BILL NUMBER: AB 2559 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 13, 2002
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 28, 2002
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 23, 2002
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 30, 2002
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 17, 2002
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Wesson
(Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Runner)
(Principal coauthor: Senator O'Connell)
FEBRUARY 21, 2002
An act to add Section 1104.1 to the Military and Veterans Code,
relating to veterans, making an appropriation therefor, and declaring
the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2559, as amended, Wesson. Veterans' Home of California.
The Veterans' Homes Bond Act of 2000 requires the proceeds from
the sale of the bonds issued under that act to be deposited in a
newly established Veterans' Home Fund. That act provides that upon
appropriation by the Legislature, the moneys in that fund are to be
allocated first to meet state funding requirements for the renovation
or construction of those veterans' homes identified by a specified
statute, and then to fund any additional homes established pursuant
to the bond act.
This bill would continuously appropriate the moneys in the
Veterans' Home Fund, without regard to fiscal years and in an amount
not to exceed an unspecified limit
$31,000,000 , to meet state funding requirements for the
construction of veterans' homes, located in the City of Lancaster and
in the community of Saticoy, that are identified by the same
specified statute, and a veterans' home located in West Los Angeles,
that is an additional home established pursuant to the bond act.
This bill would state the intent of the Legislature in
enacting make various findings and declarations
regarding these provisions.
This bill would provide that it would become operative only if SB
1234 is enacted and becomes effective on or before January 1, 2003.
This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as
an urgency statute.
Vote: 2/3. Appropriation: yes. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) With respect to veterans in general, the Legislature finds and
declares all of the following:
- Over 1,000 United States veterans who fought in World War II
die every day.
- More veterans live in California than in any other state in
the nation. Of the nation's 25,229,000 veterans, 2,367,700 of them
live in California, or 9.3 percent. Additionally, 596,500 more
veterans live in California than in any other state in the nation.
- California has been identified by the United States Department
of Veterans Affairs as one of the three states with a "great need"
for veterans' homes. The fiscal year 2002 United States Department
of Veterans Affairs veterans' home bed analysis lists the current
need in California as 3,167 beds.
- The highest concentration of veterans are in the 53 to 58
years age range and are Vietnam-era veterans. There are
approximately 800,000 Vietnam-era veterans in California who may need
care soon.
- There are presently 430,800 Korean War-era veterans between
the ages of 66 and 75 years in California who are at the prime age to
receive care now.
- Approximately 18 million of the United States' 25 million
veterans served the country during wartime.
(b)With respect to a veterans' home at Lancaster, the Legislature
finds and declares all of the following:
- There are over 300,000 eligible veterans living in the 60-mile
service area of the Lancaster veterans' homesite.
- The Antelope Valley boasts a vibrant military community with a
rich military and aerospace tradition. Lancaster is in the heart of
the Antelope Valley, which is home to Edwards Air Force Base, Air
Force Plant 42, NASA Dryden, Phillips Rocket Propulsion Laboratory,
Boeing's Phantomworks facility, Northrup-Gruman's B-2 production
facility, and the legendary Lockheed Martin Skunkworks facility.
- The Lancaster veterans' homesite is within an hour drive of
two Veterans Affairs hospitals, and in emergencies, is within a
five-mile radius of three acute care hospitals. The Antelope Valley
Hospital employs nearly 700 skilled nurses and the Antelope Valley
Community College graduates over 200 registered nurses, LVNs, and
medical technicians each year.
- With respect to a veterans' home at Saticoy, the Legislature
finds and declares all of the following:
- Ventura County has been home to three major naval
installations since the 1940s. Presently, Ventura County is home to
Point Mugu Naval Air Station and Port Hueneme United States Naval
Construction Battalion Center. Also located near the Saticoy site is
Vandenberg Air Force Base in Santa Barbara County, as well as Camp
Roberts and Camp San Luis Obispo in San Luis Obispo County.
- The Tri-Counties Region supports a veterans' population of
134,000. The Ventura County veterans services organization estimates
that there are 70,000 veterans living in Ventura County alone.
Another 34,000 veterans reside in Santa Barbara County and 30,000
veterans reside in San Luis Obispo County.
