BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 309 Page 1 CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS AB 309 (Mitchell) As Amended June 25, 2013 Majority vote ----------------------------------------------------------------- |ASSEMBLY: |76-0 |(April 25, |SENATE: |33-0 |(July 1, 2013) | | | |2013) | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- Original Committee Reference: HUM. S. SUMMARY : Clarifies requirements pertaining to CalFresh applications submitted by unaccompanied homeless children and youth. Specifically, this bill : 1)Clarifies that there are no minimum age requirements for CalFresh eligibility except for those imposed by federal law. 2)Adds CalFresh eligibility criteria and specific information regarding the eligibility of homeless children and youth to annual trainings offered by the county welfare departments to homeless shelter operators. 3)Requires county welfare agencies, upon receipt of a CalFresh application from an unaccompanied child or youth, to determine the child or youth's eligibility, which shall include determining whether the child or youth is eligible to apply as the sole member of the household and screening the application for entitlement to expedited services, as specified. 4)Requires county welfare agencies to provide written notice to an unaccompanied homeless child or youth if his or her CalFresh application is denied. 5)Adds information about targeting expedited CalFresh services to unaccompanied homeless children and youth to the information the Department of Social Services is already required to develop on targeting services to the greater homeless population, and requires that information to be provided to local education agency liaisons for homeless children and youth, as well as homeless shelters, emergency food programs, and other community agencies that provide services to homeless people. AB 309 Page 2 The Senate amendments maintain the requirement that county welfare agencies determine an unaccompanied child or youth's eligibility for CalFresh upon receipt of his or her application, but remove the requirement that the county to do so "without unnecessary delay." EXISTING LAW : 1) Establishes the CalFresh program, through which federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits are administered and provided to eligible participants. 2) Defines "unaccompanied youth" as a youth not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian. (McKinney-Vento Act) 42 United States Code (U.S.C.) Section 11434a(6). 3) Provides that any child who is eligible for federal SNAP benefits is automatically certified to receive free school meals without an additional application. 7 U.S.C. Section 2020(u)(2)(A). 4) Waives the residency verification requirement for homeless individuals for purposes of determining eligibility. 7 Code of Federal Regulations (C.F.R.) Section 273.2(f)(1)(vi). 5) Requires the Department of Social Services to develop information on expedited CalFresh benefits for homeless applicants pursuant to the federal Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act (Public Law 100-77). 6) Requires county welfare agencies to provide trainings on CalFresh application procedures to homeless shelters on an annual basis. FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8, negligible state costs. COMMENTS : The author brought forth this bill to address reports that certain counties were not complying with state guidelines upon receiving CalFresh applications from unaccompanied homeless children and youth. In response to problems documented in one particular county, the Department of Social Services is in the process of writing an All-County Information Notice to clarify state and federal law on the subject and provide guidance to all AB 309 Page 3 counties. The author may still want to move forward with this legislation to ensure that CalFresh statutes pertaining to targeted services for California's homeless population explicitly include parity for unaccompanied homeless children and youth. Background : CalFresh benefits, which are entirely funded by the federal government through the SNAP, are made available on a monthly basis for food purchase through an ATM-like electronic benefits transfer (EBT) card. CalFresh is administered locally by county welfare departments, and the federal, state, and county governments share in the cost of program administration. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) sets specific eligibility requirements for SNAP programs across the United States and requires state agencies that administer SNAP to establish methods of certifying and issuing benefits to eligible homeless individuals to ensure that the benefits are limited to eligible households. In a December 2012 memo to federal agencies, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities and the National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth provided details on the numerous barriers unaccompanied homeless children and youth face when trying to access SNAP benefits. They include: 1) an age requirement for eligibility; 2) a requirement that applicants provide specific photo identification or permanent address; 3) a requirement for unaccompanied youth to provide parental information; and 4) a requirement that the youth applies with the household where he or she may be staying temporarily, even though the youth is purchasing and preparing food separately. While there is neither basis for, nor authorization in federal or California state law for counties to impose any of the aforementioned requirements, some local agencies continue to deny CalFresh benefits to unaccompanied homeless minors for these reasons. The commonly used definition of "homeless" elicits images of people sleeping outside at night without any shelter. However, the definition under SNAP is much broader, taking into consideration the many circumstances an individual without a stable home may encounter. The federal Food and Nutrition Act of 2008, which established SNAP, defines "homeless individual" as: 1)An individual who lacks a fixed and regular nighttime AB 309 Page 4 residence; or 2)An individual who has a primary nighttime residence that is- a) A supervised publicly or privately operated shelter (including a welfare hotel or congregate shelter) designed to provide temporary living accommodations; b) An institution that provides a temporary residence for individuals intended to be institutionalized; c) A temporary accommodation for not more than 90 days in the residence of another individual; or d) A public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings. 7 U.S.C Section 2012(m). While some homeless youth stay with other people temporarily, others often find themselves in even more unstable and dangerous situations; in cars, abandoned buildings, on buses or in transit stations, in budget motels, in and out of shelters, or outside. According to the California Research Bureau's Homeless Youth Project (HYP), based on national survey estimates and California's youth population, it is estimated that there are 200,000 youth under the age of 18 who are homeless in California. Because of the transient nature of many homeless youth and difficulties in obtaining accurate local counts, the actual number for the state is likely much higher. California's homeless youth population includes youth who run away from home, youth who are forced out of the home and prevented from returning, youth who have been released from the juvenile justice system without housing, and youth who have aged out of the foster care system with inadequate or no family connections. HYP research explains that youth have episodes of running away or leave permanently for a number of reasons. The most commonly cited reasons are abuse or neglect, alcohol or drug addiction of a family member, rejection over sexual orientation, and pregnancy. Unaccompanied homeless youth often lack supervision and access to the resources and coordinated services that can help them find and keep stable housing and strive toward self-sufficiency. AB 309 Page 5 The social, emotional, medical, economic and personal challenges they face can lead to ongoing and chronic cycles of homelessness throughout their lifetime, and research has shown that the unmet needs of homeless youth put them at a greater risk of sickness, physical and sexual abuse, sexual exploitation, alcohol and drug abuse, mental health disabilities, and death. Need for the bill : According to sponsor of the bill, the National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth (NAEHCY), "CalFresh workers sometimes expect unaccompanied homeless youth to provide a stable address or parental signature and income information even when the youth have been forced out of their homes and receive no support from their parents." The NAEHCY also highlights the importance of good nutrition in helping youth achieve success in school and employment, and states, "[AB 309] will help ensure that vulnerable young people do not have to go hungry or resort to dangerous, injurious behaviors in exchange for food." The author of the bill believes this bill will provide unaccompanied homeless youth timely access to the CalFresh food benefits they so desperately need, and it will clarify California law to ensure that county implementation is properly aligned with the intent of state and federal law. Analysis Prepared by : Myesha Jackson / HUM. S. / (916) 319-2089 FN: 0001323