BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2035
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Date of Hearing: April 25, 2012
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Felipe Fuentes, Chair
AB 2035 (Bradford) - As Amended: April 16, 2012
Policy Committee: Human
ServicesVote:5 - 0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
Yes Reimbursable: Yes
SUMMARY
This bill establishes protections for CalWORKs recipients who
are victims of electronic benefit theft. Specifically, this
bill:
1)Requires the Department of Social Services (DSS) to develop a
protocol for reporting electronic benefit theft or skimming
that minimizes the burden for recipients.
2)Defines skimming as a form of identity theft by which a
recipient's electronic benefit transfer (EBT) account
information or personal identification number are
electronically accessed by a third party who uses that
information to remove funds from the recipients account.
3)Clarifies that a victim of skimming shall be treated the same
as a victim of a stolen EBT card and that any benefits
withdrawn from the card shall be promptly replaced after the
recipient reports the loss.
FISCAL EFFECT
Unknown workload costs, likely less than $100,000 for one
limited-term staff person to develop the appropriate protocol.
COMMENTS
1)Purpose . According to the author, an emerging form of
thievery, referred to as skimming, allows thieves to acquire
account numbers and personal identification numbers (PINs) of
electronic cards, including EBT cards, without the card owner
AB 2035
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losing possession of the card or PIN or knowing they have
become victims until they discover the money is gone.
Establishing loss of benefits through skimming is generally
difficult than in the case of lost or stolen EBT cards
because victims still have their cards and may not realize the
information has been electronically stolen. When a card is
lost or stolen the recipient is able to get reimbursement from
the time the loss is reported. With skimming, the recipient
may not discover and, thus, report the loss immediately. The
intent of this legislation is to require DSS develop protocols
for quickly and efficiently restoring benefits to participants
whose benefits have been stolen through skimming.
2)Background . Food benefits through California's CalFresh
program are distributed through an EBT system, which is
governed by the California Electronic Benefits Transfer Act.
The EBT system replaced the former benefit distribution
system, which relied on traditional paper warrants to deliver
benefits to recipients. Under the EBT system, benefits are
stored in a central computer database. Recipients access
their electronically-stored benefits at point-of-sale
terminals, ATMs, and other electronic funds transfer devices,
using plastic cards with magnetic stripes similar to debit
cards. Counties may also use EBT systems to distribute cash
benefits under other programs, such as CalWORKs or General
Assistance. All 58 California counties use the EBT system to
deliver either CalWORKs or General Assistance benefits or
both.
Analysis Prepared by : Julie Salley-Gray / APPR. / (916)
319-2081