BILL NUMBER: AB 1177 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 31, 2009
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Members Fong and Hill
(Coauthor: Assembly Member Jones)
FEBRUARY 27, 2009
An act to add Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 8260) to
Division 8 of the We lfare and Institutions Code,
relating to homelessness.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1177, as amended, Fong. Homelessness: Interagency Council on
Homelessness.
Under existing law, several agencies have prescribed
responsibilities relating to homeless persons.
This bill would declare the intent of the Legislature to enact
legislation that would create the Interagency Council on Homelessness
for the purposes of reducing the duplication of efforts and the
costs of homelessness and redirecting resources to more effective
approaches, developing a more integrated system, and eliminating
fragmentation.
This bill would, among other things, create the California
Interagency Council on Homelessness, composed of specified members,
to construct cross-agency and community cooperation in responding to
homelessness, use a more efficient and supportive method in
implementing evidence-based approaches to address homelessness, and,
to the extent possible, plan to end homelessness in the state.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no
yes . State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all
of the following:
(a) California has the highest rate of homelessness and the
highest ratio of homeless people per resident, with 360,000 people
sleeping on the streets or in shelters on any given night.
(b) Homelessness is traumatic for those who suffer it, often
leading to separated families, exacerbation of health conditions, a
rise in avoidable emergency room use, social and academic delays
among children, and greater likelihood of incarceration.
(c) Many people who lack permanent shelter and the ability to
access regular support ricochet through separate and expensive public
systems: overburdened corrections systems, overcrowded hospital
emergency rooms, mental health programs, substance abuse treatment
and detox facilities, shelters, and emergency housing. As a result,
people experiencing chronic homelessness use a disproportionate share
of state and local services.
(d) Innovative approaches across the nation and within California
show promise for reducing homelessness and the resulting impact on
state services.
(e) Changing the system and reducing homelessness requires
coordination and cooperation among federal, state, and local
governments, as well as private sector organizations.
(f) Creation of a statewide coordinating council is an important
and effective tool in supporting initiatives to end homelessness in
California.
(g) Creation of a statewide coordinating council would stem
avoidable costs of maintaining homelessness and would, therefore,
result in reducing avoidable costs to multiple programs.
(h) Homelessness affects multiple systems in California, including
housing, mental health and substance abuse, education, corrections,
foster care, health care, and veterans services. Though most other
states have adopted a plan to end homelessness because of the cost
impact on all of these systems, California has not crafted a similar
plan. A codified, structured interagency council on homelessness
would help fill this gap.
(i) In November 2005, Governor Schwarzenegger created the Governor'
s Homeless Initiative, which included plans to form an interagency
coordinating council to reduce homelessness. The Business,
Transportation and Housing Agency's 2005-10 Consolidated Plan further
indicates the importance of an interagency council on homelessness.
Despite these intentions, a council has not met regularly or publicly
since the Governor adopted his Homeless Initiative.
(j) California must give priority to developing consolidated,
coordinated, and cooperative approaches to issues of homelessness.
(k) Working within current costs, a revitalized Interagency
Council on Homelessness will reduce duplication of efforts and the
costs of homelessness and will redirect resources to more effective
approaches, developing a more integrated system and eliminating
fragmentation.
SEC. 2. Chapter 7 (co mmencing with
Section 8260) is added to Division 8 of the Welfare and
Institutions Code , to read:
CHAPTER 7. CALIFORNIA INTERAGENCY COUNCIL ON HOMELESSNESS
8260. For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions
shall apply:
(a) "At risk of homelessness" means a history of homelessness or
an absence of a permanent address over the last 12 months and an
income of 30 percent or below the area median income.
(b) "Council" means the California Interagency Council on
Homelessness.
(c) "Homelessness" means a condition where a person lacks a fixed,
regular, or adequate nighttime residence or who has a primary
nighttime residence that is either a supervised publicly or privately
operated shelter designed to provide temporary living accommodations
or a public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used
as, a regular sleeping accommodation for a human being. Homelessness
also applies to a person who is exiting an institutional setting and
is at risk of homelessness, or is living in transitional or temporary
housing.
(d) "Stakeholder organization" means a nonprofit or faith-based
organization whose primary mission is to prevent or end homelessness,
to provide services or health care to people who are homeless, or to
create housing for people who are homeless.
