BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE HUMAN
SERVICES COMMITTEE
Senator Leland Y. Yee, Chair
BILL NO: AB 419
A
AUTHOR: Lowenthal
B
VERSION: February 15, 2013
HEARING DATE: June 11, 2013
4
FISCAL: Yes
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9
CONSULTANT: Tepring Piquado
SUBJECT
CalWORKs: eligibility
SUMMARY
This bill repeals the code section that limits CalWORKs aid
to only two months when a child is absent from the home and
a patient in a public hospital. This bill removes the two
month cap and extends those benefits for the duration of
the hospital stay.
ABSTRACT
Existing law:
1) Establishes the Temporary Assistance for Needy
Families (TANF) program. (42 USC § 601 et seq.)
2) Provides in California statute for the allocation
of funds for cash assistance and other social services
for low-income families through the California Work
Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs)
program. Under this program, each county provides
assistance through a combination of state, county
funds and federal TANF funds. (WIC § 10530)
Continued---
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3) Prohibits a state from using any part of the TANF
grant to provide assistance to a family, unless the
family includes a minor child who resides with the
family or a pregnant woman. (42 USC § 608)
4) Prohibits a state to which a TANF grant is made
from providing assistance for minor children who are
absent from the home for a significant period of time.
(42 USC § 608 (10))
5) In general, prohibits a state to which a TANF grant
is made from using any part of the grant to provide
assistance for a minor child who has been, or is
expected by a parent of the child to be, absent from
the home for a period of 45 consecutive days or, at
the option of the state, such period of not less than
30 and not more than 180 consecutive days, as
specified in the state plan. (42 USC § 608 (10))
6) Grants states the authority to establish good cause
exceptions to providing benefits for minor children
who are absent from the home for a significant period,
if such exceptions are provided for in the state plan.
(42 USC § 608 (10))
7) Provides in state law that no child shall receive
aid while he is a patient in a public hospital, except
with respect to temporary medical or surgical care not
exceeding two calendar months, in which event the
child shall be eligible to receive no more than two
monthly warrants after becoming a patient. (WIC §
11269)
8) Prohibits assistance from being paid to a parent or
caretaker who fails to notify the state agency of the
absence of child by the end of a five-day period that
begins with the date that it becomes clear that the
minor child will be absent for such a period of time.
(42 USC § 608 (10))
9) Provides in the California State Plan that a
recipient family shall remain eligible when a needy
child or adult is temporarily absent from the home.
The time period for temporary absences from the home
is one full calendar month of at least 30 days.
STAFF ANALYSIS OF SENATE BILL 419 (Lowenthal) Page
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Exceptions to this rule are defined in state
regulations. (California State Plan 2010, p 11, B,
iii)
Existing state regulation:
10) Specifies that if any member of the recipient
family is absent from the home for one full calendar
month or less they shall be considered temporarily
absent unless exempt. (MPP §82-812.6)
11) Specifies exemptions to the time limit of less than
one month to include:
a. A child in a public hospital for up to
two full calendar months shall be considered
temporarily absent. (MPP §82-812.6)
This bill:
1) Repeals the code section that states that no child
shall receive aid after two months while he is a
patient in a public hospital, as specified.
2) Establishes that a child who is a patient in a
public or private hospital for medical or surgical
care shall be considered temporarily absent from the
home for the duration of the hospital stay.
FISCAL IMPACT
An Assembly Appropriations Committee analysis indicates
that costs associated with this legislation should be
negligible, probably less than $5,000 (TANF/Maintenance of
Effort) per year due to this situation affecting very few
families each year.
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION
Purpose of the bill
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According to the author, AB 419 creates parity among
patients in public and private hospitals who are also
recipients of CalWORKs aid. Aided children in private
hospitals are considered temporarily absent from the home
for the duration of their stay; however, children placed
into public hospitals are only considered temporarily
absent for two months and then no longer eligible for aid.
AB 419 addresses the problem by making a child placed in
either a public or private hospital be considered
temporarily absent for the duration of the stay.
CalWORKs
As of March 2013, 561,862 California families were
participating in the CalWORKs program, including more than
one million children. Nearly half of the children are under
age six. CalWORKs provides monthly income, assistance, and
employment-related services aimed at moving children out of
poverty and helping families meet basic needs and become
self-sufficient. The Department of Social Services
administers the program at the state level, and county
welfare departments administer it locally. CalWORKs is
funded by the federal TANF block grant, state General Fund
dollars, and county funds. The average grant for a family
of three is $467 per month.
