(a) The district board shall, on or before the first Monday in April of each year, file with the board of supervisors a budget that sets forth all estimated expenditures of the district for the fiscal year commencing on the first day of July. A copy of the budget shall also, at the same time, be filed with the auditor of the county. The board of supervisors shall cause to be prepared and filed with the clerk of the board of supervisors a written report that contains all of the following information:

(1) A description of each parcel of property proposed to be subject to the assessment.

(2) The amount of the assessment of each parcel for the initial fiscal year.

(3) The maximum amount of the assessment that may be levied for each parcel during any fiscal year.

(4) The duration of the assessment.

(5) The basis of the assessment.

(6) The schedule of the assessment.

(7) A description specifying the requirements for written and oral protest, and the protest threshold necessary for requiring abandonment of the proposed assessment pursuant to Section 6299.

(b) The board of supervisors may, by ordinance or by resolution, adopted after complying with the notice, protest, and hearing procedures in Article 4.6 (commencing with Section 53750) of Chapter 4 of Part 1 of Division 2 of Title 5 of the Government Code, and upon approval by two-thirds of the benefiting vineyard property owners, determine and levy an assessment for winegrape pest and disease control activities for any of the following purposes:

(1) Responding to, managing, and controlling the effects of the spread of Pierce’s disease, the glassy-winged sharpshooter, and any other pests that attack winegrape plants.

(2) Collecting and disseminating to winegrape producers in the district all relevant information and scientific studies concerning the pest, or pests, and winegrape diseases.

(3) Charting and determining the extent and location of any infestations.

(c) The annual assessment shall not exceed twenty dollars ($20) per planted acre.

(d) (1) The district board may establish zones or areas of benefit within the district, and may restrict the imposition of assessments to areas lying within one or more of the zones or areas of benefit established within the district.

(2) The assessment shall be levied on each parcel planted with winegrape plants in such a fashion as to qualify as winegrape growing acreage within the boundaries of the district, zone, or area of benefit.

(e) In addition, the mailed notice shall include the name of the district, the return address of the sender, the amount of the assessment for the initial fiscal year, the maximum amount of the assessment that may be levied during any fiscal year and the name and telephone number of the person designated by the board of supervisors to answer inquiries regarding the protest proceedings.

(Added by Stats. 2001, Ch. 442, Sec. 1. Effective October 3, 2001.)