HMB bailout must be rewritten, again

Half Moon Bay’s bailout bill, SB650 in the state Senate, has more troubles, reports Julia Scott in the County Times. The Senate committee reviewing the bill has objected to its current structure as a grant from the California Infrastructure Bank Fund.  A version that included the I-Bank language passed its first committee vote in the Assembly, but this will send it back to square one in that house as well.

The bill was due to receive a hearing in the Senate committee this week, but committee chairwoman Sen. Fran Pavley, D-Agoura Hills, objected to the source of funding the city proposed for the loan, the California Infrastructure Bank Fund. She asked that the bill be rewritten to exclude the "I-Bank," a low-interest financing authority, from the bill altogether and come up with other, guaranteed sources of funding, said Adam Keigwin, chief of Staff to state Sen. Leland Yee, D-San Francisco. Yee is the bill’s Senate sponsor. ...

"The I-Bank is capped at $2 million for the amount of money they can loan for park acquisition, and these guys are seeking $10 million, so it’s not an appropriate source. They need to find a package of loans and grants that is lawful, appropriate and politically acceptable," Vellinga said.

Senate and Assembly bills with the same language must pass with two-thirds votes.