Cal. RTC § 69.3 — California Code / Code rtc / Division 1 / Part 0.5 / Chapter 2 / Section 69.3
Section 69.3
Status: in_force

(a) (1) Notwithstanding any other law, pursuant to the authority of paragraph (3) of subdivision (e) of Section 2 of Article XIII A of the California Constitution, a county board of supervisors, after consultation with affected local agencies located within the boundaries of the county, may adopt an ordinance that authorizes the transfer, subject to the conditions and limitations of this section, of the base year value of real property that is located within another county in this state and has been substantially damaged or destroyed by a disaster to comparable replacement property, including land, of equal or lesser value that is located within the adopting county and has been acquired or newly constructed as a replacement for the damaged or destroyed property within three years after the damage or destruction of the original property.

(2) The base year value of the original property shall be the base year value of the original property as determined in accordance with Section 110.1, with the inflation factor adjustments permitted by subdivision (f) of Section 110.1, determined as of the date immediately prior to the date that the original property was substantially damaged or destroyed. The base year value of the original property shall also include any inflation factor adjustments permitted by subdivision (f) of Section 110.1 for the period subsequent to the date of the substantial damage to, or destruction of, the original property and up to the date the replacement property is acquired or newly constructed, regardless of whether the claimant continued to own the original property during this entire period. The base year or years used to compute the base year value of the original property shall be deemed to be the base year or years of any property to which that base year value is transferred pursuant to this section.

(b) For purposes of this section:

(1) “Affected local agency” means any city, special district, school district, or community college district that receives an annual allocation of ad valorem property tax revenues.

(2) “Claimant” means an owner or owners of real property claiming the property tax relief provided by this section.

(3) “Comparable replacement property” means a replacement property that has a full cash value of equal or lesser value as defined in paragraph (6).

(4) “Consultation” means a noticed hearing that is conducted by a county board of supervisors concerning the adoption of an ordinance described in subdivision (a) and with respect to which all affected local agencies within the boundaries of the county are provided with reasonable notice of the time and the place of the hearing and a reasonable opportunity to appear and participate.

(5) “Disaster” means a major misfortune or calamity in an area subsequently proclaimed by the Governor to be in a state of disaster as a result of the misfortune or calamity.

(6) “Equal or lesser value” means that the amount of the full cash value of the replacement property does not exceed one of the following:

(A) One hundred five percent of the amount of the full cash value of the original property if the replacement property is purchased or newly constructed within the first year following the date of the damage or destruction of the original property.

(B) One hundred ten percent of the amount of the full cash value of the original property if the replacement property is purchased or newly constructed within the second year following the date of the damage or destruction of the original property.

(C) One hundred fifteen percent of the amount of the full cash value of the original property if the replacement property is purchased or newly constructed within the third year following the date of the damage or destruction of the original property.

For purposes of this paragraph, if the replacement property is, in part, purchased and, in part, newly constructed, the date the “replacement property is purchased or newly constructed” is the date of the purchase or the date of completion of new construction, whichever is later.

(7) “Full cash value of the original property” means its full cash value, as determined in accordance with Section 110, immediately prior to its substantial damage or destruction, as determined by the county assessor of the county in which the property is located.

(8) “Full cash value of the replacement property” means its full cash value, as determined in accordance with Section 110.1 as of the date upon which it was purchased or new construction was completed, that is applicable on and after that date.

(9) “Original property” means a building, structure, or other shelter constituting a place of abode, whether real property or personal property, that is owned and occupied by a claimant as his or her principal place of residence, and any land owned by the claimant on which the building, structure, or other shelter is situated, that has been substantially damaged or destroyed by a disaster. For purposes of this paragraph, land constituting a part of original property includes only that area of reasonable size that is used as a site for a residence, and “land owned by the claimant” includes land for which the claimant either holds a leasehold interest described in subdivision (c) of Section 61 or a land purchase contract. For purposes of this paragraph, each unit of a multiunit dwelling shall be considered a separate original property.

(10) “Owner or owners” means an individual or individuals, but does not include any firm, partnership, association, corporation, company, or other legal entity or organization of any kind.

(11) “Replacement property” means a building, structure, or other shelter constituting a place of abode, whether real property or personal property, that is owned and occupied by a claimant as his or her principal place of residence, and any land owned by the claimant on which the building, structure, or other shelter is situated. For purposes of this paragraph, land constituting a part of the replacement property includes only that area of reasonable size that is used as the site for a residence, and “land owned by the claimant” includes land for which the claimant either holds a leasehold interest described in subdivision (c) of Section 61 or a land purchase contract. For purposes of this paragraph, each unit of a multiunit dwelling shall be considered a separate replacement property. “Replacement property” does not include any property, including land or improvements, if the claimant owned any portion of that property prior to the date of the disaster that damaged or destroyed the original property.

(12) “Substantially damaged or destroyed” means property where either the land or the improvements sustain physical damage amounting to more than 50 percent of either the land’s or the improvement’s full cash value immediately prior to the disaster. Damage includes a diminution in the value of property as a result of restricted access to the property where the restricted access was caused by the disaster and is permanent in nature.

(c) At the time the base year value of the substantially damaged or destroyed property is transferred to the replacement property pursuant to an ordinance adopted under this section, the substantially damaged or destroyed property shall be reassessed at its full cash value. However, the substantially damaged or destroyed property shall retain its base year value notwithstanding that transfer. If the owner or owners of substantially damaged or destroyed property receive property tax relief under this section, that property shall not be eligible for property tax relief under subdivision (c) of Section 70 in the event of its reconstruction.

(d) Only the owner or owners of the property that has been substantially damaged or destroyed may receive property tax relief under an ordinance adopted pursuant to this section. Relief under an ordinance adopted pursuant to this section shall be granted to an owner or owners of a substantially damaged or destroyed property obtaining comparable replacement property. The acquisition of an ownership interest in a legal entity that, directly or indirectly, owns real property is not an acquisition of comparable replacement property for purposes of this section.

(e) A timely claim for relief under an ordinance adopted pursuant to this section, in that form as shall be prescribed by the board, shall be filed by the owner with the assessor of the county in which the replacement property is located. No relief under an ordinance adopted pursuant to this section shall be granted unless the claim is filed no later than January 1, 1996, or within three years after the replacement property is acquired or newly constructed, whichever is later.

(f) Any taxes that were levied on the replacement property prior to the filing of a claim on the basis of the replacement property’s new base year value, and any allowable annual adjustments thereto, shall be canceled or refunded to the claimant to the extent that taxes exceed the amount that would be due when determined on the basis of the adjusted new base year value.

(g) This section shall apply to any comparable replacement property of equal or lesser value that is acquired or newly constructed as a replacement for property that has been substantially damaged or destroyed by a disaster occurring on or after October 20, 1991, and to the determination of base year values for the 1991–92 fiscal year and each fiscal year thereafter.

(h) The amendments made to this section by the act adding this subdivision shall apply commencing with the lien date for the 2012–13 fiscal year.