H.B. 220

             1     

LAND USE AMENDMENTS

             2     
2014 GENERAL SESSION

             3     
STATE OF UTAH

             4     
Chief Sponsor: Gage Froerer

             5     
Senate Sponsor: ____________

             6     
             7      LONG TITLE
             8      General Description:
             9          This bill amends provisions related to land use.
             10      Highlighted Provisions:
             11          This bill:
             12          .    clarifies the definition of land use authority;
             13          .    provides that a recorded, amended plat vacates a previously recorded plat;
             14          .    provides that a recorded vacating ordinance replaces a previously recorded plat
             15      described in the vacating ordinance;
             16          .    requires that an amended plat be signed by the land use authority; and
             17          .    makes technical corrections.
             18      Money Appropriated in this Bill:
             19          None
             20      Other Special Clauses:
             21          None
             22      Utah Code Sections Affected:
             23      AMENDS:
             24           10-9a-103 , as last amended by Laws of Utah 2013, Chapters 309 and 334
             25           10-9a-609 , as last amended by Laws of Utah 2010, Chapter 381
             26           17-27a-103 , as last amended by Laws of Utah 2013, Chapters 309, 334, and 476
             27           17-27a-609 , as last amended by Laws of Utah 2010, Chapter 381


             28     
             29      Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
             30          Section 1. Section 10-9a-103 is amended to read:
             31           10-9a-103. Definitions.
             32          As used in this chapter:
             33          (1) "Affected entity" means a county, municipality, local district, special service
             34      district under Title 17D, Chapter 1, Special Service District Act, school district, interlocal
             35      cooperation entity established under Title 11, Chapter 13, Interlocal Cooperation Act, specified
             36      public utility, property owner, property owners association, or the Utah Department of
             37      Transportation, if:
             38          (a) the entity's services or facilities are likely to require expansion or significant
             39      modification because of an intended use of land;
             40          (b) the entity has filed with the municipality a copy of the entity's general or long-range
             41      plan; or
             42          (c) the entity has filed with the municipality a request for notice during the same
             43      calendar year and before the municipality provides notice to an affected entity in compliance
             44      with a requirement imposed under this chapter.
             45          (2) "Appeal authority" means the person, board, commission, agency, or other body
             46      designated by ordinance to decide an appeal of a decision of a land use application or a
             47      variance.
             48          (3) "Billboard" means a freestanding ground sign located on industrial, commercial, or
             49      residential property if the sign is designed or intended to direct attention to a business, product,
             50      or service that is not sold, offered, or existing on the property where the sign is located.
             51          (4) (a) "Charter school" means:
             52          (i) an operating charter school;
             53          (ii) a charter school applicant that has its application approved by a chartering entity in
             54      accordance with Title 53A, Chapter 1a, Part 5, The Utah Charter Schools Act; or
             55          (iii) an entity that is working on behalf of a charter school or approved charter
             56      applicant to develop or construct a charter school building.
             57          (b) "Charter school" does not include a therapeutic school.
             58          (5) "Conditional use" means a land use that, because of its unique characteristics or


             59      potential impact on the municipality, surrounding neighbors, or adjacent land uses, may not be
             60      compatible in some areas or may be compatible only if certain conditions are required that
             61      mitigate or eliminate the detrimental impacts.
             62          (6) "Constitutional taking" means a governmental action that results in a taking of
             63      private property so that compensation to the owner of the property is required by the:
             64          (a) Fifth or Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution of the United States; or
             65          (b) Utah Constitution Article I, Section 22.
             66          (7) "Culinary water authority" means the department, agency, or public entity with
             67      responsibility to review and approve the feasibility of the culinary water system and sources for
             68      the subject property.
             69          (8) "Development activity" means:
             70          (a) any construction or expansion of a building, structure, or use that creates additional
             71      demand and need for public facilities;
             72          (b) any change in use of a building or structure that creates additional demand and need
             73      for public facilities; or
             74          (c) any change in the use of land that creates additional demand and need for public
             75      facilities.
             76          (9) (a) "Disability" means a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one
             77      or more of a person's major life activities, including a person having a record of such an
             78      impairment or being regarded as having such an impairment.
             79          (b) "Disability" does not include current illegal use of, or addiction to, any federally
             80      controlled substance, as defined in Section 102 of the Controlled Substances Act, 21 U.S.C.
             81      802.
             82          (10) "Educational facility":
             83          (a) means:
             84          (i) a school district's building at which pupils assemble to receive instruction in a
             85      program for any combination of grades from preschool through grade 12, including
             86      kindergarten and a program for children with disabilities;
             87          (ii) a structure or facility:
             88          (A) located on the same property as a building described in Subsection (10)(a)(i); and
             89          (B) used in support of the use of that building; and


