BILL ANALYSIS �
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair
AB 615 (Lowenthal)
Hearing Date: 08/22/2011 Amended: 07/13/2011
Consultant: Mark McKenzie Policy Vote: T&H 6-2
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BILL SUMMARY: AB 615 would provide the High-Speed Rail Authority
(HSRA) with independent authority over property acquisition and
management of lands for the high-speed rail project through
contracts with the Department of Transportation (Caltrans).
Specifically, this bill would:
Exempt HSRA from various statutory provisions related to the
acquisition and disposal of property, rights-of-way, and
easements that otherwise require approval of the Department of
General Services, the State Public Works Board, or the
Department of Finance. These provisions provide the HSRA with
similar statutory authority granted to Caltrans and several
other state agencies in property matters.
Provide HSRA with authority over disposal, leasing, rental,
and management of property, and specify that any revenues
derived from these activities would be deposited with the HSRA
for use on the high-speed rail system.
Require HSRA to contract with Caltrans for all of the
independent powers and duties provided in the bill.
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Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 Fund
HSRA independence Potential cost savings as a result of
stream- Bond*
lined property-related administrative
procedures
Caltrans contracts Potential loss of 100s of millions in
federal Federal
and local funds to the extent that use of
resources on HSRA projects delays
Caltrans
projects
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* High-Speed Passenger Train Bond Fund
AB 615 (Lowenthal)
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STAFF COMMENTS: This bill meets the criteria for referral to the
Suspense File.
AB 615 would provide the HSRA with certain authority related to
the acquisition and disposal of property, rights-of way, and
easements. Under current law, these activities generally
require the involvement and approval of the Department of
General Services (DGS), the State Public Works Board (SPWB), or
the Department of Finance (DOF) in order to take certain actions
regarding property or the contracting of professional and
construction services. Caltrans, the University of California,
the Department of Water Resources and other large agencies that
manage their own larger scale construction projects are exempt
from this body of law and follow other procedures. This bill
would essentially provide the HSRA with the same exemptions that
are provided to these other agencies, but would require HSRA's
independent activities to be conducted through a contract with
Caltrans.
Staff notes that HSRA would need to contract with Caltrans for
legal and right-of-way (ROW) staff for activities related to the
acquisition, management, and disposal of property rather than
conducting activities with oversight from DGS, SPWD, or DOF.
There would likely be corresponding savings, however, to the
extent that other state agencies would be relieved of oversight
and administrative responsibilities. Staff estimates the
provisions related to property management may result in overall
project savings to the extent that procedures are more
streamlined than the current process that requires approvals
from DGS, SPWD, or DOF.
The HSRA and the Federal Railroad Administration jointly
selected a segment from near Fresno to near Bakersfield as the
first construction segment of the high-speed rail system.
Between federal funds and state bond funds, the HSRA has
committed about $5.7 billion for this Central Valley project.
As a condition of the $1.85 billion in ARRA grants for the
project, the HSRA must complete construction by September 30,
2017.
The HSRA has identified the need to acquire 1100 right of way
AB 615 (Lowenthal)
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parcels in the Central Valley over the next two years. This
workload is equivalent to the average number of acquisitions
that Caltrans completes in a year for its projects. Caltrans
does not have capacity in the right-of-way function to assist
the HSRA without severe impacts to project delivery commitments
for 2011-12. Caltrans would be required to redirect existing
staff to meet the anticipated HSRA needs. Since the right of
way function is currently understaffed and environmental
analysis, design, construction, and legal services have no
capacity to assist HSRA, the additional workload would result in
delays to highway projects. This impact on delivery could
jeopardize the state's ability to use all available Federal
Highway Administration funding for transportation projects and
impact the use of local measure funding from local agency
partners. Caltrans is unable to contract out right-of-way
activities so any movement of staff to HSRA projects could not
be replaced through the use of Caltrans consultant resources.
Caltrans indicates that this bill could result in the loss of
over a hundred million dollars in federal and local measure
funding for state highway projects, to the extent that
redirecting resources to HSRA projects significantly delays
highway projects.
Staff notes that the bill currently specifies that funds derived
from leases and other payments related to access to high-speed
rail rights-of-way would be "deposited with the authority for
use in the development, improvement, and maintenance of the
high-speed rail system." Staff recommends an amendment to
require that these funds be deposited into a new or existing
fund in the Treasury, and make use of those funds contingent
upon an appropriation by the Legislature to ensure proper
oversight.