Amended in Senate July 2, 2014

Amended in Assembly March 19, 2014

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 1580

Introduced by Assembly Member Yamada

January 30, 2014

An act to amend begin delete Section 1047 end delete begin insert Sections 1047, 1048, and 1049 end insert of the Military and Veterans Code, relating to veterans begin insert , and making an appropriation therefor end insert .

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1580, as amended, Yamada. Veterans’ homes: Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Fund.

Existing law provides for the establishment of veterans’ homes and requires the administrator of a veterans’ home to maintain a Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Fund to be used, subject to the approval of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, to provide certain operations and activities relating to the general welfare of the veterans.

begin insert

These funds include proceeds from the California Veterans Homes Fund, operations of the Veterans’ Home Exchange, specified revenue derived from the issuance of prisoner-of-war special license plates, funds derived from golf course green fees and range ball fees, donations, interest earned on invested funds, funds derived from the estates of deceased members, and any other moneys or property described under existing law, including, but not limited to, moneys and properties received by the home from estate assets located outside the home.

end insert

This bill would begin delete additionally require, for proposed expenditures of Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Fund moneys of more than $5,000, proposed contracts of more than $25,000 per year, or proposed contracts of more than $100,000, the administrator to submit the proposed expenditure or contract to the secretary for approval. This bill would require legal counsel of the Department of Veterans Affairs, or another similarly qualified reviewer, to review the proposed expenditure or contract, and to issue an advisory opinion, as described. This bill would also require the Department of Veterans Affairs to provide written notifications containing specified information prior to the execution of a proposed expenditure or contract, and upon the execution of the expenditure or contract, to the Veterans’ Home Allied Council or to another body representing the residents of the affected home or homes. This bill would provide the Veterans’ Home Allied Council or other body representing residents of the affected home or homes the opportunity to respond to the notification provided prior to the execution of a proposed expenditure or contract. The bill would require the secretary to consider the advisory opinion and any other relevant information when determining whether an expenditure or contract will be approved. end delete begin insert create the Veterans’ Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Fund in the State Treasury, to replace the existing individual funds. The bill would require all moneys in each existing veterans’ home fund to be deposited into the Veterans’ Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Fund. The bill would continuously appropriate these moneys to the Department of Veterans Affairs to provide for the general welfare of the veterans living in state veterans ’ homes. Moneys in the fund would be exempt from specified provisions relating to the determination of administrative costs owed by each state agency to the state. The bill would require the department to develop standardized expenditure procedures for the fund, as specified, and to provide residents with a quarterly report on the expenditures made from the fund on behalf of each home. The bill also would make technical and conforming changes. end insert

Vote: majority. Appropriation:  begin delete no end delete begin insert yes end insert . Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 1047 of the Military and Veterans Code
is amended to read:

1047.  

(a) (1) The begin delete administrator shall maintain a end delete begin insert Veterans’ end insert
Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Fund begin delete that shall be used, at the
discretion of the administrator and subject to the approval of the
secretary, to provide for the general welfare of the veterans,
including, but end delete begin insert is hereby created in the State Treasury. All moneys
in each Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Fund maintained by the
eight California state veterans’ homes shall be deposited into the
Veterans’ Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Fund and the individual
home funds shall be abolished. All references to the “Morale,
Welfare, and Recreation Fund” shall be deemed to refer to the
fund created by this subdivision. end insert

begin insert

(2) Notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code,
all moneys deposited into the Veterans’ Morale, Welfare, and
Recreation Fund are continuously appropriated to the department
to provide for the general welfare of the veterans living in the
veterans’ home of California.

end insert begin insert

(3) Moneys deposited in the fund are exempt from the
requirements of Article 2 (commencing with Section 11270) of
Chapter 3 of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government
Code.

end insert begin insert

(4) (A) Moneys in the Veterans’ Morale, Welfare, and
Recreation Fund may be distributed to the homes at the discretion,
and subject to the approval, of the secretary, to provide for the
general welfare of the veterans living in state veterans’ homes.

end insert

begin insert (B) end insert begin insert   end insert begin insert For purposes of this section, “general welfare” includes,
but is end insert not limited to, providing for operations of begin delete the Veterans’
Home Exchange, end delete begin insert a canteen, end insert hobby shop, motion picture theater,
library, band, and any other function that is operated for the morale,
welfare, and recreation of the veterans, and to pay for newspapers,
chapel expenses, welfare and entertainment expenses, sport
activities, celebrations, and any other activity that is for the morale,
welfare, and recreation of the veterans.

begin delete

(2)

end delete

begin insert (5) end insert  For proposed expenditures of begin insert Veterans’ end insert Morale, Welfare,
and begin delete Recreation Fund moneys of more than five thousand dollars
($5,000), proposed contracts of more than twenty-five thousand
dollars ($25,000) per year, or proposed contracts of more than one
hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), all of the following shall
apply: end delete begin insert Recreation Fund moneys, the department shall maintain
guidelines whereby the administrator for each home, in
consultation with the Veterans' Home Allied Council or another
body representing the residents of the home, shall submit proposed
expenditures to the secretary for approval. Moneys from the fund
shall be allocated proportionally to each home, based upon the
census of the homes on July 1 of each year. Allocations from the
fund may be augmented by the secretary to meet specified identified
needs. end insert

begin delete

(A) The administrator shall submit the proposed expenditure or
contract to the secretary for approval. The secretary shall consider
the advisory opinion required in subparagraph (B) and any other
relevant information when determining whether an expenditure or
contract will be approved.

end delete begin delete

(B) The proposed expenditure or contract shall be reviewed by
legal counsel of the department, or another similarly qualified
reviewer designated by the secretary. The reviewer shall issue an
advisory opinion to the secretary identifying those laws and
regulations with which the proposed expenditure or contract or
execution of the contract must comply, and any other relevant legal
issues that may arise with respect to compliance with those laws
and regulations.

