Local Government Impact Fees Riverside County’s Perspective Juan C. Perez Assistant CE0 February 26, 2020
Riverside County’s Innovative Mitigation Fee Programs • Riverside County has 2 regional Transportation Uniform Mitigation Fee (TUMF) Programs: o Coachella Valley (1999) & Western County (2003) • Two regional Open Space fee programs: o Western County (2004) & Coachella Valley (2008) • County has a separate DIF program customized for 20 Area Plans • These programs have been a contributor, not an impediment, to Riverside County being the fastest growing County in California in the last 20 years
Riverside County Population (Millions) 3 2.45 2.42 2.39 2.5 2.35 2.32 2.29 2.27 2.24 2.20 2.13 2.10 2.07 2.01 1.93 1.85 2 1.77 1.69 1.62 1.56 1.53 Millions 1 Million New Residents 1.5 60% Growth Western County TUMF & Riv. County DIF 1 Open Space (Western County) Coachella Valley TUMF Open Space (Coachella Valley) 0.5 0 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Year
Fee Programs Have Supported Population Growth • Provides for fair-share contributions to infrastructure – rather than first- in facing an insurmountable cost to develop • Provided CEQA cumulative mitigation – reduce legal challenges to housing growth • Leverage and match Federal and State dollars for both infrastructure and open space • Mitigation for Federal environmental permits – Endangered Species Act, Clean Water Act
Fee Programs Have Supported Population Growth • Over $1 Billion invested to directly deliver infrastructure that supports growth – expand freeways, highways, interchanges, bridges • Over 155,000 acres of open space preserved for over 150 protected species • Results: o Provide means to build infrastructure o Protect open space o Reduce public pressures against growth
Local Mitigation Fees Are Only Part of the Picture
How Do We Provide for Housing Growth into the Future? • Mitigation fees provide a needed way to build infrastructure and open space – part of the funding and investment picture • Mitigation Fees provide CEQA and Federal permitting mitigation – what is the alternative? • Leads to more equitable cost sharing
How Do We Provide for Housing Growth into the Future? • Need for greater direct State investment in infrastructure • Align State funding programs with RHNA numbers – Target Investment • Explore innovative ways to combine CEQA reform, review State regulations for consistency with housing policy • Involvement of local agencies and regional bodies to move the needle in a collaborative way that lessens growth impacts and reduces costs
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