BILL ANALYSIS �
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 419
Author: Lowenthal (D)
Amended: As introduced
Vote: 21
SENATE HUMAN SERVICES COMMITTEE : 6-0, 6/11/13
AYES: Yee, Berryhill, Emmerson, Evans, Liu, Wright
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 6-0, 07/01/13
AYES: De Le�n, Walters, Gaines, Hill, Lara, Steinberg
NO VOTE RECORDED: Padilla
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 76-0, 4/25/13 (Consent) - See last page for
vote
SUBJECT : CalWORKs: eligibility
SOURCE : County Welfare Directors Association of California
DIGEST : This bill repeals the code section that limits
California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids
(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.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
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1.Establishes the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
program.
2.Provides in California statute for the allocation of funds for
cash assistance and other social services for low-income
families through the CalWORKs program. Under this program,
each county provides assistance through a combination of
state, county funds and federal TANF funds.
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.
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.
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.
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.
7.Provides in state law that no child shall receive aid while
he/she 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.
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.
9.Provides in the California State Plan that a recipient family
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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.
Existing state regulation:
1.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.
2.Specifies exemptions to the time limit of less than one month
to include: A child in a public hospital for up to two full
calendar months shall be considered temporarily absent.
This bill:
1.Repeals the code section that states that no child shall
receive aid after two months while he/she 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.
Background
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 (DSS)
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
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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 part of the home and may not be used in
calculating monthly benefits. This reduced the monthly
assistance by one child, or eliminated 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,
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
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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 hospital for longer than
60 days.
California State Plan 2010 . The Department of Health and Human
Services requires all states that accept federal 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
this bill 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.
Ohio (no limit) - Considers the household member eligible for
aid during absences due to hospitalization (includes inpatient
drug and alcohol treatment).
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.
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.
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.
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FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
According to the Senate Appropriations Committees:
Minor one-time costs to the DSS to revise regulations
consistent with the provisions of this measure.
Potential increase in CalWORKs program costs potentially in
the range of $16,000 to $40,000 (General Fund) per year.
SUPPORT : (Verified 7/2/13)
County Welfare Directors Association of California (source)
Advancement Project
Butte County Department of Employment and Social Services
California Alternative Payment Program Association
California Association of Public Hospitals and Health Systems
California Catholic Conference, Inc.
California Health Executives Association
California State Association of Counties
County of Monterey
Glendale City Employees Association
Organization of SMUD Employees
San Bernardino Public Employees Association
San Luis Obispo County Department of Social Services
San Luis Obispo County Employees Association
Santa Rosa City Employees Association
Urban Counties Caucus
Western Center on Law and Poverty
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author's office, this
bill 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. The
author's office states this bill 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.
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ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 76-0, 4/25/13
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Bigelow, Bloom,
Blumenfield, Bocanegra, Bonilla, Bonta, Bradford, Brown,
Buchanan, Ian Calderon, Campos, Chau, Ch�vez, Chesbro, Conway,
Dahle, Daly, Dickinson, Donnelly, Eggman, Fong, Fox, Frazier,
Beth Gaines, Garcia, Gatto, Gomez, Gordon, Gorell, Gray,
Grove, Hagman, Hall, Harkey, Roger Hern�ndez, Holden, Jones,
Jones-Sawyer, Levine, Linder, Logue, Maienschein, Mansoor,
Medina, Melendez, Mitchell, Morrell, Mullin, Muratsuchi,
Nestande, Olsen, Pan, Patterson, Perea, V. Manuel P�rez,
Quirk, Quirk-Silva, Rendon, Salas, Skinner, Stone, Ting,
Torres, Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wieckowski, Wilk, Williams,
Yamada, John A. P�rez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Cooley, Lowenthal, Nazarian, Vacancy
JL:d 7/2/13 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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