BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 855
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Date of Hearing: August 10, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON BUDGET
Philip Ting, Chair
SB
855 (Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review) - As Amended August
8, 2016
SENATE VOTE: 25-11
SUBJECT: Budget Act of 2016
SUMMARY: Makes substantive and technical statutory changes
impacting and corresponding to the Health and Human Services
portions of the Budget Act of 2016 (SB 826, Chapter 23, Statutes
of 2016). Specifically, this bill makes the following changes:
Managed Care Organizations Tax
1. Makes technical, clarifying corrections to the statute
implementing the Managed Care Organization (MCO) tax,
adopted through SB X2 2 (Chapter 2, Hernández, Statutes of
2016, Second Extraordinary Session) to clarify that
insurers whose gross premiums tax rate has been reduced to
$0 during the operation of the MCO tax shall not be
required to make pre-payments to the state since their tax
liability will be $0.
2. Provides that for health insurers subject to the 0%
gross premiums tax rate prepayments are not required
between July 1, 2016, and on or before June 30, 2019, and
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would additionally provide that for prepayments due on or
after June 30, 2019, the amount due is 25% of the amount of
what the annual insurance tax liability reported on the
return of the health insurer for the preceding calendar
year would have been if the provision reducing the gross
premiums tax rate to 0% described above had never been
operative.
Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) Compliance:
Child Fatalities
3. Adds the following to the documents to be released by
the custodian of records upon request, subject to
redactions set forth in existing law: a description of
child protective or other services provided and actions
taken by the county child welfare services agency regarding
any services and actions not otherwise disclosed within
other documents required to be released. Provides an
additional ten business days for this information to be
released.
4. Requires that no information that reveals the identity
of a person or persons who provided information related to
suspected abuse, neglect, or maltreatment of a child be
disclosed.
5. Provides that juvenile case file records that are not
subject to disclosure pursuant to this section shall only
be disclosed upon an order by the juvenile court pursuant
to Welfare and Institutions Code Section 827.
6. Authorizes the Department of Social Services (DSS) to
implement these changes through all-county letters or
similar instructions following consultation with
stakeholders, which will commence no later than October 1,
2016, and shall include, but not be limited to, child
welfare advocates, labor organizations, representatives of
counties, and legislative staff.
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7. Requires rulemaking to implement these changes pursuant
to the Administrative Procedure Act to commence no later
than January 1, 2018.
CAPTA Compliance: Near Child Fatalities
8. Defines "near fatality" as the identical meaning in
federal law.
9. Establishes that abuse or neglect is determined to have
resulted in a child's near fatality if one of the following
conditions is met:
a) A law enforcement investigation concludes that child
abuse or neglect occurred.
b) A county child welfare services agency determines
that the child abuse or neglect was substantiated.
1. Establishes that abuse or neglect does not include near
fatalities caused by an alleged perpetrator who was unknown
to the child or family prior to the abuse that caused the
near fatality, or a minor, unless acting in the role of
caretaker, who is alleged to have caused the near fatality.
2. Requires that within 10 business days of learning that a
child near fatality that has been determined to have been
caused by abuse or neglect has occurred in the county, the
custodian of records for the county child welfare agency,
upon request, shall release all of the following
information:
a) The age and gender of the child.
b) The date of the near fatality.
c) Whether the child resided in foster care or in the
home of his or her parent or guardian at the time of the
near fatality.
d) Whether an investigation is being conducted by a law
enforcement agency or the county child welfare agency.
1. Requires that findings or information disclosed
regarding the child near fatality, upon request, must
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consist of a written report that includes all of the
following information:
a) A child's age and gender;
b) The date the abuse or neglect occurred that resulted
in the near fatality, and the date that a licensed
physician determined the child victim to be in serious
or critical medical condition, if known;
c) Whether the child resided in foster care or in the
home of his or her parent or guardian at the time of the
near fatality.
d) The cause and circumstances of the near fatality.
e) A description of reports received, child protective
or other services provided, and actions taken by the
county child welfare services agency regarding (i)
suspected or substantiated abuse or neglect of the child
near fatality victim and (ii) suspected or substantiated
abuse or neglect of other children pertinent to the abuse
or neglect of the near fatality victim.
f) A written narrative that includes the dates of
reports, investigations, services rendered, actions
taken, investigative disposition for each report, and any
comments provided by the involved social worker or
workers regarding the investigations, services provided,
and actions taken.
