BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



          SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                             Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair
                            2015 - 2016  Regular  Session

          AB 80 (Campos) - Interagency Task Force on the Status of Boys  
          and Men of Color
          
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          |Version: August 17, 2015        |Policy Vote: G.O. 13 - 0        |
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          |Urgency: No                     |Mandate: No                     |
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          |Hearing Date: August 17, 2015   |Consultant: Mark McKenzie       |
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          This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File. 







          Bill  
          Summary:  AB 80 would establish a 20-member Interagency Task  
          Force on the Status of Men and Boys of Color (BMoC Task Force)  
          in state government to support departments and agencies in  
          coordinating actions to improve outcomes for boys and men of  
          color.  The BMoC Task Force would sunset on January 1, 2026.


          Fiscal  
          Impact:  
           Potentially significant state operations costs, likely in the  
            range of $300,000 to $500,000 annually, for staff and related  
            costs to support the BMoC Task Force until 2026. (General  
            Fund)







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           Likely minor staff and support costs to specified state  
            entities with designated officials or designees identified as  
            members of the BMoC Task Force. (General Fund and various  
            Special Funds)


          Background:  On February 27, 2014, President Obama established the My  
          Brother's Keeper Task Force to develop a coordinated federal  
          effort to significantly improve the expected life outcomes for  
          boys and young men of color.  The President directed the task  
          force to focus on evidence-based intervention points and issues  
          facing these young men, with particular emphasis on access to  
          early childhood supports, grade school literacy, pathways to  
          college and a career (including issues arising from school  
          disciplinary action), access to mentoring services and support  
          networks, and interactions with the criminal justice system and  
          violent crime.  The initiative explores how the federal  
          government's policies and programs can support these efforts,  
          and how to better involve state and local officials, the private  
          sector, and the philanthropic community in these efforts.
          Existing law establishes various advisory boards and commissions  
          in state government with specified duties and responsibilities.   
          Among these are the 17-member Commission on the Status of Women  
          and Girls, established by Ch. 579/1977, and the 13-member  
          Commission on Asian and Pacific Islander American Affairs,  
          established by AB 116 (Nakano), Ch. 716/2002.




          Proposed Law:  
            AB 80 would establish a 20-member BMoC Task Force within state  
          government, comprised of one appointed Member of each house of  
          the Legislature and 18 specified state government officials or  
          their designees.  This bill would also:
           Require the BMoC Task Force to hold its first hearing by  
            January 1, 2016, and to meet at least quarterly thereafter.   
            Meetings are subject to open meeting laws.
           Provide the BMoC Task Force with specified powers and duties,  
            including the authority to employ necessary administrative,  
            technical, or other personnel.
           Require the BMoC Task Force to complete the following  
            activities by July 1, 2016:








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               o      Assess existing state programs that align with the  
                 priorities of the 2014 My Brother's Keeper Task Force  
                 Report to the President and identify state opportunities  
                 to partner and coordinate with that federal Task Force.
               o      Assess the Governor's Budget to identify areas in  
                 which budget priorities align with the objectives of the  
                 BMoC Task Force.
               o      Review the action plan of the Final Report and  
                 Policy Platform for State Action (2012-18) of the  
                 Assembly Select Committee on the Status of Boys and Men  
                 of Color.
           Specify long-term, ongoing responsibilities of the BMoC Task  
            Force, including: assessing relevant state policies,  
            regulations, and programs, and developing strategies to  
            achieve desired outcomes; preparing relevant population and  
            agency-specific data, and making it publicly available; and  
            serving as a liaison to departments and agencies to ensure  
            engagement and partnership with other public, nonprofit, and  
            philanthropic entities, as specified.
           Require the BMoC Task Force to prepare an annual report to the  
            Legislature on department and agency findings related to BMoC  
            Task Force activities.
           Establish the Boys and Men of Color Task Force Fund in the  
            State Treasury as a fund to support the task force, upon  
            appropriation by the Legislature.  Subject to approval from  
            the Department of Finance, all moneys collected or received by  
            the BMoC Task Force from gifts, bequests, or donations must be  
            deposited into the new Fund in accordance with specified terms  
            of gifts or donations.  
           Sunset the BMoC Task Force on January 1, 2026.


          Related  
          Legislation:  AB 914 (Bradford) was amended on the Senate Floor  
          in the final days of the 2013-14 Session to include provisions  
          that were nearly identical to this bill.  AB 914 would also have  
          established a 20-member BMoC Task Force, but the bill was not  
          heard in any committee.
          SB 301 (Alarcon), which was vetoed in 2003, would have  
          established a 15-member Commission on Latino/Latina Affairs to  
          advise the Governor and Legislature on social and economic  
          issues and interests of that community.  The veto message  
          conveyed Governor Scwarzenegger's belief that the establishment  
          of a new commission for this purpose was unnecessary.








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          AB 116 (Nakano), Ch. 716/2002, established a 13-member  
          Commission on Asian and Pacific Islander American Affairs to  
          advise the Governor, Legislature, and state departments and  
          agencies on economic and social development issues of interest  
          to that community.




          Staff  
          Comments:  AB 80 establishes a 20-member task force and  
          authorizes the body to employ staff necessary for the  
          performance of its powers and duties.  Staff assumes the BMoC  
          Task Force would require at least two full-time staff, plus  
          administrative support, to perform necessary functions and  
          responsibilities, at an estimated annual cost of approximately  
          $300,000, including salaries, benefits, and operating expenses  
          and equipment.  These costs could be higher to the extent the  
          Task Force is funded more robustly, which is dependent upon the  
          level of General Fund support and non-state donations.  
          For illustrative and comparative purposes, the Commission on the  
          Status of Women and Girls, upon which some of this bill is  
          modeled, has operated in recent years with 2.1 PY of support  
          staff and a budget of approximately $400,000 comprised of both  
          General Fund and private donations.  The Commission was provided  
          with a $500,000 General Fund augmentation in the 2015-16 budget  
          year, bringing the total budget to $874,000 with a staff of 4.2  
          PY.  Several other state commissions that examine issues related  
          to particular populations, such as the Commission on Aging and  
          the Commission on Disability Access, function with staffs of 3-4  
          PY and budget appropriations of approximately $500,000 from  
          various state, federal, and donated funds.


          Staff notes that the bill requires the BMoC Task Force to hold  
          its inaugural meeting by January 1, 2016 and complete initial  
          specified tasks by July 1, 2016, but the Task Force would not  
          have funding to hire staff necessary to perform its powers and  
          duties until at least the 2016-17 fiscal year, to the extent the  
          Legislature appropriates funds for that purpose.










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