The Fair Payment for Public Benefit Act
Whereas the people of Napa County do hereby find that:
a) The costs to secure public benefits from private sources should be borne by those who benefit, i.e., the public, and it is not fair to force some individuals to disproportionately bear those costs;
b) Restrictions on the use of private property are usually imposed to secure a public benefit and those restrictions sometimes adversely affect that private property's market value.
c) Napa County's policy to deny compensation to owners of such adversely affected property when any economic value remains in their property is unfair because it forces those property owners to bear a disproportionate share of the costs to secure those public benefits.
d) Property owners whose property values are diminished as a result of securing a public benefit should be reasonably and fairly compensated for their loss in property values.
e) Napa County currently has proper and sufficient property restrictions in effect to prevent rapid and disorderly growth, to protect its agricultural preserve, and to protect the environment, and Napa County cannot compensate property owners for the losses caused by those existing restrictions.
Now, therefore, the people of Napa County do hereby ordain that:
1) Any owner of real property in the unincorporated area of Napa County who suffers an established decrease in value of that property due to the impact of a New Napa County Land Use Restriction shall be reasonably, fairly, and promptly compensated by Napa County in an amount equal to the established decrease in value, unless the Board of Supervisors chooses instead to immediately eliminate the adverse impact on the property value by rescinding or permanently waiving the New Napa County Land Use Restriction that caused the decrease in value; or unless the property owner and the Board of Supervisors jointly agree to a compromise solution.
2) The amount of the decrease in value shall be established by mutual agreement between the property owner and the Board of Supervisors. If agreement cannot be reached within 100 calendar days, then the property owner shall have the right to have the decrease in value established by a court of competent jurisdiction.
3) For purposes of this ordinance, “New Napa County Land Use Restriction” means any action by the Napa County Board of Supervisors to further limit or restrict the use of real property in a manner or to a degree that it was not previously limited or restricted. The following exceptions from this definition shall be construed narrowly in favor of a finding for compensation under this ordinance.
- Exception 1: Actions to enforce regulations in effect prior to the date the notice of intention was filed by the proponents of this measure, including permit approvals, permit denials, and permit conditions pursuant to those prior regulations or pursuant to portions of new or revised regulations whose provisions are identical in substance to, or less restrictive than, the prior regulations.
- Exception 2: Restrictions on activities commonly and historically recognized as public nuisances under common law.
- Exception 3: Restrictions inherent in fire and building codes, health and sanitation regulations, or solid or hazardous waste regulations.
- Exception 4: Restrictions mandated by State or Federal Law where the State or Federal law provides no discretion of any kind to the Board of Supervisors as to the manner by which the restrictions are implemented.
- Exception 5: Restrictions mandated by State or Federal law where the State or Federal law provides discretion to the Board of Supervisors as to the manner by which the restrictions are implemented, and the manner by which the Board of Supervisors implemented the State or Federal law is approved by a majority of voters at the next countywide election occurring not less then 88 days after the date of the Board of Supervisors action.
4) If any part of this ordinance or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications which can reasonably be given effect without the invalid provision or application.