Amended in Assembly May 18, 2015

Amended in Assembly April 23, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 1029

Introduced by Assembly Member Frazier

February 26, 2015

An act to add Article 8 (commencing with Section 999.75) to Chapter 6 of Division 4 of the Military and Veterans Code, relating to veterans.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1029, as amended, Frazier. Veterans: service providers.

Existing law provides for certain services, protections, and benefits for veterans. Existing law establishes a 3-percent participation goal for disabled veteran business enterprises in state procurement.

This bill would allow entities meeting specified requirements to apply to the Department of Veterans Affairs to become certified California veteran service providers. The bill would require the department to maintain a list of certified California veteran service providers on its Internet Web begin delete site. end delete begin insert site, including the type of supportive services provided by the providers. end insert The bill would require that certification would remain valid for 3 years unless the entity is decertified by the department. The bill would require the begin delete department end delete begin insert department, no later than July 1, 2017, end insert to adopt rules, procedures, and regulations as necessary to decertify an entity if it no longer meets the requirements to be a certified California veteran service provider.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

(a) The Legislature finds and declares that it is
necessary to provide the public the means to determine which
charitable entities providing supportive services to veterans meet
certain minimum standards of cultural competency and financial
legitimacy.

(b) It is the intent of the Legislature to establish a voluntary
certification program whereby the Department of Veterans Affairs
will certify that certain charitable entities providing supportive
services to veterans meet minimum standards.

(c) It is further the intent of the Legislature that the Secretary
of the Department of Veterans Affairs consider whether it would
be beneficial to the people of the State of California to, in the
future, establish a uniform process for state contracting that
provides a preference to entities certified by the department
pursuant to Section 999.75 of the Military and Veterans Code
under a state contract or grant for supportive services to veterans
or their families.

SEC. 2.  

Article 8 (commencing with Section 999.75) is added
to Chapter 6 of Division 4 of the Military and Veterans Code, to
read:

 

Article 8.  Veterans Preference For State Services Contracts

 

999.75.  

For purposes of this article, both of the following shall
apply:

(a) A “certified California veteran service provider” means an
entity that is certified by the department as having an established
history of providing supportive services and that meets all of the
following requirements:

(1) Provides begin delete supportive health and end delete begin insert at least three of the following
supportive services: housing assistance, health services, end insert mental
health services, small business assistance, employment services,
and job training services to begin delete veterans. end delete begin insert veterans and their families. end insert

(2) Demonstrates the knowledge, experience, and cultural
competency to provide supportive services to veterans and their
families.

(3) Demonstrates through audits and employment history the
fiscal and management capacity to capably perform supportive
services to veterans and their families.

(4) Is a nonprofit organization that is exempt from federal
income taxation as an organization described in Section 501(c)(3)
begin insert or Section 501(c)(19) end insert of the Internal Revenue Code.

(5) Demonstrates through the submission of appropriate
supporting data that the entity has effectively served the needs of
veteran or veteran family clients.

(6) Demonstrates that all required filings with the Secretary of
State, the office of the Attorney General, and the Franchise Tax
Board are current. Demonstrates that the entity meets or exceeds
the provisions of Article 1.3 (commencing with Section 17510)
of Chapter 1 of Part 3 of Division 7 of the Business and Professions
Code and complies with the standards included in the Attorney
General’s Guide for Charities.

(b) A certified California veteran service provider shall provide
to the department all of the following up-to-date documents upon
application for certification and at any time during the certification
period on request and reasonable notice by the department:

(1) Articles of incorporation and all amendments to the articles
of incorporation.

(2) IRS Letter of Determination.

(3) Taxpayer identification number.

(4) Independent audit reports dating back three years.

(c) (1) In order to obtain certification as a certified California
veteran service provider, the begin delete qualified entity end delete begin insert applicant end insert shall apply
to the department, in a form and manner as required by the
department.

(2)  begin delete The end delete begin insert Beginning July 1, 2017, the end insert department shall begin delete process
and approve or reject end delete begin insert begin processing and approving or rejecting end insert
all applications on the basis of the requirements set forth in
subdivision (a).

(d) The department shall maintain a list of certified California
veteran service providers on its Internet Web begin delete site. end delete begin insert site, including
the type of supportive services provided by the providers. end insert

begin insert

(e) On or before April 1, 2017, the department shall provide
the Committee on Veterans Affairs in both houses of the Legislature
with a progress report on the status of the regulations required
by subdivision (d).

end insert

999.76.  

(a) A certification approved by the department shall
be valid for three years from the date the department accepts
credentials for certification unless the department decertifies the
certified California veteran service provider.

(b) The department may accept current certifications and licenses
from any other state entity, agency, or department in order to
provide a certification of a certified California veteran service
provider pursuant to Section 999.75.

(c) The department may accept an organization’s status as a
congressionally chartered veterans service organization as support
for certification of a certified California veteran service provider
pursuant to Section 999.75.

(d)  begin delete The end delete begin insert No later than July 1, 2017, the end insert department shall adopt
rules, procedures, and regulations as necessary to decertify a
certified California veteran service provider prior to the expiration
of a current certification when the certified California veteran
service provider no longer meets the requirements set forth in
Section 999.75.