BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1653
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Date of Hearing: April 29, 2014
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES
Mark Stone, Chair
AB 1653 (Garcia) - As Amended: April 22, 2014
SUBJECT : CalWORKs: victims of domestic violence
SUMMARY : Requires the development and dissemination of a
standard, statewide notice with information about waivers of
certain CalWORKs requirements for CalWORKs applicants and
recipients who are victims of domestic violence.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Expresses the intent of the Legislature that a standard,
statewide notice pertaining to the rights of domestic violence
victims be established to ensure that CalWORKs applicants and
recipients who are past or present victims of domestic abuse
are not placed at further risk of abuse or unfairly penalized
by program requirements or procedures.
2)Removes the county option to waive a program requirement and
instead requires counties to waive a program requirement for a
CalWORKs recipient who has been identified as a past or
present victim of abuse when it has been determined that good
cause exists, as specified.
3)Requires the county to reevaluate a waiver of program
requirements for domestic violence in conjunction with annual
and semi-annual report and eligibility determinations.
4)Requires the Department of Social Services (DSS), in
consultation with county human services agencies, domestic
violence and CalWORKs advocates, and CalWORKs caseworkers, to
develop a standard, statewide notice to inform CalWORKs
applicants and recipients of their right to request a waiver
of program requirements as victims of domestic violence, and
specifies the information to be included in the notice,
including information about local domestic violence resources.
5)Authorizes a county to develop and disseminate its own notice
for purposes of providing CalWORKs applicants and recipients
information about their right to a waiver of program
requirements as victims of domestic violence, provided that
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the notice is approved by DSS and contains the information
required in the statewide notice.
6)Specifies the points in time that county human services
agencies are required to provide the statewide notice or an
approved county notice, and the means through which the notice
must be provided.
7)Provides that a CalWORKs applicant or recipient is not
required to disclose his or her status, or the status of
another member of the assistance unit, as a domestic violence
victim in order to receive aid, and provides that the failure
to disclose abuse and request services shall not prejudice a
recipient's disclosure and request for services at a later
date, as specified.
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EXISTING LAW
1)Establishes under federal law the Temporary Assistance for
Needy Families (TANF) program to provide aid and
welfare-to-work services to eligible families and, in
California, provides that TANF funds for welfare-to-work
services are administered through the CalWORKs program. (42
U.S.C. 601 et seq., WIC 11200 et seq.)
2)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.)
3)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)
4)Requires all individuals over 16 years of age, unless they are
otherwise exempt, to participate in welfare-to-work activities
as a condition of eligibility for CalWORKs. (WIC 11320.3,
11322.6)
5)Establishes the number of weekly hours of welfare-to-work
participation necessary to remain eligible for aid, as
specified. (WIC 11322.8)
6)Requires a county to excuse a CalWORKs recipient from
participation for good cause when the county has determined
the recipient has a condition or is faced with a circumstance
that temporarily prevents or significantly impairs the
recipient's ability to be regularly employed or to participate
in welfare-to-work activities, and requires county welfare
departments to review a good cause determination to establish
its continuing appropriateness, as specified, no less than
every three months, and requires a recipient that has been
granted good cause to provide information to the county,
including written documentation, as required to complete the
review. (WIC 11320.3 (f))
7)Includes among the reasons for which a county may grant good
cause that the applicant or recipient is a victim of domestic
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violence if participation in work or other welfare-to-work
activities would be detrimental to, or unfairly penalize, the
individual or his or her family, pursuant to the state option
granted under federal TANF law. (WIC 11320.3(f)(2))
8)Establishes an optional program for states, under federal TANF
law, commonly known as the Family Violence Option, which
requires states to establish standards and procedures to
ensure that the state will screen for and identify individuals
receiving TANF assistance with a history of domestic violence,
refer such individuals to counseling and supportive services,
and waive, pursuant to a determination of good cause, program
requirements for individuals receiving assistance in cases
where compliance with such requirements would make it more
difficult for individuals receiving assistance to escape
domestic violence or unfairly penalize such individuals who
are or have been victimized by such violence, or individuals
who are at risk of further domestic violence. (42 U.S.C.
