Streets and Highways Code, 1935

Foreclosure actions under this chapter are governed by this chapter and, when not inconsistent with it, by the state codes.

When foreclosure actions are ordered, the tax collector must be credited on the assessment roll and is relieved of further duty for the reassessments.

In a foreclosure action on a reassessment lien, any refunding bond is conclusive evidence that the reassessment proceedings, the reassessment, and the refunding bond were regular and valid.

A city may advance and pay county or other taxes when needed to protect its interest in property subject to a delinquent reassessment.

A foreclosure of a reassessment lien transfers the property to the purchaser free of encumbrances, except taxes and special assessment liens that are by law equal or superior to the reassessment lien.

The department may enter into contracts needed to perform its duties, including with federally recognized Indian tribes and their entities.

If certain federal highway-contract rules do not apply to solely state-funded highway contracts, the department must develop a comparable program for those contracts.

This section makes several kinds of fraud and obstruction related to minority business enterprise certification unlawful and allows penalties and restrictions.

Boards of supervisors must supervise, manage, and control county highways.

The legislative body must provide for the issuance of the refunding bonds.

Refunding bonds may not be issued for more than the par value of the outstanding bonds plus the due and unpaid interest coupons being refunded.

Refunding bonds are to represent and be secured by the specified reassessments and any later reassessments on the same property.

Refunding bonds issued under this division must follow specified form and signing requirements, and the first two interest coupons must carry a lower rate than the refunded bonds.

All refunding bonds must mature on July 2d.

The first maturity date for any refunding bonds cannot be earlier than the second day of July after 10 months from the bond date.

Refunding bonds may not have a last maturity later than 19 years after the stated reference date.

The interest rate on refunding bonds may not be higher than the interest rate on the outstanding bonds.

Interest on refunding bonds is payable each year on January 2 and July 2.

The first interest payment on these bonds must be timed to January 2 before the second July after 10 months from the bond date.

Boards of supervisors must establish, record, construct, and maintain highways needed for public convenience, and roads do not become county highways until accepted into the county road system.

The board of supervisors may lay out, acquire, construct, and maintain county streets or highways as freeways or expressways, and may convert existing streets or highways into freeways or expressways.

Boards of supervisors may close streets or highways near freeway intersections and do necessary related work. A public highway cannot be converted into a freeway unless abutting owners consent or their access rights are purchased or condemned.

Before an action under Section 941.2 affecting a state highway, the Department of Public Works must approve it.

The board of supervisors may designate a county expressway system and work with cities and other counties on expressway planning, construction, and connections, but city streets cannot be closed or connected without the required agreement or board consent.

When a county highway lies on the boundary between two adjacent counties, the affected counties’ boards of supervisors may agree to improve, maintain, construct, or reconstruct all or part of the highway, and each county may spend available highway funds to carry out that agreement.

Refunding bonds and their interest must be paid at the treasurer’s office.

This section provides the standard form for a refunding improvement bond.

Each refunding bond is conclusive evidence that the issuance proceedings were regular and that the bonds are valid.

Refunding bonds must be delivered to the holders of the outstanding bonds under the bondholders’ contract.

After refunding bonds are exchanged for outstanding bonds, the city treasurer must cancel the outstanding bonds and file them with the treasurer, except for sums that property owners have elected in writing to pay from assessments.

If the city has appropriated money to help refund the bonds, it must pay that money to the holders of the outstanding bonds under the bondholders’ contract.

Challenges to the validity of refunding bonds under this division are barred unless brought within 3 months after issuance.

The treasurer must keep a register in his office for bonds and paid interest coupons, and must cancel and file each paid bond and coupon.

County boards of supervisors may make and enforce highway rules and may let county road equipment for use, charge rental, and set compensation terms under stated voting and condition limits.

The board of supervisors may restrict or close a county highway when it considers that necessary for public protection, storm protection, or construction, improvement, or maintenance work.

The board of supervisors may delegate the powers in Section 942.5 to the county road commissioner.

The board of supervisors may manage county highway property and works, and must direct the district attorney to start eminent domain proceedings when needed.

A county may not incur bonded debt for the listed purpose until the bond question is put to county voters and approved by two-thirds of those voting.

