BILL ANALYSIS
AB 411
Page 1
Date of Hearing: May 28, 2009
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Kevin De Leon, Chair
AB 411 (Garrick) - As Amended: May 6, 2009
Policy Committee: Health Vote:16-1
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
No Reimbursable:
SUMMARY
This bill requires Tri-City Medical Center in Oceanside
(Tri-City) to report by March 1, 2010 to the Office of Statewide
Health Planning and Development (OSHPD) about the health care
district's efforts to comply with the statutory seismic safety
requirements and deadlines, including the reassessment of the
structural performance level of the hospital and efforts to
secure passage of a local bond measure to fund seismic safety
efforts.
FISCAL EFFECT
No direct fiscal impact for OSHPD to receive a report from a
hospital authorized by current law. This bill requires one
hospital to report to OSHPD on information already publicly
available about the facility's struggle to get financial support
to complete statutory timelines and requirements with regard to
seismic safety.
COMMENTS
1) Rationale . This bill addresses one hospital in southern
California that has put three local measures on the ballot
for bond financing to support seismic safety efforts. Each
measure has failed to reach the requisite super-majority
voting threshold for passage. In addition, the hospital has
failed to meet requirements for timeline extensions available
under current law. The author is sponsoring this bill to help
the hospital meet deadlines. However, it is unclear how this
bill helps the hospital meet seismic requirements.
2) Hospital Earthquake Risk . Structural Performance Category-1
(SPC-1) hospital buildings pose a significant risk of
collapse and a danger to the public after a strong
earthquake. Under current law, SPC-1 buildings must have been
AB 411
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retrofitted, replaced, or removed from acute-care service by
January 1, 2008, unless a hospital has been granted an
extension to 2013. According to estimates, about half of the
2,000 hospital buildings statewide are classified in the
SPC-1 category and about half of SPC-1 buildings have not met
or are unable meet 2008/2013 statutory deadlines due to
financial constraints.
Hazards United States (HAZUS) is a standardized federal
earthquake loss methodology that relies on mathematical
modeling along with information about building stock,
economic data, local geology and location and size of
potential earthquakes to estimate losses due to seismic
events. Significant conclusions about the impact of HAZUS
reclassification will be available during the summer of 2009.
Analysis Prepared by : Mary Ader / APPR. / (916) 319-2081