(PALM SPRINGS) – Senate Bill 469 has been sitting on Governor Jerry Brown’s desk awaiting his signature or veto since September. With less than two days before he must act or the bill will automatically become law, local officials are not clear which direction he will go. Some local officials are concerned about what the bill’s passage means for their jurisdictions while others feel it will have little impact on their cities.
The Small & Neighborhood Business Protection Act (SB 469) requires that before a big-box store where ten percent or more of the merchandise is non-taxable receives approval, an economic impact report be completed at the developer’s expense. The new requirement adds about two years to the approval process.
SB 469 will require a total of 13 new findings be made for each project including: An assessment of whether the superstore would require the demolition of housing or any other action or change that would result in a decrease or negative impact on the creation of extremely low, very low, low-, or moderate-income housing; an assessment of whether the superstore would result in the destruction or demolition of park or other green space, playgrounds, child care facilities, or community centers; an assessment of whether the superstore would result in any other adverse or positive economic impacts or blight.
According to the website of the bill’s author, Senator Juan Vargas (D-San Diego), “The bill will ensure the public has comprehensive information about the impact of superstores before one can be built in a local jurisdiction. The bill requires an applicant of a superstore to pay for the study, resulting in no additional financial expense to the local government that will review the study. This bill gives a local jurisdiction the flexibility to either approve or reject a supercenter if the economic impact report contains negative findings – local autonomy is preserved – as the report is for informational purposes for local decision makers and the public. “
The bill passed the state legislature on a close to party-line vote with Republicans voting against the measure. According the Assemblyman Paul Cook, who represents parts of western Riverside County that border the Coachella Valley, “Once again, the Legislature is making inconsistent policy – in this case for big box stores. As far as the state is concerned, there should be no difference between a store like a Walmart and a store like Costco. But Vargas’ bill lashes out at the Walmarts and throws hurdles in front of them opening a new store somewhere in California. It’s bad policy, and it’s special-interest politics. We’re not going to create jobs this way. We should leave these decisions to the locals.”
Assemblyman Mike Morrell (R-Rancho Cucamonga), who also represents a part of Riverside County, expressed his concerns about the job-killing aspect of the bill. “This bill adds another job-killing layer of bureaucracy for businesses in our state. Cities should be the ones making the decisions about which businesses they want in their communities. Our Nation and State are attempting to recover from record levels of unemployment; the last thing the legislature should do is make that process more difficult. SB 469 will only pick winners and losers from businesses, but the real losers will be our friends and families because fewer jobs will be available in our community.”
Riverside County Supervisor John Benoit represents the county areas of the Coachella Valley. He wrote Governor Brown, urging his veto. “City and county governments already have policies in place that address the building of superstores. Each local government is able to define what works for their community and what does not. They are able to adapt their standards to fit local conditions. Moreover, current law requires extensive land use and environmental reviews, with many opportunities for public input,whenever a project approval is required from a public agency,” Benoit stated in his letter.
Among city officials in the valley, at least one is not troubled by the consequences of SB 469 if signed into law. City of Rancho Mirage Mayor G. Dana Hobart issued the following statement, “ As I understand it, the bill would that Wal-Mart and other very large-retailers conduct an economic impact study before cities and counties could approve their applications to construct a facility that sell both general merchandise and groceries. I see no problem with the legislation which really has no effect on Rancho Mirage at the present time. I know of no such proposed development that is eyeing RM at this time.”
However, not all Coachella Valley mayors agree with Mayor Hobart. City of Indio Mayor Lupe Ramos Watson has been among those strong urging the governor to veto this bill. “It is our responsibility as city leaders to be accountable for decisions that affect the quality of life for our residents. SB-469 puts restraints on local decision making that would ensure Indio has jobs, retailers and a thriving local economy. This bill limits our ability to quickly put us all back to work. It puts local control in the hands of Sacramento politicians.”
Mayor Kathy DeRosa of Cathedral City expressed similar concerns. “SB 469 is a single focused self interest bill. Cities should be allowed to make their own decisions for their community. This one size fits all mentality is just another example of state government trying to run our communities.”
Mayor DeRosa concluded, “Local jurisdictions should be allowed to do what is best for their community and Sacramento needs to leave us alone. They managed to mess up our beautiful state enough.” This is a sentiment with which many of the state’s mayor and local officials agree.
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