602(a)(7))
9)Defines domestic violence, under federal TANF law and state
law, to mean battered or subject to extreme cruelty,
including:
a) Physical acts that resulted in, or threatened to result
in, physical injury to the individual;
b) Sexual abuse;
c) Sexual activity involving a dependent child;
d) Being forced as the caretaker relative of a dependent
child to engage in nonconsensual sexual acts or activities;
e) Threats of, or attempts at, physical or sexual abuse;
f) Mental abuse; and
g) Neglect or deprivation of medical care. (42 U.S.C. 608
(a)(7)(C)(iii), WIC 11495.12)
1)Provides that a sworn statement by a victim of past or present
domestic abuse shall be sufficient to establish the abuse
unless the county agency documents in writing an independent,
reasonable basis to find the recipient not credible. (WIC
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11495.25)
2)Requires a CalWORKs applicant or recipient to cooperate with
the county welfare department and local child support agency
in establishing the paternity of his or her child and in
establishing, modifying, or enforcing a support order with
respect that child, provided that the applicant or recipient
does not qualify for a good cause exemption. Requires the
county to provide a good cause exemption from this requirement
when cooperation would increase the risk of domestic abuse for
the child or the child's parent or caretaker. (WIC 11477, WIC
11477.04)
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : This bill seeks to ensure CalWORKs applicants and
recipients who are present or past victims of domestic violence
are provided appropriate and timely information regarding their
rights to a waiver of program requirements if adherence to those
requirements would unfairly penalize them or put them at risk of
further abuse.
CalWORKs : The California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to
Kids (CalWORKs) program provides monthly income assistance and
employment-related services aimed at moving children out of
poverty and helping families meet basic needs. Federal funding
for CalWORKs comes from the Temporary Assistance for Needy
Families (TANF) block grant. The average monthly cash grant for
a family of three on CalWORKs (one parent and two children) is
$463. Average grants of $463 per month for a family of three
means $15.43 per day, per family, or $5.14 per family member,
per day to meet basic needs, including rent, clothing, utility
bills, food, and anything else a family needs to ensure children
can be cared for at home and safely remain with their families.
This average grant amount puts the annual household income at
$5,556 per year. Federal Poverty Guidelines show that 100% of
poverty for a family of three is over three and a half times
that at $19,790 per year.
According to recent data from the California Department of
Social Services, 554,292 families rely on CalWORKs, including
over one million children. Nearly 80% of the children are under
age twelve and 40% are under age five.
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According to the California Center for Research on Women and
Families (CCRWF), 92% of heads of households in CalWORKs
recipient families are women. Two-thirds of the heads of
household are single parents and have never married. While
nearly one-third of CalWORKs heads of household have a high
school diploma or equivalent, half have 11th grade or less
education. Educational achievement for many parents receiving
CalWORKs benefits has been stifled by learning disabilities
(estimated to affect 10 to 28%), mental or emotional health
problems (estimated to affect 19 to 33%), and domestic abuse
they've experienced during their lifetimes (reported by 80%).
Welfare-to-Work requirements : Welfare-to-work activities within
the CalWORKs program include public or private sector subsidized
or unsubsidized employment; on-the-job training; community
service; secondary school, adult basic education and vocational
education and training when the education is needed for the
recipient to become employed; specific mental health, substance
abuse, or domestic violence services if they are necessary to
obtain or retain employment; and a number of other activities
necessary to assist a recipient in obtaining unsubsidized
employment. If a CalWORKs recipient who is not exempt from
participation does not meet his or her welfare-to-work
requirements, the recipient is sanctioned for noncompliance, and
that recipient's portion of the family's grant is removed. This
can reduce the family's maximum monthly grant by up to $122 per
month.
Domestic violence in California : While women and men can be
victims of domestic violence or intimate partner abuse, much of
the available data pertains to women, as reports of violence and
abuse are much higher for women and tend to be the focus of
services provided to mitigate and prevent abuse. Data collected
through the California Women's Health Survey (CWHS) reveals that
approximately 40% of California women experience physical
intimate partner violence in their lifetimes, and 75% of victims
had children under the age of 18 years at home. By way of
comparison, national data cited by the National Network to End
Domestic Violence shows that nearly one in every four women
(25%) is beaten or raped by a partner during adulthood.
TANF program domestic violence waivers : The Personal
Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996
(PRWORA), which was the final piece of federal welfare reform
legislation, repealed the AFDC program and created the
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block-granted Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
program. Among a number of new requirements and other program
changes, PRWORA created a Family Violence Option (FVO) to
address the barriers that domestic violence poses within the
context of federal aid under TANF. Under section 402(a)(7) of
the Social Security Act, a State may elect to implement a
special program, within its TANF program, to serve victims of
domestic violence and to waive program requirements for such
individuals. Federal regulations grant states broad flexibility
to grant program waivers to victims of domestic violence.
California's response to the FVO authority under PRWORA was
included in AB 1542 (Ducheny) Chapter 270, Statutes of 1997;
California's bill to implement welfare reform. With respect to
domestic violence waivers, the bill included the following
statement of legislative intent:
It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this article to
adopt a family violence provision by enacting the federal option
concerning victims of domestic violence provided for in the
Temporary Assistance to Needy Families program pursuant to
Section 402(a)(7) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. Sec.