             90          (iii) a building to provide office and related space to a school district's administrative
             91      personnel; and
             92          (b) does not include:
             93          (i) land or a structure, including land or a structure for inventory storage, equipment
             94      storage, food processing or preparing, vehicle storage or maintenance, or similar use that is:
             95          (A) not located on the same property as a building described in Subsection (10)(a)(i);
             96      and
             97          (B) used in support of the purposes of a building described in Subsection (10)(a)(i); or
             98          (ii) a therapeutic school.
             99          (11) "Fire authority" means the department, agency, or public entity with responsibility
             100      to review and approve the feasibility of fire protection and suppression services for the subject
             101      property.
             102          (12) "Flood plain" means land that:
             103          (a) is within the 100-year flood plain designated by the Federal Emergency
             104      Management Agency; or
             105          (b) has not been studied or designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency
             106      but presents a likelihood of experiencing chronic flooding or a catastrophic flood event because
             107      the land has characteristics that are similar to those of a 100-year flood plain designated by the
             108      Federal Emergency Management Agency.
             109          (13) "General plan" means a document that a municipality adopts that sets forth general
             110      guidelines for proposed future development of the land within the municipality.
             111          (14) "Geologic hazard" means:
             112          (a) a surface fault rupture;
             113          (b) shallow groundwater;
             114          (c) liquefaction;
             115          (d) a landslide;
             116          (e) a debris flow;
             117          (f) unstable soil;
             118          (g) a rock fall; or
             119          (h) any other geologic condition that presents a risk:
             120          (i) to life;


             121          (ii) of substantial loss of real property; or
             122          (iii) of substantial damage to real property.
             123          (15) "Hookup fee" means a fee for the installation and inspection of any pipe, line,
             124      meter, or appurtenance that connects to a municipal water, sewer, storm water, power, or other
             125      utility system.
             126          (16) "Identical plans" means building plans submitted to a municipality that:
             127          (a) are clearly marked as "identical plans";
             128          (b) are substantially identical to building plans that were previously submitted to and
             129      reviewed and approved by the municipality; and
             130          (c) describe a building that:
             131          (i) is located on land zoned the same as the land on which the building described in the
             132      previously approved plans is located;
             133          (ii) is subject to the same geological and meteorological conditions and the same law
             134      as the building described in the previously approved plans;
             135          (iii) has a floor plan identical to the building plan previously submitted to and reviewed
             136      and approved by the municipality; and
             137          (iv) does not require any additional engineering or analysis.
             138          (17) "Impact fee" means a payment of money imposed under Title 11, Chapter 36a,
             139      Impact Fees Act.
             140          (18) "Improvement completion assurance" means a surety bond, letter of credit, cash,
             141      or other security required by a municipality to guaranty the proper completion of landscaping
             142      or infrastructure that the land use authority has required as a condition precedent to:
             143          (a) recording a subdivision plat; or
             144          (b) beginning development activity.
             145          (19) "Improvement warranty" means an applicant's unconditional warranty that the
             146      accepted landscaping or infrastructure:
             147          (a) complies with the municipality's written standards for design, materials, and
             148      workmanship; and
             149          (b) will not fail in any material respect, as a result of poor workmanship or materials,
             150      within the improvement warranty period.
             151          (20) "Improvement warranty period" means a period:


             152          (a) no later than one year after a municipality's acceptance of required landscaping; or
             153          (b) no later than one year after a municipality's acceptance of required infrastructure,
             154      unless the municipality:
             155          (i) determines for good cause that a one-year period would be inadequate to protect the
             156      public health, safety, and welfare; and
             157          (ii) has substantial evidence, on record:
             158          (A) of prior poor performance by the applicant; or
             159          (B) that the area upon which the infrastructure will be constructed contains suspect soil
             160      and the municipality has not otherwise required the applicant to mitigate the suspect soil.
             161          (21) "Internal lot restriction" means a platted note, platted demarcation, or platted
             162      designation that:
             163          (a) runs with the land; and
             164          (b) (i) creates a restriction that is enclosed within the perimeter of a lot described on
             165      the plat; or
             166          (ii) designates a development condition that is enclosed within the perimeter of a lot
             167      described on the plat.
             168          (22) "Land use application" means an application required by a municipality's land use
             169      ordinance.
             170          (23) "Land use authority" means:
             171          (a) a person, board, commission, agency, or [other] body, including the local legislative
             172      body, designated by the local legislative body to act upon a land use application[.]; or
             173          (b) if the local legislative body has not designated a person, board, commission,
             174      agency, or body, the local legislative body.
             175          (24) "Land use ordinance" means a planning, zoning, development, or subdivision
             176      ordinance of the municipality, but does not include the general plan.
             177          (25) "Land use permit" means a permit issued by a land use authority.
             178          (26) "Legislative body" means the municipal council.
             179          (27) "Local district" means an entity under Title 17B, Limited Purpose Local
             180      Government Entities - Local Districts, and any other governmental or quasi-governmental
             181      entity that is not a county, municipality, school district, or the state.
             182          (28) "Lot line adjustment" means the relocation of the property boundary line in a


