BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 702
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Date of Hearing: April 14, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES
Kansen Chu, Chair
AB 702
(Maienschein) - As Introduced February 25, 2015
SUBJECT: CalWORKs: temporary shelter assistance
SUMMARY: Deletes the requirement that the 16 days of temporary
shelter assistance provided to homeless families through the
California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids
(CalWORKs) program be used consecutively.
Specifically, this bill:
1)Allows an eligible CalWORKs recipient to receive temporary
shelter assistance for 16 days, which can be used at any time
while the recipient is receiving CalWORKs aid and is homeless.
2)Deletes the requirement that a break in the consecutive use of
the temporary shelter assistance benefit constitute a
permanent exhaustion of the temporary benefit.
3)Replaces the maximum of two periods of 16 consecutive calendar
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days of temporary shelter assistance for victims of domestic
violence, as specified, with a lifetime maximum of 32 calendar
days of temporary assistance.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Establishes under federal law the Temporary Assistance for
Needy Families (TANF) program to provide aid and
welfare-to-work services to eligible families and, in
California, provides that TANF funds for welfare-to-work
services are administered through the CalWORKs program. (42
U.S.C. 601 et seq., WIC 11200 et seq.)
2)Establishes income, asset and real property limits used to
determine eligibility for the program, including net income
below the Maximum Aid Payment (MAP), based on family size and
county of residence, which is around 40% of the Federal
Poverty Level. (WIC 11450, 11150 et seq.)
3)Provides temporary shelter assistance to homeless families
receiving CalWORKs for one period of 16 consecutive days,
except as specified, and counts a break in the consecutive use
of the assistance as permanent exhaustion of the benefit.
(WIC 11450(f)(2))
FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown
COMMENTS:
CalWORKs: The California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to
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Kids (CalWORKs) program provides monthly income assistance and
employment-related services aimed at moving children out of
poverty and helping families meet basic needs. Federal funding
for CalWORKs comes from the Temporary Assistance for Needy
Families (TANF) block grant. The average 2015-16 monthly cash
grant for a family of three on CalWORKs (one parent and two
children) is $506.55. According to recent data from the
California Department of Social Services, over 540,000 families
rely on CalWORKs, including over one million children. Nearly
80% of the children are under age twelve and 40% are under age
five.
Average grant amounts of $506.55 per month for a family of three
means $16.88 per day, per family, or $5.62 per family member,
per day to meet basic needs, including rent, clothing, utility
bills, food, and anything else a family needs to ensure children
can be cared for at home and safely remain with their families.
This grant amount puts the annual household income at $6,078 per
year. Federal Poverty Guidelines for 2015 show that 100% of
poverty for a family of three is over three times that at
$20,090 per year.
Homelessness in California: Point in time data from the Annual
Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR) produced by the US Department
of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) reveals that on a single
night in January 2014, there were 578,424 homeless people
counted in the United States, 216,261 of which were people who
were part of homeless families. That same report reveals that
113,952 (nearly 20%) of those homeless people were counted in
California, 71,437 of which were unsheltered. It is important
to note that this number is for a single night and is neither
exhaustive of the number of Californians experiencing
homelessness on a daily basis nor the number of Californians who
experience homelessness each year.
Homelessness has particularly damaging effects on children.
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According to the National Center on Family Homelessness, nearly
2.5 million children in the US will experience homelessness over
the course of a year. The AHAR revealed that on that same night
in January 2014, 135,701 homeless individuals were children
under age 18. The effects of homelessness on children span from
hunger and related physical, cognitive and developmental issues
to lowered academic achievement and increases in stress,
depression, emotional instability and overall poor mental
health.
CalWORKs homeless assistance: For purposes of identifying
families eligible for CalWORKs homeless assistance, a family is
considered homeless if the family lacks a fixed and regular
nighttime residence, if the family's primary nighttime residence
is a shelter, or if the family is residing in a public or
private place that is not an appropriate sleeping place for
human beings. Additionally, a family can be considered homeless
for CalWORKs purposes if the family has received an eviction
notice and the cause of eviction is the result of a verified
financial hardship.
