Part 1.5. Community Redevelopment Disaster Project Law of California Health And Safety Code >> Division 24. >> Part 1.5.

(a) (1) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
  (A) Floods, fires, hurricanes, earthquakes, storms, tidal waves, or other catastrophes are disasters that can harm the public health, safety, and welfare. Communities need effective methods for rebuilding after disasters.
  (B) The extraordinary powers of redevelopment agencies have been and can be useful in the reconstruction of buildings and in stimulating local economic activity.
  (C) The procedures and requirements of the Community Redevelopment Law (Part 1 (commencing with Section 33000)) restrict the ability of local officials to respond quickly after disasters.
  (2) In enacting this part, it is, therefore, the intent of the Legislature to provide communities with alternative procedures and requirements for redevelopment after disasters.
  (b) Any redevelopment agency or project area established pursuant to the Community Redevelopment Financial Assistance and Disaster Project Law (former Part 1.5 (commencing with Section 34000)), as that law existed prior to the effective date of the act that repeals that law, shall remain in existence and subject to that law as if the Legislature had not repealed that law.
  (c) This part shall apply only to redevelopment activities undertaken pursuant to its provisions on and after the effective date of the act that adds this part.
  (d) This part is known and may be cited as the Community Redevelopment Disaster Project Law.

(a) Except as specifically provided in this part, a community shall comply with the Community Redevelopment Law.
  (b) A community may establish a redevelopment agency, and adopt and implement a redevelopment plan pursuant to this part, within a disaster area if the community has commenced the adoption of the redevelopment plan within six months after the President of the United States has determined the disaster to be a major disaster pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 34002 and the legislative body has adopted the redevelopment plan within 24 months after the President of the United States has determined the disaster to be a major disaster pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 34002.

(a) As used in this part:
  (1) "Disaster" means any flood, fire, hurricane, earthquake, storm, tidal wave, or other catastrophe occurring on or after January 1, 1996, for which the Governor of the state has certified the need for assistance and which the President of the United States has determined to be a major disaster pursuant to the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (Public Law 93-288), as it may be from time to time amended.
  (2) "Project area" is an area that meets both of the following requirements:
  (A) It is an area that is predominantly urbanized, as that term is defined in paragraph (3).
  (B) It is limited to an area in which the disaster damage has caused conditions that are so prevalent and so substantial that they have caused a reduction, or a lack, of the normal predisaster usage of the area to an extent that causes a serious physical and economic burden that cannot reasonably be expected to be reversed or alleviated during the term of the redevelopment plan by private enterprise or governmental action, or both, without redevelopment.
  (3) "Predominantly urbanized" means that not less than 80 percent of the land in the project area meets the requirements of paragraphs (1) and (3) of subdivision (b) of Section 33320.1.
  (4) "Redevelopment agency" means any agency provided for and authorized to function pursuant to the Community Redevelopment Law or this part.
  (b) Except as otherwise provided in this part, all words, terms, and phrases in this part shall have the same meanings as set forth in the Community Redevelopment Law.

Any community in which a disaster has occurred, and which prior to January 1, 1996, had not authorized a redevelopment agency to transact business or exercise any powers, may, by ordinance, declare the need for an agency to function in the community. The ordinance of the legislative body declaring that there is a need for an agency to function in the community and the ordinance adopting the redevelopment plan shall be subject to referendum as prescribed by law for the ordinances of the legislative body.

Notwithstanding any provision of the Community Redevelopment Law, any redevelopment agency may plan, adopt, and implement a redevelopment plan, and the redevelopment agency and the legislative body of the community may approve a redevelopment plan for a project in a disaster area pursuant to the Community Redevelopment Law, without regard to any of the following:
  (a) The requirements of Sections 33301 and 33302 that there be a planning commission and a general plan.
  (b) The requirements of Sections 33320.1 and 33322 that the project area be a blighted area or that the project area be selected by a planning commission.
  (c) The requirement of Section 33331 that the redevelopment plan shall conform to a general plan.
  (d) The requirement of Section 33346 that the redevelopment plan be submitted to the planning commission.
  (e) The requirements of Section 33367 that the ordinance of the legislative body adopting the redevelopment plan shall contain findings (1) that the project area is a blighted area and (2) that the redevelopment plan conforms to the general plan of the community.
  (f) The "relocation findings and statement" required by Section 33367 or the requirement of subdivision (f) of Section 33352 that a relocation plan be adopted prior to the adoption of the redevelopment plan. Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to eliminate the requirement that a redevelopment agency comply with the California Real Property Acquisition and Relocation Assistance Act (Chapter 16 (commencing with Section 7260) of Division 7 of Title 1 of the Government Code).
  (g) The time limits required by Section 33333.2. However, any redevelopment plan adopted pursuant to this part shall contain the following time limits:
  (1) A time limit on the establishing of loans, advances, and indebtedness to be paid with the proceeds of property taxes received pursuant to Section 33670, which may not exceed 10 years from the adoption of the redevelopment plan.
  (2) A time limit, not to exceed 10 years from the adoption of the redevelopment plan, on the effectiveness of the redevelopment plan.
  (3) A time limit, not to exceed 30 years from the adoption of the redevelopment plan, to repay indebtedness with the proceeds of property taxes received pursuant to Section 33670.

