A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to make changes to state law CONCERNING PERFORMANCE GUARANTEES ON COUNTY SUBDIVISION STREETS OFFERED FOR PUBLIC DEDICATION; NCDOT and city requirements for road IMPROVEMENTS adjacent to schools; and zoning applicable to schools.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

PERFORMANCE GUARANTEES ON COUNTY SUBDIVISION STREETS OFFERED FOR PUBLIC DEDICATION
SECTION 1.  Chapter 153A of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new section to read:
"§ 153A‑331.1.  Performance guarantees and acceptance of streets offered for public dedication.
(a)	Applicability. – This section applies to county subdivision streets located outside municipal jurisdiction. This section applies to all developments approved on or after October 1, 2016, and retroactively to all county residential subdivisions or development plans approved on or after October 1, 2010, that include an offer of dedication of roads and the roads have been constructed and opened for travel and are fully completed.
(b)	Performance and Residual Performance Guarantees to Be Provided. – The following shall apply to performance and residual performance guarantees:
(1)	A county ordinance may or may not provide for performance guarantees for new streets offered for dedication. If a county ordinance does not provide for performance guarantees for new streets offered for dedication, that county shall not require the successful completion of the new street improvements prior to allowing a plat to be recorded.
(2)	Ordinances shall provide for the residual performance guarantee pursuant to subsections (g) through (j) of this section.
(3)	Developers may choose not to provide a performance guarantee. If a developer chooses not to provide a performance guarantee, the developer shall be permitted to record a plat and proceed to construct the street. Prior to the issuance of any building permit for a structure to be constructed within the subdivision or development, the developer shall provide the residual performance guarantee.
(4)	For subdivision streets, the type of performance or residual performance guarantee shall be as defined in G.S. 160A‑372(g)(1) and the type of security utilized shall be at the election of the developer.
(c)	Amount of Performance Guarantee. – The amount of a street performance guarantee shall not exceed one hundred twenty‑five percent (125%) of the reasonably estimated cost of completion provided by the engineer of record at the time the performance guarantee is issued. Any amount of any extension of the performance guarantee necessary to complete required improvements shall not exceed one hundred twenty‑five percent (125%) of the reasonably estimated cost of completion provided by the engineer of record to complete the remaining incomplete improvements. If the performance guarantee is extended beyond the first year, the principal amount for the revised guarantee shall be properly adjusted for any anticipated cost increase or decrease. The performance guarantee amount includes the reasonable cost to the county to administer, mobilize, and collect the guarantee.
(d)	Use of Performance Guarantee. – A performance guarantee on a street shall only be used for completion of the required improvements and not for repairs or maintenance after completion.
(e)	Extension of Street Performance Guarantee. – If the required improvements are not complete and the current performance guarantee is expiring, the performance guarantee shall be extended, or a new performance guarantee issued, for an additional period until the required improvements are complete. A developer shall demonstrate reasonable, good‑faith progress toward completion of the required improvements that are the subject of the performance guarantee or any extension. The form of any extension or new performance guarantee shall be as defined in G.S. 160A‑372(g)(1), and the type of security used shall remain at the election of the developer.
(f)	Release of Performance Guarantee. – Any performance guarantee on a street shall be released upon confirmation from the Division of Highways that the street has been accepted for maintenance, but not later than six months following submittal to the Division of Highways of form SR‑2, "Request for Addition to State Maintained Secondary Road System," and upon the presentation of any of the following documents:
(1)	A county‑issued construction inspection approval for the fully completed streets.
(2)	Division of Highways‑issued construction inspection approval for the fully completed streets.
(3)	A sealed certification by the engineer of record confirming to the county and the Division of Highways that the street or road is fully completed and conforms to the approved plans and specifications.
(4)	Proof of posting of the residual performance guarantee pursuant to subsection (h) of this section.
(g)	Incremental Reduction During Construction. – The principal amount of the performance guarantee may be incrementally reduced by the developer during the course of construction to reflect the level of completion of the road facility and its associated storm drainage and other required appurtenances, but it shall not be reduced below the amount required in subsection (h) of this section.
(h)	Reduction to Residual Amount Upon Certification. – Upon certification that the road has been fully constructed, the performance guarantee shall be reduced to a residual amount that is the greater of either fifteen percent (15%) of the total costs of construction or one hundred twenty‑five percent (125%) of the costs of the travel surface pavement. This reduced guarantee shall be known as the residual performance guarantee.
(i)	Purpose and Use of Residual Performance Guarantee. – The residual performance guarantee is for the purpose of allowing a reasonable period of time within which the completed new roads offered for dedication may attain the density required for acceptance and be accepted for maintenance by the Division of Highways. The residual performance guarantee shall only be used for necessary maintenance or repairs, including the removal of inappropriate structural encroachments that impede maintenance or compromise the safety of the traveling public.
