BILL ANALYSIS Ó SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair 2015 - 2016 Regular Session AB 179 (Bonilla) - Healing arts ----------------------------------------------------------------- | | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- |--------------------------------+--------------------------------| | | | |Version: June 30, 2015 |Policy Vote: B., P. & E.D. 7 - | | | 1 | | | | |--------------------------------+--------------------------------| | | | |Urgency: No |Mandate: No | | | | |--------------------------------+--------------------------------| | | | |Hearing Date: August 17, 2015 |Consultant: Brendan McCarthy | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File. Bill Summary: AB 179 would extend the statutory sunset on the Dental Board of California until January 1, 2020 and increase the statutory caps on fees assessed by the Dental Board. The bill would extend the statutory sunset of the Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians until January 1, 2018 and merge the Vocational Nurses Account and the Psychiatric Technician Examiners Account. Fiscal Impact: No significant costs are anticipated due to the extension of the sunset on the Dental Board of California (State Dentistry Fund). Current law imposes a sunset on the existence of the Dental Board as an appointed board. However, there is no sunset on the larger body of law requiring licensure and oversight of the practice of dentistry. If the Dental Board was allowed to sunset, the overall licensing and regulatory program would still exist in law. AB 179 (Bonilla) Page 1 of ? Significant increases in licensing fee revenues to the Dental Board are possible under the bill (State Dentistry Fund). The bill authorizes the Dental Board, through regulation, to raise a number of licensing fees currently capped in statute. If the Board were to raise the fees to the maximum level authorized in the bill, additional annual revenues would be about $2.8 million per year for dentist licensing fees and $2.7 million per year for other regulatory fees (State Dentistry Fund). The actual amount of fee revenue collected by the Board will depend on the actual fee levels set through regulation. No significant costs are anticipated due to the extension of the sunset on the Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians (Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians Fund). Current law imposes a sunset on the existence of the Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians as an appointed board. However, there is no sunset on the larger body of law requiring licensure and oversight of the practice of vocational nurses or psychiatric technicians. If the Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians was allowed to sunset, the overall licensing and regulatory program would still exist in law. Uncertain impact on licensing fee revenues paid by vocational nurses and psychiatric technicians due to the merger of the Vocational Nurses Account and the Psychiatric Technician Examiners Account. The licensing fees assessed on vocational nurses and psychiatric technicians are currently set at their statutory caps. The Vocational Nurses Account is projected to maintain solvent through 2020-21. However, the Psychiatric Technician Examiners Account has a structural deficit and is projected to be insolvent by 2017-18. Rather than propose a statutory change to allow the Board to raise the licensing fees assessed on psychiatric technicians, this bill would merge the two accounts, effectively using the licensing fees paid by vocational nurses to pay for the program costs associated with licensing and regulating psychiatric technicians. Background: Under current law, the Dental Board licenses and regulates the practice of dentistry in the state. Current law sets statutory maximums for the various licensing fees assessed by the Dental AB 179 (Bonilla) Page 2 of ? Board. Current law sunsets the existence of the Dental Board on January 1, 2016. There is no statutory sunset on the Dental Practice Act, itself. Under current law the Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians licenses and regulates the professional practice of vocational nurses and psychiatric technicians. Current law sets statutory maximums for the various licensing fees assessed by the Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians. Current law sunsets the existence of the Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians on January 1, 2016. There is no statutory sunset on the larger bodies of law requiring licensure of vocational nurses or psychiatric technicians or regulating their respective practices. Current law provides for a separate Vocational Nurses Account and a Psychiatric Technician Examiners Account, both within the Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians Fund. Historically, these accounts have been separately budgeted and displayed in budget documents. Proposed Law: AB 179 would extend the statutory sunset on the Dental Board of California until January 1, 2020 and increase the statutory caps on fees assessed by the Dental Board. The bill would also make minor changes to related laws. The bill would extend the statutory sunset of the Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians until January 1, 2018 and merge the Vocational Nurses Account and the Psychiatric Technician Examiners Account. Related Legislation: This bill is one of several sunset review bills relating to licensing boards and bureaus within the Department of Consumer Affairs. Staff Comments: As noted above, the proposal to merge the Vocational Nurses Account and the Psychiatric Technician Examiners Account AB 179 (Bonilla) Page 3 of ? is intended to restore solvency to the Psychiatric Technician Examiners Account, using fee revenues in the Vocational Nurses Account. It appears that this proposal would result in licensing fees paid by vocational nurses being used to subsidize the licensure and regulation of psychiatric technicians. -- END --