ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Phoenix, Arizona
county acquisition of
development rights
Purpose
Expands the funding sources
available for county use to purchase or lease development rights of private
land.
Background
In 1998, legislation
commonly known as the Growing Smarter Act was enacted to create an urban growth
management framework to address the problems associated with urban growth.
Generally, this legislation (Laws 1998, Chapter 204) strengthened land planning
processes by enhancing the requirements for general and comprehensive plans,
provided for the acquisition and preservation of open space areas through a
variety of planning and purchasing mechanisms and created a Growing Smarter Commission
to make recommendations for long-term growth management.
The Growing Smarter Plus Act
of 2000 (Laws 2000, Fourth Special Session, Chapter 1) continued the
legislative effort to manage urban growth by conserving state trust land with
ecological, historical and archaeological value that meets established criteria
and authorizing a number of growth management tools. One of the provisions of the Growing Smarter Plus legislation was
the establishment of the development rights retirement (DRR) fund administered
by the Arizona State Parks Board to grant monies for the purchase, lease or
transfer of development rights for private land. State agencies, political
subdivisions, nonprofit organizations and private individuals may apply for
grants, which are awarded in consultation with the Conservation Acquisition
Board. This nonlapsing fund consists of legislative appropriations, gifts,
grants and other monies. According to
the Joint Legislative Budget Committee, no monies have been deposited in the
fund or expended from the fund since its creation.
H.B. 2104 provides further
direction on the purchase or lease of private property development rights by
counties, and allows the county to use monies from sources other than the DRR
fund for this purpose.
Provisions
1. Expands the funding sources that a county board of supervisors (Board) can use to purchase or lease the development rights of private land to include any source of funding.
2. Clarifies that the Board may not acquire development rights through eminent domain. Development rights can only be acquired from willing landowners.
3. Expands the purposes for which a Board may acquire development rights from preserving open space to the following:
a)
Establishing
buffer zones around urban areas.
b)
Preserving
habitat or archaeological or historic properties.
c)
Sustaining
the culture and heritage of agriculture and ranching activities.
d)
Complying
with the requirements of the U.S. Endangered Species Act.
4. Preserves the requirement that the seller or lessor must be fully informed of the effects on the value of the land.
5. Requires that the purchase or lease of development rights must be at no less than market value.
6. Requires the Board to hold a public hearing before adopting any resolution to acquire development rights, agree not to exercise the development rights and require the seller to agree not to exercise the development rights in perpetuity for sales and for at least 25 years for leases.
7. Defines "acquire development rights."
8. Makes clarifying changes.
9. Provides for a general effective date.
House Action
ENV 1/29/02 DPA 6-1-2-1
CM 2/12/02 DPA 8-0-1-1-0
3rd Read 4/8/02 38-13-9-0
Prepared by Senate Staff
April 15, 2002