8261. (a) There is hereby created in state government the
California Interagency Council on Homelessness with a mission to
construct cross-agency and community cooperation in responding to
homelessness, to use a more efficient and supportive method in
implementing evidence-based approaches to address homelessness, and,
to the extent possible, plan to end homelessness in the state.
(b) Membership of the council shall include all of the following:
(1) At least one representative with decisionmaking authority from
each of the following:
(A) The State Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs.
(B) The Department of Community Services and Development.
(C) The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
(D) The State Department of Education.
(E) The State Department of Health Care Services.
(F) The Department of Housing and Community Development.
(G) The California Housing Finance Agency.
(H) The State Department of Mental Health.
(I) The State Department of Social Services.
(J) The Department of Veterans Affairs.
(2) At least one representative of the Governor's office.
(3) Two members of the Senate, to be appointed by the President
pro Tempore of the Senate, or their designees.
(4) Two members of the Assembly, to be appointed by the Speaker of
the Assembly, or their designees.
(5) Two members of the philanthropic community from organizations
that are active in homelessness issues, to be appointed by the
Governor.
(6) Representatives of at least four stakeholder organizations, to
be appointed by the Governor.
(7) At least two consumer representatives, to be appointed by the
Governor.
(c) The Governor shall appoint a chairperson and vice-chairperson
from among the members of the council. Within current costs, the
council may establish working groups, task forces, or other
structures from within its membership or with outside members to
assist it in its work. Working groups, task forces, or other
structures established by the council shall determine their own
meeting schedules.
(d) All members of the council shall serve without compensation.
8262. The council shall do all of the following:
(a) Hold public meetings at least once every quarter.
(b) Act as the lead for coordinating and planning the state's
response to homelessness.
(c) Streamline the administration of programs across agencies and
jurisdictions to reduce duplication, consolidate availability of
services, and ease clients' access to services.
(d) Streamline funding of homelessness programs to leverage
existing resources more effectively.
(e) Solicit input and suggestions from stakeholders, the business
community, the concerned public, and other governmental agencies on
the most effective strategies to address homelessness.
(f) Identify best practices from other states in combating
homelessness.
(g) Create a plan for council actions by the end of the first year
after the initial meeting, with annual review, to implement
recommendations for policy, regulatory, and resource changes needed
to accomplish objectives, as well as each agency's responsibilities
on the council.
(h) Within current costs, or provided funding is available for
related costs, publish a plan to reduce or end homelessness within
three years.
(i) Collaborate on planning for discharge of people likely to
become homeless after leaving institutions, including, but not
limited to, prisons, crisis health care facilities, and foster care.
(j) Gather needs assessments from local jurisdictions that are
currently required to submit needs assessments to a state agency,
including, but not limited to, city housing elements and community
continuation of care.
(k) Not later than January 1, 2015, create a centralized database
on homelessness, provided federal funds are available.
(l) Not later than January 1, 2017, assist in the coordination of
a statewide continuum of care, provided funds are available.
(m) Identify private and public funding partnerships.
8263. The council shall operate within the current budget of each
department and agency represented. Each department and agency shall
cooperate with the council and furnish it with information and
assistance that is necessary or useful to further the purposes of
this chapter.
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares
all of the following:
(a) The economic crisis is causing higher rates of homelessness,
particularly among families with children, the fastest-growing
segment of people experiencing homelessness.
(b) Before the economic crisis, California faced the largest
homeless population and the largest ratio of homeless persons per
resident in the nation.
(c) There are several costs to the state to manage homelessness,
including, but not limited to, incarceration, shelters, medical
costs, and foster care.
(d) At least nine state agencies are affected by homelessness,
resulting in a fragmented approach. These agencies are the Department
of Corrections and Rehabilitation, the State Department of Health
Care Services, the State Department of Mental Health, the State
Department of Social Services, the Department of Housing and
Community Development, the State Department of Education, the
Department of Veterans Affairs, the State Department of Alcohol and
Drug Programs, and the California Housing Finance Agency.
SEC. 2. It is the intent of the Legislature to
enact legislation that would create the Interagency Council on
Homelessness for the purposes of reducing the duplication of efforts
and the costs of homelessness and redirecting resources to more
effective approaches, developing a more integrated system, and
eliminating fragmentation.