BILL ANALYSIS Ó SENATE HUMAN SERVICES COMMITTEE Senator Jim Beall, Chair BILL NO: AB 1516 A AUTHOR: Gonzalez B VERSION: May 23, 2014 HEARING DATE: June 24, 2014 1 FISCAL: Yes 5 1 CONSULTANT: Mareva Brown 6 SUBJECT Public social services: diapers SUMMARY This bill, the Healthy Baby Bottom Act of 2014, creates an $80 special needs supplement within the CalWORKs program for children younger than age 2. It also creates an Unmet Diaper Need Financing Fund in the State Treasury to be distributed to entities that serve low-income children, as specified, to address the unmet diaper needs in those communities. ABSTRACT Existing law: 1) Establishes in Federal law the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) program to provide assistance to needy families so that children may be cared for in their own homes or in the homes of relatives, and to end the dependence on government benefits by promoting job preparation, work and marriage. (45 CFR 260.2) Continued--- STAFF ANALYSIS OF ASSEMBLY BILL 1516 (Gonzalez) PageB 2) Establishes in California the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) Act, administered by the Department of Social Services (CDSS) to provide cash benefits, employment training and other supports to low-income families through a combination of state and county funds and federal funds through the TANF block grant. (WIC 11200, et seq.) 3) Establishes income, asset and real property limits used to determine eligibility for the program, including net income below the Maximum Aid Payment (MAP), based on family size and county of residence, which is approximately 40% of the Federal Poverty Level. (WIC 11450, 11150 et seq.) 4) Establishes a 48-month lifetime limit of CalWORKs benefits for eligible adults, including 24 months during which a recipient must meet federal work requirements in order to retain eligibility. (WIC 11454, 11322.85) 5) Requires that aid be paid for each needy family, which shall include all eligible brothers and sisters of each eligible applicant or recipient child and the parents of the children, as specified, and provides a formula for the calculation of aid. (WIC 11450 (a)) 6) In addition to the amounts payable under subdivision (a) and other specified aid, a family shall be entitled to receive an allowance for recurring special needs not common to a majority of recipients, as defined. Prohibits the recurring special needs allowance from exceeding $10 per eligible member of the family's assistance unit per month. (WIC 11450(e)) 7) Requires that under specified circumstances, if a STAFF ANALYSIS OF ASSEMBLY BILL 1516 (Gonzalez) PageC family has used all available liquid resources in excess of one hundred dollars ($100), the family shall also be entitled to receive an allowance for nonrecurring special needs. (WIC 11450(f)) 8) Requires necessary supportive services be made available to every participant in the welfare-to-work program in order to participate in the program activity to which he or she is assigned or to accept employment or requires that the participant be given a good cause waiver. (WIC 11323.2) 9) Requires that those supportive services include child care, transportation costs, ancillary expenses, as defined, personal counseling and case management, if the county provides it. (WIC 11323.2) This bill: 1) Establishes this act as the Healthy Baby Bottom Act of 2014. 2) Makes various legislative findings and declarations, including: a. Existing federal law classifies diapers with cigarettes, alcohol, and pet food as disallowed purchases under CalFresh and the California Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) b. Low-income parents cannot take advantage of free or subsidized child care if they cannot afford to leave disposable diapers at child care centers, a requirement for most child care centers. c. Without access to child care, these parents are less able to attend work or school on a consistent basis, leading to increased economic instability and a continuation of the cycle of poverty. d. In addition, the severe health and social consequences for babies and families who do not STAFF ANALYSIS OF ASSEMBLY BILL 1516 (Gonzalez) PageD have access to diapers cannot be underestimated or overlooked. e. Lack of sufficient diapers can lead to multiple problems for families in need, including unhappy babies, unhealthy communities, undereducated toddlers, and underemployed adults. f. Access to diapers can make the difference for a family to become financially self-sufficient. g. Therefore, it is the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation that would empower beneficiaries of public assistance programs with young children in diapers to return to the workforce by removing unnecessary obstacles to obtaining diapers to the extent permitted by federal law, thereby ensuring the health and welfare of diaper-wearing children and their families. 3) Establishes the right of a CalWORKs participant to request supportive services, as defined, through the Internet Web site of the county if the county is capable of accepting those requests through its Internet Web site. If the county is not capable of accepting requests through its Internet Web site, the county shall accept those requests in the manner necessary to ensure that participants are able to request the supportive services they need. 4) Adds to the list of special needs supplements, an $80 per month special needs supplement to any child under two years of age who is in an assistance unit in addition to any other special needs supplement a family may be receiving. 5) Requires the amount of supplement to be adjusted annually pursuant to cost of living changes, as specified. 6) Establishes an Unmet Need Diaper Financing Fund, overseen by the California Department of Public Health (DPH), and requires that the fund consist of money accepted by the department from grants and donations from private entities and of public moneys transferred to the fund. STAFF ANALYSIS OF ASSEMBLY BILL 1516 (Gonzalez) PageE 7) Requires that money be distributed by (DPH), upon appropriation by the Legislature, to entities that meet both of the following requirements: a. Serve low-income children living in census tracts within the state in which 50 percent or more of the population of children are living below the federal poverty guideline. b. Have identified dollar-for-dollar matching funding from the federal government, the private sector, or any other available source. 