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Legislative Analyst's OfficeAnalysis of the 2001-02 Budget Bill |
The California Highway Patrol (CHP) operates 166 major facilities in addition to its headquarters and academy. The Governor's budget proposes $9.7 million from the Motor Vehicle Account of the State Transportation Fund for:
We recommend deletion of the $3.2 million for working drawings and construction of a replacement facility because a site has not been acquired and preliminary plans have not been started. (Delete $3.2 million from Item 2720-301-0044 [1]).
The budget includes $3.2 million for working drawings and construction of a CHP area office in Williams, Colusa County. The proposed facility consists of a 9,469 gross square feet (gsf) office and a 918 gsf generator building on a 3.2 acre site with 47 parking spaces. The facilities are intended to accommodate 29 assigned personnel.
The 2000-01 Budget Act appropriated $818,000 for acquisition and preliminary plans for a replacement for the CHP facility in Williams, which was damaged by fire and is located on a site that regularly experiences flooding. Because of the fire damage, the Williams office has been relocated to temporary buildings on nearby Caltrans property as an interim measure. The Department of General Services (DGS) reports a new site has not yet been acquired and preparation of preliminary plans has not started. We recommend the Legislature not approve funding for working drawings and/or construction for projects until preliminary plans are complete and a cost estimate has been prepared to determine if the project can be completed within the scope and budget previously approved by the Legislature. Furthermore, given the status of the project, it is not clear that additional work could be undertaken in the budget year. Accordingly, we recommend deletion of the $3.2 million requested for working drawings and construction.
We withhold recommendation on $4.2 million for construction because the site has not been acquired and there are uncertainties about the adequacy of the construction budget and the ability to acquire necessary access easements from the owners of property adjacent to the selected site. (Withhold recommendation on Item 2720-301-0044 [4]).
The Governor's budget includes $4.2 million to construct a CHP area office in Monterey, Monterey County. The proposed facility consists of a 13,563 gsf office and generator building on a 2.87 acre site with 57 parking spaces.
The 1999-00 Budget Act appropriated $1.5 million for acquisition and preliminary plans and the 2000-01 Budget Act included $305,000 for working drawings for this facility. The DGS reports that preliminary plans are 95 percent complete even though the preferred site has not been acquired. In addition, the department has encountered difficulties in obtaining access easements across adjacent property in order for the preferred site to be useable. Consequently, we withhold recommendation on this item pending resolution of these uncertainties. If these issues are resolved before the conclusion of budget hearings, this proposal may warrant legislative consideration.