BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó






                      SENATE COMMITTEE ON VETERANS AFFAIRS
                              LOU CORREA, CHAIRMAN
                                             


          Bill No:        SB 10
          Author:         Evans
          Version:        As Introduced
          Hearing Date:   April 12, 2011
          Fiscal:         Yes
          Consultant:     Donald E. Wilson




                                 SUBJECT OF BILL  
          
          Allied Councils and veterans' homes representation before 
          the legislature.
           
           
                                   PROPOSED LAW  
          
          This bill is intended to allow the Allied Council at one of 
          the California Veterans Homes to represent veterans from 
          those homes in front of the legislature.
           
           According to the author, "Veterans feel that better 
          communication with CDVA is possible and necessary and that 
          in order to negotiate on their behalf, the Allied Council 
          must have clear authority to speak for Home members?.SB 10 
          would permit the Veterans' Home Allied Council to represent 
          veterans who reside in the Home in matters before the 
          legislature."
                  
          Specifically this bill does the following-

             1.   Allows respective Allied Councils for California's 
               veterans' homes to represent their homes in front of 
               the legislature.

             2.   Requires any representation before the legislature 
               by the council to be approved by a majority of the 
               council's voting members.

             3.   Prohibits any council representation on behalf of 









               candidates or campaigns.

             4.   Requires any actions before the legislature to be 
               in line with the council's "constitution, bylaws, and 
               policies and procedures."

             5.   Code cleanup of Military and Veterans Code (MVC) 
               section 1050.

                                         

                          EXISTING LAW AND BACKGROUND
                                         
             1.   MVC Code section 1050 establishes the Veterans' 
               Home Allied Council and establishes the council as an 
               advisory body to the administrator of the home.  At 
               one point, Yountville was the only veterans' home and 
               at that time the council was an advisory body to the 
               home's commandant.


             2.   MVC section 1050 reads as follows:
               "The Veterans' Home Allied Council, which is 
               established pursuant to the constitution of the Allied 
               Council, Veterans' Home of California, and which is 
               composed of members of the home, is hereby recognized 
               as an established advisory body to the administrator."


                                         
                                    COMMENT  
          
          1. This bill is a reintroduction of last year's AB 2156 
            (Evans), which was vetoed by the governor.

          2. AB 2156 passed this committee unanimously in 2010 and 
            passed the Senate 33-0.

          3.This legislation was introduced in 2010 because veterans 
            at the Yountville home say that CDVA's legal counsel has 
            opined that the council is not allowed to address the 
            legislature as a body.  Allegedly counsel has told 
            veterans they can represent themselves before the 
            legislature but not represent the home before the 

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            legislature.

          4.According to the author's office CDVA is interpreting the 
            code as the following "the Allied Council is only 'an 
            advisory body' and cannot represent veterans' interest 
            directly to the Legislature."

          5.According to a letter received by the committee from the 
            Allied Council, recent changes to the constitution of the 
            Allied Councils of the Veterans' Homes of California 
            prohibits any "partisan political activity."  Recent 
            amendments to this bill codify that prohibition.

          6.Veterans from the home maintain that due to the severe 
            conditions of some residents and/or the advanced age of 
            others that many-especially at the Yountville home, which 
            has several levels of care-are unable to have their 
            voices heard, and the only way to remedy this situation 
            is to allow the council to speak for residents as a body. 
             According to the author's office, "Veterans feel that 
            better communication with CDVA is possible and necessary 
            and that in order to negotiate on their behalf, the 
            Allied Council must have clear authority to speak for 
            Home members."

          7.Under the bylaws of the Allied Council there are members 
            who represent those who cannot necessarily always 
            represent themselves such as a member from the Eisenhower 
            building and the McKinley building.  (Both buildings are 
            higher levels of care.)

          8. In his veto message last year, Governor Schwarzenegger 
            said, "if a resident at a state veteran's home wishes to 
            voice their concerns to the Legislature, they are 
            currently free to do so." Ýsic]



                                     SUPPORT  
          
          None received

                                      OPPOSE  
          

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          None received











































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