Summary In Department of Finance v. Commission on State Mandates (2021) 59 Cal.App.5th 546, the Court of Appeal for the Second Appellate District held that city costs associated with installing and maintaining trash receptacles at transit stops in compliance with stormwater drain permits are reimbursable by the State of California, but costs associated with inspection…

Summary In City of Oakland v. Wells Fargo & Co., 972 F.3d 1112 (9th Cir. Cal. 2020), the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held that cities can seek injunctive relief and recovery of lost property-tax revenue from banks that violate the Fair Housing Act by using predatory lending practices against minorities. The Ninth Circuit held…

AB 992 In a world that communicates with posting, reposting, texting, screenshotting, tweeting, liking, disliking, happy or sad emojis and commenting on posts, it was inevitable that public officials would enter onto that internet “platform” and communicate their thoughts and ideas to anyone who had access to a computer. Instead of stepping into the local…

Summary The Court of Appeal in Rutgard v. City of Los Angeles, 52 Cal. App. 5th 815 (2020) held that a public agency desiring to retain condemned property that has not yet been put to public use must adopt a reauthorization resolution within ten years of the initial resolution declaring the public need. The Court…

Summary A city ordinance that prohibited mobile billboards except for “authorized vehicles” including emergency vehicles and construction/maintenance vehicles is a content-based restriction on free speech and presumptively invalid. Discussion In 2016, the City of Simi Valley (“City”) adopted an ordinance that prohibits the parking or standing of mobile billboard advertising displays on city streets. The…

I. SUMMARY The California Supreme Court recently held1 that the City of Oroville (“City”) was not liable in inverse condemnation when untreated sewage backed up into a dental office because the property owner failed to demonstrate the resulting damage was substantially caused by inherent risks in the design, construction, or maintenance of the sewer system….

SUMMARY In 2016, the Legislature adopted Assembly Bill 2257 (“AB 2257”) which amended Government Code Section 54954.2 by adding new requirements for posting city council agendas. Effective January 1, 2019, Gov. Code Section 54954.2(a)(2) requires that meeting agendas for all “legislative bodies” be posted on a city’s internet homepage, be retrievable, downloadable, indexable, electronically searchable,…

SUMMARY On February 22, 2019, the California Second District Court of Appeal, in Preven v. City of L.A.,1 held that while the Brown Act allows for restricting public comment under certain conditions at regular meetings, the Act does not permit limiting comment at special city council meetings based on public comments at prior, distinct committee…