             183      subdivision between two adjoining lots with the consent of the owners of record.
             184          (29) "Moderate income housing" means housing occupied or reserved for occupancy
             185      by households with a gross household income equal to or less than 80% of the median gross
             186      income for households of the same size in the county in which the city is located.
             187          (30) "Nominal fee" means a fee that reasonably reimburses a municipality only for time
             188      spent and expenses incurred in:
             189          (a) verifying that building plans are identical plans; and
             190          (b) reviewing and approving those minor aspects of identical plans that differ from the
             191      previously reviewed and approved building plans.
             192          (31) "Noncomplying structure" means a structure that:
             193          (a) legally existed before its current land use designation; and
             194          (b) because of one or more subsequent land use ordinance changes, does not conform
             195      to the setback, height restrictions, or other regulations, excluding those regulations, which
             196      govern the use of land.
             197          (32) "Nonconforming use" means a use of land that:
             198          (a) legally existed before its current land use designation;
             199          (b) has been maintained continuously since the time the land use ordinance governing
             200      the land changed; and
             201          (c) because of one or more subsequent land use ordinance changes, does not conform
             202      to the regulations that now govern the use of the land.
             203          (33) "Official map" means a map drawn by municipal authorities and recorded in a
             204      county recorder's office that:
             205          (a) shows actual and proposed rights-of-way, centerline alignments, and setbacks for
             206      highways and other transportation facilities;
             207          (b) provides a basis for restricting development in designated rights-of-way or between
             208      designated setbacks to allow the government authorities time to purchase or otherwise reserve
             209      the land; and
             210          (c) has been adopted as an element of the municipality's general plan.
             211          (34) "Parcel boundary adjustment" means a recorded agreement between owners of
             212      adjoining properties adjusting their mutual boundary if:
             213          (a) no additional parcel is created; and


             214          (b) each property identified in the agreement is unsubdivided land, including a
             215      remainder of subdivided land.
             216          (35) "Person" means an individual, corporation, partnership, organization, association,
             217      trust, governmental agency, or any other legal entity.
             218          (36) "Plan for moderate income housing" means a written document adopted by a city
             219      legislative body that includes:
             220          (a) an estimate of the existing supply of moderate income housing located within the
             221      city;
             222          (b) an estimate of the need for moderate income housing in the city for the next five
             223      years as revised biennially;
             224          (c) a survey of total residential land use;
             225          (d) an evaluation of how existing land uses and zones affect opportunities for moderate
             226      income housing; and
             227          (e) a description of the city's program to encourage an adequate supply of moderate
             228      income housing.
             229          (37) "Plat" means a map or other graphical representation of lands being laid out and
             230      prepared in accordance with Section 10-9a-603 , 17-23-17 , or 57-8-13 .
             231          (38) "Potential geologic hazard area" means an area that:
             232          (a) is designated by a Utah Geological Survey map, county geologist map, or other
             233      relevant map or report as needing further study to determine the area's potential for geologic
             234      hazard; or
             235          (b) has not been studied by the Utah Geological Survey or a county geologist but
             236      presents the potential of geologic hazard because the area has characteristics similar to those of
             237      a designated geologic hazard area.
             238          (39) "Public agency" means:
             239          (a) the federal government;
             240          (b) the state;
             241          (c) a county, municipality, school district, local district, special service district, or other
             242      political subdivision of the state; or
             243          (d) a charter school.
             244          (40) "Public hearing" means a hearing at which members of the public are provided a


             245      reasonable opportunity to comment on the subject of the hearing.
             246          (41) "Public meeting" means a meeting that is required to be open to the public under
             247      Title 52, Chapter 4, Open and Public Meetings Act.
             248          (42) "Receiving zone" means an area of a municipality that the municipality
             249      designates, by ordinance, as an area in which an owner of land may receive a transferable
             250      development right.
             251          (43) "Record of survey map" means a map of a survey of land prepared in accordance
             252      with Section 17-23-17 .
             253          (44) "Residential facility for persons with a disability" means a residence:
             254          (a) in which more than one person with a disability resides; and
             255          (b) (i) which is licensed or certified by the Department of Human Services under Title
             256      62A, Chapter 2, Licensure of Programs and Facilities; or
             257          (ii) which is licensed or certified by the Department of Health under Title 26, Chapter
             258      21, Health Care Facility Licensing and Inspection Act.
             259          (45) "Rules of order and procedure" means a set of rules that govern and prescribe in a
             260      public meeting:
             261          (a) parliamentary order and procedure;
             262          (b) ethical behavior; and
             263          (c) civil discourse.
             264          (46) "Sanitary sewer authority" means the department, agency, or public entity with
             265      responsibility to review and approve the feasibility of sanitary sewer services or onsite
             266      wastewater systems.
             267          (47) "Sending zone" means an area of a municipality that the municipality designates,
             268      by ordinance, as an area from which an owner of land may transfer a transferable development
             269      right.
             270          (48) "Specified public agency" means:
             271          (a) the state;
             272          (b) a school district; or
             273          (c) a charter school.
             274          (49) "Specified public utility" means an electrical corporation, gas corporation, or
             275      telephone corporation, as those terms are defined in Section 54-2-1 .


