BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES
Senator McGuire, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: SB 636
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|Author: |Liu |
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|Version: |April 7, 2015 |Hearing |April 21, 2015 |
| | |Date: | |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes |
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|Consultant|Mareva Brown |
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Subject: Homeless youth: basic material needs assistance
SUMMARY
This bill creates the Homeless Youth Basic Material Needs
Assistance Program and requires that moneys appropriated by the
Legislature be allocated proportionally to counties based on the
number of homeless youth in each county. It authorizes a county
either to establish the program or to request the California
Department of Social Services (CDSS) to administer the county's
program, in which case CDSS would be required to directly
administer the program in that county. The bill would permit
counties to pool resources and jointly administer the program.
The bill requires each county program to solicit proposals from,
and contract with, nonprofit organizations providing basic
material needs assistance to homeless youth as specified, and
requires those nonprofit organizations to provide a minimum of
25 percent matching funds or in-kind services, as specified. The
bill requires each contracted nonprofit to prepare a report on
the program, as specified, and requires CDSS to issue a report
after three years identifying the number of youth served, a
description of assistance provided and to identify any
significant achievements.
ABSTRACT
Existing law:
1)Establishes, in federal law, the McKinney-Vento Homeless
Assistance Act, which provides federal funding for local
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homeless assistance projects. (42 USC § 11301, et seq.)
2)Includes in the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, a
definition of a homeless child or youth as one who lacks a
fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence including:
a) Children and youth who are sharing the housing of other
persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a
similar reason; are living in motels, hotels, trailer
parks, or camping grounds due to the lack of alternative
adequate accommodations; are living in emergency or
transitional shelters; are abandoned in hospitals; or are
awaiting foster care placement;
b) Children and youth who have a primary nighttime
residence that is a public or private place not designed
for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation
for human beings;
c) Children and youth who are living in cars, parks, public
spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or
train stations, or similar settings; and
d) Migratory children living in the circumstances described
above. (42 USC § 11434a)
1)Establishes the United States Interagency Council on
Homelessness to coordinate a federal response to homelessness
and create a national partnership at every level of government
and with the private sector to end homelessness. (42 USC §
11311)
2)States the intent of the Legislature that homeless youth are
entitled to a meaningful opportunity to meet the challenging
state pupil academic achievement standards to which all pupils
are held. (EDC 48850(a)(1))
3)Requires each state educational agency, pursuant to the
federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, to make
sub-grants to local educational agencies (LEAs), as specified,
for the purpose of facilitating the enrollment, attendance,
and success in school of homeless children and youths. (42
U.S.C. § 11433)
4)Requires each state to submit to the federal government a plan
to provide for the education of homeless children and youth,
as specified. (42 U.S.C. § 11432(g))
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5)Establishes in the state Treasury the School Supplies for
Homeless Children Fund to receive personal income tax
contributions to be distributed, in part, to the California
Department of Education (CDE) to provide school supplies and
health products to homeless children through a competitive
grant program. (RTC 18895 et seq.)
This bill:
1) Makes a series of findings and declarations including:
a) During the 2013-14 academic year, 297,617 children
and youth enrolled in local educational agencies in
California were identified as homeless, as defined by the
federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.
Sec. 11301 et sec.). This population is several times
more than that of any other state in the nation and
equates to one homeless student in every classroom.
b) The federal definition of homelessness used by
school, child nutrition and other programs includes
children and youth who lack a fixed, regular, and
adequate nighttime residence, including those who live in
shelters, transitional housing, cars, campgrounds,
motels, or who share the housing of others temporarily
due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or similar
reasons.
c) A significant barrier to success faced by homeless
children and youth is access to basic materials including
school supplies, shoes, hygienic and dental products, and
other basic necessities. This and the accompanying low
self-esteem lead to absenteeism and truancy, which
prevents homeless youth from obtaining the education that
is both their legal right and their best opportunity to
escape poverty.
d) According to numerous homeless liaisons throughout
California that represent more than 70 percent of
California's homeless children and youth, the
overwhelming majority of this population does not have
their basic material needs met.
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e) The local control funding formula does not
specifically address the unmet basic material needs of
homeless children and youth.
f) This act addresses this barrier to success by
articulating a state policy framework to provide the most
basic unmet material needs of homeless children and
youth, while also utilizing matching resources and
leveraging federal funds to ensure program stability and
longevity. This act is designed to ensure that all
homeless public school students have their basic material
needs met so they can attend school on a more equal
playing field with their peers.
g) States Legislative intent that funds appropriated by
the Legislature for this program not exceed an average
allocation of twenty-five dollars and twenty cents
($25.20) per pupil, with the assumption of a
participation rate of not more than 297,619 homeless
youth, or the number from the most recent count of
homeless youth, whichever is lesser.
1) Adds a new chapter to the Welfare and Institutions code
commencing with Section 13710 entitled the Homeless Youth
Basic Material Needs Assistance Program.
