Analysis of the 2004-05 Budget Bill Legislative Analyst's Office February 2004

Department of Veterans Affairs (8955-8966)

The Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) provides medical care, rehabilitation, and residential services to California veterans and their dependents, including operation of veterans' homes in Yountville, Barstow, and Chula Vista. The department has received authorization and funding to construct five new veterans' homes—one each in Redding and Fresno, and three in the greater Los Angeles area. The Governor's budget contains no capital outlay funding for the department.

The 2003 infrastructure plan for the department does not address the construction of three legislatively authorized new veterans' homes in the Los Angeles area. This is discussed below.

Infrastructure Plan

In the 2003 California Five Year Infrastructure Plan the department identified a need for $167 million of capital outlay for various building and infrastructure construction projects for the veterans homes between 2003-04 and 2007-08. The category indicates the type of programmatic need for the capital investment (new and modernized program space, new and modernized infrastructure elements).

Of the $167 million the plan proposes to expend during this 5-year period, $64 million is state funds and $103 million federal funds.

New Veterans Homes

We recommend the department report at budget hearings on its plans to construct three new veterans' homes in Lancaster, Saticoy and West Los Angeles, as well as the status of the Redding and Fresno homes. 

The Legislature has previously expressed its intention that three new veterans' homes be constructed in southern California. Legislative action includes:

• Chapter 216, Statutes of 2002 (AB 2559, Wesson), which appropriated $31 million from the proceeds of the Veterans' Homes Bond Act of 2000 for construction of new veterans' homes in Lancaster, Saticoy and West Los Angeles.
• Chapter 217, Statutes of 2002 (SB 1234, Johannessen), authorized the sale of up to $62 million of lease revenue bonds for the construction of new veterans' homes in Lancaster, Saticoy and West Los Angeles, as well as for projects at the existing homes at Yountville, Barstow and Chula Vista, and new homes at Redding and Fresno.

It is not clear how the department plans to respond to this legislation. We recommend the department report at budget hearings on its plans for these veterans' homes.