BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1712
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Date of Hearing: March 29, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES
Susan Bonilla, Chair
AB 1712
(Obernolte) - As Introduced January 26, 2016
SUBJECT: Child care: contractors: digital signatures
SUMMARY: Authorizes child care contractors to use electronic
signatures and requires that those signatures have the same
force and effect as manual signatures, as specified.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Establishes the California Child Care and Development Services
Act to provide a comprehensive, community-based, coordinated,
and cost-effective system of child care and development
services for children from birth to age 13 with the purpose of
enhancing the social, emotional, physical, and intellectual
development of children. (EDC 8200 et seq.)
2)Defines child care and development services as services
designed to meet a wide variety of needs of children and their
families, while their parents or guardians are working, in
training, seeking employment, incapacitated, or in need of
respite. (EDC 8208(j))
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3)Authorizes local government agencies or non-profit
organizations to contract with the California Department of
Education (CDE) to operate Alternative Payment Programs (APPs)
and provide alternative payments and support services to
parents and child development providers. (EDC 8220 et seq.)
4)Establishes requirements and procedures APPs and child
development providers must follow as contracted agencies with
CDE, including, but not limited to, tracking and reporting of
attendance, accounting and auditing requirements, and
reimbursement and payment procedures. (EDC 8221.5)
5)Requires any agency that contracts with CDE for the provision
of educational services to undergo a periodic audit regarding
the use of state and federal funds, as specified. (EDC 33420)
6)Requires agencies that receive state funds to, at the request
of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, make all records
pertaining to its state-funded programs available to the CDE,
as specified, and that all records be retained by each agency
for at least five years, as specified. (EDC 33421)
7)Permits APPs and child care providers and child care
contractors to maintain records in electronic format, as
specified. (EDC 8227.3, 8262.1)
8)Permits APPs and child care providers to use electronic
signatures, as specified. (EDC 8227.5)
9)Establishes the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (UETA),
which permits, but does not require, a record or signature to
be created, generated, sent, communicated, received, stored,
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or otherwise processed or used by electronic means or in
electronic form. (CIV 1633.1 et seq.)
10)Establishes that a digital signature, when used in written
communication with a public entity, shall have the same force
and effect of a manual signature if it meets certain
requirements, as specified. (GOV 16.5)
FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown.
COMMENTS:
Subsidized child care programs: In California, subsidized child
care may be available to families that meet certain eligibility
requirements. The three main types of subsidized child care
programs include: California Work Opportunity and
Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKS) child care, Alternative
Payment Programs (APPs) and General Child Care. General Child
Care offers child care and education/development services
through contracted child care centers and family child care home
networks that are administered through public or private
agencies, while child care administered by CalWORKs and APPs is
offered through a voucher system. For 2015-16, the Legislative
Analyst's Office estimates that there are close to 131,000
CalWORKs child care slots; 33,000 APP slots; and 29,000 General
Child Care slots.
Digital signatures: California Government Code Section 16.5
defines "digital signature" as an electronic identifier, created
by computer, intended by the party using it to have the same
force and effect as the use of a manual signature if and only if
it: is unique to the person using it; is capable of
verification; is under the sole control of the person using it;
is linked to data in such a manner that if the data are changed,
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the digital signature is invalidated; and conforms to
regulations adopted by the Secretary of State. This section
also states that the use or acceptance of a digital signature
shall be at the option of the parties. According to the
California Secretary of State, digital signatures can be used
for many transactions that currently require a hand written
signature, such as on-line college applications and submitting
applications for business permits at the local level.
Need for this bill: According to the author, "California leads
the nation when it comes to innovation and technology. However,
many of our state government operations have been left in the
past. As a result, a number of state agencies are forced to
operate in a manner that is both outdated and inefficient.
[This bill] would help modernize one of these out-of-date
conventions and correct an oversight in existing law by allowing
childcare center contractors to use electronic signatures.
Providing child care centers with this option will greatly
increase their efficiency and maximize the use of their
resources."
In similar legislation that was passed last year, APPs and child
care contractors were authorized to maintain their records
electronically and APPs were allowed to use electronic
signatures. Last year's measure, however, did not give explicit
permission to child care contractors to use electronic
signatures that carry the same weight as manual signatures.
This bill affords child care contractors the same ability as
APPS to use electronic signatures.
PRIOR LEGISLATION:
AB 271 (Obernolte), Chapter 476, Statutes of 2015, expanded the
authority of APPs and child care providers and child care
contractors to use electronic methods for storage of documents
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or records, and permitted APPs to use digital signatures
pursuant to current state standards.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
California Alternative Payment Program Association (CAPPA) -
co-sponsor
Child Development Associates
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by:Kelsy C. Castillo / HUM. S. / (916)
319-2089
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