602(a)(7)). By adopting this provision, the Legislature
recognizes that some individuals who may need public assistance
have been or are victims of abuse, and intends to ensure that
applicants and recipients who are past or present victims of
abuse are not placed at further risk or unfairly penalized by
CalWORKs requirements and procedures. The Legislature intends
that, in implementing this article, program requirements not be
created or applied in such a way as to encourage a victim to
remain with the abuser. It is also the intent of the
Legislature that CalWORKs recipients participate in
welfare-to-work activities, to the full extent of their
abilities, including participation in counseling and treatment
programs, as appropriate, to enable the recipient to obtain
unsubsidized employment and move towards self-sufficiency.
Section 42-715.511 of the DSS Manual of Policies and Procedures
(MPP) outlines which program requirements counties cannot waive,
including asset, income, homeless assistance, and deprivation
requirements. The MPP also specifies that counties shall
provide applicants and recipients the opportunity to
confidentially self-identify or disclose domestic abuse, and
shall offer information and resource materials on domestic abuse
and advise them of the availability of related services. The
MPP further requires the development of a welfare-to-work plan
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that meets specified criteria for victims of abuse and imposes
training curricula on certain county staff related to domestic
abuse.
Barriers to reporting domestic violence : In addition to
physical or sexual abuse, many domestic violence victims also
experience mental and emotional abuse at the hands of their
abusers, including stalking, deprivation of access to the
family's financial resources and exertion of economic control,
as well as sabotage of the victim's attempts to work or go to
school. While state law provides that CalWORKs applicants and
recipients should be able to confidentially disclose domestic
abuse they have suffered, there are a number of victims who
still do not come forward to report their abuse. This is often
due to fear of retaliation from their abuser and a lack of trust
that the unfamiliar person to whom they are reporting the abuse
will keep their information confidential. Not reporting abuse
that prevents them from complying with CalWORKs requirements can
greatly affect their ability to access needed services and aid.
A recipient can be sanctioned due to noncompliance with
requirements or for not participating in welfare-to-work
activities without a waiver, which removes aid from the
household and creates greater instability for a family. For
many victims who are eligible for the program, CalWORKs benefits
and services can help families not have to choose between
remaining in an abusive situation and becoming homeless.
Need for this bill : Most counties have reported that it is
common practice to waive certain CalWORKs program requirements
for victims of domestic violence. However, because statute is
permissive, the type of notice provided to applicants and
recipients pertaining to domestic violence waivers, the timing
and means by which such notice is provided, and the details
included such a notice can vary across the state, leaving some
CalWORKs recipients in sanction status for noncompliance without
knowing they can request a program waiver and services.
According to the author, "Low-income pregnant women and parents
who have fewer options to escape harm and become economically
self-sufficient are particularly vulnerable. [This bill] will
establish protections for victims of abuse in our CalWORKs
program that are not dependent upon which county the family
lives in, and guarantees that regardless of whether or not a
victim of abuse feels safe enough to ask for help, the county
provides them with pertinent, local information about domestic
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violence services available to them and their family."
In support, the Western Center on Law and Poverty states, "In
order to ensure that an applicant or recipient of assistance is
informed of services and accommodations that could assist them,
[this bill] would require the state Department of Social
Services (DSS) to establish a statewide notification process.
This process would replace varied county notification processes
that may be insufficient or, inappropriately, require an
applicant or recipients of aid to disclose domestic violence
before they are prepared to do so or when it may be dangerous to
do so."
RECOMMENDED AMENDMENT :
Current language in the bill requires that information related
to waivers of certain program requirements be provided both
orally and in writing upon application and during the
welfare-to-work planning process, and requires written
notification at other points of contact. However, because this
bill acknowledges the sensitivity with which the issue of
domestic violence must be addressed with CalWORKs applicants and
recipients, language in the bill should also require that
information be provided orally whenever possible to ensure
recipients have maximum access to the information needed to
avoid being unfairly penalized. Should the Committee wish to
pass this bill, staff recommends that the bill be amended to
also require oral communication of the information related to
domestic violence waivers during the eligibility redetermination
process, when the county provides notice of action for a
sanction resulting from failure to participate, and whenever an
applicant or recipient voluntarily discloses that he or she is a
victim of abuse.
PRIOR LEGISLATION
AB 1107 (Garcia) 2013, among other provisions, would have
required DSS to develop a standard notice and procedures to
ensure victims of domestic violence are not unfairly penalized
for noncompliance with CalWORKs rules and specified requirements
for counties and aid recipients with respect to retroactive
waivers of program requirements due to domestic violence.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
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Support
California Catholic Conference, Inc.
Coalition of California Welfare Rights Organizations, Inc. -
sponsor
Legal Services of Northern California
Partnership to End Domestic Violence
Western Center on Law and Poverty - sponsor
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Myesha Jackson / HUM. S. / (916)
319-2089