Boards of supervisors may use county general funds to pay all or part of certain highway improvement costs, but only when county-owned public-use property is in the assessment district and only up to the amount that would otherwise be chargeable to that property.

If the redemption fund has at least $2,000 available for bond principal and that money is not being collected for bonds maturing next July 2, the city must purchase or call bonds under this chapter.

The treasurer must publish notice, invite sealed proposals for refunding bonds, include key sale details in the notice, and mail a copy to requesting bondholders at least 10 days before the designated date.

Bond sale proposals must be opened publicly at the time and place stated in the notice.

If no qualifying bond purchase proposals or tenders are received, the treasurer must set aside enough money to cover principal and accrued interest and then redeem the bonds in numerical order.

Bond redemption notices must be published once in a nationally circulated financial journal, unless the bondholders waive notice in writing.

The treasurer must cancel refunding bonds that have been purchased or redeemed pursuant to call.

All publication costs under this chapter must be paid from the redemption fund.

The county is not liable for a city-conducted improvement unless the board adopts a resolution that sets the amount to be spent and reserves that sum from the county general fund.

Documents or judgments proving title to a county highway right of way must specifically describe the lands covered.

After a reassessment is confirmed, it may only be challenged in the time and manner set out in this chapter.

Defects in the form of a reassessment, or statutory defects in related reassessment and refunding proceedings, do not invalidate the reassessment or any refunding bond.

Small computation errors do not invalidate the listed bond-related documents if the error is comparatively negligible or favors the affected property owner.

A court action may be brought to determine whether a reassessment and related refunding bonds are valid.

If a reassessment or refunding bond is found invalid on grounds that would affect the whole reassessment or bond issue, the refunded unpaid bonds stay effective. If those unpaid bonds were canceled, the city treasurer must issue replacement bonds with the same terms and effect.

County boards of supervisors must record title evidence for every county highway right-of-way with the county recorder, and may delegate that duty by ordinance.

If refunding bonds are invalidated or found illegal, the rules of the original bond act still apply to the original bonds and to replacement bonds issued under Section 9479.

A person generally cannot bring or maintain actions challenging reassessments or refunding bonds, unless the action was started within the time allowed by the Civil Procedure Code.

The board of supervisors may plant and care for shade and ornamental trees on county highways, encourage others to do the same under its regulations, and pay up to $1 for planting and cultivating a living tree when it is four years old.

The department may keep doing snow removal on part of a state highway that was relocated, but only if the county or counties consent and the other stated conditions are met.

The department must remove snow from a described portion of former U.S. Route 40 near Donner Memorial Park and Donner Lake, starting from November 8, 1967.

The department must create and carry out a deicing policy for state highways by July 1, 1992, and submit the plan to the Legislature.

The board of supervisors may build, maintain, buy, lease, and fund water-related facilities used to sprinkle county highways with oil or water.

This section names the division and says it may be cited as the “Refunding Act of 1984 for 1915 Improvement Act Bonds.”

These procedures may be used as an alternative to Division 11 for refunding bonds under the Improvement Bond Act of 1915.

The section declares that it is a public purpose for a local agency to issue refunding bonds and to invest and reinvest the proceeds, and any other legally available funds, for the purposes stated in the division.

A city legislative body may issue refunding bonds and take related steps to refinance and collect assessments to pay them.

Outstanding bonds and original assessments stay in effect until valid reassessments and refunding bonds replace them.

This section authorizes actions or determinations needed or convenient for reassessment and refunding proceedings when they are not expressly listed here, and says they are valid and sufficient when made.

Any city may hire a qualified person to do work or services covered by this division or connected to refunding authorized indebtedness.

Incidental expenses for an authorized refunding and reassessment may be paid from refunding bond sale proceeds or from contributions and appropriations under Section 9510.

When proceedings are started under this division, only this division applies, subject to Section 9509.

A reassessment proceeding under this division may run at the same time as proceedings under another applicable reassessment law, and related required documents may be combined into single instruments.

The board may create a side path on a county highway, mark its boundaries, restrict its use to pedestrians, horse riders, and riders of vehicles powered only by the rider, and charge the costs to specified county or district funds.

This section says contributions and appropriations may be made under the timing and procedure rules in a referenced part of the code.