(C) Prior to the execution of a proposed expenditure or contract,
the department shall provide written notification in the form of a
draft expenditure proposal to the Veterans’ Home Allied Council
or to another body representing the residents of the affected home
or homes. The draft expenditure proposal shall include, but is not
limited to, a description of the intent of the project that is the
subject of the proposed expenditure or contract, estimated costs,
and an approximate timeline of execution. The Veterans’ Home
Allied Council or other body representing residents of the affected
home or homes shall have the opportunity to respond to the draft
expenditure proposal and the department shall consider any
responses provided.

(D) Upon the execution of the expenditure or contract, the
department shall provide written notification to the Veterans’ Home
Allied Council or another body representing residents of the
affected home or homes. The notification shall identify the purpose
of the project, costs, and who is the recipient or recipients of the
moneys distributed from the Morale, Welfare, and Recreation
Fund.

end delete begin insert

(6) The department shall develop standardized expenditure
procedures for the Veterans’ Morale, Welfare, and Recreation
Fund in all homes, which shall be in accordance with standard
state contract and procurement practices and rules. The
department shall provide the residents, through the administrator
of each home, with a quarterly report on the expenditures made
from the fund on behalf of each home.

end insert

(b) Money in the begin insert Veterans’ end insert Morale, Welfare, and Recreation
Fund may not be expended for any of the following:

(1) Medical treatments or any other related treatment.

(2) Maintenance of the physical plant of the home begin insert , except for
capital improvements that directly enhance the quality of life of
the veterans living in the home end insert .

(3) Any function, operation, or activity that is not directly related
to the morale, welfare, or recreation of the veterans.

(c) Appropriations from the General Fund for the purposes
described in paragraph (3) of subdivision (b) may not be reduced
for the purpose of, or to have the effect of, requiring increased
expenditures from the begin insert Veterans’ end insert Morale, Welfare, and Recreation
Fund for those described purposes.

(d) The begin delete administrator end delete begin insert department end insert shall prepare an itemized
report that is organized by category and accounts for all
expenditures made from the begin insert Veterans’ end insert Morale, Welfare, and
Recreation Fund during the previous fiscal year and shall submit
the report on or before August 20 of each year to all of the
following:

(1) The secretary.

(2) The fiscal committees of the Assembly and the Senate.

(3) The committees of the Assembly and the Senate that have
subject matter jurisdiction over veterans’ affairs.

(4) The Veterans’ Home Allied Council.

(e) The begin delete Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Fund for the Veterans’
Home of California, Yountville, end delete begin insert department end insert shall maintain a
reserve begin insert in the Veterans’ Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Fund end insert
in the amount of two million dollars ($2,000,000). begin delete The reserve
shall be invested in securities, upon the advice of the Morale,
Welfare, and Recreation Fund Advisory Committee and with the
approval of the administrator and the secretary. end delete

(f) The administrator may enter into an agreement with an allied
council that authorizes that council to operate facilities and
activities authorized pursuant to this section. The agreement shall
be in the form and manner as specified by the administrator.

begin insert

begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 1048 of the end insert begin insert Military and Veterans Code end insert begin insert is
amended to read: end insert

1048.  

(a) The Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Fund shall
include proceeds from the California Veterans Homes Fund,
operations of begin delete the Veterans’ Home Exchange, end delete begin insert a canteen, end insert revenue
derived from the issuance of prisoner-of-war special license plates
pursuant to Section 5101.5 of the Vehicle Code, all funds derived
from golf course green fees and range ball fees, all donations to
the fund, interest earned on invested funds, funds derived from the
estates of deceased members, and any other moneys or property
described in this chapter, including, but not limited to, moneys
and properties received by the home from estate assets located
outside the home, regardless of amount.

(b) The administrator shall prepare an itemized report that is
organized by category and accounts for all funds deposited into
the Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Fund and transmitted to the
Controller under Section 1047 during the previous fiscal year and
shall submit the report on or before August 20 of each year to all
of the following:

(1) The secretary.

(2) The fiscal committees of the Assembly and the Senate.

(3) The committees of the Assembly and the Senate that have
subject matter jurisdiction over veterans affairs.

(4) The Veterans’ Home Allied Council.

begin insert

begin insert SEC. 3. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 1049 of the end insert begin insert Military and Veterans Code end insert begin insert is
amended to read: end insert

1049.  

Moneys in the Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Fund
maintained under subdivision (a) of Section 1047 may be used to
establish or operate a begin delete Veterans’ Home Exchange end delete begin insert canteen end insert that may
conduct any lawful endeavor which, in the judgment of the
administrator, will benefit the veterans, except as prohibited under
subdivision (b) of Section 1047. The administrator may establish
the begin delete Veterans’ Home Exchange end delete begin insert canteen end insert to operate at a profit.