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The Fort Ord Reuse Authority may not have to shut down within two years, as its charter legislation stipulated. But it won't get the 10-year encore FORA officials had hoped for, either.

Assembly Bill 1614, introduced by Assemblyman Bill Monning (D-Carmel), originally proposed to push FORA's sunset date from 2014 to 2024. But the version approved by the Legislature yesterday was scaled back in Senate committee to a six-year extension, sunsetting the authority in 2020. The bill now heads to Gov. Jerry Brown's desk for a signature.

The extension has wide political support from local officials, who say the authority needs more time to fulfill its mission of repurposing the former Army base for environmental, educational and economic development. (FORA Executive Officer Michael Houlemard is pictured above.)

But it's also faced opposition from citizen groups including Fort Ord Recreation Users and Keep Fort Ord Wild. Critics suggest FORA has become too cozy with development interests and failed to adequately account for its spending.