             276          (50) "State" includes any department, division, or agency of the state.
             277          (51) "Street" means a public right-of-way, including a highway, avenue, boulevard,
             278      parkway, road, lane, walk, alley, viaduct, subway, tunnel, bridge, public easement, or other
             279      way.
             280          (52) (a) "Subdivision" means any land that is divided, resubdivided or proposed to be
             281      divided into two or more lots, parcels, sites, units, plots, or other division of land for the
             282      purpose, whether immediate or future, for offer, sale, lease, or development either on the
             283      installment plan or upon any and all other plans, terms, and conditions.
             284          (b) "Subdivision" includes:
             285          (i) the division or development of land whether by deed, metes and bounds description,
             286      devise and testacy, map, plat, or other recorded instrument; and
             287          (ii) except as provided in Subsection (52)(c), divisions of land for residential and
             288      nonresidential uses, including land used or to be used for commercial, agricultural, and
             289      industrial purposes.
             290          (c) "Subdivision" does not include:
             291          (i) a bona fide division or partition of agricultural land for the purpose of joining one of
             292      the resulting separate parcels to a contiguous parcel of unsubdivided agricultural land, if
             293      neither the resulting combined parcel nor the parcel remaining from the division or partition
             294      violates an applicable land use ordinance;
             295          (ii) a recorded agreement between owners of adjoining unsubdivided properties
             296      adjusting their mutual boundary if:
             297          (A) no new lot is created; and
             298          (B) the adjustment does not violate applicable land use ordinances;
             299          (iii) a recorded document, executed by the owner of record:
             300          (A) revising the legal description of more than one contiguous unsubdivided parcel of
             301      property into one legal description encompassing all such parcels of property; or
             302          (B) joining a subdivided parcel of property to another parcel of property that has not
             303      been subdivided, if the joinder does not violate applicable land use ordinances;
             304          (iv) a recorded agreement between owners of adjoining subdivided properties adjusting
             305      their mutual boundary if:
             306          (A) no new dwelling lot or housing unit will result from the adjustment; and


             307          (B) the adjustment will not violate any applicable land use ordinance;
             308          (v) a bona fide division or partition of land by deed or other instrument where the land
             309      use authority expressly approves in writing the division in anticipation of further land use
             310      approvals on the parcel or parcels; or
             311          (vi) a parcel boundary adjustment.
             312          (d) The joining of a subdivided parcel of property to another parcel of property that has
             313      not been subdivided does not constitute a subdivision under this Subsection (52) as to the
             314      unsubdivided parcel of property or subject the unsubdivided parcel to the municipality's
             315      subdivision ordinance.
             316          (53) "Suspect soil" means soil that has:
             317          (a) a high susceptibility for volumetric change, typically clay rich, having more than a
             318      3% swell potential;
             319          (b) bedrock units with high shrink or swell susceptibility; or
             320          (c) gypsiferous silt and clay, gypsum, or bedrock units containing abundant gypsum
             321      commonly associated with dissolution and collapse features.
             322          (54) "Therapeutic school" means a residential group living facility:
             323          (a) for four or more individuals who are not related to:
             324          (i) the owner of the facility; or
             325          (ii) the primary service provider of the facility;
             326          (b) that serves students who have a history of failing to function:
             327          (i) at home;
             328          (ii) in a public school; or
             329          (iii) in a nonresidential private school; and
             330          (c) that offers:
             331          (i) room and board; and
             332          (ii) an academic education integrated with:
             333          (A) specialized structure and supervision; or
             334          (B) services or treatment related to a disability, an emotional development, a
             335      behavioral development, a familial development, or a social development.
             336          (55) "Transferable development right" means a right to develop and use land that
             337      originates by an ordinance that authorizes a land owner in a designated sending zone to transfer


             338      land use rights from a designated sending zone to a designated receiving zone.
             339          (56) "Unincorporated" means the area outside of the incorporated area of a city or
             340      town.
             341          (57) "Water interest" means any right to the beneficial use of water, including:
             342          (a) each of the rights listed in Section 73-1-11 ; and
             343          (b) an ownership interest in the right to the beneficial use of water represented by:
             344          (i) a contract; or
             345          (ii) a share in a water company, as defined in Section 73-3-3.5 .
             346          (58) "Zoning map" means a map, adopted as part of a land use ordinance, that depicts
             347      land use zones, overlays, or districts.
             348          Section 2. Section 10-9a-609 is amended to read:
             349           10-9a-609. Land use authority approval of vacation or amendment of plat --
             350      Recording the amended plat.
             351          (1) The land use authority may approve the vacation or amendment of a plat by signing
             352      an amended plat showing the vacation or amendment if the land use authority finds that:
             353          (a) there is good cause for the vacation or amendment; and
             354          (b) no public street, right-of-way, or easement has been vacated or amended.
             355          (2) (a) The land use authority shall ensure that the amended plat showing the vacation
             356      or amendment is recorded in the office of the county recorder in which the land is located.
             357          (b) If the amended plat is approved and recorded in accordance with this section, the
             358      recorded plat shall vacate, supersede, and replace any contrary provision in a previously
             359      recorded plat of the same land.
             360          (3) (a) A legislative body may vacate a subdivision or a portion of a subdivision by
             361      recording in the county recorder's office an ordinance describing the subdivision or the portion
             362      being vacated.
             363          (b) The recorded vacating ordinance shall replace a previously recorded plat described
             364      in the vacating ordinance.
             365          (4) An amended plat may not be submitted to the county recorder for recording unless
             366      it is [signed, acknowledged, and dedicated by each owner of record of the portion of the plat
             367      that is amended.]:
             368          (a) signed by the land use authority; and


