Department of General Services: authorization.

Existing law authorizes the Department of General Services to acquire and convey real property for the state, whenever that transfer of the real property is authorized or contemplated by law. This bill would require the Director of General Services to conduct a study to determine whether it is in the best interest of the state to sell or lease specified real property in the City of Sacramento owned by the state, and to report its findings to the Legislature no later than April 1, 2011. The bill would authorize the director, after making this determination, to sell, exchange, lease, or any combination thereof, all or a portion of the property. This bill would also require the director to use the revenues resulting from any sale, exchange, or lease of the property to pay off the total outstanding loan on the property, including any obligations associated with it, as specified. The California Constitution requires that the proceeds from the sale of surplus state property be used to pay the principal and interest on specified bonds and, once those bonds are fully paid, be deposited into the Special Fund for Economic Uncertainties. This bill would specify that the proceeds from the sale of the state property authorized by the bill, for purposes of this provision of the California Constitution, are the revenues resulting from the sale that are in excess of the amount necessary to satisfy the outstanding loan on the property. Existing law authorizes the State Board of Equalization to hire or lease any property, real or personal, for its occupancy or use in the performance of its duties, upon the written approval of the Department of General Services. This bill would, instead, authorize the board to hire or lease any property for its occupancy or use in the performance of its duties, if the Department of Finance determines that the related transactions, in total, are cost beneficial to the General Fund. This bill would further authorize the board to exercise prescribed powers, including, among others, acquiring new facilities through lease of real or personal property in its own name, maintaining offices, storage, and parking facilities, and negotiating, making, and executing contracts and all other instruments necessary or convenient for the exercise of its powers and functions pursuant to specified law provisions.