BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1994
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Date of Hearing: March 29, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES
Susan Bonilla, Chair
AB 1994
(Lopez) - As Amended March 28, 2016
SUBJECT: CalED Program
SUMMARY: This bill creates the CalED Program, which provides
support for California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to
Kids (CalWORKs) participants working to obtain a high school
diploma or equivalency certificate.
Specifically, this bill:
1)Makes Legislative findings and declarations regarding the
connection between education and self-sufficiency.
2)Establishes the CalED Program, and requires participants to be
all of the following:
a) At least 19 years of age;
b) Not in possession of a high school diploma or its
equivalent;
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c) Attending school on a full-time basis, as specified; and
d) A participant in the welfare-to-work component of
CalWORKs, as specified.
3)Establishes that participation in the CalED program is
optional and requires a participant to opt out in writing if
he or she declines to participate.
4)Requires the county to notify potentially eligible CalWORKs
participants about the CalED Program, as specified.
5)Requires the Department of Social Services (DSS) to develop a
form explaining the program, and the county to distribute this
form, as specified.
6) Requires counties to provide education services, supportive
services, including child care and transportation, and other
services, as specified, in order to facilitate successful
participation in the CalED Program.
7)Permits CalED Program participants to participate in specified
programs in order to obtain a high school equivalency
certificate.
8)Reassigns a participant who fails to demonstrate that he or
she has made adequate progress in his or her educational
program, as specified, to another welfare-to-work activity.
9)Awards a CalED participant who successfully completes high
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school or a California high school equivalency examination a
one-time five-hundred-dollar ($500) supplement, as specified.
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)Requires all individuals over 16 years of age, unless they are
otherwise exempt, to participate in welfare-to-work activities
as a condition of eligibility for CalWORKs. (WIC 11320.3,
11322.6)
3)Establishes a 48-month lifetime limit of CalWORKs benefits for
eligible adults, including 24 months during which a recipient
must meet federal work requirements in order to retain
eligibility. (WIC 11454, 11322.85)
4)Establishes the number of weekly hours of welfare-to-work
participation necessary to remain eligible for aid, including
requirements for an unemployed parent in a two-parent
assistance unit, as specified. (WIC 11322.8)
5)Establishes the Cal-Learn program to provide services to teen
parents and encourage them to obtain a high school diploma or
equivalency certificate. (WIC 11331 et seq.)
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FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown.
COMMENTS:
CalWORKS: The California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to
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, 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 497,000 families
rely on CalWORKs, including over one million children. Nearly
60% of cases include children under 6 years old.
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 2016 show that
100% of poverty for a family of three is $20,160 per year.
Welfare-to-work: Welfare-to-work activities within the CalWORKs
program include public or private sector subsidized or
unsubsidized employment; on-the-job training; community service;
secondary school, adult basic education and vocational education
and training when the education is needed for the recipient to
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become employed; specific mental health, substance abuse, or
domestic violence services if they are necessary to obtain or
retain employment; and a number of other activities necessary to
assist a recipient in obtaining unsubsidized employment.
Unless they are exempt, single parent adults must participate
for at least 30 hours per week in welfare-to-work activities,
whereas the minimum participation requirement for two-parent
families is 35 hours per week. After receiving aid for up to a
maximum of 24 months, adults without an exemption must meet
federal work requirements, with more restrictive employment
settings and allowable employment activities. If a CalWORKs
recipient who is not exempt from participation does not meet his
or her welfare-to-work requirements, the recipient is sanctioned
for noncompliance, and that recipient's portion of the family's
grant subtracted from the amount provided to the family to meet
basic needs.
Cal-Learn: Cal-Learn is a statewide program for pregnant and
parenting teens in the CalWORKs program. It is designed to
encourage pregnant and parenting teens to graduate from high
school or its equivalent, become independent, and form healthy
families. Cal-Learn consists of three coordinated services
aimed at helping teens become self-sufficient adults and
responsible parents: intensive case management that assists
teen parents to obtain education, health and social services;
supportive services such as child care, transportation,
educational expenses, to enable pregnant/parenting teens to
attend school; and bonuses and sanctions to encourage school
attendance and good grades. Bonuses include four $100 bonuses
per year earned based on report card results, and a one-time
$500 bonus for graduating or attaining an equivalent high school
diploma. Sanctions are applied if satisfactory grades are not
maintained, and/or timely report cards are not submitted.
Participation in Cal-Learn is limited to and required for
pregnant/parenting teens who are receiving CalWORKs and who are
under the age of 19, live in the same household as their child,
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have not graduated from high school or its equivalent, and are
not in foster care. CDSS estimates that 7,700 teens participate
in Cal-Learn each month.
Suggested Amendments:
1)In order to clarify that the intent of the CalED program is to
assist recipients in completing a high school equivalency
program, committee staff recommends the following amendments:
On page 3, line 19 of the bill: insert new subdivision (a)
detailing that participants must participate in specified
programs aimed at acquiring a high school equivalency
certificate.
2)In order to clarify eligibility requirements for Cal ED
participants, committee staff recommends the following
amendments:
On page 3 of the bill, strike lines 15 and 16.
After line 17 on page 4 of the bill, insert:
11344. (a)A participant in the CalED Program must do all of
the following: (1) attend
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his or her educational program on a full-time basis, as normally
defined by the school in which the participant enrolls; (2)
maintain adequate progress; and (3) submit grades, if available,
to the county welfare department on a basis to be determined by
the county welfare department.
After line 37 on page 4 of the bill, insert:
(c) For purposes of this section, adequate progress means
maintaining a grade point average of at least 1.0 on a scale
where A equals 4.0 points and F equals 0 points.
RELATED LEGISLATION:
AB 2058 (Mayes), 2016, creates the CalWORKs Educational
Opportunity and Attainment Program and awards grant increases to
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CalWORKs recipients upon completion of education milestones, as
specified. The bill will be heard in Assembly Human Services on
April 12, 2016.
AB 2448 (Burke), 2016, changes CalWORKs requirements regarding
permissible welfare-to-work activities to facilitate a
recipient's completion of a high school equivalency program. The
bill will be heard in Assembly Human Services on March 29, 2016.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
California Alternative Payment Program Association (CAPPA)
California Church IMPACT
California Federation of Teachers (CFT)
Coalition of California Welfare Rights Organizations - sponsor
County Welfare Directors Association of CA (CWDA)
Courage Campaign
Hunger Action LA
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Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity
Sacramento Regional Coalition to End Homelessness (SRCEH)
St Mary's Center
St. Anthony Foundation
Time for Change Foundation
United Methodist Women
18 individuals
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by:Kelsy C. Castillo / HUM. S. / (916)
319-2089
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