             369          (b) signed, acknowledged, and dedicated by each owner of record of the portion of the
             370      plat that is amended.
             371          (5) A management committee may sign and dedicate an amended plat as provided in
             372      Title 57, Chapter 8, Condominium Ownership Act.
             373          (6) A plat may be corrected as provided in Section 57-3-106 .
             374          Section 3. Section 17-27a-103 is amended to read:
             375           17-27a-103. Definitions.
             376          As used in this chapter:
             377          (1) "Affected entity" means a county, municipality, local district, special service
             378      district under Title 17D, Chapter 1, Special Service District Act, school district, interlocal
             379      cooperation entity established under Title 11, Chapter 13, Interlocal Cooperation Act, specified
             380      property owner, property owners association, public utility, or the Utah Department of
             381      Transportation, if:
             382          (a) the entity's services or facilities are likely to require expansion or significant
             383      modification because of an intended use of land;
             384          (b) the entity has filed with the county a copy of the entity's general or long-range plan;
             385      or
             386          (c) the entity has filed with the county a request for notice during the same calendar
             387      year and before the county provides notice to an affected entity in compliance with a
             388      requirement imposed under this chapter.
             389          (2) "Appeal authority" means the person, board, commission, agency, or other body
             390      designated by ordinance to decide an appeal of a decision of a land use application or a
             391      variance.
             392          (3) "Billboard" means a freestanding ground sign located on industrial, commercial, or
             393      residential property if the sign is designed or intended to direct attention to a business, product,
             394      or service that is not sold, offered, or existing on the property where the sign is located.
             395          (4) (a) "Charter school" means:
             396          (i) an operating charter school;
             397          (ii) a charter school applicant that has its application approved by a chartering entity in
             398      accordance with Title 53A, Chapter 1a, Part 5, The Utah Charter Schools Act; or
             399          (iii) an entity that is working on behalf of a charter school or approved charter


             400      applicant to develop or construct a charter school building.
             401          (b) "Charter school" does not include a therapeutic school.
             402          (5) "Chief executive officer" means the person or body that exercises the executive
             403      powers of the county.
             404          (6) "Conditional use" means a land use that, because of its unique characteristics or
             405      potential impact on the county, surrounding neighbors, or adjacent land uses, may not be
             406      compatible in some areas or may be compatible only if certain conditions are required that
             407      mitigate or eliminate the detrimental impacts.
             408          (7) "Constitutional taking" means a governmental action that results in a taking of
             409      private property so that compensation to the owner of the property is required by the:
             410          (a) Fifth or Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution of the United States; or
             411          (b) Utah Constitution Article I, Section 22.
             412          (8) "Culinary water authority" means the department, agency, or public entity with
             413      responsibility to review and approve the feasibility of the culinary water system and sources for
             414      the subject property.
             415          (9) "Development activity" means:
             416          (a) any construction or expansion of a building, structure, or use that creates additional
             417      demand and need for public facilities;
             418          (b) any change in use of a building or structure that creates additional demand and need
             419      for public facilities; or
             420          (c) any change in the use of land that creates additional demand and need for public
             421      facilities.
             422          (10) (a) "Disability" means a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits
             423      one or more of a person's major life activities, including a person having a record of such an
             424      impairment or being regarded as having such an impairment.
             425          (b) "Disability" does not include current illegal use of, or addiction to, any federally
             426      controlled substance, as defined in Section 102 of the Controlled Substances Act, 21 U.S.C.
             427      802.
             428          (11) "Educational facility":
             429          (a) means:
             430          (i) a school district's building at which pupils assemble to receive instruction in a


             431      program for any combination of grades from preschool through grade 12, including
             432      kindergarten and a program for children with disabilities;
             433          (ii) a structure or facility:
             434          (A) located on the same property as a building described in Subsection (11)(a)(i); and
             435          (B) used in support of the use of that building; and
             436          (iii) a building to provide office and related space to a school district's administrative
             437      personnel; and
             438          (b) does not include:
             439          (i) land or a structure, including land or a structure for inventory storage, equipment
             440      storage, food processing or preparing, vehicle storage or maintenance, or similar use that is:
             441          (A) not located on the same property as a building described in Subsection (11)(a)(i);
             442      and
             443          (B) used in support of the purposes of a building described in Subsection (11)(a)(i); or
             444          (ii) a therapeutic school.
             445          (12) "Fire authority" means the department, agency, or public entity with responsibility
             446      to review and approve the feasibility of fire protection and suppression services for the subject
             447      property.
             448          (13) "Flood plain" means land that:
             449          (a) is within the 100-year flood plain designated by the Federal Emergency
             450      Management Agency; or
             451          (b) has not been studied or designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency
             452      but presents a likelihood of experiencing chronic flooding or a catastrophic flood event because
             453      the land has characteristics that are similar to those of a 100-year flood plain designated by the
             454      Federal Emergency Management Agency.
             455          (14) "Gas corporation" has the same meaning as defined in Section 54-2-1 .
             456          (15) "General plan" means a document that a county adopts that sets forth general
             457      guidelines for proposed future development of the unincorporated land within the county.
             458          (16) "Geologic hazard" means:
             459          (a) a surface fault rupture;
             460          (b) shallow groundwater;
             461          (c) liquefaction;