This section says the division is an alternative system for refunding bonds and does not affect other laws covering the same subject matter.

Remedies for enforcing a reassessment under this division are not the only remedies available, and additional remedies may be added.

The curative clauses in this division are cumulative and each must be given full force and effect.

This division and its provisions must be interpreted liberally so its purposes work effectively.

In a foreclosure or quiet-title action, process must be served on the same person or persons as in other suits against the city.

A purchaser at certain sales takes the property subject to unpaid reassessment installments, interest, and penalties from the same proceeding.

This section says that, unless the context requires otherwise, the definitions in the Improvement Bond Act of 1915 control how this division is read, and “act” means that act.

A remaining surplus in the assessment district’s improvement fund may be credited to the reassessment after the improvements are finished and all claims are paid.

Any remaining balance in the special reserve fund must be used to retire the bonds being refunded when the refunding bonds are issued.

This section says Sections 8571.3 and 8769 apply to this division.

The board must erect and maintain properly inscribed guideposts at county highway crossings and forks outside any city.

A city’s legislative body may, by resolution, decide to refund outstanding bonds under the act and to levy reassessments to secure the refunding bonds, unless Section 8571.3 leads to a different determination.

The section allows two or more bond issues issued under the act to be refunded in a single proceeding, with only one issue of refunding bonds.

Bond refunding proceedings must generally follow the one-issue refunding procedure, and the legislative body may handle two or more bond issues in one proceeding and do all necessary or convenient acts, unless the act would violate the U.S. or California Constitution.

A qualified person must prepare and file a report with the city clerk when directed by the Section 9520 resolution.

After the Section 9523 report is filed with the clerk, the clerk must present it to the legislative body, which may modify it.

The legislative body may approve the reassessment report and authorize, issue, and sell refunding bonds if the listed conditions are met.

If the legislative body cannot make the findings required by Section 9525, it may move forward with refunding and reassessment after preliminarily approving the report and setting a hearing time and place.

Notice of the hearing must be published and mailed, and it must include specified information about the hearing, the reassessment cost, the parcel amount, protest rights, and where the report is kept.

A person interested in property to be reassessed may file a written protest before the hearing, and the protest must state its nature specifically.

A person who files a protest must be given a full opportunity to be heard on it.

A county board of supervisors may remove or burn debris, rubbish, brush, and grass from county highways, and county expenses under this section must be paid from the county road fund.

At the hearing, the legislative body must hear complaints or objections about the proposed refunding, unpaid assessments, or proposed reassessments.

At the hearing, objections about the regularity of the improvement proceedings or the original assessment amount may not be considered, and other reassessment objections are waived unless raised as this chapter requires.

The legislative body’s decision on all objections or protests is final and conclusive.

A hearing may be continued by order entered in the minutes, but it must be concluded within 30 days of the date originally fixed.

At the hearing, the legislative body may review and correct the amount of any reassessments on any parcel of land.

If sufficient protests are filed, further refunding proceedings stop and a new resolution for the same refunding cannot be passed for six months unless the protests are overridden by a four-fifths vote. The legislative body may also confirm, modify, or correct the proposed assessment.

If there is no majority protest under Section 9534.5, the hearing’s report and reassessment must be approved and confirmed by resolution entered in the minutes.

After the reassessment is confirmed by the legislative body, it must be recorded in the office of the superintendent of streets.

If recorded with the superintendent of streets and compliant with Division 4.5, the reassessment becomes a lien on the assessed parcels.

This section says reassessments generally replace earlier assessments, including accrued penalties and interest, unless the section or specified nearby sections provide otherwise.

This section sets the priority of reassessment liens, with an exception for Section 9548.

A county board of supervisors may designate certain unused county highways as stock trails, and must post notices on them. Once designated, the county is not liable for certain injuries or damage caused by a dangerous condition of the stock trail.

The board of supervisors may end maintenance of a county highway if it finds the highway is unnecessary for the public convenience, and the county must post and maintain warning signs; after the required steps, the county is not liable for certain injuries or damage from a dangerous condition on that highway.

A board of supervisors may end county maintenance of part or all of a county highway if another public agency will maintain it under a qualifying agreement. The county must post and maintain warning signs, and once the conditions are met, the county is not liable for certain injuries or property damage caused by inadequate maintenance.

