BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular Session
AB 2485 (Santiago) - Dental Corps Loan Repayment Program
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|Version: May 27, 2016 |Policy Vote: B., P. & E.D. 9 - |
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|Urgency: No |Mandate: Yes |
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|Hearing Date: August 1, 2016 |Consultant: Brendan McCarthy |
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This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File.
Bill
Summary: AB 2485 would revise the terms and qualifications
required for participation in the Dental Board of California's
Dental Corps Loan Repayment Program.
Fiscal
Impact:
Minor costs for revising existing regulations and
administering the Program by the Dental Board of California
(Dentally Underserved Account).
Additional expenditure of loan repayment funds, up to $1.6
million (Dentally Underserved Account). The Program has
existed for over ten years with limited participation,
particularly in recent years. The intention of the bill is to
broaden the participation in the program to make use of
existing funds. To the extent that the bill is successful,
additional expenditures are likely.
AB 2485 (Santiago) Page 1 of
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Background: Under current law, the Dental Board of California manages the
Dental Corps Loan Repayment Program of 2002 (the Program). The
Program provides for up to $105,000 in loan repayments over
three years for dentists practicing in dentally underserved
areas. The Program was established with an initial appropriation
of $3 million. Since the Program's inception, there has been
limited demand for its funds. In the last five years there have
been only been five applications approved. There is a remaining
balance of $1.6 million from the original appropriation.
Proposed Law:
AB 2485 would revise the terms and qualifications required for
participation in the Dental Board of California's Dental Corps
Loan Repayment Program.
The bill recasts the existing code sections authorizing the
program, but much of the new statutory language retains existing
law or regulation governing the program.
Key changes in the bill to the existing program would:
Allow individuals still in dental school to apply to the
Program (with loan repayments to begin once the applicant
begins working);
Require certain Program criteria to be given priority, rather
than be required (for example, the Program currently requires
an applicant to speak a Medi-Cal threshold language, whereas
the bill only requires such ability to be prioritized);
Authorize loan repayments of $35,000 per year over three
years.
Staff
Comments: The bill includes legislative intent language that
regulations do not need to be promulgated by the Dental Board of
California to implement the bill. However, the Dental Board
indicates that existing regulations will need to be amended to
conform to the statutory changes in the bill.
The only costs that may be incurred by a local agency relate to
crimes and infractions. Under the California Constitution, such
costs are not reimbursable by the state.
AB 2485 (Santiago) Page 2 of
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