             462          (d) a landslide;
             463          (e) a debris flow;
             464          (f) unstable soil;
             465          (g) a rock fall; or
             466          (h) any other geologic condition that presents a risk:
             467          (i) to life;
             468          (ii) of substantial loss of real property; or
             469          (iii) of substantial damage to real property.
             470          [(18)] (17) "Hookup fee" means a fee for the installation and inspection of any pipe,
             471      line, meter, or appurtenance to connect to a county water, sewer, storm water, power, or other
             472      utility system.
             473          [(19)] (18) "Identical plans" means building plans submitted to a county that:
             474          (a) are clearly marked as "identical plans";
             475          (b) are substantially identical building plans that were previously submitted to and
             476      reviewed and approved by the county; and
             477          (c) describe a building that:
             478          (i) is located on land zoned the same as the land on which the building described in the
             479      previously approved plans is located;
             480          (ii) is subject to the same geological and meteorological conditions and the same law
             481      as the building described in the previously approved plans;
             482          (iii) has a floor plan identical to the building plan previously submitted to and reviewed
             483      and approved by the county; and
             484          (iv) does not require any additional engineering or analysis.
             485          [(20)] (19) "Impact fee" means a payment of money imposed under Title 11, Chapter
             486      36a, Impact Fees Act.
             487          [(21)] (20) "Improvement completion assurance" means a surety bond, letter of credit,
             488      cash, or other security required by a county to guaranty the proper completion of landscaping or
             489      infrastructure that the land use authority has required as a condition precedent to:
             490          (a) recording a subdivision plat; or
             491          (b) beginning development activity.
             492          [(22)] (21) "Improvement warranty" means an applicant's unconditional warranty that


             493      the accepted landscaping or infrastructure:
             494          (a) complies with the county's written standards for design, materials, and
             495      workmanship; and
             496          (b) will not fail in any material respect, as a result of poor workmanship or materials,
             497      within the improvement warranty period.
             498          [(23)] (22) "Improvement warranty period" means a period:
             499          (a) no later than one year after a county's acceptance of required landscaping; or
             500          (b) no later than one year after a county's acceptance of required infrastructure, unless
             501      the county:
             502          (i) determines for good cause that a one-year period would be inadequate to protect the
             503      public health, safety, and welfare; and
             504          (ii) has substantial evidence, on record:
             505          (A) of prior poor performance by the applicant; or
             506          (B) that the area upon which the infrastructure will be constructed contains suspect soil
             507      and the county has not otherwise required the applicant to mitigate the suspect soil.
             508          [(17)] (23) "Internal lot restriction" means a platted note, platted demarcation, or
             509      platted designation that:
             510          (a) runs with the land; and
             511          (b) (i) creates a restriction that is enclosed within the perimeter of a lot described on
             512      the plat; or
             513          (ii) designates a development condition that is enclosed within the perimeter of a lot
             514      described on the plat.
             515          (24) "Interstate pipeline company" means a person or entity engaged in natural gas
             516      transportation subject to the jurisdiction of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission under
             517      the Natural Gas Act, 15 U.S.C. Sec. 717 et seq.
             518          (25) "Intrastate pipeline company" means a person or entity engaged in natural gas
             519      transportation that is not subject to the jurisdiction of the Federal Energy Regulatory
             520      Commission under the Natural Gas Act, 15 U.S.C. Sec. 717 et seq.
             521          (26) "Land use application" means an application required by a county's land use
             522      ordinance.
             523          (27) "Land use authority" means:


             524          (a) a person, board, commission, agency, or [other] body, including the local legislative
             525      body, designated by the local legislative body to act upon a land use application[.]; or
             526          (b) if the local legislative body has not designated a person, board, commission,
             527      agency, or body, the local legislative body.
             528          (28) "Land use ordinance" means a planning, zoning, development, or subdivision
             529      ordinance of the county, but does not include the general plan.
             530          (29) "Land use permit" means a permit issued by a land use authority.
             531          (30) "Legislative body" means the county legislative body, or for a county that has
             532      adopted an alternative form of government, the body exercising legislative powers.
             533          (31) "Local district" means any entity under Title 17B, Limited Purpose Local
             534      Government Entities - Local Districts, and any other governmental or quasi-governmental
             535      entity that is not a county, municipality, school district, or the state.
             536          (32) "Lot line adjustment" means the relocation of the property boundary line in a
             537      subdivision between two adjoining lots with the consent of the owners of record.
             538          (33) "Moderate income housing" means housing occupied or reserved for occupancy
             539      by households with a gross household income equal to or less than 80% of the median gross
             540      income for households of the same size in the county in which the housing is located.
             541          (34) "Nominal fee" means a fee that reasonably reimburses a county only for time spent
             542      and expenses incurred in:
             543          (a) verifying that building plans are identical plans; and
             544          (b) reviewing and approving those minor aspects of identical plans that differ from the
             545      previously reviewed and approved building plans.
             546          (35) "Noncomplying structure" means a structure that:
             547          (a) legally existed before its current land use designation; and
             548          (b) because of one or more subsequent land use ordinance changes, does not conform
             549      to the setback, height restrictions, or other regulations, excluding those regulations that govern
             550      the use of land.
             551          (36) "Nonconforming use" means a use of land that:
             552          (a) legally existed before its current land use designation;
             553          (b) has been maintained continuously since the time the land use ordinance regulation
             554      governing the land changed; and


