BILL NUMBER: AB 1077 CHAPTERED 09/28/04 CHAPTER 824 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE SEPTEMBER 28, 2004 APPROVED BY GOVERNOR SEPTEMBER 28, 2004 PASSED THE SENATE AUGUST 27, 2004 PASSED THE ASSEMBLY AUGUST 27, 2004 AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 26, 2004 AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 23, 2004 AMENDED IN SENATE JULY 14, 2003 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 2, 2003 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 22, 2003 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Wesson (Coauthors: Assembly Members Mountjoy, Parra, Reyes, and Runner) (Coauthors: Senators Ashburn, Chesbro, Ducheny, and Soto) FEBRUARY 20, 2003 An act to amend Sections 15819.60 and 15819.65 of the Government Code, and to amend Section 1104.2 of the Military and Veterans Code, relating to veterans, making an appropriation therefor, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 1077, Wesson. Veterans. (1) Existing law authorizes the Department of General Services, on behalf of the Department of Veterans Affairs, to design, equip, construct, and establish veterans' homes in Fresno and Shasta Counties, to design, equip, construct, and renovate veterans' homes in Yountville, Barstow, and Chula Vista, and to design, equip, construct, and expand veterans' homes that are proposed to be built in Lancaster, Saticoy, and West Los Angeles. This bill would additionally authorize the Department of General Services, on behalf of the Department of Veterans Affairs, to acquire the veterans' homes to be located in Fresno and Shasta Counties, and in Lancaster, Saticoy, and West Los Angeles. (2) The State Building Construction Act of 1955 authorizes the State Public Works Board to acquire or construct public buildings and to issue revenue bonds, negotiable notes, and negotiable bond anticipation notes to finance that construction. Existing law authorizes the State Public Works Board to issue lease-revenue bonds, notes, or bond anticipation notes pursuant to that law to finance the design, construction, equipping, renovation, or expansion of veterans' homes at Yountville, Barstow, Chula Vista, Lancaster, Saticoy, and West Los Angeles, and in Fresno County and Shasta County, as provided. Existing law continuously appropriates funds derived from the sale of these instruments to the board, on behalf of the Department of Veterans Affairs, for this purpose. This bill would, among other things, specify that $162,000,000 is the amount of the bonds and notes that the board is authorized to issue, and would make an appropriation by additionally authorizing these funds to be used to acquire and establish these homes. This bill would delete the authority of the board to augment the acquisition, design, and cost of the construction, renovation, or expansion of these homes and would delete the authority of the board to authorize additional amounts to establish a reasonable construction and equipping reserve. (3) The Veterans' Homes Bond Act of 2000 requires the proceeds from the sale of the bonds issued under that act to be deposited in the Veterans' Home Fund. Existing law continuously appropriates, subject to approval by the Department of Finance, moneys in the Veterans' Home Fund, in an amount not to exceed $15,000,000, to the Department of Veterans Affairs for the design, construction, equipping and renovation of the veterans' home in Yountville. Existing law also continuously appropriates, subject to the approval of the Department of Finance, certain federal matching funds for the design, construction, equipping, and renovation of specified veterans' homes. This bill would require the Department of Veterans Affairs to prepare and submit a report to the Legislature and Governor semiannually, beginning on March 1, 2005, on these veterans homes, as provided. (4) The bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute. Appropriation: yes. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 15819.60 of the Government Code is amended to read: 15819.60. (a) The Department of General Services, on behalf of the Department of Veterans Affairs, may acquire, design, equip, construct, and establish additional veterans' homes to be located in Lancaster, Saticoy, West Los Angeles, Fresno County, and Shasta County. (b) The Department of General Services, on behalf of the Department of Veterans Affairs, may design, equip, construct, and renovate the veterans' homes at Yountville, Barstow, and Chula Vista, as needed and justified. (c) The Department of General Services, on behalf of the Department of Veterans Affairs, may design, equip, construct, and expand the homes proposed to be built at Lancaster, Saticoy, and West Los Angeles, as needed and justified. (d) The construction of veterans' homes in Fresno County and Shasta County may not commence until the veterans' homes in Lancaster, Saticoy, and West Los Angeles have been fully funded. (e) The veterans' homes to be constructed in Fresno County and Shasta County may be built concurrently. SEC. 2. Section 15819.65 of the Government Code is amended to read: 15819.65. (a) (1) The State Public Works Board may issue lease-revenue bonds, notes, or bond anticipation notes in the amount of one hundred sixty-two million dollars ($162,000,000) pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 15830) to finance the acquisition, design, construction, establishment, equipping, renovation, or expansion of the veterans' homes specified in Section 15819.60. (2) This amount shall be available, in addition to any federal funds or other state funds available for the acquisition, design, construction, establishment, equipping, renovation, or expansion of the