SB 609, as amended, Wolk. Office of the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman.
Existing law, as part of the Mello-Granlund Older Californians Act, establishes the Office of the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman, under the direction of the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman, in the California Department of Aging. Existing law provides for the Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program under which funds are allocated to local ombudsman programs to assist elderly persons in long-term health care facilities and residential care facilities by, among other things, investigating and seeking to resolve complaints against these facilities. Existing law requires the office to solicit and receive funds, gifts, and contributions to support the operations and programs of the office.
This bill would create the Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program Improvement Act Account, and require the office to deposit those funds into the account. The bill would, upon appropriation, require those funds to be used for the purpose of supporting the operations and programs of the office.
Under existing law, anyone who willfully interferes with a lawful action of the office is subject to a civil penalty of no more than $1,000, to be assessed by the Director of Aging, who is required to initiate the action, upon request of the office, to collect the penalties.
This bill would increase the maximum civil penalty amount to $2,500 for each incident, and would instead require the director to initiate an action if the penalty is not paid within 30 days of the assessment. The bill would provide that each instance of willful interference may be reported to local law enforcement and the appropriate licensing agency as an act of isolation, as defined. This bill would create the Access to Facilities Account, and require those penalties to be deposited into the account to, upon appropriation by the
Legislature, be available to thebegin delete office, and require no less than 75% of that amount to be dedicated to fund the direct travel costs associated with local ombudsmen visits throughout the state or training ofend deletebegin insert office to fund the training costs, and to reimburse the travel expenses, ofend insert localbegin delete ombudsmenend deletebegin insert ombudsman programsend insert throughout the state.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 9714 of the Welfare and Institutions Code
2 is amended to read:
The office shall solicit and receive funds, gifts, and
4contributions to support the operations and programs of the office.
5The office shall not solicit or receive any funds, gifts, or
6contributions if the solicitation or receipt would jeopardize the
7independence and objectivity of the office. The office shall deposit
8funds received pursuant to this section into the Long-Term Care
9Ombudsman Program Improvement Act Account that is hereby
10created in the Special Deposit Fund in the State Treasury pursuant
11to Section 16370 of the Government Code. Revenues in this
12account shall, upon appropriation, be used for the purpose of
13supporting the operations and programs of the office.
Section 9714.5 of the Welfare and Institutions Code
15 is amended to read:
(a) The office may form a foundation eligible to
17receive tax-deductible contributions to support the operations and
18programs of the office and the operations of the foundation. The
P3 1foundation shall not solicit or receive any funds, gifts, or
2contributions if the solicitation or receipt would jeopardize the
3independence and objectivity of the office or foundation.
4(b) The foundation formed pursuant to this section shall be under
5the direction and management of a five-member board of directors.
6One member shall be appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly,
7one member shall be appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules,
8and three members shall be appointed by the Governor. The
9members
of the board shall each be experienced in the
10management, promotion, and funding of nonprofit charitable
11organizations.
12(c) The board shall select from among its members a chair, a
13vice chair, and any other officers as it deems necessary.
14(d) The members of the board shall serve without compensation,
15but shall be reimbursed for all necessary expenses actually incurred
16in the performance of their duties as directors.
17(e) Three members of the board shall constitute a quorum for
18the purpose of conducting the board’s business.
19(f) By March 1 of each year, the board shall determine the
20amount of funds to be allocated from the foundation to the office
21for the
support of the operations and programs of the office and
22the operations of the foundation. Foundation funds may only be
23expended for the support of the operations and programs of the
24office and the operations of the foundation.
25(g) The members of the board shall be free from conflicts of
26interest and shall be subject to the same conflict of interest
27provisions that apply to the State Ombudsman under Section
283058g(f)(3) of Title 42 of the United States Code.
Section 9732 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
30amended to read:
(a) Any person who willfully interferes with any lawful
32action of the office shall be subject to a civil penalty of no more
33than two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) for each incident.
34The civil penalty shall be assessed by the director. If the penalty
35is not paid within 30 days of the assessment, the director shall
36initiate an action to collect the penalties in the jurisdiction in which
37the facility is located.
38(b) Each instance of willful interference may be reported to
39local law enforcement and the appropriate licensing agency as an
40act of isolation, as defined in Section 15610.43.
P4 1(c) All civil penalties collected by the department pursuant to
2this section shall be deposited into the Access to Facilities Account,
3which is hereby created within the Special Deposit Fund under
4Section 16370 of the Government Code. Funds in this account
5shall be available, upon appropriation, to thebegin delete office, and no less begin insert office to fund the training costs, and to reimburse the
6than 75 percent of the penalties collected shall be dedicated to fund
7the direct travel costs associated with local ombudsmen visits
8throughout the state or training of local ombudsmen throughout
9the stateend delete
10travel expenses, of local ombudsman programs throughout the
11stateend insert.
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