2) Establishes definitions, including the following:
a. "Additional material needs assistance" means
clothes, blankets, and access to shelter, and "basic
material needs assistance" means school supplies,
dental supplies and other hygienic products, shoes,
socks and underwear.
b. "Administering entity" means one of the
following:
i. A county that elects to establish a
program and does not join with another county, as
defined.
ii. A county designated as the lead
county, if two or more counties elect to
establish a program jointly.
iii. CDSS, if a county declines to
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establish a program or requests the department to
administer the program.
c. "Homeless youth" is defined as in federal
statute, as specified; nonprofit organization means a
nonprofit corporation qualified to do business in
California and qualified under federal IRS code
501(c)(3).
3) Requires CDSS to allocate money appropriated by the
Legislature to each county program in a proportionate
amount based on the county's respective number of homeless
youth to establish and operate a Homeless Youth Basic
Material Needs Assistance Program.
4) Permits a county to pool money and join with one or more
other counties to establish and administer the program.
5) Requires CDSS to directly administer a program for
homeless youth in any county that declines to establish a
program or requests the department to administer the
program, including contracting with a nonprofit
organization, as specified.
6) Requires administering agencies to do the following:
a. Solicit proposals from nonprofit organizations
to administer a basic material needs assistance
program for homeless youth, as specified.
b. Select and contract with one or more nonprofit
organizations to participate in the program and to
base selection criteria upon the following:
i. Demonstrated ability to form
partnerships with Local Educational Agencies
(LEAs).
ii. Demonstrated ability to provide
basic material needs assistance to homeless or
low-income youth by working with LEAs.
iii. Ability to work with the homeless
liaison of each LEA, as specified.
iv. Demonstrated ability to generate
additional matching funds or in-kind resources
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for similar programs.
c. Requires each contracted nonprofit
organization to notify the homeless liaison of a
county office of education of the contractor's intent
to enter into new partnership agreements or to renew
an existing agreement with the LEAs in that county,
and requires the contractor to form or maintain
partnerships with LEAs for the purpose of providing
basic material needs assistance to homeless youth,
d. Additionally, requires the contracted
nonprofit organization to provide basic material needs
assistance to homeless youth, giving first priority to
hygiene, dental, and school supply needs. A nonprofit
organization may use other resources or demonstrated
savings to provide additional material needs
assistance.
e. Requires the contracted nonprofit organization
to provide at least a 25 percent match for all moneys
received from the administering entity under this
chapter.
f. Requires that, if the nonprofit organization
provides in-kind materials toward the 25-percent
match, the value of the in-kind materials contributing
to a 25-percent match shall be verified by the donor
of the materials and shall not exceed the market value
of the materials if sold at retail. Any amounts
provided by the nonprofit organization that exceed the
25-percent match constitute demonstrated savings, as
defined.
g. Requires the contracted nonprofit organization
to consult with the children and families commission
of the county or counties served to determine how to
best provide basic material needs assistance to
homeless youth from birth to five years of age, if the
administering entity elects to include homeless youth
of that age in its program.
h. Requires each contracted nonprofit
organization to prepare a report for the administering
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entity following each distribution cycle, which shall
include, but not be limited to, the number of homeless
youth assisted, location and dates of distributions.
Additionally requires the report include a letter from
each LEA, shelter, or other partnering entity,
verifying this information and original letters from
all donors contributing any in-kind materials counting
toward the required match.
7) Requires that CDSS issue a simplified report after three
years of operation of the program including the number of
homeless youth assisted each year, a description of the
assistance provided, a total leveraged match statewide and
by each county and a scanned or paper copy of the original
letters from each LEA, as specified.
8) Requires the CDSS report to include any significant
achievements in absenteeism reduction, improved academic
outcomes, improved living or social outcomes, and any other
significant improvements.
FISCAL IMPACT
This bill has not been analyzed by fiscal committee. However, a
Senate Appropriations Committee analysis of AB 2591 in 2014,
which was substantially similar to this bill, indicated
potential ongoing costs in excess of $100,000 (General Fund) for
CDSS to review proposals and allocate funds to participating
counties. Additionally, the analysis of AB 2591 projected major
future cost pressure (General Fund) in the millions of dollars
to establish and administer programs in participating counties.
Based solely on the Legislative intent stated in this bill, the
cost would cap at $7.5 million (General Fund) annually.
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION
Purpose of the bill:
According to the author, this bill addresses a significant
barrier to success for homeless children and youth, namely
access to basic materials such as school supplies, shoes,
hygienic and dental products and other necessities. Lack of
basic material needs accompanied by low self-esteem lead to
absenteeism and truancy, which prevent homeless students from
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obtaining the education that is both their legal right and their
best opportunity to escape poverty, the author writes.
By establishing the Homeless Youth Basic Material Needs
Assistance Act, and using matching resources and leveraging
federal funds to ensure resource stability and longevity, this
bill will ensure that all children and youth identified as
homeless in public schools have their basic material needs met
so they can attend school on a more equal playing field with
their peers, the author states.