Reassessments, their installments, and any interest or penalties become a lien on the affected parcels until paid, but only for up to the period allowed for bringing an action on the last series of refunding bonds issued for the unpaid reassessments.

Unmatured installments, interest, and penalties on unpaid reassessments are not covered by any general warranty of title for the parcel.

When refunding bonds are issued, the reassessments and related interest must remain a trust fund for paying and redeeming the refunding bonds and their interest.

A copy of the confirming resolution must be filed in the office of the auditor.

The auditor must keep a record in his office of the installments of principal and interest on reassessments to be collected each year during the bond term.

Reassessments and related interest must be collected on the assessment roll and are subject to reassessment, amendment, prepayment, and the act’s other provisions.

A city’s legislative body may use resolution to decide to refund outstanding bonds, levy a reassessment, and continue the original assessment to secure additional bonds; the resolution must also require a Section 9523 report to state certain unpaid principal amounts.

If the legislative body chooses to proceed under Section 9546, it must apply Sections 9523 to 9545 to the reassessments. After confirming the reassessment, it must order the original assessment lien to continue for the unpaid principal amount that will secure the additional bonds.

If the legislative body uses the reassessment procedure, the reassessment lien replaces the original assessment lien for the refunded bonds, while the original assessment lien continues for the additional bonds for up to four years after the last reassessment installment is due.

The department must deal with graffiti on qualifying highway signs as soon as reasonably possible after it learns about it.

If the board of supervisors decides county highway property is no longer needed, the county may sell or exchange it. The conveyance must be signed by the board chair, and the money must go into the county treasury for a board-designated highway fund.

For Sections 954 and 954.5, “county highway” includes a broad range of public roads and similar ways, and also purported county highways.

The board of supervisors may delegate lease authority for county highway property to a county official, subject to board-imposed rules, and the lease term may be renewed for up to three years.

This section defines several terms used in the chapter on refunding bonds.

The legislative body must provide for issuing the refunding bonds by resolution.

Section 8769 applies to bonds issued under this division in San Bernardino County.

Refunding bonds must be issued in a principal amount equal to the total principal amount of the reassessment approved and confirmed by the legislative body under Section 9525 or 9535.

Refunding bonds are to represent, and be secured by, the reassessments and any later reassessments on the same property.

Refunding bonds under this division must meet the listed form, dating, signing, numbering, interest, and maturity requirements.

All refunding bonds mature on September 2.

Refunding bonds may not have a first maturity earlier than September 2 after 12 months from the bond date.

The last maturity date for any refunding bonds cannot be more than 39 years after the specified reference date.

Refunding bonds issued in San Bernardino County cannot have a last maturity longer than the longest maturity allowed for the bonds being refunded.

The interest rate on refunding bonds must not exceed the rate stated in the resolution of intention adopted under Section 9520.

Interest on refunding bonds must be paid on March 2 and September 2 each year.

The first interest payment on the bonds is due on the stated date, unless funded interest lets the legislative body set an earlier payment date.

Refunding bonds and their interest must be paid at the treasurer’s office or another place stated in the bonds.

Each bond is treated as conclusive evidence of the regularity and validity of specified reassessment and refunding-bond proceedings.

The legislative body may exchange or sell refunding bonds, and cash sale proceeds must go into a refunding fund and be used only as allowed by this division.

The costs of issuing refunding bonds may be paid by the purchaser or from other legally available sources, as the legislative body determines.

Proceeds from refunding bond sales may be placed in escrow or trust with a bank or trust company, and they must be secured and invested in federal securities.

Refunding bond proceeds held in escrow or trust must be certified as enough to cover specified bond payments and issuance costs.

After refunding bonds are issued, the city’s legislative body must arrange payment of principal and interest in the same way and at the same times as for bonds issued under the act.

The city treasurer must cancel outstanding refunded bonds after they have been exchanged for refunding bonds.

The treasurer must keep a bond register in the office and record key details for each bond, and must cancel and file each bond when it is paid.

The legislative body may create a special reserve fund for refunding bonds, and if it does, it must include the fund amount in the reassessment resolution.

Bonds originally issued as variable rate bonds may be refunded by issuing variable rate bonds under Part 6.5.