Silicon Valley Taxpayers' Ass'n v. Santa Clara County Open Space Authority

In 1996, Proposition 218 1 limited local government’s ability to impose real property assessments in two significant ways. An assessment can be imposed only for a “special benefit” conferred on real property (art. XIIID, § 2, subd. (b)), and the assessment on any parcel must be in proportion to the special benefit conferred on the particular parcel (art. XIII D, § 4, subd. (a)).

In 2001, the Santa Clara County Open Space Authority (OSA) imposed a countywide assessment to fund a program to acquire, improve, and maintain unspecified open space lands in the county. Plaintiffs sued, challenging that assessment on the grounds that it fails to satisfy the special benefit and proportionality requirements of Proposition 218. To decide whether OSA’s 2001 assessment violates article XIII D, we must first determine the appropriate standard of judicial review of a local governmental agency’s assessment determination. We conclude that Proposition 218 requires courts to make an independent review of local agency decisions that are governed by express constitutional provisions, as in this case, and that OSA’s assessment does not comply with the special benefit and proportionality…