An act to amend Section 11011 of the Government Code, relating to state government.
Summary
AB 1947 revises California’s surplus state land review process under Government Code Section 11011. It requires each state agency, including the Department of Transportation, to review proprietary state lands annually and report land that is excess to foreseeable needs, including land that is not currently being used, is underutilized, or has no identified future programmatic use. The bill also removes the existing exception for land held for highway purposes, meaning Caltrans would be brought into the same reporting framework as other state agencies. In addition, the bill requires the reported land’s market value to be included in the agency report.
The bill further directs the Department of General Services to compile and submit a report to the Legislature on the land reported by state agencies, with that legislative report due by January 1, 2031. The reporting requirement sunsets on January 1, 2035. The measure does not itself authorize sales, but it strengthens the state’s inventory and oversight of potentially surplus property and clarifies that even land not yet ready for disposal must still be identified and reported.
Impact
AB 1947 would amend Government Code Section 11011 to expand the universe of state property subject to annual surplus-land review, specifically by eliminating the highway-purpose exemption and expressly including the Department of Transportation. It would also require agencies to report market value and broaden the definition of reportable excess land to include property not currently used, underutilized, or not assigned to future program needs. The Department of General Services would then be required to provide a consolidated report to the Legislature by January 1, 2031, creating a new statutory reporting obligation with a sunset in 2035.
Sentiment
The bill appears to have been received favorably in committee and on the floor. The available vote history shows unanimous support in committee, including a 22-0 vote and a later 14-0 committee vote to pass and re-refer the bill with a recommendation for the Consent Calendar. No committee transcript opposition is provided, and the bill’s progress suggests it was viewed as a relatively noncontroversial administrative and transparency measure.
Contention
No major substantive opposition is reflected in the provided materials. The main policy implication is the inclusion of Department of Transportation highway-related land in the surplus-land review process, which could raise administrative concerns for transportation planners or agencies that manage large land portfolios. However, because the bill only requires reporting and valuation rather than immediate disposal, any contention appears limited to implementation burden and the scope of property inventory requirements rather than to land sales or redevelopment policy.