AN ACT to restore the authority to initiate down‑zoning in Chatham county and municipalities in chatham county.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  G.S. 160D‑601(d), as amended by Section 3K.1(a) of S.L. 2024‑57, reads as rewritten:

(d)      Down‑Zoning. – No amendment to zoning regulations or a zoning map that down‑zones property shall be initiated, enacted, or enforced initiated nor is it enforceable without the written consent of all property owners whose property is the subject of the down‑zoning amendment. amendment, unless the down‑zoning amendment is initiated by the local government. For purposes of this section, down‑zoning means a zoning ordinance that affects an area of land in one of the following ways:

(1)        By decreasing the development density of the land to be less dense than was allowed under its previous usage.

(2)        By reducing the permitted uses of the land that are specified in a zoning ordinance or land development regulation to fewer uses than were allowed under its previous usage.

(3)        By creating any type of nonconformity on land not in a residential zoning district, including a nonconforming use, nonconforming lot, nonconforming structure, nonconforming improvement, or nonconforming site element.

SECTION 2.(a)  This act applies only to Chatham County and municipalities located in Chatham County.

SECTION 2.(b)  This act is effective when it becomes law and applies retroactively to December 11, 2024. Any adopted ordinance affected by Section 3K.1 of S.L. 2024‑57 shall be in effect as it was on or before December 11, 2024.