Existing law establishes the Department of General Services, which is under the control of the Director of General Services, within the Government Operations Agency and requires it to perform various functions and duties with respect to property within the state, including entering into lease agreements. Existing law authorizes the director, with the consent of the state agency concerned, to, among other things, let for a period not to exceed 5 years, any real or personal property that belongs to the state, the letting of which is not expressly prohibited by law, as specified. Existing law establishes various exceptions to that provision, including that the director, with the consent of the State Department of State Hospitals, may lease to a nonprofit corporation, for the purpose of conducting an educational and work program for individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities, and for a period not to exceed 50 years, real property not exceeding 10 acres located within the grounds of the Napa State Hospital.

This bill would, as an exception to the above-described provision, also authorize the director, with the consent of the State Department of State Hospitals, to lease to a nonprofit corporation or local government, for a period not to exceed 65 years, 7 buildings located at Metropolitan State Hospital in the City of Norwalk. The bill would require the lease to be entered into for the purposes of providing care, resources, and housing to persons with, among other things, behavioral health needs, upon the terms and conditions deemed by the director to be in the best interest of the state.