veterans' homes specified in Section 15819.60. (3) The issuance of bonds or notes under this section is contingent upon a commitment from the federal government to pay for the federal matching share of the cost of the design, construction, equipping, renovation, or expansion of the veterans' homes specified in Section 15819.60. (b) Notwithstanding Section 13340, funds derived from the financing methods pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 15830) for the veterans' homes specified in Section 15819.60 are hereby continuously appropriated to the board on behalf of the Department of Veterans Affairs for the acquisition, design, construction, establishment, equipping, renovation, expansion, or refinancing of the veterans' homes so financed. In addition to the funds appropriated pursuant to this section, the federal matching funds available pursuant to the State Veterans' Home Assistance Improvement Act of 1977 (38 U.S.C. Sec. 8131 et seq.), are hereby continuously appropriated to the board on behalf of the Department of Veterans Affairs for the purposes of design, construction, equipping, renovation, expansion, or repayment of any loan related to the projects of the veterans' homes specified in Section 15819.60. (c) In anticipation of federal matching share funding available pursuant to the State Veterans' Home Assistance Improvement Act of 1977 (38 U.S.C. Sec. 8131 et seq.), the board and the Department of Veterans Affairs may obtain interim financing for the project costs authorized in Section 15819.60 from any appropriate source, including, but not limited to, the Pooled Money Investment Account pursuant to Sections 16312 and 16313. (d) The Department of Veterans Affairs is authorized and directed to execute and deliver any and all leases, contracts, agreements, or other documents necessary or advisable to consummate the sale of bonds or otherwise effectuate the financing of the scheduled projects. (e) In the event that the bonds authorized for projects in Section 15819.60 are not sold, the Department of Veterans Affairs shall commit a sufficient portion of its support appropriation, as determined by the Department of Finance, to repay any interim financing. It is the intent of the Legislature that this commitment be made until all interim financing is repaid either through the proceeds from the sale of bonds or from an appropriation. (f) The board shall not itself be deemed a lead or responsible agency for purposes of the California Environmental Quality Act (Division 12 (commencing with Section 21000) of the Public Resources Code) for any activities under the State Building Construction Act of 1955 (commencing with Section 15800 of this code). This subdivision does not exempt any participating agency or department from the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act, and is intended to be declarative of existing law. SEC. 3. Section 1104.2 of the Military and Veterans Code is amended to read: 1104.2. (a) Notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, an amount, not to exceed the sum of fifteen million dollars ($15,000,000), is hereby continuously appropriated, without regard to fiscal years, from the Veterans' Home Fund to the Department of Veterans Affairs, subject to the approval of the Department of Finance, for the state's matching share for the design, construction, equipping, and renovation of the Veterans' Home of California, Yountville, as described in Section 1011. (b) Excluding any funds required to pay for costs associated with issuing and administering general obligation bonds, any remaining general obligation bond funds available in the Veterans' Home Fund created under Section 1103 after funding the design, construction, equipping, expansion, or renovation of the Lancaster, Saticoy, West Los Angeles, or Yountville veterans homes, as specified in Section 1104.1 and subdivision (a), and projects funded through any Budget Act, are, notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, hereby continuously appropriated without regard to fiscal years to the Department of Veterans Affairs, subject to the approval of the Department of Finance, to fund the state's matching share for renovations, design, construction, and equipping at Yountville consistent with the purposes established in subdivision (a) of Section 1104. (c) Notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, in addition to the funds appropriated pursuant to this section, the federal matching funds available pursuant to the State Veterans' Home Assistance Improvement Act of 1977 (38 U.S.C. Sec. 8131 et seq.), are hereby continuously appropriated, without regard to fiscal years, to the Department of Veterans Affairs, subject to the approval of the Department of Finance, for the purpose of design, construction, equipping, renovation of, or expansion or repayment of any loan related to the projects specified in this section. (d) Subject to approval of the Department of Finance, the Department of Veterans Affairs may expend state funds pursuant to this section for the design of projects specified in this section in anticipation of the receipt of federal matching funds. (e) The Department of Veterans Affairs, shall prepare and submit a report to the Legislature and Governor semiannually, beginning on March 1, 2005, on the progress of the acquisition, design, equipping, construction, establishment, and expansion of the veterans' homes specified in Section 15819.60 of the Government Code, including updated cost estimates. SEC. 4. 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: In order to equip, design, and construct various veterans' homes at the earliest possible time, it is necessary that this act take effect immediately.