Residential projects: fees and charges: emergency services.

Senator Stern's proposal expands local agencies' authority to collect development fees earlier for parkland and recreational facilities that serve emergency purposes. The measure modifies the Mitigation Fee Act to allow advance collection of fees for facilities identified in a jurisdiction's safety element or local hazard mitigation plan, provided those facilities have an emergency function beyond general recreational use.

Under current law, local agencies cannot require payment of most development fees until final inspection or occupancy certification, with exceptions for certain public safety and emergency service facilities. The bill adds qualifying parkland and recreational spaces to the list of facilities eligible for earlier fee collection, while maintaining existing protections for affordable housing developments. Projects reserving at least 49 percent of units for lower-income households remain exempt from early fee requirements.

The legislation preserves the existing framework requiring local agencies to establish dedicated accounts and adopt construction plans before collecting fees ahead of occupancy. It also maintains provisions allowing agencies to require performance bonds or letters of credit from developers to guarantee future payment of deferred fees.