Kansas Statutes 12-1771a. Environmentally contaminated areas; financing of investigation and remediation; tax increment bonds
(a) The governing body of a city may establish an increment in ad valorem taxes using the procedure set forth in subsection (b) for projects that are initiated upon a finding that the area is a blighted area as defined under Kan. Stat. Ann. § 12-1770a, and amendments thereto, when the following conditions exist:
(1) The proposed district has been identified by the Kansas department of health and environment or the United States environmental protection agency to be an environmentally contaminated area;
Terms Used In Kansas Statutes 12-1771a
- Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
- Blighted area: means an area which:
(1) Because of the presence of a majority of the following factors, substantially impairs or arrests the development and growth of the municipality or constitutes an economic or social liability or is a menace to the public health, safety, morals or welfare in its present condition and use:
(A) A substantial number of deteriorated or deteriorating structures;
(B) predominance of defective or inadequate street layout;
(C) unsanitary or unsafe conditions;
(D) deterioration of site improvements;
(E) tax or special assessment delinquency exceeding the fair market value of the real property;
(F) defective or unusual conditions of title including, but not limited to, cloudy or defective titles, multiple or unknown ownership interests to the property;
(G) improper subdivision or obsolete platting or land uses;
(H) the existence of conditions which endanger life or property by fire or other causes; or
(I) conditions which create economic obsolescence;
(2) has been identified by any state or federal environmental agency as being environmentally contaminated to an extent that requires a remedial investigation; feasibility study and remediation or other similar state or federal action;
(3) a majority of the property is a 100-year floodplain area; or
(4) previously was found by resolution of the governing body to be a slum or a blighted area under Kan. See Kansas Statutes 12-1770a
- Board: means the board of directors of the Kansas bioscience authority. See Kansas Statutes 12-1770a
- City: means any city in Kansas. See Kansas Statutes 12-1795
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Cost: means : (1) Expenditures made for construction, engineering, architectural, technical and legal services, reports, property valuations, estimates, plans, specifications, notices, acquisition of real and personal property, consequential damages, easements, rights-of-way, supervision, inspection, testing, publications, printing and sale of bonds, interest on temporary notes, and provisions for land use planning, administrative expense and contingencies of the district; (2) maintenance expenses of improvements as defined in subsection (c) or (d); and (3) service as defined in subsection (e). See Kansas Statutes 12-1795
- District: means a self-supported municipal improvement district which may be created and the property taxed in accordance with this act and which is:
(1) Comprised of contiguous property wholly within the boundaries of the central business district of the city as such boundaries are determined by resolution adopted by the governing body of the city and none of which property is zoned for any use other than commercial or industrial;
(2) comprised, at a minimum, of an area equivalent to four square blocks excluding any public streets and rights-of-way; and
(3) given a descriptive name containing the words "self-supported municipal improvement district. See Kansas Statutes 12-1795
- Environmental increment: means the increment determined pursuant to Kan. See Kansas Statutes 12-1770a
- Environmentally contaminated area: means an area of land having contaminated groundwater or soil which is deemed environmentally contaminated by the department of health and environment or the United States environmental protection agency. See Kansas Statutes 12-1770a
- Fair market value: The price at which an asset would change hands in a transaction between a willing, informed buyer and a willing, informed seller.
- Governing body: means the governing body of any municipality. See Kansas Statutes 12-17,115
- Increment: means , except for any taxes levied by school districts pursuant to Kan. See Kansas Statutes 12-17,115
- Month: means a calendar month, unless otherwise expressed. See Kansas Statutes 77-201
- Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
- Property: includes personal and real property. See Kansas Statutes 77-201
- real property: include lands, tenements and hereditaments, and all rights to them and interest in them, equitable as well as legal. See Kansas Statutes 77-201
- Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
- Redevelopment district: means the specific area declared to be an eligible area in which the city may develop one or more redevelopment projects. See Kansas Statutes 12-1770a
- Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
- Tax increment: means that amount of real property taxes collected from real property located within the redevelopment district that is in excess of the amount of real property taxes which is collected from the base year assessed valuation. See Kansas Statutes 12-1770a
- Taxing subdivision: means the county, city, unified school district and any other taxing subdivision levying real property taxes, the territory or jurisdiction of which includes any currently existing or subsequently created redevelopment district including a bioscience development district. See Kansas Statutes 12-1770a
- Taxpayer: means a person, corporation, limited liability company, S corporation, partnership, registered limited liability partnership, foundation, association, nonprofit entity, sole proprietorship, business trust, group or other entity that is subject to the Kansas income tax act, Kan. See Kansas Statutes 12-1770a
(2) the city has entered into a consent decree or settlement agreement or has taken action expressing an intent to enter into a consent decree or settlement agreement with the Kansas department of health and environment or the United States environmental protection agency that addresses the investigation and remediation of the environmental contamination;
(3) the consent decree or settlement agreement contains a provision that has the effect of releasing property owners who are not responsible for the contamination from the responsibility of paying the response costs of the investigation and remediation of the contamination; and
(4) the city intends to establish a redevelopment district pursuant to Kan. Stat. Ann. § 12-1771, and amendments thereto, to finance, in whole or in part, the investigation and remediation of contamination within such district.
