If the legislative body, in the resolution of intention, declares that any lot or parcel of land owned and used as provided in Section 5301 shall be included in the assessment, or if no declaration is made respecting any such lot or parcel of land then any assessment upon such lot or parcel of land shall be an enforceable obligation against the owner of such property and shall be paid, within 30 days after the date of recording the assessment, by the officer, officers, or board having charge of the disbursement of the funds of the owner of such lot or parcel of land and, if not paid within said 30 days, shall bear interest until paid at the rate stated in the resolution of intention for the bonds proposed to be issued, and if no bonds are proposed to be issued then at the rate of not more than 7 percent per annum until paid; provided, however, that if said assessment is not paid within said 30-day period the city may, and if the city has so provided in its resolution of intention shall, at the expiration thereof, forthwith advance the necessary sum and pay the assessment and shall collect the amount of said assessment and interest thereon from the said obligated owner and may enforce the collection thereof by writ of mandate or other proper remedy. If for any reason there are not moneys available for the payment of said assessment, then the legislative body of the public entity which owns said property so assessed may elect to cause said assessment to be payable in a number of installments not to exceed the number of installments of and at the same interest rate as bonds issued in the proceedings creating the assessment, or if no bonds are to be issued, for a number of installments not to exceed the number of installments of annual payments as provided by Section 6462 of this code for payment of bonds issued under the provisions of this division and for a rate of interest to be specified. In the event the legislative body of the entity whose property is assessed decides that said assessment shall be payable in installments, then the officer, officers or board whose duty it is to levy taxes for said obligated owner, including school districts but not limited thereto, shall include in the next tax levy an amount, in addition to moneys for all other purposes, sufficient to pay the annual installment of principal and interest upon said assessment with interest on the unpaid principal of the assessment to date of the payments, and shall include in each succeeding tax levy a like amount or more, in addition to moneys for all other purposes, until the principal of said assessment and all interest on unpaid portions thereof, shall be paid in full. In the event the officer, officers, or board whose duty it is to levy taxes fails to discharge the principal of the assessment and the interest thereon, the owner of the assessment may compel the levy thereof in the manner hereinabove set forth by writ of mandate. No statute of limitations shall bar any right provided for herein to enforce the collection of an assessment of the type described herein and any interest due thereon until four years after the due date of the last principal payment due upon said assessment. The owner of an assessment described herein may use mandamus or other appropriate remedy to compel the officer, officers or board whose duty it is to levy taxes for said obligated owner to levy an amount in a given year equal to the amount necessary to pay the installment of principal and interest on the assessment in said year, and may continue to use mandamus or other remedy to cause like installments of the amount of principal and interest accruing to be levied each year until the whole of the assessment due has been paid.
If the owner of an assessment is successful in any action to compel the levy of a tax under this section he shall be awarded reasonable attorneys’ fees as fixed by the court and costs and said attorneys’ fees and costs shall be included in said tax levy.
(Amended by Stats. 2003, Ch. 194, Sec. 15. Effective January 1, 2004.)