BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                     AB 294


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          Date of Hearing:  April 22, 2015


                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS


                                 Jimmy Gomez, Chair


          AB  
          294 (Lackey) - As Amended April 9, 2015


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          Urgency:  No  State Mandated Local Program:  NoReimbursable:  No


          SUMMARY:


          This bill requires any department within the California Health  
          and Human Services Agency (CHHSA) to post on the homepage of its  
          website information about any federally approved state plan or  
          waiver of federal laws or regulations.








                                                                     AB 294


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          FISCAL EFFECT:


          Negligible state fiscal effect.  This bill will apply to ten  
          departments under CHHSA, some of which are already likely  
          compliant. 


          COMMENTS:


          Purpose. According to the author, this bill will increase  
          transparency for programs administered within CHHSA, which  
          include many programs partially or fully funded with federal  
          funds and operating under federal requirements.  These programs  
          include Medi-Cal, CalFresh, CalWORKs, Women, Infants, and  
          Children (WIC), and others.  According to the author, frequently  
          the federal government will require the designated state agency  
          to submit a state plan for the operation of the program.  In  
          addition, states often obtain federal waivers as they test more  
          innovative approaches to implementing federal law.  It is  
          sometimes difficult to ascertain what is included in state  
          plans, or what waivers of federal law or regulation are  
          operative, if the plans and waivers are not publicly accessible.  



          


          Analysis Prepared by:Lisa Murawski / APPR. / (916)  
          319-2081













                                                                     AB 294


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