BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                  SB 892
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   August 4, 2010

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                Felipe Fuentes, Chair

                   SB 892 (Alquist) - As Amended:  April 27, 2010 

          Policy Committee:                              Human  
          ServicesVote:5 - 0 
                        Public Safety                         7 - 0 

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program:  
          No     Reimbursable:              

           SUMMARY  

          This bill adds a series crimes, such as murder, kidnapping,  
          mayhem, pandering, and exhibiting a deadly weapon, to the list  
          of criminal activities that prohibit a person from being granted  
          an exemption to the current prohibition against becoming  
          licensed by the Department of Social Services (DSS) as an  
          operator, staff or employee of a Residential Care Facility for  
          the Elderly (RCFE). 

           FISCAL EFFECT  

          One-time costs of approximately $700,000 GF for DSS to bifurcate  
          the existing criminal background check system in order to add  
          the new list of non-exemptible crimes for RCFE license  
          applicants and for the workload associated with DSS reviewing  
          and updating policies, regulations, procedures, forms and the  
          department licensing website, and training of field staff on new  
          requirements.  

           COMMENTS  

           1)Rationale  . Under current law, the director of DSS can issue  
            exemptions to licensing laws that prohibit people convicted of  
            certain crimes from operating or working in an RCFE.  This  
            bill would add crimes that the Department of Public Health  
            (DPH) considers as non-exemptible to work as a certified nurse  
            assistant in a skilled nursing facility to DSS's list of  
            non-exemptible crimes to work in RCFEs.  

            According to the author, "By adding more crimes to the DSS  








                                                                  SB 892
                                                                  Page  2

            statute governing background checks for caregivers working in  
            residential care facilities for the elderly (RCFEs), SB 892  
            would protect vulnerable seniors and disabled adults living in  
            these facilities with the same principles governing the  
            protection of skilled nursing facility residents."

           2)Opposition  . The East Bay Community Law Center argues this bill  
            unnecessarily creates additional burdens for people who have  
            served time in prison and are trying to re-enter society. They  
            note that the bill is overly broad because as written the ban  
            would apply to positions that are not involved in the direct  
            care of patients. In addition, the law center argues that this  
            bill creates a contradiction because these individuals are  
            allowed to become licensed as certified nurses' assistants but  
            under this bill would be barred from working in a community  
            care licensed facility.  
           Analysis Prepared by  :    Julie Salley-Gray / APPR. / (916)  
          319-2081