Temporary shelter assistance and permanent housing assistance
are two types of housing assistance provided to homeless
families under the CalWORKs program. Whereas permanent housing
assistance can be provided to help secure or maintain permanent
housing and help prevent eviction for a family, temporary
shelter assistance is provided to homeless families for up to 16
consecutive days. Temporary shelter assistance for a family of
up to four people is $65 per day, and $15 is provided for each
additional family member. The maximum amount of temporary
shelter assistance any family can receive is $125 per day, and
the assistance can only be used to pay for housing provided in a
commercial establishment, a shelter, or an established rental
property. Additionally, CalWORKs recipients must provide proof
to the county that they are searching for permanent housing
while they are receiving this benefit and proof that the shelter
assistance was used to pay for allowable housing. Any break in
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the use of the assistance, including one night spent with a
friend or relative, automatically terminates a family's ability
to receive shelter assistance for any days remaining within the
16 consecutive day limit.
The 16 consecutive day limit is a lifetime limit for temporary
shelter assistance, provided that a family doesn't meet criteria
for an exception. A family may receive temporary shelter
assistance more than once in a lifetime if the family's
homelessness is the direct result of domestic violence, a
medically verified physical or mental illness, excluding
diagnoses that include substance abuse, or a fire or other
natural catastrophe beyond the family's control. Still, a
family cannot receive the 16 consecutive days of homeless
assistance more than once in a 12-month period, and families can
only receive shelter assistance for domestic violence twice in a
lifetime.
Housing Support Program: Established through the Budget Act of
2014, the CalWORKs Housing Support Program (HSP) is an
evidence-based program that allows counties to provide housing
and related supports to CalWORKs families that are experiencing
homelessness or housing instability that is a barrier to
self-sufficiency or child well-being. The HSP was established
as a means of expanding the minimal housing assistance that was
previously available to homeless families in the CalWORKs
program with the understanding that safe, affordable and stable
housing is a key element in facilitating family stability and
self-sufficiency. Forty-two counties expressed an interest in
implementing or expanding an existing housing support program,
requesting over $52 million in funding. However, only 20
counties were awarded funds from the $20 million dollar budget
amount available for the HSP to be spent by June 30, 2015.
Budget conversations are ongoing with respect to whether the
state will augment and continue the HSP.
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Need for this bill: Despite the positive outcomes reported for
families served through the Housing Support Program in 20
counties, 38 counties have had to continue to work within the
constraints of the temporary shelter assistance and permanent
housing assistance programs. Without additional resources to
house and provide wraparound supports to homeless CalWORKs
families, and with no indication yet as to whether those
counties will be able to access HSP funding in the future,
restructuring of the temporary shelter assistance program will
remain essential for many families in need. In January 2015,
counties throughout California received 2,918 requests for
temporary shelter assistance, 259 of which accompanied requests
for permanent housing assistance. Of the 3,402 total requests
received in January for temporary and/or permanent shelter
assistance, 614 were received from new shelter assistance
applicants. Six counties received over 80 requests for temporary
shelter assistance in January, including 245 in San Bernardino
County, 82 in Alameda, and 160 in Sacramento.
According to the author, "Because the temporary housing
assistance is only available for 16 consecutive days, a break in
assistance inadvertently punishes families who, for one reason
or another, have to vacate their temporary lodgings for even one
day. Out-of-area travel for job opportunities, childcare
obligations or medical related travel can interrupt a 16-day
consecutive hotel stay. Sometimes the interruptions in the
16-day consecutive stay come when a family vacates a hotel or
motel because it is unsuited for children or they have a
temporary offer to stay with a family or friend. Whether or not
the family has a choice to stop aid before the 16th day, the
rule itself establishes a disincentive to find alternative
arrangements, seek prospective opportunities for employment or
to tend to pressing health or family obligations during this
time period. This bill increases options for our state's
poorest families with children while improving program
administration. The purpose of the CalWORKs temporary housing
assistance is to enable homeless families with children to stay
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off of the street and more quickly secure permanent housing.
This bill strengthens the ability of the program to achieve that
goal."
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
Western Center on Law and Poverty (sponsor)
Alameda County Community Food Bank
California Alternative Payment Program Association (CAPPA)
California Association of Food Banks
California Catholic Conference of Bishops
California Communities United Institute
California State Association of Counties (CSAC)
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Community Food and Justice Coalition
Courage Campaign
Housing California
National Association of Social Workers, CA Chapter (NASW-CA)
San Diego Hunger Coalition
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by:Myesha Jackson / HUM. S. / (916) 319-2089
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