BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1029
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Date of Hearing: April 28, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON VETERANS AFFAIRS
Jacqui Irwin, Chair
AB 1029
(Frazier) - As Introduced February 26, 2015
SUBJECT: Veterans: service providers
SUMMARY: Creates a certification program for charitable
organizations that provide certain specified service to veterans
and their families. Specifically, this bill:
1)States certain Legislative findings and declarations:
a) 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) 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) 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 under a state contract or grant for
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supportive services to veterans or their families.
2)Defines "Certified California Veteran Servicer Provider" to
mean an entity that is certified by the Department as having
an established history of providing supportive services, as
specified and that meets all of the following requirements:
3)Provides supportive health and mental health services, small
business assistance, employment services, and job training
services to veterans.
4)Demonstrates the knowledge, experience, and cultural
competency to provide supportive services to veterans and
their families.
5)Demonstrates through audits and employment history the fiscal
and management capacity to capably perform supportive services
to veterans and their families.
6)Is a nonprofit organization that is exempt from federal income
taxation as an organization described in Section 501(c)(3) of
the Internal Revenue Code.
7)Demonstrates through the submission of appropriate supporting
data that the entity has effectively served the needs of
veteran or veteran family clients.
8)Demonstrates that all required filings with the Secretary of
State, the office of the Attorney General, and the Franchise
Tax Board are current.
9)Demonstrates that the entity meets or exceeds the provisions
of California's Charity Solicitation Disclosure Law and
complies with the standards included in the California
Attorney General's Guide for Charities.
10)Mandates that Certified California Veteran Servicer Provider
shall provide to the department all of the following
up-to-date documents upon application for certification and at
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any time during the certification period on request and
reasonable notice by the department:
a) Articles of incorporation and all amendments to the
articles of incorporation.
b) IRS Letter of Determination.
c) Taxpayer identification number.
d) Independent audit reports dating back three years.
11)Directs that the department shall maintain a list of
Certified California Veteran Servicer Providers on its
Internet Web site.
12)States that 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 Servicer
Provider.
13)Clarifies that the department may accept current
certifications and licenses from any other state entity,
agency, or department as support for certification of a
Certified Veteran Service Provider pursuant to Section 999.75.
14)Specifies that the Department may accept an organization's
status as a Congressionally chartered Veterans Service
Organization as support for certification of a Certified
Veteran Service Provider pursuant to Section 999.
15)Mandates that the department shall adopt such rules,
procedures, and regulations as necessary to decertify a
Certified Provider prior to the expiration of a current
certification when the Certified Provider no longer meets the
standards set forth in section 999.75.
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EXISTING LAW: Existing law contains some analogues, such as the
Disabled Veteran Business Enterprise Program, which as part of
the program has a certification by the Department of General
Services that a business meets the requirements to participate
in the program. However, there is nothing in current code that
would certify a Veteran Service Provider in the way that this
bill would.
FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown.
COMMENTS: According to the author:
Veterans comprise 25% or more of California's homeless
population. Tens of thousands of these individuals are
returning from wars in Iraq and Afghanistan with significant
physical and mental injuries.
The state provides resources to veterans in the form of grants
to non-profit agencies that provide housing, mental health,
substance abuse, case management and employment services.
However, as concern for the welfare of returning service
members has grown, so has the interest of an increasing number
of organizations to receive the small amount of grant dollars
available.
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These scarce grant dollars are often going to organizations
with excellent grant writers, however, the actual
organizations have no background or experience to address the
unique needs of veterans; often times, they have no actual
base of clients to serve.
As a result, qualified veteran service organizations (with
long and proven histories of effectively serving veterans)
receive reduced funding and are forced to cut services to
veterans and lay off qualified staff.
The criteria established by CalVet would help ensure that
state funding for veteran services grants would flow to
agencies that have a proven track record of excellence in
providing services to our veterans. In addition to improved
targeting of limited veteran resources, this bill will also
help address a long-term problem of con-artists who solicit
contributions from well-meaning but unaware Californians who
make donations to veteran organizations. Such organizations
drain grant resources without providing the necessary services
to veterans.
This bill would create a certification for charitable entities
that serve veterans that the entity meets certain minimum
standards. The scope of the certification is limited to
entities serving veterans with supportive: health and mental
health services, small business assistance, employment services,
and job training services. These entities must demonstrate
knowledge, experience, and cultural competency to provide
supportive services to veterans and their families.
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The language before the Committee is the result of much
discussion and collaboration between the author, staff, and
experienced veteran service providers. It represents an attempt
to recognize that there is a particular value and special
expertise from having a proven track record of serving veterans
primarily or exclusively but that there are also experienced,
legitimate, high quality service providers who serve many
veterans but also serve other populations and have broader
missions.
The language is an attempt to provide a means for the public,
contracting officials, and others to know that certain entities
providing supportive services to veterans meet a certain minimum
acceptable level of quality, direct experience serving veterans,
and legitimacy. The language does not attempt to resolve the
further question of whether those entities serving veterans
exclusively should be preferred or recognized above others for
providing a level of service far above the minimum.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
California Association of Veteran Service Agencies
Opposition
AB 1029
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None on File.
Analysis Prepared by:John Spangler / V.A. / (916) 319-3550