Temporary Absence
The amount of a family's monthly assistance payment depends
on a number of factors, including the number of people who
are eligible and residing in the household.
An eligible child is considered to be living in the home of
a caretaker as long as the child is "temporarily absent"
from the home. However, the caretaker relative must
continue to have the responsibility for care and control of
the child during the temporary absence.
Hospitalization of a child is considered a temporary
absence, but comes with limitations. If a child is a
patient of a public hospital, then the child is only
considered "temporarily absent" from the home for up to two
months. After two months, if the child remains in the
public hospital, then the child is no longer considered a
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part of the home and may not be used in calculating monthly
benefits. This would reduce the monthly assistance by one
child, or would eliminate all benefits if the home does not
have any other eligible children living in the home.
This two-month provision only exists for children who are
absent from the home and receiving care in a public
hospital; those in a private hospital continue to be
eligible for aid for the full length of their stay in the
private hospital.
Maximum Aid Payment
CalWORKs calculates the maximum aid payment based on a
number of factors including how many people are eligible
for aid and living in the household, the county in which
the family resides, and earned income. The maximum benefit
that a non-exempt family of three (one adult, two children)
could receive living in Los Angeles County is $638. If a
child were removed from the calculation of benefits due to
being a long-term patient in a public hospital, that
family's benefit would drop to $516.
California Children Hospitalized
Based on information provided by the Office of Statewide
Health Planning and Development (OSHPD), 3,365 children in
California were hospitalized for longer than 60 days in
2011 and 1,644 children in California were hospitalized for
longer than 60 days from January through June of 2012.
This equates to a weighted average of 2,791 children in
California who are hospitalized for longer than 60 days in
one year. This weighted average was applied to 2010 Census
data on the number of children in California (9,295,040)
to create a ratio of children hospitalized for longer than
60 days to the total number of children in the state
(approximately 0.03%).
It is unknown how many of the children hospitalized for
longer than 60 days are also CalWORKs recipients and how
many families have been removed from aid or have had aid
reduced because of hospitalization of a child in a public
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hospital for longer than 60 days.
California State Plan 2010
The Department of Health and Human Services requires all
states that accept federal Temporary Assistance for Needy
Families (TANF) aid to submit a TANF State Plan. One aspect
detailed in the state plan outlines how California defines
"temporary absence." The California State Plan specifies
that a recipient family shall remain eligible when a needy
child or adult is temporarily absent from the home. The
time period for temporary absences from the home is one
full calendar month of at least 30 days. Exceptions to this
rule are defined in state regulations. For AB 419 to be
fully implemented, state regulations must be updated to
incorporate this legislation.
Other States
Montana (no limit) - Considers the household member
eligible if the member is temporarily absent from the home
to receive medical treatment, provided the parent or
caretaker relative is otherwise eligible. (ARM
37.78.207(3))
Ohio (no limit) - Considers the household member eligible
for aid during absences due to hospitalization (includes
inpatient drug and alcohol treatment). (OAC 5101:1-3-04)
Texas (12 months) - Does not deny assistance because a
household member is temporarily out of the home due to
hospitalization up to a 12 month time limit. (Texas Health
and Human Services Commission Texas Works Handbook Part A
Section 900)
Pennsylvania (12 months) - Does not deny assistance because
a household member is temporarily out of the home due to
hospitalization up to a 12 month time limit. (55 Pa. Code §
151.43(d))
Washington State (180 days) - Treats an absence as
temporary if there is a clear expectation that the eligible
member will return to the family home within 180 days.
Hospitalization of the child is not an exemption that
extends the 180 day limit. (WAC 388-454-0015)
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PRIOR VOTES
Assembly Floor: 76 - 0
Assembly Appropriations:17 - 0
Assembly Human Services: 7 - 0
POSITIONS
Support: County Welfare Directors Association of
California (sponsor)
Advancement Project
Butte County Department of Employment and
Social Services
California Alternative Payment Program
Association (CAPPA)
California Association of Public Hospitals
and Health Systems
County of Monterey
Glendale City Employees Association
Organization of SMUD Employees
San Bernardino Public Employees Association
San Luis Obispo County Employees Association
San Luis Obispo County Department of Social
Services
Santa Rosa City Employees Association
Western Center on Law and Poverty
Oppose: None on file
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