BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 702
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ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB
702 (Maienschein)
As Introduced February 25, 2015
Majority vote
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|Committee |Votes |Ayes |Noes |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|----------------+------+--------------------+---------------------|
|Human Services |7-0 |Chu, Mayes, | |
| | |Calderon, Lopez, | |
| | |Maienschein, | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | |Mark Stone, | |
| | |Thurmond | |
| | | | |
|----------------+------+--------------------+---------------------|
|Appropriations |17-0 |Gomez, Bigelow, | |
| | |Bonta, Calderon, | |
| | |Chang, Daly, | |
| | |Eggman, Gallagher, | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | |Eduardo Garcia, | |
| | |Gordon, Holden, | |
| | |Jones, Quirk, | |
| | |Rendon, Wagner, | |
| | |Weber, Wood | |
| | | | |
AB 702
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| | | | |
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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
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 United State Code 601 et seq. and
Welfare and Institutions Code (WIC) Section 11200 et seq.)
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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 Sections 11450 and 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 Section
11450(f)(2))
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee:
1)Potentially significant ongoing costs, in the range of $2
million (General Fund (GF)), for increased housing benefits.
2)Unknown, likely minor costs to the Department of Social Services
for automation modifications required to track this information.
3)Ongoing, likely minor, state-reimbursable local costs (GF) for
county agencies to re-evaluate eligibility for temporary housing
assistance payments.
COMMENTS:
CalWORKs: The 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
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children) is $506.55, and the maximum monthly grant amount for a
family of three, if the family has no other income and lives in a
high-cost county, is $704. 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 12 and almost 40% are under age
five.
Maximum grant amounts in high-cost counties of $704 per month for
a family of three with no other income means $23.46 per day, per
family, or $7.82 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 $8,448 per year, or 42% of poverty.
Federal Poverty Guidelines for 2015 show that 100% of poverty for
a family of three is $20,090 per year.
Homelessness in California: Point in time data from the Annual
Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR) produced by the United States
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.
According to the National Center on Family Homelessness, nearly
2.5 million children in the United States 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
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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 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
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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.
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
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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
off of the street and more quickly secure permanent housing. This
bill strengthens the ability of the program to achieve that goal."
Analysis Prepared by:
Myesha Jackson / HUM. S. / (916) 319-2089 FN:
0000631
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