BILL ANALYSIS �
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 585|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 585
Author: Fox (D), et al.
Amended: 8/6/14 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE VETERANS AFFAIRS COMMITTEE : 5-0, 6/24/14
AYES: Hueso, Correa, Lieu, Nielsen, Roth
NO VOTE RECORDED: Knight, Block
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 5-0, 8/14/14
AYES: De Le�n, Hill, Lara, Padilla, Steinberg
NO VOTE RECORDED: Walters, Gaines
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 72-1, 1/27/14 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Department of Veterans Affairs: use of real
property
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs
(CalVet) by July 1, 2016, to create a prioritized list of unused
or underutilized nonresidential real property owned by CalVet,
and to propose one or more potential uses that will benefit
California veterans. Requires CalVet to consider its inventory
of properties as an integrated system, and to address how
prospective uses of the properties could complement each other.
ANALYSIS : Existing law:
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1.Provides for the establishment and funding of the Veterans
Home of California, which is to be operated by CalVet at
several authorized campuses around the state.
2.Provides that CalVet constitutes a public corporation
authorized to hold property on behalf of the state.
This bill:
1.Requires CalVet, by July 1, 2016, develop a list of unused or
underutilized non-residential real property owned by the
CalVet, including those on or near existing CalVet facilities,
and propose one or more uses of those properties that will
benefit California veterans and to make a preferred
recommendation for use of each property, as specified.
2.Requires CalVet when developing the list to consider its
inventory of properties as an integrated system, and address
how prospective uses of the properties could complement each
other.
3.Requires the list of options be structured as a prioritized
list of projects determined by CalVet to constitute
appropriate uses for the properties.
4.Includes a legislative finding and declaration that after a
use option for a given location is identified pursuant to the
bill's provisions, further study and evaluation may be
necessary in order to determine the feasibility of that use
option and take steps toward its implementation.
Background
CalVet's Veterans Homes Division provides rehabilitative,
residential medical care and services in a homelike environment
for all veterans (and eligible veteran spouses) residing in the
State's eight veterans homes (campuses), which are located in
Barstow, Chula Vista, Fresno, Lancaster. Redding, Ventura, West
Los Angeles, and Yountville. As of early 2013, more than 1,700
members resided in these veterans homes. CalVet is scheduled to
begin admitting veterans in October 2013 at two new veterans
homes located in Fresno and Redding. Some of the CalVet-owned
campuses are located on modestly sized real property footprints,
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while others have larger physical footprints.
The eight campuses offer different combinations of the following
levels of care that generate different levels of cost:
Independent living/domiciliary care (Barstow, Chula
Vista, Yountville): This level of care is for residents
able to perform activities of daily living with, at most,
minimal assistance. Non-nursing employees provide limited
supervision. Residents have access to all of the Home's
services, activities, and medical care. Individuals can
transfer to higher levels of care as needed. Independent
living is also referred to as Domiciliary by CalVet and the
USDVA.
Residential care/assisted living (All homes except
Barstow): Residential Care Facilities for the Elderly
(RCFE) are available for residents who require minimal
assistance and supervision with some activities of daily
living. RCFE services may include care by licensed nurses.
In the future, memory care programs may be established
within the RCFEs.
Intermediate care (Barstow, Yountville): This level is
for residents who often require licensed nursing assistance
with medications and treatments, and generally require
unlicensed nursing assistance with several daily living
activities.
Skilled nursing care (Barstow, Chula Vista, Fresno,
Redding, West LA, Yountville): This level provides 24-hour
services of licensed nurses and certified nursing
assistants, and is more comprehensive than intermediate
care. Skilled nursing residents have greater access to
rehabilitation therapies, nursing care, pharmacy
management, structured activities and clinical dietary
services. This level may provide a memory care program.
Underutilization of veterans home property . CalVet'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.
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In May 2013, the State Auditor released Report 2012-119, which
reviewed CalVet's management of the veterans home system and
included the following findings:
Statutory licensing requirements and state budget
allocations limit the number of beds available for veterans
which results in unused space at the homes. Legal
restrictions also may limit CalVet's ability to lease to or
to partner with other entities to utilize this unused
space.
CalVet has not monitored its only public-private
partnership agreement - a non-profit agency uses space and
utilities at the Yountville veterans home at no charge in
exchange for providing mental health care services for
veterans - and thus, does not know how successful the
partnership is in serving more veterans.
