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Williamson Act
Program
Frequently Asked
Questions
Public Acquisitions
What is public acquisition of Williamson
Act land?
Public acquisition of
Williamson Act land is acquisition, by
provision in the Act (Government Code
§§51290 - 51295, 51296.6), of land
located within an agricultural preserve
or enforceably restricted by a
Williamson Act or Farmland Security Zone
contract by a public agency or person
for a public improvement.
Who can acquire Williamson Act land by
public acquisition?
A public agency
or person may acquire Williamson
Act land by public acquisition. As
defined by the Williamson Act,
"(1) 'public
agency' means any department or agency
of the United States or the state, and
any county, city, school district, or
other local public district, agency,
or entity, and (2) 'person' means any
person authorized to acquire property
by eminent domain (Government Code
§51291(a)."
A school district
cannot acquire land that is under a
Farmland Security Zone contract
(§51296.6).
What happens to the contract?
If requirements for
public acquisition of Williamson Act
land are met, the land may be acquired
and the contract may be terminated. If
requirements are not met, the
acquisition may not be valid, and the
contract may remain in force and
continue to restrict use of the land. If
the acquired property remains within an
agricultural preserve, land use remains
subject to the rules of the preserve.
What is a public improvement?
As defined,
"'public
improvement' means facilities or
interests in real property, including
easements, rights-of-way, and
interests in fee title, owned by a
public agency or person, as defined in
subdivision (a) of Section 51291
(Government Code §51290.5)."
What are the requirements for public
acquisition of Williamson Act contracted
land?
The policy of the
state, consistent with the purpose of
the Williamson Act to preserve and
protect agricultural land, is to avoid,
whenever practicable, locating public
improvements and any public utilities
improvements in agricultural preserves.
If it is necessary to locate within a
preserve, it shall be on land that is
not under contract (Government Code
§51290(a)(b)). More specifically, the
basic requirements are:
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Whenever it
appears that land within a
preserve or under contract may be
required for a public improvement,
the public agency or person shall
notify the Department of
Conservation (Department) and the city
or county responsible for
administering the preserve
(§51291(b)).
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Within 30 days of
being notified, the Department and
city or county shall forward
comments, which shall be
considered by the public agency or
person (§51291(b)).
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"No public agency
or person shall locate a public
improvement within an agricultural
preserve unless the following
findings [emphasis added] are made
(§51292):"
"(a) The
location is not based primarily on a
consideration of the lower cost of
acquiring land in an agricultural
preserve (§51292(a)).
b) If the land is agricultural land
covered under a contract pursuant to
this chapter for any public
improvement, that there is no other
land within or outside the preserve
on which it is reasonably feasible
to locate the public improvement
(§51292(a)(b))."
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The contract shall
be terminated when land is acquired by
eminent domain or in lieu of
eminent domain (§51295).
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The Department and
city or county shall be notified
before project completion of any
proposed, significant changes
to the public improvement (§51291(d)).
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The Department
shall be notified within 10 working
days upon completion of the
acquisition (§51291(c)).
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If, after
acquisition, the acquiring public
agency determines that the property
will not be used for the proposed
public improvement, before returning
the land to private ownership, the
Department and city or county
administering the involved preserve
shall be notified. The land shall
be reenrolled in a new contract or
encumbered by an enforceable
restriction at least as restrictive as
that provided by the Williamson Act
(§51295).
What kinds of information must be
included with notification?
Pursuant to
Government Code §51291(b), the notice
shall include:
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The total number of
acres of Williamson Act land to
be acquired and whether the land is
considered prime agricultural land
according to §51201.
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The purpose
of the acquisition and why the land
was identified for acquisition.
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A description of
where the parcel(s) is located.
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Characteristics of
adjacent land (urban
development, Williamson Act,
noncontract agricultural, etc.).
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A vicinity map and
a location map (see below
also).
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A copy of the
contract(s) covering the land.
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CEQA
documents for the project.
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The findings
required under Government Code §51292,
an explanation of the preliminary
consideration of §51292 and
documentation to support the findings.
(Include a map of the proposed site
showing an area of surrounding land
identified by characteristics and
large enough to demonstrate, along
with the explanation, that no other,
noncontracted land is reasonably
feasible for the public improvement.)
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Documentation to
support acquisition by eminent
domain or in lieu of eminent domain
to void the contract pursuant to
§51295. (Include copies of eminent
domain proceedings, if applicable, a
property appraisal and written offer
pursuant to Government Code §§7267.1
and 7267.2, a chronology of steps
taken or planned to effect acquisition
by eminent domain or in lieu of
eminent domain and copies of any other
pertinent documents, such as a
Resolution of Necessity.)
Can we notify the Department through the
CEQA process?
No, it is not
permissible to provide notice through
CEQA. Notification must be made
separately to the Department (Government
Code §51291(b)).
Will selecting the "best" location for
the public improvement satisfy the
finding required?
No, selecting the
"best" or "preferred" location will not
satisfy the finding. The criterion to
locate on contract land is that there is
no other location that is not under
contract and reasonably feasible for the
public improvement (Government Code
§51292(b)).
Will the contract terminate when we
acquire the property?
Not necessarily. The
contract will be terminated or voided
when the property is acquired by eminent
domain or in lieu of eminent domain
(Government Code §51295). If these
requirements are not met, the contract
will remain in force and continue to
restrict use of the land.
Isn't an acquisition "in lieu" of
eminent domain simply a purchase from a
willing seller?
No, an acquisition
"in lieu" of eminent domain must follow
eminent domain law. The Department does
not provide counsel as to the
requirements of eminent domain law. We
recommend that the public agency or
person obtain legal counsel for this
purpose.
What if we provide notice and then
decide to modify the project?
The Department and
city or county responsible for
administering the involved agricultural
preserve shall be notified before
project completion of any proposed
significant changes to the public
improvement (Government Code §51291(d)).
What if we acquire the property and then
decide not to use it for the public
improvement?
If, after
acquisition, the acquiring public agency
determines that the property will not be
used for the proposed public
improvement, before returning the land
to private ownership, the Department and
city or county administering the
involved agricultural preserve shall be
notified. The land shall be reenrolled
in a new contract or encumbered by an
enforceable restriction at least as
restrictive as that provided by the
Williamson Act (Government Code §51295).
Once we provide notice, does our
responsibility end?
No. The notice may be
incomplete, in which case the Department
will request additional information to
complete proper notice. The public
agency or person is required to consider
the Department's comments (Government
Code §51291(b)) and to adhere to the
Williamson Act statute in determining
whether to complete the acquisition. As
noted above, additional notice is
required if significant changes are
proposed and if the property will not be
used for the proposed public
improvement. In addition, when the land
is acquired, the Department shall be
notified within 10 working days, and the
notice shall include a general
explanation of the decision and findings
made (§51291(c)).
For more information
the Williamson Act program, please
contact:
California Department of Conservation
Division of Land Resource Protection
801 K Street, MS 13-71
Sacramento, CA 95814-3528
(916) 324-0850
TDD (916) 324-2555
FAX (916) 327-3430
June 2004
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