BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó




                   Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
                            Senator Kevin de León, Chair


          AB 585 (Fox) - Department of Veterans Affairs
          
          Amended:  August 6, 2014        Policy Vote: VA 5-0
          Urgency: No                     Mandate: No
          Hearing Date: August 14, 2014                           
          Consultant: Maureen Ortiz       
          
          SUSPENSE FILE.
          
          
          Bill Summary:  AB 585 requires the Department of Veterans  
          Affairs to create a prioritized list for the use of unused or  
          underutilized nonresidential real property owned by the  
          department by July 1, 2016.

          Fiscal Impact: 

              Minor costs to the Department of Veterans Affairs (General  
              Fund)

          Background:  The Veterans Homes Division, within the Department  
          of Veterans Affairs provides rehabilitative, residential medical  
          care and services in a homelike environment for all veterans and  
          eligible spouses who reside in the state's eight veterans homes.  
           These homes are located in Barstow, Chula Vista, Fresno,  
          Lancaster, Redding, Ventura, West Los Angeles, and Yountville.

          The department's 2012 strategic plan includes an objective to  
          increase utilization of the unused space at the veterans homes  
          through collaborative relationships with nonprofits, veteran  
          service organizations, and private entities.

          In a May 2013 report, the State Auditor reviewed the  
          department's management of the veterans home system and, among  
          other things, found that the department is underutilizing the  
          space available at the veterans homes.  As a result of that  
          audit, the department revised its strategic plan to include the  
          following goals:

             -       Develop and implement procedures for periodically  
               evaluating all of the veterans homes to identify  
               opportunities to enhance its use of unused space and  








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               increase revenue.

             -       Create formal processes for systematically tracking  
               and utilizing unused space, as well as formalizing the  
               evaluation procedure and measures for potential  
               public-private partnerships, and writing procedures to  
               provide periodic measurements of their success.

          Proposed Law:  AB 585 requires the Department of Veterans  
          Affairs to create a prioritized list for the use of unused or  
          underutilized nonresidential real property owned by the  
          department.  The department will be required to propose one or  
          more potential uses of those properties that will benefit  
          California veterans and make a preferred recommendation for use  
          of the property such as housing, supportive services, health  
          care, and mental health care.

          The list must be completed by July 1, 2016.  

          AB 585 specifies that the department must consider its inventory  
          of properties as an integrated system, and shall address how  
          prospective uses of the properties may complement each other.   
          The list of options shall be structured as a prioritized list of  
          projects determined by the department to constitute appropriate  
          uses for the properties identified in the plan. 

          Staff Comments: Existing law requires each state agency to  
          annually review all proprietary state lands over which it has  
          jurisdiction and determine what, if any, land is in excess of  
          its foreseeable needs and report to the Department of General  
          Services.  The report must include the identification of land  
          not currently being used, or current being underutilized by the  
          state agency for any existing or ongoing state program.

          AB 585 contains Legislative Findings and Declarations that  
          further study and evaluation may be necessary after a use option  
          for a given location is identified in order to fully determine  
          the feasibility of that use option and take steps towards its  
          implementation.












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