HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 07291986 - 2.6 THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA
Adopted this Order on July 29 , 1986 , by the following vote:
AYES: Supervisors Fanden, Schroder, McPeak, Torlakson, Powers
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
ABSTAIN: None
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SUBJECT: Proposed Appointment of Assessment
Commissioners, Reclamation District
No. 2065 (Veale Tract)
The Board on July 15, 1986 requested Victor J. Westman,
' County Counsel, to review and report on possible options available
relative to the appointment of Assessment Commissioners for
Reclamation District No. 2065 as requested by the Bank of Stockton.
Mr. Westman presented to the Board a report dated July 28, 1986
(copy attached hereto and by reference incorporated herein) , noting
that in a review of the records of Reclamation District No. 2065 his
staff was unable to find any evidence that :an original Assessment
Commission had ever been requested or established and that therefore,
the Board had no jurisdiction to appoint replacement Commissioners.
IT IS BY THE BOARD ORDERED that the report from County
Counsel relating to appointment of Assessment Commissioners for
Reclamation District No. 2065 (Veale Tract) is ACCEPTED.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the issue is REMOVED from
further Board consideration.
a
cc: County Administrator
I
1 hereby certify that this is a true and correct cofsy of
Laciien uia wn and entered on the minutes of the
ard of Supe ' ors on the date hown.
ATTES
t�KH- S. Cx, - cR, Cterk of the Board
of Supervizors and County Administrator
By &�� , Deputy
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COUNTY COUNSEL'S OFFICE
_ CONTRA COSTA COUNTY �T����.. .� .
MARTINEZ, CALIFORNIA RECEIVED
Date: July 28, 1986
JUL 2 8 1986
TO! Board of Supervisors PH!LBATCHELOR
RK B01,00 OF 5UPERVISORS
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^AC05i CO.
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/�/ B ........ Deputy
From: Victor J. Westman, County Counsel VV./'f!
Re: Proposed Appointment of Assessment Commissioners, Reclamation
District No. 2065 (Veale Tract)
I. Background & Summary: On July 15, 1986 the Board asked
this office to provide it with a report on the possible options .
available to it concerning the above subject. As you are aware,
on June 10 , 1986 the Board received a letter dated May 28, 1986
from Mr". George Basye (attorney at law) on behalf of the Bank of
Stockton, requesting the appointment of Carl Rush and Paul Lamborn
as assessment commissioners to fill existing vacancies for
Reclamation District No. 2065 .
Since your July 15 , 1986 meeting information has come to this
office' s attention which indicates the Board of Supervisors
probably did not have jurisdiction on November 19 , 1985 to appoint
assessment commissioners for Reclamation District No. 2065 and now,
doesn't have any jurisdiction to make any further appointments .
We would recommend that unless further information is brought to
the County' s attention clearly showing that, your Board has
jurisdiction to make these appointments , it take no action at this
time.
II. Discussion. Whenever vacancies occur on a validly
constituted three member board of assessment commissioners for a
county reclamation district, the Board of Supervisors should
within a reasonable time appoint qualified commissioners to fill
those vacancies. This is what the Board intended by its November
19 , 1985 appointment of three assessment commissioners . Those
November 19 , appointments were made pursuant to a request from the
Bank of Stockton as the owner of more than 15 percent of the real
property contained within Reclamation District No. 2065. The Bank
of Stockton May 28, 1986 written request indicated that it was
being made pursuant to Water Code §51346.
The Reclamation District Law provides that where a prior
board of .assessment commissioners has prepared an operation and
maintenance assessment roll for a district,, either the board of
trustees for the reclamation district or land owners representing
Board of Supervisors July 28, 1986
at least 15% of the district' s property can petition the Board of
Supervisors for an order directing the appointment of new
assessment commissioners for the preparation of a new operation
and maintenance roll (Water Code § 51346) . ' But the Reclamation
District Law only expressly allows the Board of Supervisors to
consider the appointment of three assessment commissioners to
prepare the original (first) operation and maintenance assessment
roll for a reclamation district when the Board of Supervisors
receives a request from the board of trustees of the reclamation
district to take that action (Wat.C. §§ 51320 51327) .
The action of requesting the Board of Supervisors to appoint
assessment commissioners to prepare the original operation and
maintenance roll can only be done pursuant to State statute by the
district' s board of trustees. There is no express statutory
provision allowing land owners within a reclamation district to
petition the Board of Supervisors for the appointment of the
original board of assessment commissioners to prepare the first
operation and maintenance assessment roll. . Of course, once
assessment commissioners are validity appointment they must
formulate a proposed roll, and presented it to the Board of
Supervisors to conduct hearings for approval.
During this office' s recent review of the records for
Reclamation District No. 2065 in the Clerk of the Board of
Supervisors ' office, we could not find any record prior to
November of 1985 indicating the appointment ' of assessment
commissioners or that an original operation and maintenance
assessment roll has ever been prepared and filed with the Board of
.Supervisors for its approval. Assuming these actions have never
occurred, it appears that when the Board of Supervisors was asked
in November of 1985 to appoint three assessment commissioners by
an owner of land within the district, the Board of Supervisors had
no jurisdiction to act on that request since it had not come from
Reclamation District No. 2065 ' s Board of Trustees .
As noted above, only the board of trustees of a reclamation
district can petition the Board of Supervisors for the appointment
of assessment commissioners to prepare the original operation and
maintenance of assessment roll for the district (Wat. C. § 51320) .
The November 6, 1985 request received from the Bank of Stockton
was made pursuant to Water Code § 51346 and :assumed that for
Reclamation District No. 2065 the Board of Supervisors at some
past time had taken the actions necessary to appoint an original
board of assessment commissioners and approve an original
operation and maintenance roll for District use. Assuming these
past actions were never done, only the Board of Trustees of
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Board of Supervisors July X28, 1986
Reclamation District No. 2065 could have requested the November
19 , 1985 action of appointment of commissioners and the present
request before you. Unless further facts are brought to the
Board' s attention clearly showing that a past board of assessment
commissioners was appointed and a roll prepared and approved by
the Board of Supervisors, the Board should take no further action
on-the subject request.
VJW:df
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