(j)	Time Limit on Residual Performance Guarantee. – The residual performance guarantee shall remain in place until the road is accepted, or for a period of one year from the date of issuance, whichever is less. If at the end of one year the road is still not eligible for acceptance, the residual performance guarantee shall be extended for a second year. If the developer has fully constructed the street but not achieved the required density or alternate density pursuant to subdivision (4) of subsection (l) of this section, the residual performance guarantee shall be extended beyond the end of the second full year.
(k)	Release of Residual Performance Guarantee. – The residual performance guarantee shall be released as follows:
(1)	Within 30 days of the date the street or road is accepted for maintenance by the Division of Highways, but not later than six months following submittal to the Division of Highways of form SR‑2, "Request for Addition to State Maintained Secondary Road System," and upon the presentation of any of the following documents:
a.	A county‑issued construction inspection approval for the fully completed streets.
b.	Division of Highways‑issued construction inspection approval for the fully completed streets.
c.	A sealed certification by the engineer of record confirming to the county and the Division of Highways that the street or road is fully completed and conforms to the approved plans and specifications.
(2)	Within 30 days following the second anniversary date of the issuance of the residual guarantee, provided that the road is fully constructed. In addition, in the case of a residential subdivision or development, the alternate density measures provided in subdivision (4) of subsection (l) of this section shall have been met. In the case of a nonresidential development, the street shall be accepted in the same time frame, provided one building has been constructed within the project on the street.
(l)	Department of Transportation Acceptance. – Roads with an offer of public dedication within subdivisions or developments approved on or after October 1, 2010, that are fully completed according to either the plans and specifications approved by the Department on the recorded plat of the project, or confirmed by a built‑to‑standards letter issued to the county by the Division of Highways, shall be accepted by the Department for maintenance as soon as is possible after January 1, 2017, provided that the following conditions for acceptance are all met:
(1)	The road has been fully constructed according to the plans and specifications approved when the subdivision plat was recorded.
(2)	The road pavement, storm drainage, and signage are in proper condition.
(3)	The street or road has been opened for public travel for at least six years, as of September 30, 2016. This subdivision shall not apply to streets opened on or after October 1, 2016.
(4)	Either ten percent (10%) of the lots in the phase of a residential subdivision have occupied dwelling units constructed upon them, or if the phase contains fewer than 20 lots, a minimum of two homes are occupied in that phase. Each separately named street being considered for acceptance within the phase shall have at least one occupied home. If all of the named streets within the phase do not have occupied homes, nothing in this section shall prevent the acceptance of those streets within the phase that have occupied homes, while acceptance of those streets that do not have occupied homes may be deferred.
(5)	There are no structural or vertical vegetative encroachments upon the right‑of‑way that either compromise the safety of the traveling public or impede maintenance of the roadway.
(m)	County Proposal for Acceptance. – Roads meeting the requirements of subsection (l) of this section shall be proposed for acceptance by either the county or another party to the Division of Highways.
(n)	Time Limits for Division of Highways Acceptance. – Acceptance by the Division of Highways shall be issued as soon as the Division can review the streets and assure that they meet the conditions. The review shall occur within 60 days of the request. The Division of Highways may issue a conditional acceptance based upon the completion of any necessary repairs to the roadway and its drainage facilities identified during the review, including the removal of encroachments that impede maintenance or compromise the safety of the traveling public.
(o)	County Assessments for Necessary Improvements. – If necessary to facilitate acceptance of streets, counties may make necessary improvements to bring these streets up to the standards for acceptance, in the case of street or drainage improvements or necessary mowing, and recover all or any portion of those costs through an assessment, as provided in G.S. 153A‑205, levied upon the lots within the development or levied upon the offending lot in the case of an inappropriate encroachment.
(p)	Applicability Exceptions. – The provisions of this section shall not apply to any of the following:
(1)	Any proposed public road that has been platted but has not been properly constructed according to the plans and specifications that were in place at the time a map of the proposed right‑of‑way was recorded.
(2)	Any subdivision or development recorded prior to October 1, 1975, where the road construction has not been completed.
(3)	Any road completed after October 1, 1975, that was not constructed to the minimum standards for a paved road that were in place on the date of recordation of the plat, or where it can be clearly shown by the Department that the construction did not meet the plans and specifications by which the road was designed.
(q)	Terms. – For the purposes of this section, the use of the terms "road construction," or "completion," and any reference to maintenance of roads prior to final acceptance, refer to all of the physically constructed components of the road within the designated right‑of‑way, including, but not limited to, the proper installation, according to approved plans and specifications, of any of the following:
(1)	The soil base and related compaction.
