Following the close of the public hearing, the governing body shall distribute the funds in accordance with the following criteria:

(a) Public Safety Services:

(1) In distributing funds to districts which provide fire protection services, and any police protection district, county service area, or community services district which provides police protection services, exclusively, the governing body shall provide an amount sufficient to ensure that each district maintains the same level of protection as was actually provided during 1977–78.

(b) Other special district services:

(1) Districts with general fund reserves, as defined in Section 16271, of 5 percent or less of their total 1977–78 revenues shall be given priority over districts with general fund reserves in excess of 5 percent of their total 1977–78 revenues.

(2) Districts which have relied most heavily upon revenues derived from property taxation to finance the provision of a service shall be given priority over those districts which are less dependent upon revenues derived from property taxation.

(3) Districts which are not authorized to utilize nonproperty tax revenue sources, including but not limited to fees, rates and tolls to finance the provision of a service shall be given priority over districts which are authorized to utilize such nonproperty tax sources.

(4) In distributing funds to districts which provide more than one service, exclusive of fire and police protection services which are funded under the public safety services category, the board shall apply the criteria of paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of this subdivision to each such service and shall make a distribution of funds to the district for each such service.

(5) Any distribution made pursuant to this section shall be reduced by one-third of the amount by which the district’s general fund reserves exceeds 5 percent of the district’s total 1977–78 revenues.

(Amended by Stats. 1978, Ch. 332.)