Mills Act Program

WHAT IS THE MILLS ACT?

The Mills Act is an economic incentive program in California for the restoration and preservation of qualified historic buildings by property owners. Enacted by state legislation (CA Gov. Code Sections 50280-50290) in 1972, the Mills Act legislation grants participating cities and counties the authority to enter into contracts with owners of qualified historic properties who actively participate in the rehabilitation, restoration, preservation, and maintenance of their historic properties. To offset costs, the Mills Act permits property tax relief.

The California Office of Historic Preservation (OHP), under the California Department of Parks & Recreation administers federal and state mandated historic preservation programs to further the identification, evaluation, registration, and protection of California’s irreplaceable resources.

WHAT ARE THE MILLS ACT PROGRAM BENEFITS?

The property owner benefits by receiving property tax savings. This can be as much as 20% to 70% of their pre-Mills Act contract tax rate. The cost to maintain a qualified historical property is reduced by leveraging property tax savings. Additionally, all Mills Act contract benefits are transferable if the qualified historical property is sold.

IS MY PROPERTY ELIGIBLE?

Eligible properties are privately owned and not exempt from property taxation.

The property must be listed on any federal, state, county, city or city and county’s official register of historical or architecturally significant sites, places or landmarks. For designated properties in La Quinta see the Official Register of Historic Properties,

If your property is not designated, you must establish a landmark designation for your property to be eligible for Mills Act Benefits. The process for designating additional properties to be added to the Official Register is outlined in the City’s Historic Preservation Ordinance.

Additionally, as a general rule, to qualify as historic, a building must be at least 45 years old and be a good example of a particular architectural style or be associated with a person or event of local, statewide, or national historic importance.

WHAT ARE THE PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS?

To benefit, the property owner must:

Commit to a minimum ten (10) year Mills Act contract
Identify all proposed work to be completed to their property under the Mills Act contract
Record the executed Mills Act contract with the county recorder
Implement the work provisions contained in the contract following the U.S. Secretary of the Interior Standards and the State Historic Building Code
Permit recurring (five-year) inspections to the interior and exterior of their premises

CONTRACT DURATION – 10 YEARS

Mills Act contracts are for an initial term of 10 years. A contract automatically renews each year on its anniversary date and a new 10-year agreement becomes effective, creating a “rolling” contract term that is always equal to the initial contract term.

If the property owner decides not to renew their Mills Act contract, a written 90-day notice of non-renewal must be given to the local legislative government before the expiration date. The owner may have to pay a 12.5% penalty of the current fair market value of their property if the Mills Act contract is canceled by the City due to breach of contract or because the site is no longer a qualified historical property.

HOW DO I APPLY FOR A MILLS ACT CONTRACT?

The city of La Quinta maintains an “online portal” for all applications requiring city approval. The portal lets you select the application, complete it online, attach documents as needed and submit your final request. Once submitted it will be visible to you during the review process. To access the portal, you will need to create an account with a username and password which can be done online at the portal at City of La Quinta Online Application Portal.

Once you are logged into the portal, select “Apply”, then “Select All Permits, etc.” and then search for either of these two documents: