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SB-1382 Veterans’ Home of California.(1995-1996)

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SB1382:v92#DOCUMENT

Senate Bill No. 1382
CHAPTER 335

An act to add Section 15819.95 to, and to repeal and add Section 15819.90 of, the Government Code, and to amend Sections 1010 and 1011 of the Military and Veterans Code, relating to veterans, making an appropriation therefor, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately.

[ Filed with Secretary of State  August 19, 1996. Approved by Governor  August 17, 1996. ]

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


SB 1382, Peace. Veterans’ Home of California.
Existing law establishes a Veterans’ Home of California, Yountville, located in Napa County. Existing law authorizes the Department of Veterans Affairs to establish and construct a 2nd veterans’ home to be located on one or more sites in one of several specified counties in southern California, and states the intent of the Legislature to authorize the department to begin preliminary work on 2 additional veterans’ homes in southern California.
Existing law, the State Building Construction Act of 1955, authorizes the State Public Works Board to acquire or construct public buildings and to issue revenue bonds, negotiable notes, and negotiable bond anticipation notes to finance that construction.
Existing law requires that the Controller make a loan from the General Fund of up to $1,680,000 to the department, subject to certain conditions, for certain purposes relating to construction of the second and third sites of the southern California veterans’ home and requires that the loan be repaid from bond funds authorized in subsequent legislation, or if no bond funds are authorized, from the support appropriation for the department in future budget acts.
This bill would repeal the provision relating to the loan and would authorize the State Public Works Board, if certain conditions are met, to issue revenue bonds, negotiable notes, and negotiable bond anticipation notes pursuant to the State Building Construction Act of 1955 to finance the construction of sites 2, 3, and 4 of the veterans’ home in southern California, including repayment of any loans granted pursuant to the repealed provision. The bill would appropriate these funds, without regard for fiscal year, and would appropriate $66,000,000 in available matching federal funds, to the board on behalf of the department for this purpose. This bill would specify the amount of authorized capital outlay for the project, including, but not limited to, the percentage of augmentation funding. The bill would authorize the State Public Works Board to borrow funds for all phases of the projects.
The bill would authorize the department to enter into any lease agreement with the State Public Works Board necessary to achieve completion of construction. The bill would require the Director of Veterans Affairs to notify the Chairperson of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee of the director’s intention to execute any lease agreement at least 45 days prior to its execution. The bill would condition the expenditure of funds generated from the issuance of the bonds on the commitment of certain federal matching funds for the project, and would require that prescribed notice be given regarding the availability of federal funds.
This bill would require an administrator at the Barstow site and at each site of the southern California home and would make conforming changes.
This bill would become operative only if AB 2015 is enacted and takes effect. This bill would declare that it shall take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Appropriation: YES  

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


SECTION 1.

 Section 15819.90 of the Government Code, as added by Chapter 943 of the Statutes of 1995, is repealed.

SEC. 2.

 Section 15819.90 is added to the Government Code, to read:

15819.90.
 (a)  It is the intent of the Legislature to make an appropriation for three additional sites of the Southern California Veterans’ Home, for a total of four sites.
(b)  (1)  The board shall issue revenue bonds, negotiable notes, or negotiable bond anticipation notes pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 15830) to finance the construction of the three additional sites of the Southern California Veterans’ Home only in accordance with the following schedule:
(A)  Authorization and bond issuance for the second site shall take place after the department certifies that the construction of the first site, the veterans’ home at Barstow, as set forth in Section 15819.85, has been completed and opened, and demonstrates to the State Public Works Board that the facility is fully operational and that there is a demonstrated demand for a second site.
(B)  Authorization and bond issuance for the third site shall take place after the department certifies that the construction of the veterans’ home at the second site, as set forth in subparagraph (A) has been completed and opened, and demonstrates to the State Public Works Board that the facility is fully operational and that there is a demonstrated demand for a third site.
(C)  Authorization and bond issuance for the fourth site shall take place after the department certifies that the construction of the veterans’ home at the third site, as set forth in subparagraph (B), has been completed and opened, and demonstrates to the State Public Works Board that the facility is fully operational and that there is a demonstrated demand for a fourth site.
(2)  The second, third, and fourth sites shall be in addition to the first site provided for in Section 15819.85.
(c)  The amount of revenue bonds, negotiable notes, or negotiable bond anticipation notes to be sold pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 15830) for capital outlay for this purpose shall not exceed the sum of thirty-six million dollars ($36,000,000). This amount shall be available as necessary for the site studies, suitability reports, environmental studies, master planning, architectural programming, schematics, preliminary plans, working drawings, construction, and equipment of sites two, three, and four of the Southern California Veterans Home. These funds shall also be used for repayment of any loan made pursuant to former Section 15819.90, as added by Chapter 943 of the Statutes of 1995, for costs related to the first and second sites.
(d)  In addition to the funds appropriated pursuant to subdivision (g), the sum of sixty-six million dollars ($66,000,000) in federal matching funds available pursuant to the State Veterans’ Home Assistance Improvement Act of 1977 (38 U.S.C.A. Sec. 8131 et seq.), is hereby appropriated to the board on behalf of the Department of Veterans Affairs for the purposes of construction or repayment of any loan related to the second, third, and fourth sites of the Southern California Veterans’ Home. In the event that bonds are not issued or sold, any loans for the purposes of this section or former Section 15819.90, shall be repaid from the department’s annual support appropriations.
(e)  The amount of revenue bonds, negotiable notes, or negotiable bond anticipation notes to be sold shall equal the costs of performance of all functions referred to in subdivision (c), and any additional amounts, as specified in subdivision (h).
(f)  The amount of negotiable bond anticipation notes to be sold pursuant to this section shall not exceed the amount of revenue bonds or negotiable notes authorized by this section.
(g)  Notwithstanding Section 13340, funds derived for the purposes of this section from the financing methods of Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 15830) are hereby appropriated, without regard to fiscal year, to the board on behalf of the Department of Veterans Affairs for the construction or repayment of any loans related to the second, third, and fourth sites of the Southern California Veterans’ Home.
(h)  The State Public Works Board may borrow funds for all phases of the projects from the Pooled Money Investment Account pursuant to Sections 16212 and 16313, and any other legal fund sources.
(i)  The board may authorize the augmentation of the cost of the construction of the sites set forth in this chapter pursuant to the board’s authority under Section 13332.11. In addition, the board may authorize any additional amounts necessary to pay the costs of financing, including, but not limited to, the payment of interest during construction of the sites, any additional amount as may be authorized by the board to pay the cost of financing a reasonably required reserve fund, interest payable on any interim loan for the homes from the Pooled Money Investment Account pursuant to Section 16312, and the costs of issuance of permanent financing of the sites. Notwithstanding subdivision (d) of Section 13332.11, the board shall defer all augmentations in excess of 10 percent of the amount appropriated for each capital outlay project until the Legislature makes additional funds available for the specific project.
(j)  The Department of Veterans Affairs is hereby authorized to enter into any lease agreement with the State Public Works Board necessary to achieve completion of the construction phase of the second, third, and fourth Southern California Veterans’ Home project sites. The Director of Veterans Affairs shall notify the Chairperson of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee of the director’s intention to execute any lease agreement authorized by this section at least 45 days prior to its execution.

SEC. 3.

 Section 15819.95 is added to the Government Code, to read:

15819.95.
 The funds generated from the issuance of the bonds pursuant to Section 15819.90 shall be expended only upon receipt of the matching amount of federal funds from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. The Director of Veterans Affairs shall notify the Chief Clerk of the Assembly, the Secretary of State, and the State Public Works Board in writing that the federal matching funds have been provided, and the Chief Clerk of the Assembly shall publish this notification in the Assembly Journal.
The total amount of federal matching funds to be received is twenty-two million dollars ($22,000,000) for each of the second, third, and fourth sites, however, the entire amount does not need to be received prior to expenditure of the funds from the bond issuance authorized by Section 15819.90, if there has been a federal commitment to provide those matching funds. The board may allocate funds to the Department of Veterans Affairs for expenditures that are equal to a 35-percent portion of the total acquisition and construction costs.

SEC. 4.

 Section 1010 of the Military and Veterans Code is amended to read:

1010.
 As used in this chapter:
(a)  “Home” means the Veterans’ Home of California, Yountville, and the Veterans’ Home of California, Barstow.
(b)  “Administrator” means the Administrator of the Veterans’ Home of California, Yountville, and the Administrator of each site of the southern California Veterans’ Home, including, but not limited to, the Veterans’ Home of California, Barstow.
(c)  “Department” means the Department of Veterans Affairs.
(d)  “Director” means the Director of Veterans Affairs.
(e)  “Veteran” means a member of the home.

SEC. 5.

 Section 1011 of the Military and Veterans Code, as amended by Chapter 190 of the Statutes of 1995, is amended to read:

1011.
 (a)  There is in the department a Veterans’ Home of California Yountville, situated at Veterans’ Home, Napa County.
(b)  (1)  The department may establish and construct a veterans’ home in southern California that shall be located on one or more sites in the following cities: Barstow, Lancaster, and Chula Vista.
(2)  When completed, the initial site shall be the Veterans’ Home of California, Barstow, situated in Barstow, San Bernardino County.
(3)  The second and third sites shall be located in the Cities of Lancaster and Chula Vista. The order of construction shall be determined by site availability and preparedness as determined pursuant to the process set forth in Section 1011.5.
(4)  A fourth site shall be located in a southern California county based on recommendations made by the commission established pursuant to Section 1011.5.
(5)  The department shall operate the several sites of the southern California veterans’ home concurrently with the Yountville home.
(6)  The department shall complete any preapplication process necessary with the United States Veterans’ Administration for construction of the southern California veterans’ home.
(7)  There shall be an administrator for, and located at, each site of the southern California home.

SEC. 6.

 This bill shall not become operative unless AB 2015 of the 1995–96 Regular Session is enacted and takes effect on or prior to January 1, 1997.

SEC. 7.

 This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:
In order that the construction of essential homes for veterans be commenced and completed at the earliest possible time, it is necessary for this act to take effect immediately.