(b) An environmental increment established after a city has found that the conditions described in subsection (c) of Kan. Stat. Ann. § 12-1770a, and amendments thereto, exists shall be set on a yearly basis. For purposes of this section, a yearly basis shall be a calendar year. Each year’s increment shall be an amount sufficient to pay the direct costs of investigation and remediation of the contaminated condition anticipated to be incurred that year including principal and interest due on any special obligation bonds or full faith and credit tax increment bonds issued to finance in whole or in part the remediation and investigation, costs relating to remediation investigation and feasibility studies, operation and maintenance expenses and other expenses relating directly to the investigation and remediation of contamination. Each year’s environmental increment shall not exceed 20% of the amount of taxes that are produced by all taxing subdivisions within any currently existing or subsequently created redevelopment district area in the year the redevelopment district is first established, notwithstanding that such subdivision was not required to receive notice of the establishment of the district.
(c) The budget that establishes the yearly environmental increment shall be certified by the city to the county clerk and county treasurer no later than August 25th, preceding the calendar year for which the budget is being set. Funds derived from an environmental increment established by this section and interest on all funds derived from an environmental increment established by this section may be used only for projects involving the investigation and remediation of contamination in the district.
(d) The real property taxes produced by the environmental increment established under subsection (b) from a redevelopment district established under the provisions of Kan. Stat. Ann. § 12-1771, and amendments thereto, and this section shall be allocated and paid by the county treasurer to the treasurer of the city and deposited in a special separate fund of the city to pay the direct cost of investigation and remediation of contamination in the redevelopment district. Any funds collected by the city from parties determined to be responsible in any manner for the contaminated condition shall be: (1) Deposited in the same separate special fund created hereunder, and with all interest earned thereon, may be used only for projects involving the investigation and remediation of contamination in the established redevelopment district; or (2) distributed to parties who have entered into a contract with the city to pay a portion of investigation and remediation of the contamination in the redevelopment district and the terms of such contract provide that such parties are entitled to reimbursement for a portion of funds they have expended for such investigation and remediation of contamination from the recovery of costs that are collected from other third party responsible parties.
(e) A redevelopment district created under the provisions of this section shall constitute a separate taxing district. If all costs for such investigation and remediation of contamination in the redevelopment district have been paid and moneys remain in the special fund, such moneys shall be remitted to each taxing subdivision which paid moneys into the special fund on the basis of the proportion which the total amount of moneys paid by such taxing subdivision into the special fund bears to the total amount of all moneys paid by all taxing subdivisions into the fund.
(f) Nothing in this section shall prevent any city from establishing a redevelopment district for other purposes pursuant to Kan. Stat. Ann. § 12-1770 et seq., and amendments thereto, which may include part or all of the real property included in the district established under this section.
(g) Redevelopment projects relating to environmental investigation and remediation under this section shall be completed within 20 years from the date the Kansas department of health and environment or the United States environmental protection agency issues an order or enters into a consent decree with the governing body of the city approving such project, unless the board of county commissioners and the board of education identified in Kan. Stat. Ann. § 12-1771, and amendments thereto, approve a request in writing from the city to extend the project a maximum of 10 years beyond the original 20.
(h) Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect the obligations of the county to annually review the fair market value of property in accordance with procedures set by law or to affect the right of any taxpayer to protest and appeal the appraised or reappraised value of their property in accordance with procedures set forth by law.
(i) Commencing with the regular session of the legislature in 1993, each city that establishes a redevelopment district under this section shall make a status report on a biennial basis to the standing committee on commerce of the senate and the standing committee on economic development of the house of representatives during the month of January. The status report shall contain information on the status of the investigation and remediation of contamination in the redevelopment district.
(j) For the purposes of this act, the governing body of a city, in contracts entered into with the Kansas department of health and environment or the United States environmental protection agency, may pledge increments receivable in future years to pay costs directly relating to the investigation and remediation of environmentally contaminated areas. The provisions in such contracts pertaining to pledging increments in future years shall not be subject to Kan. Stat. Ann. § 10-1101 et seq. or 79-2925 et seq., and amendments thereto.