             555          (c) because of one or more subsequent land use ordinance changes, does not conform
             556      to the regulations that now govern the use of the land.
             557          (37) "Official map" means a map drawn by county authorities and recorded in the
             558      county recorder's office that:
             559          (a) shows actual and proposed rights-of-way, centerline alignments, and setbacks for
             560      highways and other transportation facilities;
             561          (b) provides a basis for restricting development in designated rights-of-way or between
             562      designated setbacks to allow the government authorities time to purchase or otherwise reserve
             563      the land; and
             564          (c) has been adopted as an element of the county's general plan.
             565          (38) "Parcel boundary adjustment" means a recorded agreement between owners of
             566      adjoining properties adjusting their mutual boundary if:
             567          (a) no additional parcel is created; and
             568          (b) each property identified in the agreement is unsubdivided land, including a
             569      remainder of subdivided land.
             570          (39) "Person" means an individual, corporation, partnership, organization, association,
             571      trust, governmental agency, or any other legal entity.
             572          (40) "Plan for moderate income housing" means a written document adopted by a
             573      county legislative body that includes:
             574          (a) an estimate of the existing supply of moderate income housing located within the
             575      county;
             576          (b) an estimate of the need for moderate income housing in the county for the next five
             577      years as revised biennially;
             578          (c) a survey of total residential land use;
             579          (d) an evaluation of how existing land uses and zones affect opportunities for moderate
             580      income housing; and
             581          (e) a description of the county's program to encourage an adequate supply of moderate
             582      income housing.
             583          (41) "Plat" means a map or other graphical representation of lands being laid out and
             584      prepared in accordance with Section 17-27a-603 , 17-23-17 , or 57-8-13 .
             585          (42) "Potential geologic hazard area" means an area that:


             586          (a) is designated by a Utah Geological Survey map, county geologist map, or other
             587      relevant map or report as needing further study to determine the area's potential for geologic
             588      hazard; or
             589          (b) has not been studied by the Utah Geological Survey or a county geologist but
             590      presents the potential of geologic hazard because the area has characteristics similar to those of
             591      a designated geologic hazard area.
             592          (43) "Public agency" means:
             593          (a) the federal government;
             594          (b) the state;
             595          (c) a county, municipality, school district, local district, special service district, or other
             596      political subdivision of the state; or
             597          (d) a charter school.
             598          (44) "Public hearing" means a hearing at which members of the public are provided a
             599      reasonable opportunity to comment on the subject of the hearing.
             600          (45) "Public meeting" means a meeting that is required to be open to the public under
             601      Title 52, Chapter 4, Open and Public Meetings Act.
             602          (46) "Receiving zone" means an unincorporated area of a county that the county
             603      designates, by ordinance, as an area in which an owner of land may receive a transferable
             604      development right.
             605          (47) "Record of survey map" means a map of a survey of land prepared in accordance
             606      with Section 17-23-17 .
             607          (48) "Residential facility for persons with a disability" means a residence:
             608          (a) in which more than one person with a disability resides; and
             609          (b) (i) which is licensed or certified by the Department of Human Services under Title
             610      62A, Chapter 2, Licensure of Programs and Facilities; or
             611          (ii) which is licensed or certified by the Department of Health under Title 26, Chapter
             612      21, Health Care Facility Licensing and Inspection Act.
             613          (49) "Rules of order and procedure" means a set of rules that govern and prescribe in a
             614      public meeting:
             615          (a) parliamentary order and procedure;
             616          (b) ethical behavior; and


             617          (c) civil discourse.
             618          (50) "Sanitary sewer authority" means the department, agency, or public entity with
             619      responsibility to review and approve the feasibility of sanitary sewer services or onsite
             620      wastewater systems.
             621          (51) "Sending zone" means an unincorporated area of a county that the county
             622      designates, by ordinance, as an area from which an owner of land may transfer a transferable
             623      development right.
             624          (52) "Site plan" means a document or map that may be required by a county during a
             625      preliminary review preceding the issuance of a building permit to demonstrate that an owner's
             626      or developer's proposed development activity meets a land use requirement.
             627          (53) "Specified public agency" means:
             628          (a) the state;
             629          (b) a school district; or
             630          (c) a charter school.
             631          (54) "Specified public utility" means an electrical corporation, gas corporation, or
             632      telephone corporation, as those terms are defined in Section 54-2-1 .
             633          (55) "State" includes any department, division, or agency of the state.
             634          (56) "Street" means a public right-of-way, including a highway, avenue, boulevard,
             635      parkway, road, lane, walk, alley, viaduct, subway, tunnel, bridge, public easement, or other
             636      way.
             637          (57) (a) "Subdivision" means any land that is divided, resubdivided or proposed to be
             638      divided into two or more lots, parcels, sites, units, plots, or other division of land for the
             639      purpose, whether immediate or future, for offer, sale, lease, or development either on the
             640      installment plan or upon any and all other plans, terms, and conditions.
             641          (b) "Subdivision" includes:
             642          (i) the division or development of land whether by deed, metes and bounds description,
             643      devise and testacy, map, plat, or other recorded instrument; and
             644          (ii) except as provided in Subsection (57)(c), divisions of land for residential and
             645      nonresidential uses, including land used or to be used for commercial, agricultural, and
             646      industrial purposes.
             647          (c) "Subdivision" does not include:


