Sometimesthe right idea comes along at the wrong time.
Such isthe case with state Sen. JeffDenham's plan to sell the San Quentin Prison site for enough money to builda new Death Row and contribute a sizable chunk to the general fund as well.
TheMerced County Republican, and declared candidate for lieutenant governor, haspitched this idea before. Riddingthe state of surplus property has been a theme for him from practically thetime he took office in 2003.
Thisyear, he's behind a 10-bill package designed to get California "offits lazy assets," as he put it, including:
- SB 28 would require the decommissioning San Quentin and selling the 432 acres in Marin County, which Denham values at $2 billion;
- SB 29 would require the sale of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and Sports Arena land parcel, which Denham believes would bring $240 million to $400 million
- SB 30 would direct the Department of General Services to identify at least $1 billion in additional state property that could be sold immediately to help close the state's budget deficit. It would require all state agencies to evaluate whether leasing back the space they current occupy or finding "more cost-effective space" would save the state money.
The SanQuentin proposal drew a lot of attention lastweek when the Senate Committee on Public Safety put the bill on hold.That's probably because in the current climate, any proposal that would bring inas little as an extra dime is going to get a more serious look than it has inthe past.
CommitteeChairman Mark Leno said the bill was held because of a standing policy to holdany bills that would increase prison crowding. That's sound policy in thecurrent "howmuch is the receiver going to make us spend" climate.
Whatisn't sound policy: The state's commitment to sinking $400 million intoexpanding San Quentin even though the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst's Officehas serious concerns.
"Questionsabout the cost of the new Death Row complex, and the possible effect of inmatepopulation limits at the prison, should be resolved before the Legislatureconsiders the project further," anLAO report says.
At theleast, the Legislature needs to know what construction estimates have tripledin five years, the report continues.
It's notthe first time the LAO has questioned the project. The office also recommendedscrapping it in 2007, in response to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's budget atthe time.
Still,when it comes to selling San Quentin, Leno has a point about not increasingprison crowding right now, and Denham's timing for the sale isn't exactlyideal.
Marin County real estateprices have tumbled right along with the rest of the state and, combinedwith the questionable waiver of environmental laws Denham wants to bestow onwhoever buys the property, it could add up to a bit of a giveaway for thestate.