BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON VETERANS AFFAIRS
Senator Ben Hueso, Chair
BILL NO: SB 722 HEARING DATE: 1/14/14
AUTHOR: Correa
VERSION: 9/6/13
FISCAL: Yes (Appropriation and Urgency)
VOTE: Two-Thirds
SUBJECT
California Mexican American Veterans' Memorial Beautification and
Enhancement Fund: extension of operation.
DESCRIPTION
Existing law:
1. Establishes the California Mexican American Veterans'
Memorial Beautification and Enhancement (CMAVMBE) Committee
under the jurisdiction of the Department of Veterans Affairs
(CALVET), to oversee enhancement of an existing memorial on
state grounds, and provides for its composition (seven
members) and duties.
2. Authorizes the committee to, among other things, establish a
schedule for the design, construction, and dedication of the
memorial, solicit designs and devise a process for selection
of the final design, monitor construction, and consult with
and obtain final design and site orientation approval from DGS
and the CALVET Secretary.
3. Requires the committee to notify the Governor and the CALVET
Secretary when the beautification and enhancement of the
memorial is complete.
4. Provides that any monies remaining in the CMAVMBEC Account
will revert to the General Fund on July 1, 2014.
This bill:
1. Extend the date for the reversion of funds in this account
until July 1, 2016.
(Extending operation of a continuously appropriated account
constitutes an appropriation.)
2. Declares that this bill will take effect immediately as an
urgency statute.
(The bill must be signed into law prior to July 1, 2014 to
have the intended effect.)
BACKGROUND
Shortly after the World War II armistice, a group of
Mexican-American women banded together to create a memorial that
would honor their husbands and sons who had died in the military
service of the United States during the War.
Beginning in 1948, the Madres launched a fundraising drive to
finance the memorial. Their efforts included vending homemade
tamales and conducting raffle sales at their local church
parishes and other venues.
Dedicated in May 1951, the memorial consisted of a statue of a
solitary infantryman. Known as "El Soldado," the statue stood on
the grounds of the Mexican American Center in Sacramento.
Weathered and worn over time, El Soldado remained at this site
for decades until the location was rezoned by local government.
The statue was donated to the State of California with the
expectation that it would become an official and permanent state
memorial. In 1975 El Soldado was moved to its present location
across the street from the Main (West) entrance to the State
Capitol.
Beginning with AB 1350 (Polanco) in1993, several legislative
measures addressed the modest statue memorial. AB 1350 authorized
expansion and enhancement of El Soldado. The measure also
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established the 11-member California Mexican American Veterans'
Memorial Beautification and Enhancement Commission as a
non-governmental committee of citizens authorized to establish a
schedule for its design, construction, and dedication; to solicit
designs and devise a process for selection of the final design;
and to monitor construction.
In addition, AB 1350 provided that funds for the enhancement
would come from individuals voluntarily designating an amount on
their state personal income tax returns (in excess of their tax
liability) to the California Mexican American Veterans' Memorial
Beautification and Enhancement Account, also created by the
legislation.
This AB 1350 Commission had no significant activity for years,
including public meetings, fundraising or memorial enhancements.
By the mid-2000s, community leaders, including members of the
existing Commission, were working to enact legislation that would
jumpstart the languishing effort to enhance the El Soldado
memorial. Authored by Senator Gloria Negrete McLeod (D-Chino), AB
599 was sponsored by the American G.I. Forum and the
Mexican-American Veterans Memorial, Inc. The bill received no
formal opposition and sailed through both houses of the
Legislature on consent.
SB 599 repealed the 11-member California Mexican American
Veterans' Memorial Beautification and Enhancement Commission and
created a new seven-member committee under the jurisdiction of
the Department of Veterans Affairs.
The rationale was that California veterans and others favoring
expansion and maintenance of the memorial would be better served
by having it administered by an agency already dedicated to
serving the interests and needs of veterans - instead of by a
commission that had not functioned for so long.
The new Committee is made up of five gubernatorial appointees and
one appointee each of the Senate President Pro Tempore and the
Assembly Speaker. The Committee is authorized to establish a
schedule for the design, construction and dedication of the
enhanced memorial; to solicit and select designs that may be used
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to beautify the existing memorial; and to solicit and receive
contributions that will be used to off-set the costs of the
enhancements and beautification project. None of the members
receive compensation.
SB 599 also repealed the long-defunct income tax check-off.
In recent years the Memorial Committee had difficulty proceeding
on the project because there were not enough members to achieve a
voting quorum. At the start of calendar year 2013, Governor Brown
filled out the Committee by appointment and it began making
progress.
The greatest challenge throughout the various life phases of the
Memorial project has been fundraising. Only private donations can
be used to support this state memorial.
Via SB 599, the Military and Veteran Code Section 1340 authorizes
creation of the California Mexican American Veterans' Memorial
Beautification and Enhancement Account within the General Fund.
It specifies that all funds received by the Department of
Veterans Affairs shall be deposited in the account for the design
and construction of the California Mexican American Veterans'
Memorial as specified in Section 1341.
Section 1341 provides for continuous appropriation of all funds
for the project, but also states that, on July 1, 2014, any
moneys remaining in the California Mexican American Veterans'
Memorial Beautification and Enhancement Account shall revert to
the General Fund.
COMMENT
1.Staff Comments :
In February 2013 the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee held an
informational hearing on the status of the Memorial project. The
Memorial Committee and CALVET say they now are pursuing a plan
that would fund and construct the enhancements in three stages at
the following levels, respectively: $300,000; $500,000; and
$800,000. According to their input, each stage would look like a
completed memorial, but each new stage would add significant
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enhancements to the prior stage's design or landscaping.
Witnesses from the Committee and/or CALVET are expected provide
detail on that phased approach and the timelines for the
associated fundraising and construction.
During the informational hearing, the likely need to extend the
funds reversion deadline was discussed. At that hearing, Senators
Correa, Knight and senators in attendance agreed to author
legislatively author the extension, which should be
noncontroversial.
2. Related Legislation
SB 599 (Negrete McLeod, Ch. 588, Stats. 2007) Repealed the
original 11-member California Mexican American Veterans' Memorial
Beautification and Enhancement Commission and created a new
seven-member committee under the jurisdiction of the Department
of Veterans Affairs. Also repealed the defunct associated tax
check-off.
SB 1064 (Perata, Ch. 989, Stat 1999) Amended the minimum
contribution section to specify that the California Mexican
American Veterans Memorial Beautification and Enhancement Account
would not be subject to the $250,000 minimum contribution until
2001.
AB 2366 (Cedillo, Ch. 818, Stats.1998) Provided that the
California Mexican American Veterans Memorial Beautification and
Enhancement Account could be placed on the state income tax
return for voluntary contributions when the department upon
notification from the Veterans Memorial Commission that
construction of the Veterans Memorial had commenced.
AB 1350 (Polanco, Ch. 1221, Stats. 1993) Established the Mexican
American Veterans Memorial Beautification and Enhancement
Account. This fund could not be placed on the state income tax
return for voluntary contribution until the Veteran's Memorial
Fund came off the return, and the department was notified by the
Veterans Memorial Commission prior to September 1 of any taxable
year that the Veteran's Memorial had been completed.
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POSITIONS
Sponsor: Author.
Support: None on file.
Oppose: None on file
Analysis by: Wade Cooper Teasdale
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