizes and compositions and geographical
distribution. Eligibility criteria, applications, awards, and other
program requirements implementing this chapter shall not be subject
to the requirements of Chapter 2.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of
Part 1 of Title 2 of the Government Code.