Governor Signs SB95 - allows use of special funds for loan to General Fund

California government includes hundreds of special funds set aside for specific purposes; transportation, scientific research. The state can tap these accounts for short-term loans to help plug gaps in its budget, and the bill signed Friday increases the total amount available to roughly $21 billion.

SB 95 (Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review)
State cash resources.

(1)Existing law establishes the Condemnation Deposits Fund in the State Treasury, consisting of all money deposited in the State Treasury pursuant to the Eminent Domain Law, including interest derived from its investment. Existing law requires the Treasurer to receive all money intended for the fund and to duly receipt for, and safe keep all money in the fund.

This bill would instead require the Treasurer to receive and duly account for all money in the fund, and would authorize the Controller to use any money in the fund for cashflow loans to the General Fund, as specified.

(2)Existing law requires the Controller to notify the Governor and the Pooled Money Investment Board when the General Fund in the Treasury is, or will be, exhausted, and authorizes the Governor to transfer all or part of the moneys not needed in other funds or accounts to the General Fund, as determined by the Pooled Money Investment Board. Existing law provides that all moneys in the State Treasury may be loaned for these purposes except, among others, money that the Controller is prohibited from transferring pursuant to the Constitution, bond indenture, or statutory or case law.

This bill would instead authorize all moneys in the State Treasury to be loaned for these purposes except, among others, money that the Controller is prohibited from transferring pursuant to the Constitution, bond indenture, or case law. The bill would also make a technical, nonsubstantive change to these provisions.

(3)Existing law creates the Highway Users Tax Account, in which are deposited motor vehicle fuel tax and diesel fuel tax revenues available for allocation to transportation purposes. Existing law creates the Transportation Investment Fund, in which are deposited a portion of gasoline sales tax revenues to the extent a gasoline sales tax is imposed.

This bill would authorize the Controller to use the funds in the Highway Users Tax Account and the Transportation Investment Fund for cashflow loans to the General Fund, as specified. The bill would also authorize similar cashflow loans to the General Fund from the Motor Vehicle Fuel Account, the Transportation Revolving Account, and the State Highway Account.

(4)Existing law authorizes the Pooled Money Investment Board to make loans from the Pooled Money Investment Account to fund projects financed by general obligation bond acts or other indebtedness until the bonds are issued and sold, at which time existing law requires the loans to be repaid, as specified.

This bill would authorize the Director of Finance to designate up to 15% of the cash balances of the Highway Users Tax Account, the Transportation Investment Fund, the Motor Vehicle Fuel Account, the Transportation Revolving Account, and the State Highway Account to be available to provide contingency interim financing for critical state highway and local road projects that would otherwise be financed by general obligation bonds. The bill would authorize state agencies to request these funds and would require the loans to be recommended by the Department of Finance. The loan program would be administered by the Pooled Money Investment Board, with loans to be repaid consistent with existing law.

(5)Existing law appropriates moneys in the Highway Users Tax Account for specified transportation purposes and provides for apportionment by the Controller of certain moneys to cities and counties. The remaining moneys in the account, after various other transfers, are transferred to the State Highway Account and are subject to appropriation for state transportation purposes. Existing law generally provides that moneys in a continuously appropriated fund may not be encumbered unless the Legislature, by statute, specifies that the moneys in the fund are appropriated for encumbrance.

This bill, with respect to moneys that are appropriated from the Highway Users Tax Account and moneys to be apportioned or transferred from that account, would exempt that appropriation and those apportionments from the prohibition against encumbrance without statutory authorization described above, thereby allowing those moneys to be encumbered in the absence of statutory authorization.

(6)This bill would appropriate $1,000 from the General Fund to the Controller for administrative costs associated with this bill.

(7)This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.