             648          (i) a bona fide division or partition of agricultural land for agricultural purposes;
             649          (ii) a recorded agreement between owners of adjoining properties adjusting their
             650      mutual boundary if:
             651          (A) no new lot is created; and
             652          (B) the adjustment does not violate applicable land use ordinances;
             653          (iii) a recorded document, executed by the owner of record:
             654          (A) revising the legal description of more than one contiguous unsubdivided parcel of
             655      property into one legal description encompassing all such parcels of property; or
             656          (B) joining a subdivided parcel of property to another parcel of property that has not
             657      been subdivided, if the joinder does not violate applicable land use ordinances;
             658          (iv) a bona fide division or partition of land in a county other than a first class county
             659      for the purpose of siting, on one or more of the resulting separate parcels:
             660          (A) an electrical transmission line or a substation;
             661          (B) a natural gas pipeline or a regulation station; or
             662          (C) an unmanned telecommunications, microwave, fiber optic, electrical, or other
             663      utility service regeneration, transformation, retransmission, or amplification facility;
             664          (v) a recorded agreement between owners of adjoining subdivided properties adjusting
             665      their mutual boundary if:
             666          (A) no new dwelling lot or housing unit will result from the adjustment; and
             667          (B) the adjustment will not violate any applicable land use ordinance;
             668          (vi) a bona fide division or partition of land by deed or other instrument where the land
             669      use authority expressly approves in writing the division in anticipation of further land use
             670      approvals on the parcel or parcels; or
             671          (vii) a parcel boundary adjustment.
             672          (d) The joining of a subdivided parcel of property to another parcel of property that has
             673      not been subdivided does not constitute a subdivision under this Subsection (57) as to the
             674      unsubdivided parcel of property or subject the unsubdivided parcel to the county's subdivision
             675      ordinance.
             676          (58) "Suspect soil" means soil that has:
             677          (a) a high susceptibility for volumetric change, typically clay rich, having more than a
             678      3% swell potential;


             679          (b) bedrock units with high shrink or swell susceptibility; or
             680          (c) gypsiferous silt and clay, gypsum, or bedrock units containing abundant gypsum
             681      commonly associated with dissolution and collapse features.
             682          (59) "Therapeutic school" means a residential group living facility:
             683          (a) for four or more individuals who are not related to:
             684          (i) the owner of the facility; or
             685          (ii) the primary service provider of the facility;
             686          (b) that serves students who have a history of failing to function:
             687          (i) at home;
             688          (ii) in a public school; or
             689          (iii) in a nonresidential private school; and
             690          (c) that offers:
             691          (i) room and board; and
             692          (ii) an academic education integrated with:
             693          (A) specialized structure and supervision; or
             694          (B) services or treatment related to a disability, an emotional development, a
             695      behavioral development, a familial development, or a social development.
             696          (60) "Township" means a contiguous, geographically defined portion of the
             697      unincorporated area of a county, established under this part or reconstituted or reinstated under
             698      Section 17-27a-306 , with planning and zoning functions as exercised through the township
             699      planning commission, as provided in this chapter, but with no legal or political identity
             700      separate from the county and no taxing authority, except that "township" means a former
             701      township under Laws of Utah 1996, Chapter 308, where the context so indicates.
             702          (61) "Transferable development right" means a right to develop and use land that
             703      originates by an ordinance that authorizes a land owner in a designated sending zone to transfer
             704      land use rights from a designated sending zone to a designated receiving zone.
             705          (62) "Unincorporated" means the area outside of the incorporated area of a
             706      municipality.
             707          (63) "Water interest" means any right to the beneficial use of water, including:
             708          (a) each of the rights listed in Section 73-1-11 ; and
             709          (b) an ownership interest in the right to the beneficial use of water represented by:


             710          (i) a contract; or
             711          (ii) a share in a water company, as defined in Section 73-3-3.5 .
             712          (64) "Zoning map" means a map, adopted as part of a land use ordinance, that depicts
             713      land use zones, overlays, or districts.
             714          Section 4. Section 17-27a-609 is amended to read:
             715           17-27a-609. Land use authority approval of vacation or amendment of plat --
             716      Recording the amended plat.
             717          (1) The land use authority may approve the vacation or amendment of a plat by signing
             718      an amended plat showing the vacation or amendment if the land use authority finds that:
             719          (a) there is good cause for the vacation or amendment; and
             720          (b) no public street, right-of-way, or easement has been vacated or amended.
             721          (2) (a) The land use authority shall ensure that the amended plat showing the vacation
             722      or amendment is recorded in the office of the county recorder in which the land is located.
             723          (b) If the amended plat is approved and recorded in accordance with this section, the
             724      recorded plat shall vacate, supersede, and replace any contrary provision in a previously
             725      recorded plat of the same land.
             726          (3) (a) A legislative body may vacate a subdivision or a portion of a subdivision by
             727      recording in the county recorder's office an ordinance describing the subdivision or the portion
             728      being vacated.
             729          (b) The recorded vacating ordinance shall replace a previously recorded plat described
             730      in the vacating ordinance.
             731          (4) An amended plat may not be submitted to the county recorder for recording unless
             732      it is [signed, acknowledged, and dedicated by each owner of record of the portion of the plat
             733      that is amended.]:
             734          (a) signed by the land use authority; and
             735          (b) signed, acknowledged, and dedicated by each owner of record of the portion of the
             736      plat that is amended.
             737          (5) A management committee may sign and dedicate an amended plat as provided in
             738      Title 57, Chapter 8, Condominium Ownership Act.
             739          (6) A plat may be corrected as provided in Section 57-3-106 .





Legislative Review Note
    as of 1-30-14 10:34 AM


Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel


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