BILL NUMBER: AB 470 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 1, 2015
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Chu
(Coauthor: Assembly Member Waldron)
FEBRUARY 23, 2015
An act to amend Section 15660 of ad
d Section 15661 to the Welfare and Institutions Code,
relating to social services, and making an appropriation
therefor. services.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 470, as amended, Chu. In-home supportive services:
fingerprinting.
Existing law establishes the In-Home Supportive Services
(IHSS) program, administered by the State Department of Social
Services and counties, under which qualified aged, blind, and
disabled persons are provided with services in order to permit them
to remain in their own homes and avoid institutionalization. Existing
law requires the Department of Justice to conduct background
checks, as requested, by employers of in-home supportive services
and other providers. Existing law requires the
department to charge a fee to the employer to cover the costs of
administering the background check program.
This bill would require the above fees to be placed in the IHSS
Fingerprint Account, which would be established by the bill. The bill
would continuously appropriate those funds to the Department of
Justice for use to offset costs incurred in administering the
background checks and for maintenance and improvement to the systems
from which the information is obtained.
This bill would require the Department of Justice, by October 1,
2016, and in collaboration with the department, to develop protocols
to expedite the processing of provider criminal record checks for the
In-Home Supportive Services program, as specified.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: yes no
. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 15661 is added to the
Welfare and Institutions Code , to read:
15661. By October 1, 2016, the Department of Justice, in
collaboration with the department, shall develop protocols to
expedite the processing of provider criminal record checks for the
In-Home Supportive Services program. This activity may be funded
through moneys appropriated by the Legislature to the Department of
Justice for the purpose of conducting criminal record check
activities pursuant to Section 15660.
SECTION 1. Section 15660 of the Welfare and
Institutions Code is amended to read:
15660. (a) The Department of Justice shall secure the criminal
record of a person to determine whether the person has ever been
convicted of a violation or attempted violation of Section 243.4 of
the Penal Code, a sex offense against a minor, or of a felony that
requires registration pursuant to Section 290 of the Penal Code, or
whether the person has been convicted or incarcerated within the last
10 years as the result of committing a violation or attempted
violation of Section 273a or 273d, or subdivision (a) or (b) of
Section 368, of the Penal Code, or as the result of committing a
theft, robbery, burglary, or a felony, and shall provide a subsequent
arrest notification pursuant to Section 11105.2 of the Penal Code,
if both of the following conditions are met:
(1) The person's employer requests the determination and submits
the person's fingerprints to the Department of Justice. For purposes
of this paragraph, "employer" includes, but is not limited to, an
in-home supportive services recipient, as defined by Section 12302.2,
an aged or disabled adult who is ineligible for benefits under
Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 12000), who receives care by a
person as described in paragraph (2), a recipient of personal care
services under the Medi-Cal program pursuant to Sections 14132.95 to
14132.97, inclusive, and a public authority or nonprofit consortium,
as described in subdivision (a) of Section 12301.6.
(2) The person is unlicensed and provides nonmedical domestic or
personal care to an aged or disabled adult in the adult's own home.
(b) (1) If it is found that the person has ever been convicted of
a violation or attempted violation of Section 243.4 of the Penal
Code, a sex offense against a minor, or of a felony that requires
registration pursuant to Section 290 of the Penal Code, or that the
person has been convicted or incarcerated within the last 10 years as
the result of committing a violation or attempted violation of
Section 273a or 273d, or subdivision (a) or (b) of Section 368, of
the Penal Code, or as the result of committing a theft, robbery,
burglary, or a felony, the Department of Justice shall notify the
employer of that fact. If no criminal record information has been
recorded, the Department of Justice shall provide the employer with a
statement of that fact.
(2) An employer may deny employment to a person who is the subject
of a report under paragraph (1) when the report indicates that the
person has committed any of the crimes identified in paragraph (1).
(3) Nothing in this section shall be construed to require an
employer to hire a person who is the subject of a report under
paragraph (1) when the report indicates that the person has not
committed any of the crimes indicated in paragraph (1).
(c) (1) Fingerprints shall be on a card provided by the Department
of Justice for the purpose of obtaining a set of fingerprints. The
employer shall submit the fingerprints to the Department of Justice.
Within 30 calendar days of the receipt of the fingerprints, the
Department of Justice shall notify the employer of the criminal
record information, as provided in this subdivision. If no criminal
record information has been recorded, the Department of Justice shall
provide the employer with a statement of that fact as soon as
possible, but not later than 30 calendar days from the date of
receipt of the fingerprints. If new fingerprints are required for
processing, the Department of Justice shall, as soon as possible, but
not later than 30 calendar days from the date of receipt of the
fingerprints, notify the employer that the fingerprints were
illegible.
(2) Fingerprints may be taken by any local law enforcement officer
or agency for purposes of paragraph (1).
(3) Counties shall notify any recipient of, or applicant for,
in-home supportive services or personal care services under the
Medi-Cal program, upon his or her application for in-home supportive
services or personal care services, during his or her annual
redetermination, or upon the recipient's changing providers, that a
criminal record check is available, and that the check can be
performed by the Department of Justice.
(d) (1) The Department of Justice shall charge a fee to the
employer to cover the costs of administering this section. All moneys
assessed pursuant to this subdivision shall be deposited into the
IHSS Fingerprint Account, which is hereby created in the State
Treasury. Notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, funds
in the IHSS Fingerprint Account shall be continuously appropriated
to the Department of Justice for use to offset costs incurred
pursuant to this section, subdivision (e) of Section 12301.6,
subdivision (a) of Section 12305.86, and for maintenance and
improvement to the systems from which the information is obtained.
(2) (A) If the employer is a recipient of in-home supportive
services, a recipient of personal care services under the Medi-Cal
program pursuant to Sections 14132.95 to 14132.97, inclusive, or a
public authority or nonprofit consortium as described in subdivision
(a) of Section 12301.6, payment of the fee shall be shared by the
county and the state in the same ratio as described in Section 12306.
(B) (i) Notwithstanding any other law, and except as provided in
clause (ii), the department shall, no later than January 1, 2009,
implement subparagraph (A) through an all-county letter from the
director.
(ii) No later than July 1, 2009, the department shall adopt
regulations to implement the provisions listed in subparagraph (A).
(e) It is the intent of the Legislature that the Department of
Justice charge a fee to cover its cost in providing services in
accordance with this section to comply with the 30-calendar-day
requirement for provision to the department of the criminal record
information, as contained in subdivision (c).