(a)
On or before May 1, 1977, the assessor of each county for the local roll and the State Board of Equalization for the board roll shall determine the annual assessed value attributable to timber, as defined in subdivision (a) of Section 431 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, of each tax rate area for the 1972–73 to 1974–75 fiscal years, inclusive. Such values shall be from the corrected, equalized assessment roll for each such year, including escape assessments subsequently added to the roll. Escape assessments determined subsequent to June 30, 1975, for any of the three fiscal years specified shall be reported to the county auditor who shall certify to the Controller a revision in the amounts of average annual property tax revenue attributable to timber for each affected taxing jurisdiction on or before July 15, 1977, and July 15 of each year thereafter.
(b)
Using the assessed values determined pursuant to subdivision (a), on or before June 1, 1977, the auditor of each county shall determine the average annual property tax revenues attributable to timber of each taxing agency for the 1972–73 to 1974–75 fiscal years, inclusive; provided, that if a taxing agency was in existence for less than the entire period, the average for such agency shall be determined by dividing the appropriate amount of property tax revenues by either one year or two years, whichever figure corresponds most nearly to the duration of existence of the agency within such period.
If the average value of the secured roll of a community college district which is attributable to timber over the period of fiscal years 1972–73 to 1974–75, inclusive, meets or exceeds 20 percent, then the auditor shall use a rate which when multiplied by that district’s average annual assessed value attributable to timber will produce an amount equivalent to the total amount of property taxes raised by that district in the 1976–77 fiscal year.
For purposes of this section, “average annual property tax revenue attributable to timber” of each school district which levied an areawide tax rate in one or more of fiscal years 1972–73 to 1974–75, inclusive, shall be the product of (1) the amount of money the district received as its reallocation from the areawide fund (not the amount of its own contribution raised from its actual areawide tax rate) for each such fiscal year, and (2) a factor produced by the amount of annual assessed value attributable to timber divided by the amount of all assessed value, within the school district, for each such fiscal year.
Each county auditor shall certify to the Controller a list of this amount for each taxing agency in the county and the total of all such amounts for the county. The auditor shall keep such records for each tax rate area as necessary to make distribution of funds pursuant to Section 38906 of the Revenue and Taxation Code.
(c)
The Controller may require that all information pertinent to subdivisions (a) and (b) be retained and may inspect all calculations of the county assessor and county auditor. The Controller or the board may adjust and correct any calculation deemed to be inaccurate. The sum of each county’s calculations as adopted by the Controller shall be known as that county’s “annual yield tax revenue guarantee”, and shall be certified to the county auditor on or before August 15, 1977.
(d)
On or before July 15, 1977, and July 15 of each year thereafter, the auditor shall certify to the Controller the new or revised amount of property tax revenue attributable to timber for each taxing agency which, effective after July 1 of the preceding calendar year and on or before July 1 of the current calendar year, either (1) underwent “governmental reorganization,” as described in Section 2295 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, or (2) underwent “functional consolidation,” as described in Section 2305 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, or (3) gained approval from its voters to levy an additional property tax rate, effective with the next succeeding fiscal year.
For purposes of this subdivision, the average annual property tax revenue attributable to timber for a taxing agency formed subsequent to June 30, 1975, shall be calculated as follows:
(1)
The average annual assessed value attributable to timber shall be the sum of the values of the tax rate areas, as determined by the assessor or the board pursuant to subdivision (a), which correspond to the new agency’s boundaries, as if that agency had actually existed during fiscal years 1972–73 to 1974–75, inclusive, and this sum shall be multiplied by
(2)
A tax rate represented by 80 percent of the maximum tax rate the new taxing agency was authorized by the voters to levy in its first full year of operation.
For purposes of this subdivision, the average annual property tax revenue attributable to timber for a taxing agency formed prior to June 30, 1975, which annexes territory subsequent to that date, shall have added to it the sum of the values of the tax rate areas, as determined by the assessor or the board pursuant to subdivision (a) which corresponds to the territory which was annexed, multiplied by the average total tax rate levied during fiscal years 1972–73 to 1974–75, inclusive, by the taxing agency which annexed the territory.
For purposes of this subdivision, the average annual property tax revenue attributable to timber for a taxing agency which subsequent to June 30, 1975, has transferred to it by functional consolidation the responsibility of levying a property tax rate to pay the cost of a new service or program shall have added to it the sum of the average annual assessed value attributable to timber for that agency multiplied by the additional property tax rate to be incurred in the first year pursuant to the functional consolidation. For a taxing agency which subsequent to June 30, 1975, has transferred from it the responsibility of levying a property tax rate for a service or program, the average annual property tax revenue attributable to timber shall be reduced by the sum of the annual assessed value attributable to timber for that agency multiplied by the average tax rate levied by the taxing agency during fiscal years 1972–73 to 1974–75, inclusive, for the support of such service or program.
For purposes of this subdivision, when an additional property tax rate is approved by the voters of a taxing agency in the preceding fiscal year, such agency shall have its average annual property tax revenue attributable to timber revised in the same manner as for a functional consolidation in which responsibility for the funding of a new service or program is added; provided, that such revision will extend only for the same period of time as that authorized by the voters for the existence of the additional voted property tax rate.
(e)
On or before August 15, 1977, and August 15 of each year thereafter, the Controller shall certify to each county auditor the revisions certified by the auditor pursuant to subdivision (a) or (d) in the average annual property tax revenue attributable to timber for one or more taxing agencies, to take effect in the current fiscal year. The Controller shall adjust and correct any calculation deemed to be inaccurate, prior to such certification. The amount added to or deducted from a county’s previous annual yield tax revenue guarantee will be the property tax revenue attributable to timber, as certified to the Controller by the county auditor pursuant to subdivision (d). The revised annual yield tax revenue guarantee shall take effect for payments made to the county pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 38905 of the Revenue and Taxation Code in the current fiscal year, and shall remain in effect until subsequent revision under this subdivision.
(f)
Upon receipt of the amount certified by the Controller pursuant to subdivision (c) or (e), the county auditor shall within 10 days certify to each taxing agency its share of this amount, and shall deliver to the county treasurer a schedule of these amounts for all taxing agencies in the county, to govern distribution of moneys pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 38905 of the Revenue and Taxation Code.
(g)
For the purposes of this section, in the case of a change in the boundaries of a tax rate area, the assessor or the board shall determine the base year timber value by parcel in each tax rate area affected by the boundary change and the auditor shall apportion the property tax revenue attributable to timber according to this determination.
(h)
For the purposes of this section “tax rate area” means a geographical area in which there is a unique combination of tax levies.
(i)
For purposes of this section, a taxing agency is deemed to be in existence in any year in which the agency levies a property tax rate. Any taxing agency which was operational prior to June 30, 1975, but levied no property tax rate, may subsequent to that date establish an average annual property tax revenue attributable to timber pursuant to subdivision (d), as a governmental reorganization, in the year next succeeding the year in which it first levies a property tax rate.
(j)
For purposes of this section, when computing the property tax revenues attributable to timber for a school district which levied an areawide tax rate during one or more of fiscal years 1972–73 to 1974–75, inclusive, the county auditor shall in his computations of the revenues produced by such a rate use the revenues actually apportioned to the district from the county’s areawide fund, and not the revenues raised from the levy of the areawide rate and contributed to the county’s areawide fund by said district.