Although it has agreements with other entities to
analyze long-term planning at the Yountville campus, CalVet
does not have a formalized process to identify
opportunities to utilize unused space at its other homes.
As a result of the audit, CalVet revised its Strategic Plan
(2013/14-2015/16) to include the following strategic goals:
Develop and implement procedures for periodically
evaluating all of the veterans homes to identify
opportunities to enhance its use of unused space and
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.
Government Code Section11011 requires each state agency to
review annually all proprietary state lands, with specified
exceptions, over which it has jurisdiction. CalVet must
determine what, if any, land is in excess of its foreseeable
needs and report it in writing to the Department of General
Services.
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Questionable utilization of veterans home property. In October
2013, the State Auditor released Investigative Report
I2011-0837, pursuant to the California Whistleblower Protection
Act. The report concluded that the veterans Yountville home
administrator wasted $652,919 in state-managed funds when she
entered into two contracts on behalf of the home.
The first contract was for the construction and operation of an
adventure park featuring seven zip lines on almost 200 acres of
state property. This contract cost the State $228,612 to
terminate after Veterans Affairs' top management learned about
it and halted construction. The second contract was for the
operation of a caf� and tavern at the home, which did not comply
with state contracting requirements and needlessly cost $424,307
over nearly a two-year period. In addition to alleging that the
contracts did not comply with state contracting requirements,
the audit questions whether the zip lines and caf�/tavern
constituted a prudent use of the home's resources and served the
best interests of the residents of the home.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee, one-time costs
of up to $900,000 (General Fund).
The Department of Veterans Affairs has identified costs of
$77,750 for consultant fees; $487,704 for plan documentation;
$60,000 in travel expenses; and $250,000 for an evaluation of
the needs of the veteran population within the cities of
Lancaster and Ventura. All of these estimates are based on the
costs which have been incurred for the master plan at
Yountville, and only include a plan for the remaining seven
homes.
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/8/14)
American Legion - Department of California
AMVETS - Department of California
California Association of County Veterans Service Officers
California State Commanders Veterans Council
Military Officers Association of America - California Council of
Chapters
Veterans Caucus of the California Democratic Party
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Veterans of Foreign Wars - Department of California
Vietnam Veterans of America - California State Council
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author, "AB 585
ensures that veteran land owned by the state become centers of
veteran activity and support services by requiring CalVet to
develop a master plan for the use of unused or underutilized
land owned by the state department. CalVet owns and operates
eight veteran homes throughout the state. Some of these homes,
including but not limited to Yountville, Lancaster and Ventura,
have excess land that has the potential for further development.
Recently, the California State Auditor, in an October 2013
report, California Department of Veteran Affairs: Wastefulness,
Failure to Comply with State Contracting Requirements, and
Inexcusable Neglect of Duty, concluded that one of the eight
veteran homes operated by CalVet unlawfully entered into two
wasteful contracts. One of these unlawful contracts involved a
questionable use of limited state-owned veteran property. AB
585 will ensure that the scarce real estate property at CalVet's
disposal to serve California veterans is best utilized to become
bustling hubs of veteran activity."
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 72-1, 1/27/14
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Bigelow, Bloom,
Bocanegra, Bonilla, Bonta, Bradford, Brown, Buchanan, Ian
Calderon, Campos, Chau, Chesbro, Conway, Cooley, Dababneh,
Dahle, Daly, Dickinson, Donnelly, Eggman, Fong, Fox, Frazier,
Beth Gaines, Garcia, Gatto, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gorell,
Gray, Hagman, Hall, Harkey, Roger Hern�ndez, Holden, Jones,
Jones-Sawyer, Levine, Linder, Lowenthal, Maienschein, Mansoor,
Medina, Melendez, Morrell, Mullin, Muratsuchi, Nazarian,
Olsen, Pan, Perea, Quirk, Quirk-Silva, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas,
Rodriguez, Salas, Skinner, Stone, Ting, Weber, Wieckowski,
Wilk, Williams, Yamada, John A. P�rez
NOES: Ch�vez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Grove, Logue, Nestande, Patterson, V. Manuel
P�rez, Wagner, Waldron
AL:nl 8/15/14 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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