BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                  AB 1983
                                                                  Page  1


          ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
          AB 1983 (Torrico)
          As Amended  May 4, 2010
          Majority vote 

           REVENUE & TAXATION  9-0         APPROPRIATIONS      14-0        
           
           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
          |Ayes:|Portantino, Conway,       |Ayes:|Fuentes, Conway, Ammiano, |
          |     |Beall,                    |     |Coto, Davis, Bonnie       |
          |     |Charles Calderon, Coto,   |     |Lowenthal, Hall, Harkey,  |
          |     |Fuentes, Harkey,          |     |Miller, Nielsen, Skinner, |
          |     |Nestande, Saldana         |     |Solorio, Torlakson, Hill  |
          |     |                          |     |                          |
           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
           SUMMARY  :  Authorizes the addition of the Safely Surrendered Baby  
          Fund (Fund) checkoff to the personal income tax (PIT) form upon  
          the removal of another voluntary contribution fund (VCF) from  
          the form.  Specifically,  this bill  :

          1)Establishes the Fund in the State Treasury. 

          2)Provides that all money transferred to the Fund, upon  
            appropriation by the Legislature, shall be allocated as  
            follows:

             a)   To the Franchise Tax Board (FTB) and the State  
               Controller for reimbursement of costs incurred in  
               administering the checkoff; and,

             b)   To the State Department of Social Services (DSS) for  
               programs to increase public awareness and outreach  
               regarding the Safely Surrendered Baby Law, including public  
               service announcements in English and Spanish,  
               safe-surrender hotlines, a DSS Internet Website with a  
               comprehensive list of safe-surrender sites, education, and  
               training for communities and schools.

          3)Provides that DSS shall not be required to spend any funds,  
            other than those allocated from the Fund, for Fund-related  
            activities.  

          4)Provides for the Fund provisions' automatic repeal on either  
            January 1 of the fifth taxable year following the taxable year  








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            the VCF first appears on the PIT return or on January 1 of an  
            earlier year, if FTB estimates that the annual contribution  
            amount will be less than $250,000, or an adjusted amount for  
            subsequent years.  

           EXISTING LAW  :

          1)Allows taxpayers to designate on their PIT returns a  
            contribution to any of 15 VCFs.

          2)Provides a specific sunset date for each VCF, except the  
            California Seniors Special Fund.

          3)Provides that each VCF must meet a minimum annual contribution  
            amount to remain in effect, except for the California Seniors  
            Special Fund, the California Firefighters' Memorial Fund, and  
            the California Peace Officer Memorial Foundation Fund.  

          4)Allows parents or other persons with lawful custody to  
            surrender an infant 72 hours old or younger to safe-surrender  
            sites without facing prosecution for child abandonment.  

           FISCAL EFFECT  :  FTB staff estimates annual revenue losses of  
          roughly $15,000 beginning in fiscal year 2011-12.   

           COMMENTS  :  The author states, "This bill is needed to provide an  
          ongoing Fund for the protection of the innocent lives of babies.  
          According to the State Auditor's report released in 2008, it  
          indicates that over 400 babies have been found to be abandoned  
          illegally in California. The purpose of this bill is to fund  
          outreach and to expand awareness on the Safely Surrendered Baby  
          Law."

          Proponents state, "The safe-surrender program has been in  
          existence since 2001, with more than 300 babies being safely  
          surrendered during that time frame.  However, publicity for the  
          program has been inconsistent, as a dedicated funding source for  
          outreach activities has never been provided.  AB 1983 would  
          develop such a funding source, with the tax check-off sunsetting  
          five years after enactment.  This will give lawmakers an  
          opportunity to review the results of the check-off and determine  
          whether to reauthorize it."   
           
          Committee Staff Comments:  The Safely Surrendered Baby Law:  In  








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          April of 2008, the California State Auditor issued a report on  
          the Safely Surrendered Baby Law.  The report highlighted the  
          following issues:

          1)Since 2006, state agencies have had virtually no legal  
            obligations under the safe-surrender law - DSS's only  
            involvement is compiling information that counties must submit  
            when their designated sites accept surrendered babies.  

          2)No state agency currently publicizes the safe-surrender law  
            nor has consistent funding been provided for raising the  
            public's awareness of the law.  DSS conducted a media campaign  
            from October 2002 to December 2003, but has not developed any  
            further goals for conducting additional activities. 

          3)Safe-surrender sites are violating state law by disclosing  
            confidential information on parents who surrendered babies.   
            Of the 218 babies surrendered since 2001, county files  
            contained confidential information in 24 cases, including 16  
            of the 176 cases occurring after the Legislature amended the  
            law to protect personal identifying information.


          4)Counties have incorrectly classified babies as safely  
            surrendered or abandoned.  Children improperly classified as  
            safely surrendered may not be allowed access to information on  
            their parents even though they may have the legal right to the  
            information.


          5)The vast majority of surrendered babies may not have access to  
            critical medical information later in life because  
            safe-surrender sites have difficulty in obtaining vital  
            medical history information.  
           

          Similar legislation:  Last year, the author introduced AB 1049  
          (Torrico), which contained provisions nearly identical to this  
          bill.  Governor Schwarzenegger vetoed the bill and provided the  
          following veto message:  "I have reviewed the merits of this  
          bill.  After careful and deliberative consideration, I do not  
          believe it is necessary to sign this bill at this time." 

           








                                                                 AB 1983
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          Analysis Prepared by  :  M. David Ruff / REV. & TAX. / (916)  
          319-2098 


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