- Ventura College has one of the largest nursing programs in the
state. Presently, there are 168 students enrolled in the Ventura
College nursing program. Oxnard and Moorpark Colleges also have
viable nursing programs and are located in Ventura County.
- The Saticoy site boasts easy access to a variety of veterans
services. The veterans outpatient clinics at Oxnard, Santa Barbara,
San Luis Obispo, Sepulveda, and the West Los Angeles Veterans
Hospital are all in close proximity to the Saticoy site.
(c) With respect to a veterans' home at West Los Angeles, the
Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
- The Governor's Commission on California Veterans Homes
enthusiastically recommends the West Los Angeles veterans' homesite,
stating--"It is the majority opinion of the Commission members that
the best site in the State for a Veterans Home is located on the
property at the Greater Los Angeles Veterans Affairs Medical Center
in Los Angeles."
- There are 690,600 veterans that presently reside in Los
Angeles County. There are more veterans living in Los Angeles County
than in San Francisco, San Diego, San Bernardino, Santa Barbara,
Riverside, and Ventura Counties combined.
- One-third of California's veterans' population resides in
either Los Angeles or Orange County. According to the United States
Department of Veterans Affairs, the unmet need just for this area is
estimated at 1,700 beds.
- The Los Angeles site has the potential to become a "Center of
Excellence" for the California veterans' home system. The Los
Angeles site is located one-half mile from the Veterans Affairs
Greater Los Angeles Health Care System (GLAHS). The GLAHS is the
largest medical center in the Veterans Affairs health care system and
has the broadest range of clinical care, education, and research
programs available. The Los Angeles site will showcase a much-needed
primary Alzheimer's and dementia care facility. Affiliation with
UCLA and USC medical centers assures the highest quality of medical
care for Los Angeles veterans' home residents. More than 250 GLAHS
staff are UCLA or USC medical faculty members and over 270 UCLA and
USC faculty are listed as having primary interest in geriatrics or
gerontology.
- The population and resources of the metropolitan Los Angeles
area provide a large pool of highly qualified staff candidates. The
proposed Veterans' Home, Los Angeles would have access to a pool of
excellent candidates for all required support positions, including
physicians, nurses, pharmacists, physical therapists, and
administrative personnel.
(d) With respect to the need for more veterans' homes in
California, the Legislature notes all of the following
recommendations of the Governor's Commission on California Veterans
Homes:
- Recommendation one by the Governor's Commission on California
Veterans Homes states: Immediate action is necessary. The
commission urges the Governor and the Legislature to take action on
construction of veterans homes by building concurrently as many as
possible.
- Recommendation two by the Governor's Commission on California
Veterans Homes states: It is the majority opinion of the commission
members that the best site in the state for a veterans home is
located on the property at the Greater Los Angeles Veterans Affairs
Medical Center in Los Angeles.
- Recommendation five by the Governor's Commission on California
Veterans Homes states: Build the primary Alzheimer's and dementia
care facility at the Greater Los Angeles Veterans Affairs Medical
Center.
SEC. 2. Section 1104.1 is added to the Military and Veterans Code,
to read:
1104.1. (a) Notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code,
the moneys in the Veterans' Home Fund established by Section 1103
are, subject to the limit set forth in subdivision (b), hereby
continuously appropriated, without regard to fiscal years, to the
Department of Veterans Affairs for the funding of the state's
matching requirement for the construction of all of the following:
- The Veterans' Home of California, Lancaster, as described in
paragraph (4) of subdivision (b) of Section 1011.
- The Veterans' Home of California, Saticoy, as described in
paragraph (5) of subdivision (b) of Section 1011.
- The Veterans' Home of California, West Los Angeles, as
provided for in subdivision (a) of Section 1104.
(b) The total amount appropriated in accordance with subdivision
(a) may not exceed the sum of thirty-one million dollars
($31,000,000).
(c) The homes specified in subdivision (b) may care for veterans
with substance abuse disorders.
SEC. 3. This act shall become operative only if SB 1234 is enacted
and becomes effective on or before January 1, 2003.
SEC. 4. 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:
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