SB 615 (Galgiani, D-Stockton) was approved by the Assembly Labor and Employment Committee on a 6-1 vote last week. This bill would classify any health facility project that uses conduit bond financing as a “public work” making is subject to the prevailing wage requirement. Contractors that work with nonprofit developers have estimated this requirement would add as much as 25 percent to construction costs. The bill also affects loan insurance agencies, such as Cal-Mortgage, which helps nonprofits access capital by using the state’s credit rating to bolster their own. Scot Sinclair of O’Connor Woods, LeadingAge California’s chair of the Public Policy Committee, testified in opposition to the bill. Sinclair cited the increased costs of construction would be borne by those he serves. In the case of the memory care program he recently financed, it would have added an additional $250 per month to the cost of the program for each senior served. The bill now moves to the Assembly Appropriations Committee and has not been scheduled to be heard.
