BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 99
Author: Assembly Budget Committee
Amended: 3/14/11 in Senate
Vote: 27 - Urgency
PRIOR VOTES NOT RELEVANT
SENATE BUDGET & FISCAL REVIEW COMMITTEE : 11-5, 3/16/11
AYES: Leno, Alquist, DeSaulnier, Evans, Liu, Lowenthal,
Rubio, Simitian, Wright, Hancock, Wolk
NOES: Huff, Emmerson, Fuller, Anderson, La Malfa
SENATE FLOOR : 36-3, 3/16/11
AYES: Alquist, Berryhill, Blakeslee, Calderon, Cannella,
Corbett, De León, DeSaulnier, Dutton, Emmerson, Evans,
Fuller, Gaines, Hancock, Hernandez, Huff, Kehoe, La
Malfa, Leno, Lieu, Liu, Lowenthal, Negrete McLeod,
Padilla, Pavley, Price, Rubio, Runner, Simitian,
Steinberg, Strickland, Vargas, Wolk, Wright, Wyland, Yee
NOES: Anderson, Correa, Harman
NO VOTE RECORDED: Walters
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 57-18, 3/16/11 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Budget Act of 2011: Children and Families
Health Services
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill provides for $1 billion to be
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deposited into The Children and Families Health and Human
Services Fund from funds established under the California
Children and Families Act for fiscal year 2011-12 only, and
is necessary to enact provisions contained in the Budget
Bill for 2011-12.
Senate Floor Amendments of 3/14/11 delete the prior version
of the bill and insert the current language regarding The
Children and Families health and Human Services Fund.
ANALYSIS :
Existing Law
Created in 1998, upon voter approval of Proposition 10, the
California Children and Families First Act established a
Cigarette Tax (50 cents a pack), of which 80 percent is
allocated to County Commissions and 20 percent is allocated
to the State Commission. Funds are spent for child
development services for children aged five and under.
Programs and services are very diverse.
Currently, unspent funds are carried over for use in
subsequent fiscal years. According to the Department of
Finance (DOF), over time, both the State Commission and
County Commissions fund balances have grown.
This bill:
1.Expresses Legislative Intent. This language notes that
California is presently experiencing a severe fiscal
crisis which has resulted in funding shortfalls for many
services that serve children.
It notes that as other funding sources have become
increasingly unavailable, and counties throughout the
state have been forced to eliminate essential health and
human services to children that have historically been
paid for with state funds. However, although many county
children and families commissions maintain substantial
balances in their local children and families trust
funds, they are unable to use Proposition 10 funds to
make up the shortfall in these programs because of the
Act's prohibition against supplanting existing levels of
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service.
Consequently, these services, if provided at all, are
provided to a fraction of the children who need them.
This prohibition is therefore resulting in service levels
and outcomes that are contrary to the intent of
Proposition 10.
Dedicating this funding for health services for children,
through the age of five years, furthers the purposes of
the California Children and Families Act of 1998 by
ensuring the promotion of early childhood development
through the provision of core health services.
Legislation to authorize the transfer of a specified
amount of funding from state and local children and
families trust funds in times of fiscal emergency, to
fund essential health and human services for children
from birth to five years of age, when no other funding is
available for these purposes, would not result in
supplanting existing levels of service in circumstances
where these services are no longer being funded at all.
Rather, requiring Proposition 10 funds to be used in this
manner would help counties to achieve the act's overall
objective of promoting, supporting, and optimizing early
childhood development.
2.Creates Fund. This bill creates The Children and
Families Health and Human Services Fund in the State
Treasury. It is to be used, upon appropriation by the
Legislature, to provide health and human services,
including but not limited to, direct health care services
to children from birth through five years of age.
3.One-Time Transfer. This bill provides for deposits of $1
billion to be made in The Children and Families Health
and Human Services Fund for 2011-12. Of this amount, (a)
$50 million will be from accounts, including reserve
funds as specified, under the State Commission; and (b)
$950 million will be from combined balances, including
reserves as specified, under the County Commissions.
Each County Commission that is not exempt shall provide
their deposit to The Children and Families Health and
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Human Services Fund by
June 30, 2012. No 2012-13 allocation to a County
Commission shall occur prior to the full payment being
made.
4.Exemptions. County Commissions that received less than
$600,000 in California Children and Families Trust Fund
revenues in the 2009-10 fiscal year are exempt from
making any transfer to The Children and Families Health
and Human Services Fund.
Comment
The Budget Bill contains an appropriation of $1 billion
from The Children and Families Health and Human Services
Fund to offset $1 billion in General Fund support for the
Medi-Cal Program for health care services provided to
children from birth to five years of age.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 57-18, 3/16/11
AYES: Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Beall, Block,
Blumenfield, Bonilla, Bradford, Brownley, Buchanan,
Butler, Charles Calderon, Campos, Carter, Cedillo,
Chesbro, Davis, Dickinson, Eng, Feuer, Fletcher, Fong,
Fuentes, Furutani, Galgiani, Gatto, Gordon, Hall,
Hayashi, Roger Hernández, Hill, Huber, Hueso, Huffman,
Lara, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mendoza, Mitchell, Monning,
Nielsen, Norby, Olsen, Pan, Perea, V. Manuel Pérez,
Portantino, Skinner, Smyth, Solorio, Swanson, Torres,
Wieckowski, Williams, Yamada, John A. Pérez
NOES: Achadjian, Bill Berryhill, Conway, Cook, Donnelly,
Garrick, Gorell, Hagman, Halderman, Harkey, Jeffries,
Knight, Logue, Mansoor, Miller, Morrell, Valadao, Wagner
NO VOTE RECORDED: Grove, Jones, Nestande, Silva, Vacancy
CTW:mw 3/17/11 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: NONE RECEIVED
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