(2)	Base pavement courses and final travel surface pavement.
(3)	Shoulders where specified with appropriately sloped side ditches, including appropriate drainage structures, pipes, outlets, and related appurtenances.
(4)	Curb and gutter where specified along with appropriately designed storm drainage pipes, structures, outlets, and related appurtenances.
(5)	Appropriate signage and pavement striping.
(r)	Prohibited Grounds for Denial of Acceptance. – None of the following shall be a basis for denial or delay of the acceptance by the Department for streets or roads completed between October 1, 2010, and September 30, 2016, that meet the acceptance conditions of this section:
(1)	Removal of encroachments that are neither structural nor pose a safety hazard to the motoring public including, but not limited to, planted ornamental vegetation or nuisance plant materials.
(2)	Removal of debris from ditches or drainage pipes, culverts, or related appurtenances that is not significantly impeding the drainage function.
(3)	Cosmetic trimming of grass or weeds, and other similar maintenance items not related to the maintenance of the paved travel surface of the roadway and its related storm drainage facilities, unless trimming is necessary to allow for a proper visual inspection of the street and drainage facilities.
(4)	Sidewalks, or lack of sidewalks, located adjacent to a road.
(s)	Development of Street Database. – The Department shall work cooperatively with each county to provide the necessary information to the counties to enable the counties to compile a readily available "County Public Street Information Database" and place it in operation on or before January 1, 2018. The information provided shall accurately convey the status of roads within the jurisdictional area of the county, including municipal extraterritorial jurisdictions, and it shall be updated at least monthly. The data shall reside on any existing database system chosen by the county for this purpose such as, but not limited to, a GIS mapping system or property tax records system. The system chosen shall be able to convey clear and concise information regarding the status of roads to the public and more particularly to those individuals involved in the research of real property records and information. The data may be made available to the public in either graphic or tabular format, or both. The status of roads to be conveyed shall be:
(1)	Federally maintained with a federal route number assigned.
(2)	State‑maintained with a State road number assigned.
(3)	City‑maintained.
(4)	Pending public acceptance with a financial consideration in place for the maintenance and repair of the street until it is accepted. This subdivision shall only apply to new streets offered for public dedication after October 1, 2016.
(5)	Pending public acceptance without a financial consideration being in place for the maintenance and repair of the street until it is accepted.
(6)	Private street requiring private maintenance."

CHANGES TO STATE LAW CONCERNING NCDOT AND CITY REQUIREMENTS FOR ROAD IMPROVEMENTS ADJACENT TO SCHOOLS
SECTION 2.   G.S. 136‑18 reads as rewritten:
"§ 136‑18.  Powers of Department of Transportation.
The said Department of Transportation is vested with the following powers:
…
(17)	The Department of Transportation is hereby authorized and required to maintain and keep in repair, sufficient to accommodate the public school buses, roads leading from the state‑maintained public roads to all public schools and public school buildings to which children are transported on public school buses to and from their homes. Said Department of Transportation is further authorized  to construct, pave, and maintain school bus driveways and sufficient parking facilities for the school buses at those schools. The Department of Transportation is further authorized to construct, pave, and maintain all other driveways and entrances to the public schools leading from public roads not required in the preceding portion of this subdivision. This subdivision applies to improvement located on the school site. For purposes of this subdivision, the Department shall have the power to grant final approval of any project design. For purposes of this subdivision, project cost shall not exceed sixty thousand dollars ($60,000). For the purposes of this subdivision, the term "public school" includes a public charter school subject to Article 14A of Chapter 115C of the General Statutes. For the purposes of this subdivision, the term "public charter school" shall include public charter schools opened on or after July 1, 2015, including expansion buildings. Nothing in this section shall preclude the Department from entering into an agreement with the school whereby the school installs the agreed upon improvements and the Department provides full reimbursement for the associated costs incurred by the school, including design fees and any costs of right‑of‑way or easements.
