SECTIONS 1260-1266 - California Statutes

MILITARY AND VETERANS CODE

SECTION 1260-1266

1260. As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise
indicates:
(a) "Political subdivision" means any city, county, district, or
other local governmental agency.
(b) "Governing body" means the board of supervisors in the case of
a county, or the city council or board of trustees or other
governing board in the case of a city, district, or other local
governmental agency.
(c) "Veterans' association" means any association or organization
which is composed solely of persons who served honorably in time of
war or in time of peace in a campaign or expedition for service in
which a medal has been authorized by the government of the United
States, as members of the armed forces of the United States, or who
as citizens of the United States served honorably in time of war as
members of the armed forces of any nation whose government was allied
with the United States during that war, and which is organized for
patriotic, fraternal, and benevolent objects.

1261. Any political subdivision may lease any lot or building or
part thereof belonging to it and not required for public use, for not
exceeding twenty years, or may acquire and lease or sublease any lot
or building or part thereof for not exceeding twenty years, to a
veterans' association organized in such political subdivision, to be
used for the purposes of such veterans' association. The rental shall
be fixed by the governing body of the political subdivisions, and
may be nominal in amount.

1262. Any county may provide, maintain or provide and maintain
buildings, memorial halls, meeting places, memorial parks, or
recreation centers for the use or benefit of one or more veterans'
associations. For these purposes the board of supervisors of any
county may:
(a) Purchase, receive by donation, condemn, lease, or acquire real
or personal property necessary for such buildings, memorial parks,
or recreation centers, and improve, preserve, manage, and control the
same.
(b) Purchase, construct, lease, furnish, or repair such buildings,
and provide custodians, employees, attendants, and supplies for the
proper maintenance thereof.
(c) Clear, grade, plant, irrigate, fence, and improve such
memorial parks, or recreation centers, and provide custodians,
employees, attendants, and supplies for the proper maintenance
thereof.
(d) Furnish sites for such buildings to be built by or for such
organizations, and furnish sites for the erection thereon of such
buildings, the funds for which are supplied by county authorities or
from other sources. Any part or portion of any public lot, block, or
park may be used for such purpose.
(e) Levy a special tax pursuant to Article 3.5 (commencing with
Section 50075) of Chapter 1 of Part 1 of Division 1 of Title 5 of the
Government Code, and spend the proceeds for the purposes of this
chapter.
(f) Establish a fund for the purposes hereof, and transfer from
the General Fund to such fund such moneys as the board deems
necessary.
(g) Incur, in the manner provided by law, a bonded indebtedness on
behalf of the county for any of the purposes hereof.
(h) Join with any incorporated city in the county in the
accomplishment of the above purposes and to that end hold jointly
with such city all property acquired, and expended money in
conjunction with such city in accomplishing the above purposes. Title
to any property jointly so acquired by a county and a city may at
any time be conveyed by either of the joint owners to the other
without consideration other than to carry out the purposes of this
section.
(i) Join with memorial districts in the purchase, acquisition, or
construction of memorial halls, assembly halls, buildings or meeting
places, or in the accomplishment of any other purpose for which a
memorial district has been organized, using the funds authorized to
be raised by this section. Title to any property so purchased,
acquired, or constructed may be taken in the name of the memorial
district, or jointly with the county, or the county may convey any
property so acquired, purchased, or constructed to the memorial
district without consideration to the county. The board of
supervisors may transfer to a memorial district funds raised pursuant
to this section to be expended by the district in furtherance of the
purposes of the district under terms and conditions consistent with
the purposes for which the funds were raised.

1262.1. Not to exceed 50 percent of any funds accumulated in,
transferred from or accumulated by transfer from, the General Fund
pursuant to, and for any of the purposes authorized in, Section 1262
for expenditure within an area or community may be contributed to any
water district, sanitation district or other district or public
agency encompassing or lying within the county for use by such
district or public agency for construction or improvement of a water
supply or water distribution facility or a sewage collection system
or a sewage treatment facility servicing or designed to serve a
community or area within such district or public agency, when it is
found by a four-fifths vote of the board of supervisors to be in the
best public interest and in the best interests of such community or
area. The remainder of such funds so accumulated shall be expended
within such community for one or more of the purposes authorized in
Section 1262, and in connection therewith a plaque shall be placed
and maintained in an appropriate public place commemorating veterans
from and residing in the area and reciting appropriate credit for the
community public facility to which such funds were contributed. The
contributions authorized by this section may be made notwithstanding
and independent of any other provision of law regarding or limiting
county expenditures for such purpose or county contribution to such
districts or agencies for expenditure for such purposes.

1263. Any money which is made available by the State to any
political subdivision for the purposes of acquiring and constructing
public buildings may be used for the purposes of this chapter.

1264. The governing body maintaining any facilities constructed or
maintained pursuant to this chapter may provide for the use of such
facilities by persons or organizations other than veterans, either
free of charge or for stated compensation to aid in defraying the
cost of maintenance, for any purpose not inconsistent with the
continued use pursuant to this chapter, when such use will not unduly
interfere with the reasonable use of the facilities by veterans'
associations.

1265. The board of supervisors of any county may sell real property
contiguous to an existing cemetery which it acquired for the
purposes of Section 1262 to the owners of a private cemetery upon
terms and conditions mutually agreed upon, but which shall require
the buyers to use such property exclusively for the burial of
veterans or widows of veterans. Sections 25524 to 25537 of the
Government Code do not apply to a sale made pursuant to this section.

1266. Whenever a county has provided, maintained, or provided and
maintained any building, memorial hall, meeting place, memorial park,
or recreation center for the use or benefit of one or more veterans'
associations, pursuant to Section 1262, the provision of that
facility and its acceptance by the veterans' association constitutes
a dedication of that property to a public purpose, and the county may
not revoke the dedication, so long as the veterans' association has
not violated the terms and conditions of the dedication, unless it
dedicates substitute facilities or unless the veterans' organization
has either consented to the proposed county action or has abandoned
its use of the facilities.