8) Requires DPH to give priority in distribution from the fund to entities that serve communities in census tracts with the highest poverty and highest racial and ethnic diversity. 9) Requires money distributed from the fund to be used by the recipient to meet the unmet diaper needs of the communities served by the recipient. 10) Requires all interest earned on the moneys that have been deposited into the fund to be retained in the fund and used for purposes consistent with the fund, as specified. 11) Establishes a sunset date of January 1, 2019, unless a later enacted statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2019, deletes or extends that date. FISCAL IMPACT An analysis by the Assembly Committee on Appropriations projected this bill would impact approximately 19% of CalWORKs children, or approximately 189,000 children per month. A monthly special needs payment of $80, would therefore cost approximately $90 million in 2014-15 and $181 million in on-going costs. The analysis also noted that there would be partial offsetting savings to the extent an increased use of childcare better enables parents to work and thus come off of assistance earlier, and that healthier babies decrease healthcare costs to Medi-cal. STAFF ANALYSIS OF ASSEMBLY BILL 1516 (Gonzalez) PageF BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION Purpose of the bill: According to the author, by providing $80 per month per child to eligible children on public assistance, this bill will ensure families are not deciding between food on the table or paying rent and whether or not they can afford to change their child's dirty diaper. Additionally, the author states that a central priority for this bill is removing barriers to employment for low-income parents. Diapers are a major impediment for welfare-to-work participants who are seeking self-sufficiency because without diapers, parents cannot take advantage of subsidized childcare for their children. CalWORKs The CalWORKs program provides a monthly cash benefit for employment-related services aimed at moving children out of poverty and helping families meet basic needs. Funding for the CalWORKs program is a combination of state general fund dollars and a federal TANF grant. According to recent data from CDSS, 554,292 families rely on CalWORKs, including more than 1 million children. A family of three receiving the average grant amount of $463 per month would have an annual household income at $5,556 per year -- about one quarter of the Federal Poverty Guidelines level for the same size family of $19,790. Child care is among the supportive services that are required to be available to participants in the welfare-to-work program. However, the author argues that in order to participate in free or reduced child care, parents must be able to provide disposable diapers for their children. Diaper need According to the National Diaper Bank Network, disposable diapers cost up to $100 per month per child and cannot be purchased through any government assistance program. One in three families struggle to purchase diapers, and many families buy diapers at nearby convenience stores rather STAFF ANALYSIS OF ASSEMBLY BILL 1516 (Gonzalez) PageG than at large discount stores, driving up the per-diaper price. According to the Network, infants require up to 12 diapers and toddlers require an average of 8 diapers per day. For sanitary reasons, coin-operated Laundromats often don't allow customers to wash cloth diapers.<1> According to The Diaper Bank, a different organization, most licensed day care centers do not accept cloth diapers, and require parents to provide disposable diapers. Low-income parents cannot take advantage of free or subsidized childcare if they cannot afford to leave disposable diapers at childcare centers. If parents cannot access daycare, then they are less able to attend work or school on a consistent basis.<2> A 2013 study published in the journal, Pediatrics, concluded that unmet diaper need was an issue of medical concern. The study's authors wrote that emerging research suggests indicators of material hardship are increasingly important to child health. The study supports this premise with the suggestion that an adequate supply of diapers may prove a tangible way of reducing parenting stress, a critical factor influencing child health and development. Authors concluded there is potential for pediatric providers to ask about diaper need and refer families to a local diaper distribution service to reduce parenting stress.<3> COMMENTS 1. Due to a number of information technology changes to welfare systems statewide, staff recommends moving the implementation date of this bill to April 1, 2015, to allow the Office of Systems Integration sufficient time to make program changes. Staff recommends the following amendment: Section 8: (a) Notwithstanding the Administrative Procedure Act ---------------------- <1> http://diaperbanknetwork.org/ <2> http://thediaperbank.org/index.php/facts_and_impacts/ <3> Smith, Megan, et al. "Diaper Need and Its Impact on Child Health," Pediatrics, July 29, 2013. STAFF ANALYSIS OF ASSEMBLY BILL 1516 (Gonzalez) PageH (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code), the State Department of Social Services shall implement this act through an all-county letter or similar instructions from the director no later than April 1, 2015. (b) The department shall adopt regulations as necessary to implement this act no later than July 1, 2016. 2. The author requests an amendment to strike Section 1 of the bill, which is the title, and to add coauthors. PRIOR VOTES Assembly Floor 55 - 23 Assembly Appropriations 12 - 5 Assembly Human Services 4 - 1 POSITIONS Support: California Association of Food Banks California Food Policy Advocates California Immigrant Policy Center Children Now County of Santa Clara Help a Mother Out.Org. LA Diaper Drive National Diaper Bank Network Peninsula Family Service UWD/AFSCME Local 3930 Western Center on Law and Poverty Oppose: None received. STAFF ANALYSIS OF ASSEMBLY BILL 1516 (Gonzalez) PageI -- END --