BILL ANALYSIS �
SB 1
Page 1
Date of Hearing: August 8, 2012
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Felipe Fuentes, Chair
SB 1 (Kehoe) - As Amended: January 4, 2012
Policy Committee: Governmental
Organization Vote: 17 - 0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
No Reimbursable:
SUMMARY
This bill deletes the January 1, 2013, sunset date of the State
Race Track Leasing Commission (SRTLC) which oversees leases and
other agreements for the use of the Del Mar Race Track located
on the grounds of the Del Mar Fairgrounds.
FISCAL EFFECT
Costs associated with this legislation are minor and absorbable
within existing resources.
COMMENTS
1)Purpose . AB 2130 (Huber), Chapter 670, Statutes of 2010,
imposed a sunset date of January 1, 2013, on the SRTLC.
Because the authority's founding documents provide that the
authority shall remain in existence until the bonds are paid
in full, elimination of the commission prior to the bonds
maturity in 2025 may create legal and logistical issues and
potentially violate bond covenants. Thus, this bill proposes
to eliminate the existing January 1, 2013 sunset date of the
SRTLC and make it a permanent entity.
2)Background . Existing law establishes the State Race Track
Leasing Commission and authorizes the commission to enter into
leases or other agreements for the use of the Del Mar Race
Track and any other property owned or controlled by the 22nd
District Agricultural Association (DAA) that the commission
deems necessary to provide horse racing at Del Mar Race Track.
SB 1
Page 2
The commission is comprised of the Secretary of Food and
Agriculture, the Director of Finance, the Director of General
Services, and three persons appointed by the governor who are
members of the 22nd DAA Board of Directors. The commission
oversees the lease agreement between the 22nd DAA and the Del
Mar Thoroughbred Club. The commission serves as the pass
through for horse racing revenues from the club and the 22nd
DAA which includes lease payments to the 22nd DAA and racing
revenues to the Race Track Authority. The authority, a joint
powers authority, uses the racing revenues to service bonds on
the race track and fund capital improvements.
3)Related Legislation . In the current session, SB 855 (Kehoe)
would have extended the sunset on the State Race Track Leasing
Commission from January 1, 2013 to January 1, 2018. This bill
was gutted in the Assembly and used for other purposes.
In 2011, AB 656 (Huber) proposed to abolish certain state
entities and also delete the January 1, 2013 sunset date of
the SRTLC. That bill was vetoed by Governor Brown on the
basis that it delegated to a legislative committee sole
discretion on whether and, for how long, certain commissions
should exist.
AB 2130 (Huber), Chapter 670, Statutes of 2010, among other
things, imposed a sunset date of January 1, 2013, on the State
Race Track Leasing Commission, the Capitol Area Committee, the
Continuing Care Advisory Committee, and the California
Recreational Trails Committee.
Analysis Prepared by : Julie Salley-Gray / APPR. / (916)
319-2081