Within its boundaries, a district may do any of the following:
(a) Supply water for any beneficial uses, in the same manner as a municipal water district, formed pursuant to the Municipal Water District Law of 1911, Division 20 (commencing with Section 71000) of the Water Code. In the case of any conflict between that division and this division, the provisions of this division shall prevail.
(b) Collect, treat, or dispose of sewage, wastewater, recycled water, and storm water, in the same manner as a sanitary district, formed pursuant to the Sanitary District Act of 1923, Division 6 (commencing with Section 6400) of the Health and Safety Code. In the case of any conflict between that division and this division, the provisions of this division shall prevail.
(c) Collect, transfer, and dispose of solid waste, and provide solid waste handling services, including, but not limited to, source reduction, recycling, and composting activities, pursuant to Division 30 (commencing with Section 40000), and consistent with Section 41821.2 of the Public Resources Code.
(d) Provide fire protection services, rescue services, hazardous material emergency response services, and ambulance services in the same manner as a fire protection district, formed pursuant to the Fire Protection District Law, Part 2.7 (commencing with Section 13800) of Division 12 of the Health and Safety Code.
(e) Acquire, construct, improve, maintain, and operate recreation facilities, including, but not limited to, parks and open space, in the same manner as a recreation and park district formed pursuant to the Recreation and Park District Law, Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 5780) of Division 5 of the Public Resources Code.
(f) Organize, promote, conduct, and advertise programs of community recreation, in the same manner as a recreation and park district formed pursuant to the Recreation and Park District Law, Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 5780) of Division 5 of the Public Resources Code.
(g) Acquire, construct, improve, maintain, and operate street lighting and landscaping on public property, public rights-of-way, and public easements.
(h) Provide for the surveillance, prevention, abatement, and control of vectors and vectorborne diseases in the same manner as a mosquito abatement and vector control district formed pursuant to the Mosquito Abatement and Vector Control District Law, Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 2000) of Division 3 of the Health and Safety Code.
(i) Provide police protection and law enforcement services by establishing and operating a police department that employs peace officers pursuant to Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 830) of Title 3 of Part 2 of the Penal Code.
(j) Provide security services, including, but not limited to, burglar and fire alarm services, to protect lives and property.
(k) Provide library services, in the same manner as a library district formed pursuant to either Chapter 8 (commencing with Section 19400) or Chapter 9 (commencing with Section 19600) of Part 11 of the Education Code.
(l) Acquire, construct, improve, and maintain streets, roads, rights-of-way, bridges, culverts, drains, curbs, gutters, sidewalks, and any incidental works. A district shall not acquire, construct, improve, or maintain any work owned by another public agency unless that other public agency gives its written consent.
(m) Convert existing overhead electric and communications facilities, with the consent of the public agency or public utility that owns the facilities, to underground locations pursuant to Chapter 28 (commencing with Section 5896.1) of Part 3 of Division 7 of the Streets and Highways Code.
(n) Provide emergency medical services pursuant to the Emergency Medical Services System and the Prehospital Emergency Medical Care Personnel Act, Division 2.5 (commencing with Section 1797) of the Health and Safety Code.
(o) Provide and maintain public airports and landing places for aerial traffic, in the same manner as an airport district formed pursuant to the California Airport District Act, Part 2 (commencing with Section 22001) of Division 9 of the Public Utilities Code.
(p) Provide transportation services.
(q) Abate graffiti.
(r) Plan, design, construct, improve, maintain, and operate flood protection facilities. A district shall not plan, design, construct, improve, maintain, or operate flood protection facilities within the boundaries of another special district that provides those facilities unless the other special district gives its written consent. A district shall not plan, design, construct, improve, maintain, or operate flood protection facilities in unincorporated territory unless the board of supervisors gives its written consent. A district shall not plan, design, construct, improve, maintain, or operate flood protection facilities within a city unless the city council gives its written consent.
(s) Acquire, construct, improve, maintain, and operate community facilities, including, but not limited to, community centers, libraries, theaters, museums, cultural facilities, and child care facilities.
(t) Abate weeds and rubbish pursuant to Part 5 (commencing Section 14875) of the Health and Safety Code. For that purpose, the board of directors shall be deemed to be a “board of supervisors” and district employees shall be deemed to be the “persons” designated by Section 14890 of the Health and Safety Code.
(u) Acquire, construct, improve, maintain, and operate hydroelectric power generating facilities and transmission lines, consistent with the district’s water supply and wastewater operations. The power generated shall be used for district purposes, or sold to a public utility or another public agency that generates, uses, or sells electrical power. A district shall not acquire hydroelectric power generating facilities unless the facilities’ owner agrees.
(v) Acquire, construct, improve, maintain, and operate television translator facilities.
(w) Remove snow from public streets, roads, easements, and rights-of-way. A district may remove snow from public streets, roads, easements, and rights-of-way owned by another public agency, only with the written consent of that other public agency.
(x) Provide animal control services pursuant to Section 30501 of the Food and Agricultural Code. Whenever the term “board of supervisors,” “county,” “county clerk,” or “animal control officer” is used in Division 14 (commencing with Section 30501) of the Food and Agricultural Code, those terms shall also be deemed to include the board of directors of a district, a district, the general manager of the district, or the animal control officer of a district, respectively. A district shall not provide animal control services in unincorporated territory unless the county board of supervisors gives its written consent. A district shall not provide animal control services within a city unless the city council gives its written consent.
(y) Control, abate, and eradicate pests, in the same manner as a pest abatement district, formed pursuant to Chapter 8 (commencing with Section 2800) of Division 3 of the Health and Safety Code. A district’s program to control, abate, or eradicate local pine bark beetle infestations shall be consistent with any required plan or program approved by the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
(z) Construct, maintain, and operate mailboxes on a district’s property or rights-of-way.
(aa) Provide mail delivery service under contract to the United States Postal Service.
(ab) Own, operate, improve, and maintain cemeteries and provide interment services, in the same manner as a public cemetery district, formed pursuant to the Public Cemetery District Law, Part 4 (commencing with Section 9000) of Division 8 of the Health and Safety Code.
(ac) Finance the operations of area planning commissions formed pursuant to Section 65101.
(ad) Finance the operations of municipal advisory councils formed pursuant to Section 31010.
(ae) Acquire, own, improve, maintain, and operate land within or without the district for habitat mitigation or other environmental protection purposes to mitigate the effects of projects undertaken by the district.
(af) If a private person or entity is unable or unwilling to deploy broadband service, construct, own, improve, maintain, and operate broadband facilities and to provide broadband services. For purposes of this section, broadband has the same meaning as in subdivision (a) of Section 5830 of the Public Utilities Code. The district shall first make a reasonable effort to identify a private person or entity willing to deploy service. The authority granted by this subdivision shall expire when a private person or entity is ready, willing, and able to acquire, construct, improve, maintain, and operate broadband facilities and to provide broadband services, and to sell those services at a comparable cost and quality of service as provided by the district. At that time, the district shall do one of the following:
(1) Diligently transfer its title, ownership, maintenance, control, and operation of those broadband facilities and services at a fair market value to that private person or entity.
(2) Lease the operation of those broadband facilities at a fair market value to that private person or entity.
(Amended by Stats. 2008, Ch. 70, Sec. 1. Effective January 1, 2009.)
Last modified: October 25, 2018