Notwithstanding subdivision (g) of Section 34004, the time limit on the effectiveness of the redevelopment plan for the County of San Bernardino Redevelopment Agency's Cedar Glen Disaster Recovery Project Area shall not exceed 15 years from the adoption of the redevelopment plan.

(a) Notwithstanding subdivision (k) of Section 33352, the California Environmental Quality Act (Division 13 (commencing with Section 21000) of the Public Resources Code) shall not apply to the adoption of a redevelopment plan prepared pursuant to this part if the redevelopment agency determines at a public hearing, noticed in accord with this section, that the need to adopt a redevelopment plan at the soonest possible time in order to use the authority in the Community Redevelopment Disaster Project Law requires the redevelopment agency to delay application of the provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act to the redevelopment plan in accordance with this section.
  (b) If the redevelopment agency finds, pursuant to subdivision (a), that the application of the California Environmental Quality Act to the redevelopment plan is required to be delayed, the redevelopment agency shall prepare and certify an environmental impact report or approve a negative declaration for the redevelopment plan within 12 months after the effective date of the ordinance adopting the redevelopment plan. If, as a result of the preparation of the environmental document prepared pursuant to this subdivision, it is necessary to amend the redevelopment plan to mitigate any impacts, the agency shall amend the redevelopment plan according to the procedures of this part. If the environmental document is determined to be inadequate, the redevelopment agency shall not continue with projects which implement the redevelopment plan until an adequate environmental document has been certified; however, this determination shall not affect the validity of the redevelopment plan.
  (c) Until the redevelopment agency certifies an environmental impact report or negative declaration for the redevelopment plan, all projects, as defined in the California Environmental Quality Act, which implement the redevelopment plan shall be subject to the California Environmental Quality Act, including, but not limited to, specific plans and rezonings. The environmental document for any implementing project shall include an analysis and mitigation of potential cumulative impacts, if any, that otherwise will not be known until an environmental document for the redevelopment plan is certified or approved and shall also include a reporting or monitoring program required pursuant to Section 21081 of the Public Resources Code.
  (d) The notice for the public hearing required by subdivision (a) shall comply with and may be combined with the notices in Section 33349 or 33361. The notice shall state that the agency intends to consider and act upon a determination that the need to adopt a redevelopment plan at the soonest possible time in order to use the authority in the Community Redevelopment Disaster Project Law requires the redevelopment agency to delay application of the provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act to the redevelopment plan in accordance with this section.

For purposes of Sections 33328, 33670, and 33675, and for purposes of allocation of taxes pursuant to Section 33670 and the provisions of any disaster area redevelopment plan, "last equalized assessment roll" and "base-year assessment roll" mean the assessment roll as reduced in accordance with subdivision (b) of Section 170 of the Revenue and Taxation Code.

A redevelopment agency that has adopted a redevelopment plan pursuant to this part shall limit the use of the proceeds of taxes received pursuant to Section 33670 for the sole purpose of acquiring, demolishing, removing , relocating, repairing, restoring, rehabilitating, or replacing buildings, low- and moderate-income housing, facilities, structures, or other improvements, in accordance with applicable laws, which are within the project area, and which have been damaged or destroyed by the disaster, which are unsafe to occupy, or which are required to be acquired, demolished, altered, or removed because of the disaster. Nothing in this section shall be deemed to expand or diminish the authority of a redevelopment agency pursuant to the Community Redevelopment Law.

A community that has adopted a redevelopment plan pursuant to this part may, prior to the termination of the plan, include all or a portion of the project area within a separate redevelopment plan pursuant to the Community Redevelopment Law. However, any portion of the project area included within the separate redevelopment plan shall meet all the requirements of the Community Redevelopment Law.