SB 640

Expiration of local approvals

Under current law, if a person has submitted an application for a permit or

authorization for building, zoning, driveway, storm water, or other activity related

to a land development project (approval), the city, village, town, or county (political

subdivision) must approve, deny, or conditionally approve the application based on

regulations, ordinances, rules, or other properly adopted requirements in effect at

the time the application for an approval is submitted to the political subdivision.

Under this bill, a political subdivision may not establish an expiration date for an

approval related to a planned development district of less than five years after the

date of the last approval required for completion of the project.

Division of land by certified survey map

This bill expands the types of land that a political subdivision may allow to be

divided by certified survey map to include land that is zoned multifamily.

Under current law, the subdivision of land into five or more parcels generally

is regulated by state and local government and must be completed using a

subdivision plat, while the division of land into four or fewer parcels is not subject

to those regulations and may be completed using a certified survey map. Under

current law, a political subdivision that has established a planning agency may enact

an ordinance or adopt a resolution that allows land to be divided into more than four

parcels by using a certified survey map without the division being a subdivision and,

therefore, without all of the attendant requirements that apply to subdivisions.

Currently, the political subdivision's ordinance or resolution may only allow division

of land into more than four parcels by certified survey map if the land is located in

the political subdivision and is zoned for commercial, industrial, or mixed-use

development. The bill extends the special land division rule to land that is zoned

multifamily.

Levy limit exception

Generally under current law, local levy limits are applied to the property tax

levies that are imposed by political subdivisions in December of each year. Current

law prohibits a political subdivision from increasing its levy by a percentage that

exceeds its “valuation factor,” which is defined as the greater of either 0 percent or

the percentage change in the political subdivision's equalized value due to new

construction, less improvements removed. Current law contains a number of

exceptions to the levy limit.

This bill creates a new levy limit exception that allows a city or village to

increase its levy if it has issued occupancy permits for certain residential dwelling

units in the preceding year. Specifically, the levy limit is increased by $1,000 for each

new single-family residential dwelling unit that is 1) located on a parcel no more

than 0.25 acre; or 2) sold for not more than 80 percent of the median price of a new

housing unit in the city or village.