…
(29a)	To coordinate with all public and private entities planning schools to provide written recommendations and evaluations of driveway access and traffic operational and safety impacts on the State highway system resulting from the development of the proposed sites. All public and private entities shall, upon acquiring land for a new school or prior to beginning construction of a new school, relocating a school, or expanding an existing school, request from the Department a written evaluation and written recommendations to ensure that all proposed access points comply with the criteria in the current North Carolina Department of Transportation "Policy on Street and Driveway Access". The Department shall provide the written evaluation and recommendations within a reasonable time, which shall not exceed 60 days. This subdivision applies to improvements that are not located on the school property. For purposes of this subdivision, the Department shall have the power to grant final approval of any project design. To facilitate completion of the evaluation and recommendations within the required 60 days, in lieu of the evaluation by the Department, schools may engage their own independent traffic engineer. The resulting evaluation and recommendations from the independent traffic engineer shall also fulfill any similar requirements imposed by a unit of local government. This subdivision shall not be construed to require the public or private entities planning schools to meet the recommendations made by the Department or the independent traffic engineer, except those highway improvements that are required for safe ingress and egress to the State highway system, pursuant to subdivision (29) of this section, and that are physically connected to a driveway on the school site. The total cost of any improvements to the State highway system provided by a school pursuant to this subdivision shall be reimbursed by the Department. Any agreement between a school and the Department to make improvements to the State highway system shall not include a requirement for acquisition of right‑of‑way by the school, unless the school is owned by an entity that has eminent domain power. Nothing in this subdivision shall preclude the Department from entering into an agreement with the school, providing that the school installs the agreed upon improvements and the Department provides full reimbursement for the associated costs incurred by the school, including design fees and any costs of right‑of‑way or easements. The term "school," as used in this subdivision, means any facility engaged in the educational instruction of children in any grade or combination of grades from kindergarten through the twelfth grade at which attendance satisfies the compulsory attendance law, and includes public charter schools. The term "improvements" as used in this subdivision refers to all facilities within the right‑of‑way required to be installed to satisfy the road cross‑section requirements depicted upon the approved plans. These facilities shall include, but not be limited to, roadway construction, including pavement installation and medians; ditches and shoulders; storm drainage pipes, culverts, and related appurtenances; and, where required, curb and gutter; signals, including pedestrian safety signals; street lights; sidewalks; and design fees. Improvements shall not include any costs for public utilities.
…."
SECTION 3.  Chapter 160A of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new section to read:
"§ 160A‑307.1.  Limitation on city requirements for street improvements related to schools.
A city may only require street improvements related to schools that are required for safe ingress and egress to the municipal street system and that are physically connected to a driveway on the school site. The required improvements shall not exceed those required pursuant to G.S. 136‑18(29). G.S. 160A‑307 shall not apply to schools. A city may only require street improvements related to schools as provided in G.S. 160A‑372. The cost of any improvements to the municipal street system shall be reimbursed by the Department of Transportation. For purposes of this section, the Department of Transportation shall have the power to grant final approval of any project design for which it provides reimbursement. Any agreement between a school and a city to make improvements to the municipal street system shall not include a requirement for acquisition of right‑of‑way by the school, unless the school is owned by an entity that has eminent domain power. Any right‑of‑way costs incurred by a school for required improvements pursuant to this section shall be reimbursed by the Department of Transportation. The term "school," as used in this section, means any facility engaged in the educational instruction of children in any grade or combination of grades from kindergarten through the twelfth grade at which attendance satisfies the compulsory attendance law, and includes public charter schools."

SCHOOL ZONING CHANGES
SECTION 4.  G.S. 153A‑340 is amended by adding a new subsection to read:
"(k1)	The regulations shall provide that schools shall be permitted as a matter of right in all zoning districts, including relocatable or modular units as either accessory or primary facilities. Lighted athletic facilities with a permanent seating capacity of 2,600 seats or more located on high school facilities housing grades nine through 12 may be subject to special use permit standards as accessory uses to the school. Special use standards for these accessory facilities shall be limited to the portions of the school site upon which the accessory facility is located and not the entirety of the campus. Public street improvements beyond those directly attributable to and physically connected to planned access drives from the athletic facilities connecting to public streets as provided in G.S. 136‑18(29) and G.S. 160A‑307.1 shall not be required. For the purpose of this section, "schools" shall mean any facility engaged in the educational instruction of children providing any grade or combination of grades from kindergarten through the twelfth grade attendance at which satisfies the compulsory attendance law, including public charter schools."
SECTION 5.  G.S. 160A‑381 is amended by adding a new subsection to read:
"(g1)	The regulations shall provide that schools shall be permitted as a matter of right in all zoning districts, including relocatable or modular units as either accessory or primary facilities. Lighted athletic facilities with a permanent seating capacity of 2,600 seats or more located on high school facilities housing grades nine through 12 may be subject to special use permit standards as accessory uses to the school. Special use standards for these accessory athletic facilities shall be limited to the portions of the school site upon which the accessory facility is located and not the entirety of the campus. Public street improvements beyond those directly attributable to and physically connected to planned access drives from the athletic facilities connecting to public streets as provided in G.S. 136‑18(29) and G.S. 160A‑307.1 shall not be required. For the purpose of this section, "schools" shall mean any facility engaged in the educational instruction of children providing any grade or combination of grades from kindergarten through the twelfth grade attendance at which satisfies the compulsory attendance law, including public charter schools."

EFFECTIVE DATE
SECTION 6.  This section is effective when it becomes law. The remainder of this act becomes effective October 1, 2016.