BILL ANALYSIS
AB 510
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 510 (Evans)
As Amended April 2, 2009
Majority vote
HUMAN SERVICES 4-2 APPROPRIATIONS 12-5
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|Ayes:|Beall, Ammiano, |Ayes:|De Leon, Ammiano, Charles |
| |Portantino, Torres | |Calderon, Davis, Fuentes, |
| | | |Hall, John A. Perez, |
| | | |Price, Skinner, Solorio, |
| | | |Torlakson, Krekorian |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+---------------------------|
|Nays:|Tom Berryhill, Logue |Nays:|Nielsen, Duvall, Harkey, |
| | | |Miller, Audra Strickland |
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SUMMARY : Does not count a month of California Work Opportunity
and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) aid against a recipient's
60-month time limit when there is a lack of county supportive
services due to insufficient funding for CalWORKs in the annual
Budget Act. Recipients who, on or after January 1, 2009, are
granted a "good cause" exception from work participation rules
from his or her county welfare office are eligible under this
provision.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Lists five specific conditions when county welfare workers
have the authority to stop a CalWORKs participant's five-year
time clock.
2)Requires that a single-parent CalWORKs recipient work a
minimum of 32 hours per week, and that a recipient in a
two-parent household work at least 35 hours per week in order
to maintain their cash grant and supportive services.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee:
1)While this legislation will ultimately cause adults to remain
on the CalWORKs caseload longer, the initial impact of
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providing a good cause exemption for a lack of services could
be a significant release of cost pressure for counties that do
not have the personnel to provide services to participants.
For every 1,000 cases that receive a good cause exemption,
rather than participating in the welfare to work program, it
allows counties to save close to $2 million in employment
services and child care costs per month.
2)For every 1,000 cases where an adult stays on the caseload one
month longer than they would have otherwise, due to a good
cause exemption, it will cost the state $139,000 in increased
CalWORKs grant costs at the end of those families five-year
time limit.
COMMENTS : CalWORKs is a program based on a partnership concept
between government and the participant. Generally, the
government promises to provide a monthly cash grant and offer
supportive services (see list below) to the participant.
Together, the cash and services are intended to defray living
expenses and help the participant overcome profound barriers,
such as substance abuse or domestic violence, or give them the
basic tools, such as a bus pass or proper work clothing, that
make obtaining and maintaining a job possible.
The promise of a participant to the government is to obtain a
job, and work a specified number of hours per week. The
participant is afforded a maximum of five years of cash grants,
and a limited number of months of supportive services to assist
them on their road to self-sufficiency. According to the County
Welfare Directors' Association (CWDA), the sponsor of this bill,
CalWORKs participants may receive the following supportive
services from their local county welfare office:
1)Counseling and Treatment - Domestic violence counseling,
Mental health counseling, Substance abuse counseling.
2)Child Care - Regular and special-needs child care such as
infant care or off-hour care (for example, if the parent works
a night shift).
3)Transportation - Mileage for use of a personal car (which must
account for the cost of wear and tear on the car and necessary
repairs), as well as public transportation use (bus or train
pass, etc).
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4)Work, education, and training-related expenses (i.e. Ancillary
Services) - Learning-disability services, job-related tools,
uniforms, books or school supplies.
CalWORKs funding : Generally, the entire annual cost to run
CalWORKs is approximately $5 billion. While counties administer
the cash aid and arrange for the supportive services for a
participant, the state and federal government provide almost all
of the funding. In particular, the state funding for supportive
services is determined annually through the Budget Act. Over
the past several years, the state has reduced the funding for
these services. According to CWDA, the current CalWORKs deficit
is estimated at $250 million. In the 2008-09 Budget Act,
another reduction of $86.4 million was added totaling $336
million. As a result, CWDA states that counties are no longer
able to hold up the government's promise to provide the
supportive services that are necessary for all CalWORKs adult
recipients to participate in welfare-to-work activities.
Good Cause exception to work requirements : In a January 2009
letter, the California State Association of Counties and CWDA
advised California Department of Social Services Director John
Wagner that counties will, on a case-by-case basis, be granting
voluntary "good cause" for non-participation to recipients for
whom the necessary supportive services cannot be provided. This
authority is allowable under current law. However, legislation
is needed to suspend the 60-month lifetime clock for CalWORKs
recipients, who would be participating in welfare-to-work
activities if the necessary services were available.
AB 510 would stop the 60-month time clock for any person granted
"good cause" for non-participation if the county cannot provide
necessary supportive services due to the impact of the budget
cuts on the program.
Possible opposition : CWDA states that they anticipate the
Administration to have policy concerns about stopping the time
clock for these CalWORKs recipients. In response, CWDA notes
that the CalWORKs program was originally developed and
structured in a time when the federal block grant was sufficient
to fund all needs in the program, with a significant amount left
over in the early years of the program. In the 10 years since
then, federal block grant and required state Maintenance of
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Effort funds have been moved out of CalWORKs and the effects of
direct cuts and a slow erosion of funding have impacted the
program to such a degree that counties can no longer provide all
of the services that recipients need in order to participate in
work or work-related activities.
CWDA contends that the stark reality of reducing the available
funding in the welfare-to-work program is fewer services
resulting in fewer recipients being able to participate. The
Legislature and prior Administrations did not have to
contemplate this situation, but if they had, CWDA believes the
proposed policy - which is to not penalize individual recipients
who need services in order to participate in work activities
when those services cannot be provided due to budget cuts - is
consistent with broader CalWORKs policies.
Analysis Prepared by : Frances Chacon / HUM. S. / (916)
319-2089
FN: 0001178