BILL ANALYSIS
AB 320
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 29, 2009
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Kevin De Leon, Chair
AB 320 (Solorio) - As Amended: April 14, 2009
Policy Committee: Public
SafetyVote: 7-0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
No Reimbursable:
SUMMARY
This bill modifies local government eligibility and competition
for county jail construction bond funding under the Public
Safety and Offender Rehabilitation Services Act of 2007 (AB
900), to give the same consideration to counties providing
county jail beds for use as state reentry beds as to counties
providing stand-alone sites for new state reentry facilities.
Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires counties interested in providing reentry services to
state inmates - in order to qualify for state jail bond
funding - to enter into an agreement with CDCR to provide such
services. CDCR would be required to certify the proposed
reentry services meet their approval.
2)Specifies that these amendments are prospective only and are
not intended to affect any Phase 1 county jail grants made
prior to the enactment of this measure.
FISCAL EFFECT
To the extent a county has jail bed capacity and enters into a
lease with the state for use of those beds as state reentry
beds, this bill would result in increased local revenue and
commensurate state costs.
Costs to site and build up to 16,000 local reentry beds are
covered by AB 900 bond authorization. To the extent the state
enters into agreements to lease county jail beds for use as
state reentry beds, AB 900 bond funds are not eligible for
leasing and CDCR will have to use the General Fund for lease
AB 320
Page 2
arrangements. Ultimately these costs would be offset by reduced
state prison costs in addition to reduced per capita costs in
these local reentry facilities, which presumably would be
operated by the counties, rather than the state, but startup
costs would be significant, depending on the number of beds.
Changing the current award criteria for about $634 million in
uncommitted jail bonds need not affect the state's goal of
siting reentry beds in local communities, as long as CDCR enters
into credible agreements regarding beds and services, as
authorized by the bill.
COMMENTS
1)Rationale . The author's intent is to help counties who have
been unable to provide state reentry facility sites to compete
for $1.2 billion jail construction bond funds provided via AB
900. The author contends allowing a county to offer the use of
jail beds as state reentry beds in lieu of stand-alone siting
helps the state and the county and should be awarded the same
funding preference.
According to the author, "Not only would AB 320 help more
counties receive AB 900 local jail construction funding, but
also it will help the state achieve its goal of providing up
to 6,000 new reentry beds. It also would reduce the state's
projected costs to operate and maintain new state reentry
facilities. AB 320 is prospective only and will not have an
impact on any existing awards for county jail construction
bond financing."
2)Current law requires CDCR to give county jail construction
bond funding preference to counties that help the state in
siting reentry facilities of up to 500 beds and to counties
that help the state site mental health day treatment and
crisis care beds and/or provide a continuum of care for
parolees with mental health and substance abuse problems.
3)To date, numerous counties have been unable to offer sites to
CDCR for reentry facilities . $586 million in jail construction
awards is currently recommended by the Corrections Standards
Authority (CSA) for 11 counties (for a 5,300 net gain in jail
beds) who have been able to offer reentry sites to the state:
San Bernardino, San Joaquin, Kern, Santa Barbara, San Diego,
San Luis Obispo, Yolo, Madera, Calaveras, Amador, and San
AB 320
Page 3
Benito. Thirteen additional counties requested awards, but
were unable to provide the state a suitable reentry site,
often due to community opposition: Orange, Monterey, L.A., San
Mateo, Butte, Placer, Stanislaus, Merced, Kings, Tuolumne,
Shasta, El Dorado, and Sutter.
4)AB 900 Background . AB 900 (Solorio, Statutes of 2007)
authorized $6.2 billion in lease-revenue bond financing for
construction of 40,000 new state prison beds and $1.2 billion
for an estimated 13,000 new county jail beds, phased-in over
time and contingent upon a series of construction and
rehabilitation program implementation benchmarks.
AB 900 required CDCR to enhance existing programs to reduce
recidivism and implement new ones, including substance abuse
treatment, mental health care and academic and vocational
services. The two-pronged approach was designed to provide new
prison beds, while establishing stronger rehabilitation and
reentry efforts.
AB 900 has stalled. No prison or jail beds have been
constructed.
5)Concerns/Suggested Amendments . The bill essentially counts on
CDCR to negotiate a sound deal with any county hoping to
provide the state with reentry beds in exchange for county
jail bond funds. The bill does not specify any minimum number
of reentry beds, it does not specify the proffered reentry
beds be existing beds, it does not reference any requirements
for program space, and it does not reference any intent that
agreements be long-term.
While it is understandable that CDCR and counties seeking jail
bond financing wish to maintain maximum flexibility, the
committee may wish to provide additional legislative intent
regarding these concerns.
Analysis Prepared by : Geoff Long / APPR. / (916) 319-2081