BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 72
Page 1
SENATE THIRD READING
SB 72 (Budget and Fiscal Review Committee)
As Amended March 14, 2011
2/3 vote. Urgency
SENATE VOTE :Vote not relevant
SUMMARY : Makes statutory changes necessary to implement Human
Services-related portions of the 2011-12 Budget. Specifically,
this bill :
1)Delays, for one additional year, to July 1, 2012,
implementation of provisions enacted by AB 2488 (Leno),
Chapter 386, Statutes of 2006 related to disclosure of
personal information between adoptees and their biological
siblings. Declares intent for implementation to continue in
the interim to the extent possible.
2)Suspends, for one year, the county share of child support
funds that are recovered by the government in cases where the
custodial family has received cash assistance. Those funds
will instead be retained by the state. This change results in
$24 million General Fund (GF) savings in the 2011-12 fiscal
year.
3)Makes various changes to the California Work Opportunities and
Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) Program as follows:
a) Effective June 1, 2011 or 90 days after enactment of
this legislation, whichever is later, reduces the number of
months parents or caregiver relatives can receive aid from
60 to 48. This change is anticipated to result in $156
million ongoing, annual GF savings. Also makes related
changes, including deletion of self-sufficiency reviews and
revised time limit and sanction policies that would
otherwise take effect on July 1, 2011 as enacted by AB 8 X4
(Evans), Chapter 8, Statutes of 2009-10 Fourth
Extraordinary Session;
b) Effective June 1, 2011 or 90 days after enactment of
this legislation, whichever is later, reduces the Maximum
Aid Payment in effect on July 1, 2009 by an additional 8%.
As a result, maximum grants for a family of three in a
high-cost county would be lowered from $694 to $638 per
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month. This change is anticipated to result in $304
million ongoing, annual GF savings;
c) Effective June 1, 2011 or 90 days after enactment of
this legislation, whichever is later, further reduces, by
5% increments (for a maximum total reduction of 15%),
grants for children in cases without an aided adult who
have received assistance for more than 60, 72, and 84
months, respectively. This change is anticipated to result
in $100 million ongoing, annual GF savings;
d) Lowers funding for these purposes in the counties'
"single allocation" by $427 million GF in the 2011-12
fiscal year. Correspondingly, extends and expands upon
exemptions from welfare-to-work requirements for parents of
very young children (i.e., one child up to the age of 35
months or two children under the age of six years). Also
grants counties flexibility to redirect between and among
specified funding for employment assistance, substance
abuse treatment, or mental health services during that same
year;
e) Suspends for one year the case management services and
sanctions otherwise available under the CalLearn program
for pregnant and parenting teenagers. These teenagers
would instead be eligible for regular welfare-to-work
services that are available in their counties. They would
also continue to be eligible for supplements or bonuses
related to progress in school, as specified. These changes
are anticipated to result in $45 million GF savings in the
2011-12 fiscal year;
f) Amends the state's current policy of disregarding the
first $225 of earned income and 50% of each dollar earned
beyond $225 when calculating a family's monthly grant.
Instead disregards the first $112 of earned income and then
50% of all other relevant earnings. As a result, some
families who currently have qualifying earnings would have
their grants reduced. This change is anticipated to result
in $95 million ongoing, annual GF savings;
g) Makes cost-neutral changes to expand the state's
participation in an existing subsidized employment program
and align the program more closely with operation of a
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related program that existed under the federal American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009's (Public Law 111-5)
Emergency Contingency Fund. As a result, the state would
participate in half of the costs of the subsidized
employment participant's wages, up to the amount that the
state would instead have paid for the family's assistance
grant; and,
h) Delays to April 1, 2014 (from April 1, 2013), the date
by which the Work Incentive Nutritional Supplement (WINS)
program shall be fully implemented. Delays to October 1,
2014 (from October 1, 2011), the date by which the
Temporary Assistance Program (TAP) must begin. Further,
delays statewide implementation of a CalWORKs county peer
review process to no later than July 1, 2014.
1)Makes various changes to In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) as
follows:
a) Requires applicants for and recipients of IHSS to obtain
certification from a licensed health care professional, as
specified, declaring that the applicant or recipient is
unable to perform one or more activities of daily living
independently, and that without one or more IHSS services,
the applicant or recipient is at risk of placement in
out-of-home care. This change is anticipated to result in
$120 million ongoing, annual GF savings;
b) Requires the Department of Health Care Services to
assess and determine whether it would be cost-efficient for
the state to exercise the Community First Choice Option
made available under section 1915(k) of the federal Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 1396n(k)). This new state
plan option becomes available October 1, 2011. States that
take up the option receive a six percentage point increase
in federal matching payments for costs associated with the
covered home and community-based services programs. This
change is anticipated to result in $128 million ongoing,
annual GF savings; and,
c) Authorizes counties to establish IHSS Advisory
Committees that submit recommendations to the county board
of supervisors on the preferred mode or modes of service to
be utilized in the county. Under existing law, these
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Advisory Committees are instead required. This change is
anticipated to result in $1.4 million ongoing, annual GF
savings.
1)Makes various changes to the Medication Dispensing Pilot
Project & Related Triggers as follows:
a) Requires the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS)
to identify individuals who receive Medi-Cal benefits on a
fee-for-service basis and who are at high risk of not
taking their medications as prescribed. To the extent
necessary, also requires the DHCS to procure automated
medication dispensing machines to be installed in
participants' homes and monitored as indicated. Further
requires the DHCS to report on and evaluate the pilot
project. Also allows the DHCS to terminate the pilot
project under specified circumstances. These changes are
anticipated to result in $140 million ongoing, annual GF
savings; and,
b) If the Department of Finance determines that data
reported regarding the pilot project does not demonstrate
the ability to achieve annualized net savings of $140
million GF (after offsetting administrative costs), the
director shall notify the Legislature by April 10, 2012,
and request the passage of legislation by July 1, 2012 that
provides alternative options for achieving any additional
savings needed to reach this target. If the pilot and any
subsequent legislation requested by the Department of
Finance are not anticipated to result in $140 million
annualized GF savings, requires the Department of Social
Services to implement an across-the-board reduction in IHSS
services beginning October 1, 2012, with specified
exceptions.
1)Includes costs associated with the Long-Term Care Ombudsman
Program among the authorized uses of funds in the State Health
Facilities Citation Penalties Account.
2)Effective June 1, 2011 or 90 days after enactment of this
legislation, whichever is later, reduces to the minimum amount
required by federal maintenance of effort requirements, as
specified, the State Supplementary Payment (SSP) portion of
grants for individuals. As a result, the maximum combined
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Supplemental Security Income (SSI)/SSP grant for most
individuals would be reduced from $845 to $830. This change
is anticipated to result in $177 million ongoing, annual GF
savings.
3)Adds an urgency clause allowing this bill to take effect
immediately upon enactment.
FISCAL EFFECT : Makes statutory changes to achieve a total of
over $1.7 billion in savings assumed in the 2011-12 Budget Act.
Analysis Prepared by : Nicole Vazquez / BUDGET / (916) 319-2099
FN: 0000056