Whenever, subsequent to the date on which a conditional apportionment made to a state-aided district becomes final, less than all of such district is included in another district, the Director of General Services shall determine what portion of the apportionment was expended or will be expended for property acquired or to be acquired by the acquiring district. Any determination made by the Director of General Services under this section may be redetermined by him or her, from time to time, until the project for which the apportionment was made has been completed, and the final cost thereof determined and the final determination has been made pursuant to the final cost. The Director of General Services shall promptly notify the Controller, the governing board of the state-aided district and of the acquiring district, the superintendent of schools, the auditor, and the treasurer of the counties having jurisdiction over said districts of each determination and redetermination made by him or her under this section. No redetermination shall be retroactive nor affect the liability of any school district for any payment or annual repayment, or portion thereof, previously made by or on behalf of such district to the state under the provisions of this chapter.

On and after the date of the change of boundaries, the acquiring district succeeds to and is vested with all of the duties, powers, purposes, jurisdiction, and responsibilities of the state-aided district with respect to that portion of the apportionment which the Director of General Services has determined or redetermined under this section was expended, or will be expended, for property acquired or to be acquired by the acquiring district, and the unexpended part of the portion of the apportionment in the public school building fund of the state-aided district shall be transferred to the public school building fund of the acquiring district. In addition, and at the same time, the acquiring district shall become liable for the payment to the state of that portion of the annual repayment and all other payments due the state under the provisions of this chapter with respect to that portion of the apportionment which the Director of General Services has determined or redetermined was expended, or will be expended for property acquired, or to be acquired by the acquiring district, or, in the event a portion of the apportionment is a lower percentage of the apportionment than the percentage that the assessed valuation in the territory of the state-aided district which was transferred to the acquiring district is of the total assessed valuation of the state-aided district immediately preceding the effective date of the transfer, the acquiring district shall become liable for the payment to the state of that percentage of the annual repayment and all other repayments due to the state under provisions of this chapter with respect to the apportionment which is equal to the percentage of assessed valuation in the territory transferred to the acquiring district.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the liability of the acquiring district for the repayment of any portion of the apportionment made to the state-aided district shall not exceed the product of the highest percentage referred to above (whether relating to assessed valuation or to the portion of the apportionment expended in the property acquired), multiplied by the balance due on the apportionment made to the state-aided district at the time of the withdrawal on the effective date specified in Section 4064 of the territory referred to. The limited liability is hereinafter referred to as “the maximum.” It is the intent of the Legislature that the maximum shall be applied by the Controller, both retroactively and prospectively, provided that as a result of the application (1) no cash refund shall be made to any district; (2) in the event any district has, in the past, paid an amount greater than the maximum, assuming this paragraph had been in effect at that time, the excess shall be credited by the Controller against any apportionment balances for which said district is or may hereafter become liable; and (3) the Controller shall make retroactively any adjustments in the amounts due from other districts by virtue of any adjustments made under (2) above. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any computations required to be made pursuant to this paragraph shall not be reflected in any changes in deductions required to be made pursuant to Section 15735 prior to January 1, 1966.

If any subsection, clause, sentence of phrase of this section is for any reason held to be unconstitutional such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this section. The Legislature hereby declares that it would have adopted this section, and each subsection, sentence, clause or phrase thereof irrespective of the fact that any one or more subsections, clauses, sentences or phrases be declared unconstitutional.

(Repealed and added by Stats. 1996, Ch. 277, Sec. 2. Effective January 1, 1997. Operative January 1, 1998.)