BILL NUMBER: SB 1626 CHAPTERED 07/23/04 CHAPTER 186 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE JULY 23, 2004 APPROVED BY GOVERNOR JULY 23, 2004 PASSED THE SENATE JULY 12, 2004 PASSED THE ASSEMBLY JULY 2, 2004 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 15, 2004 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 7, 2004 AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 13, 2004 AMENDED IN SENATE MARCH 22, 2004 INTRODUCED BY Senator Poochigian (Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Pacheco) FEBRUARY 20, 2004 An act to amend Section 129785 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to health facility construction, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SB 1626, Poochigian. Health facility construction: annual permit. (1) The existing Alfred E. Alquist Hospital Facilities Seismic Safety Act of 1983 requires the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development (OSHPD) to determine an application filing fee to cover the cost of administering the act, in an amount not to exceed 2% of a project's estimated construction cost and not less than $250. The act requires the fee for a skilled nursing or intermediate care facility project costing over $25,000 to be assessed at a rate established by OSHPD in regulation, not to exceed 1.5% of the estimated construction cost for the projects. This bill would instead prohibit an application filing fee for a hospital facility, as defined, from exceeding 2% of a project's estimated construction cost and would prohibit a fee for a skilled nursing or intermediate care facility, as defined, from exceeding 1.5% of a project's estimated construction cost. The bill would maintain the minimum application filing fee at $250. (2) The act requires OSHPD to issue an annual permit, at a cost of $250 in lieu of a filing fee, to a skilled nursing or intermediate care facility upon submission of an application for a project if the project's estimated construction cost is $25,000 or less per fiscal year. The act requires the annual permit to cover all projects undertaken for a particular skilled nursing or intermediate care facility by the applicant up to an estimated construction cost of $25,000 during the state fiscal year in which the permit is issued. This bill would additionally require OSHPD to issue an annual permit, at a cost of $500 and in lieu of an application filing fee, to a hospital facility upon submission of an application for one or more projects if the total estimated construction cost is $50,000 or less per fiscal year. The bill would require the annual permit to cover all projects undertaken for a particular hospital facility up to a total estimated construction cost of $50,000 during the state fiscal year in which the annual permit is issued. The bill would authorize a hospital or a skilled nursing or intermediate care facility that chooses not to apply for an annual permit to cover a project or projects costing $50,000 or less or $25,000 or less, respectively, to instead submit the project for review and approval as otherwise specified in the bill. (3) The bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. The Legislature intends and declares that any hospital facility or skilled nursing or intermediate care facility that chooses to apply for an annual permit for one or more projects, as described in this act, rather than submit the project or projects for review and approval as otherwise specified in the Alfred E. Alquist Hospital Facilities Seismic Safety Act of 1983 (Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 129675) of Division 107 of the Health and Safety Code), will realize a cost savings. SEC. 2. Section 129785 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 129785. (a) (1) The office shall determine an application filing fee that will cover the costs of administering this chapter. For a hospital facility, as defined in subdivision (a), (b), or (f) of Section 1250, the fee shall not exceed 2 percent of a project's estimated construction cost. For a skilled nursing or intermediate care facility, as defined in subdivision (c), (d), (e), or (g) of Section 1250, the fee shall not exceed 1.5 percent of a project's estimated construction cost. Application filing fees shall be established in accordance with applicable procedures established in Article 5 (commencing with Section 11346) of Chapter 3.5 of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code. (2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the minimum application filing fee in any case shall be two hundred fifty dollars ($250). (b) The office shall issue an annual permit upon submission of an application, pursuant to Section 129765, for one or more projects of a hospital facility, as defined in subdivision (a), (b), or (f) of Section 1250, if the total estimated construction cost is fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) or less per fiscal year. The fee for the annual permit shall be five hundred dollars ($500) and shall be in lieu of an application filing fee. The annual permit shall cover all projects undertaken for a particular hospital facility up to a total estimated construction cost of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) during the state fiscal year in which the annual permit is issued. If a hospital facility chooses not to apply for an annual permit to cover a project or projects costing fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) or less in total, the hospital facility may instead submit the project or projects for review and approval as otherwise specified in this chapter, including paying the application filing fee determined under subdivision (a). (c) The office shall issue an annual permit upon submission of an application, pursuant to Section 129765, for one or more projects of a skilled nursing or intermediate care facility, as defined in subdivision (c), (d), (e), or (g) of Section 1250, if the total estimated construction cost is twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) or less per fiscal year. The fee for the annual permit shall be two hundred fifty dollars ($250) and shall be in lieu of an application filing fee. The annual permit shall cover all projects undertaken for a particular skilled nursing or intermediate care facility up to a total estimated construction cost of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) during the state fiscal year in which the annual permit is issued. If a skilled nursing or intermediate care facility chooses not to apply for an annual permit to cover a project or projects costing twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) or less in total, the skilled nursing or intermediate care facility may instead submit the project or projects for review and approval as otherwise specified in this chapter, including paying the application filing fee determined under subdivision (a). (d) If the actual construction cost exceeds the estimated construction cost by more than 5 percent, a further fee shall be paid to the office, based on the above schedule and computed on the amount that the actual cost exceeds the amount of the estimated cost. If the estimated construction cost exceeds the actual construction cost by more than 5 percent, the office shall refund the excess portion of any paid fees, based on the above schedule and computed on the amount that the estimated cost exceeds the amount of the actual cost. A refund is not required if the applicant did not complete construction or alteration of 75 percent of the square footage included in the project, as contained in the approved drawings and specifications for the project. In addition, the office shall adopt regulations specifying other circumstances when the office shall refund to an applicant all or part of any paid fees for projects submitted under this chapter. The regulations shall include, but not be limited to, refunds of paid fees for a project that is determined by the office to be exempt or otherwise not reviewable under this chapter, and for a project that is withdrawn by the applicant prior to the commencement of review by the office of the drawing and specifications submitted for the project. All refunds pursuant to this section shall be paid from the Hospital Building Account in the Architecture Public Building Fund, as established pursuant to Section 129795. SEC. 3. This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are: To ensure and enhance patient care and safety, it is necessary that small hospital construction projects be approved and completed quickly. Currently, the high number of hospital seismic safety projects submitted to the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development for plan review and approval is delaying the review and approval of smaller projects and thus it is necessary that this act take effect immediately.