Homelessness among children
Homeless children and families began to be discussed as a
significant social problem in the mid-1980s, and the issue has
grown steadily and seen increasing numbers of homeless children
since then.<1> Homeless families with children are 37 percent of
the overall homeless population, according to data from the US
Department of Housing and Urban Development. In 2013, more than
1.2 million public school children were homeless, an increase of
roughly 25 percent from the 2009-10 school year, according to
various U.S. Department of Education data sources. Overall, 2.5
million children experienced homelessness nationally in 2013 -
or 1 in 30.
There were nearly 270,000 homeless school children in the
2013-14 educational year, according to federal data. State data
from the prior year indicates nearly a quarter of them live in
Los Angeles County. Of the state's homeless children, more than
80 percent, or 224,161 children, were living in doubled-up
situations, which include cohabitating with other families,
"couch surfing," or living in a garage. Another 17,844 were
living in shelters, 10,073 lived in motels and hotels, and 7,578
were unsheltered.
McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act
The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, passed in 1987, was
the first significant piece of federal legislation to address
homelessness. It provided funding for shelters, created an
interagency council on homelessness to coordinate government
nonprofit system efforts and addressed educational needs of
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<1> "America's Youngest Outcasts, A Report Card on Child
Homelessness," American Institutes for Research, November 2014.
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homeless youth. The Act requires homeless children to be able to
attend their school of origin, have free transportation to and
from school, enroll in school even without all required
paperwork, among other rights. It also requires school districts
to appoint local educational liaisons for homeless children.
The Act defines homelessness more broadly than the previously
used HUD definition. It includes individuals and families who
lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence,
including those who live in shelters, transitional housing,
cars, campgrounds, motels, or who share the housing of others
temporarily due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or
similar reasons.
Comparison to other states
The National Center on Family Homelessness at the American
Institutes for Research created a report card on child
homelessness, ranking states on the extent of homelessness
adjusted for state population, child well-being, risk for child
homelessness and state policy and planning efforts.
California ranked 48th overall, just above Mississippi and
Alabama, respectively. It ranked 48th in the extent of child
homelessness, just above New York and Kentucky, based on HUD
data showing that nearly 530,000 children were homeless in
California in 2012-13, an increase of 20,000 children from one
year prior and of nearly 90,000 from two years earlier.
California also ranked second-to-last in policy and planning
efforts, above only Wyoming. Despite positive marks for having a
state housing trust fund, California continues to have poor
access to housing for children and their families: Just 1,650
emergency shelter beds for families, 4,602 transitional housing
units and 5,064 permanent supportive housing units statewide.
Effects on children
Researchers have found that the vast majority of homeless
families are headed by a single mother with children under the
age of 6. The families tended to move frequently, often staying
in substandard housing and in dangerous neighborhoods, and were
without transportation or adequate child care. Children
experiencing homelessness were more often hungry, sick, and
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worried about whether they would eat or where they would sleep.
Children often developed more slowly and struggled in school,
repeating grades, missing school and dropping out at higher
rates. Researchers found that mental health problems for
homeless children were significantly worse than for similarly
aged poor children.<2>
Related legislation
AB 2591 (Weber, 2014) was substantially similar to this bill,
but did not include data reporting requirements.
SB 761 (DeSaulnier, Chapter 369, Statutes of 2014) required the
state Department of Education to designate a tax-exempt,
nonprofit organization to use the School Supplies for Homeless
Children Fund to provide school supplies and health-related
products to local education agencies for distribution to
homeless children, and to provide a 100 percent match for all
funds received.
SB 1571 (DeSaulnier, Chapter 459, Statutes of 2012), established
the School Supplies for Homeless Children Fund and tax check off
to provide school supplies to homeless children through a
competitive grant program.
SB 608 (DeSaulnier, Chapter 307, Statutes of 2011), authorized
the Prison Industry Authority to offer their goods and services
for sale to nonprofit organizations that have entered into MOUs
with LEAs if the products and services are provided to public
school students at no cost to the students or their families.
COMMENTS
This bill is substantially similar to AB 2591 (Weber, 2014)
which was held in the Senate Appropriations Committee. The
author has narrowed the scope of the bill by clarifying the
items included in the definition of material needs, requiring
nonprofits and the state to report the numbers of children
served and the supplies provided. It additionally requires the
state to retain the funding of any county that elects not to
participate in the program and to directly contract with
nonprofits to run the program in that county. This version also
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<2> Ibid, p. 9-10
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increases the required match by contracted nonprofit
organizations from 20 percent to 25 percent, but permits that
match to be made by in-kind donations.
This bill additionally includes a series of findings and
declarations which define the federal act and provide 2013-14
data, make various statements about the necessity of the bill
and state Legislative intent to institute a $7.5 million cap on
annual expenditures. Staff recommends the author amend this bill
to remove unnecessary findings and declarations (a) through (f),
retaining the Legislative fiscal intent in (g), as follows:
On page 2, delete lines 1 through 20. On page 3, delete lines 1
through 17.
POSITIONS
Support:
Ktocollege (Co-Sponsor)
California State PTA (Co-Sponsor)
California Catholic Conference
Oppose:
None.
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