1. Requires that when the written narrative as described
above is requested, the county shall submit a copy of the
description and written narrative to DSS within 20 calendar
days of the request or the disposition of the
investigation, whichever is later, and within 10 days of
receipt, the DSS shall review the documents submitted by
the county against the case file and notify the county of
any discrepancies or other concerns prior to the county's
release of the information.
2. For cases in which the child's near fatality occurred
while living with a parent or guardian, requires a county
welfare department or agency to disclose the following to
the public, upon request:
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a) All previous referrals of abuse or neglect of the
child suffering the near fatality while living with that
parent or guardian.
b) The emergency response referral information form and
emergency response notice of referral disposition form
completed by the county child welfare agency relating to
the abuse or neglect that caused the near fatality of the
child.
c) Any cross reports completed by the county child
welfare services agency to law enforcement relating to
the child suffering the near fatality.
d) All risk and safety assessments completed by the
county child welfare services agency relating to the
child suffering the near fatality.
e) Copies of police reports about the person against
whom the child abuse or neglect was substantiated.
1. For cases in which the child's near fatality occurred
while the child was in foster care, requires a county
welfare department or agency to disclose the following
documents, in addition to those specified above, generated
while the child was living in the foster care placement
that was the placement at the time of the child's near
fatality:
a) Records pertaining to the foster parents' initial
licensing and renewals and type of license or licenses
held if in the case file.
b) All reported licensing violations, including notices
of action, if in the case file.
c) Records of the training completed by the foster
parents if in the case file.
1. Requires a county welfare department or agency to
release all required findings and information to the
public, if disclosure is requested, within 30 calendar days
of either the request or the disposition of the
investigation, whichever is later.
2. Prohibits the following information and records from
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being disclosed:
a) Names, addresses, telephone numbers, ethnicity,
religion, or any other identifying information of any
person or institution, other than the county or DSS.
b) Any information that would jeopardize a criminal
investigation or proceeding.
c) Any information that is privileged, confidential, or
not subject to disclosure pursuant to any other state or
federal law.
d) All health records related to the child or the
child's family.
e) Any information not relevant to the near fatality,
including, but not limited to, any information regarding
any adult whose activities are not relevant to the near
fatality.
1. Requires the county welfare department or agency to
notify and provide a copy of the request to counsel for any
child who is connected to the juvenile case file, and that
if counsel for a child objects to the release of any part
of the information, they may petition the court to prevent
the release of any document or part of a document
requested.
2. Provides that juvenile case file records that are not
subject to disclosure pursuant to this section shall only
be disclosed upon an order by the juvenile court pursuant
to Welfare and Institutions Code Section 827.
3. Authorizes DSS or a county welfare department to comment
on the case once documents have been released. If a county
welfare department or agency comments on the case, the
social worker on the case may also comment publicly about
the case within the scope of the release.
4. Requires each child welfare services agency to notify
DSS of every child near fatality that occurred within its
jurisdiction that was the result of child abuse or neglect.
Based on these notices and any other relevant information
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in the possession of DSS, the department shall annually
issue a report identifying the child near fatalities and
any systemic issues or patterns revealed by the notices and
other relevant information.
5. Establishes that this law shall only apply to near
fatalities that occur on, or after, January 1, 2017.
6. Clarifies that nothing in this section of law requires a
county welfare department or agency to obtain documents not
in the case file.
7. Requires that no information that reveals the identity
of a person or persons who provided information related to
suspected abuse, neglect, or maltreatment of a child be
disclosed.
8. Authorizes the Department of Social Services (DSS) to
implement these changes through all-county letters or
similar instructions following consultation with
stakeholders, which will commence no later than October 1,
2016, and shall include, but not be limited to, child
welfare advocates, labor organizations, representatives of
counties, and legislative staff.
9. Requires rulemaking to implement these changes pursuant
to the Administrative Procedure Act to commence no later
than January 1, 2018.
Approved Relative Caregiver
10. Makes a technical change to change "calendar" year to
"fiscal" year to indicate the basis for which counties
participating in the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding
Option Program (ARC), administered by DSS, may request
reimbursement for funding appropriated by the state for ARC
if the entire amount of funding has not been fully
allocated to or utilized by participating counties.
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CalWORKs Expanded Subsidized Employment
11. Deletes an obsolete reporting provision for the CalWORKs
Expanded Subsidized Employment program that was due on
April 1, 2015 and that was fulfilled by DSS.
Independent Living Centers Appropriation
12. Appropriates $705,000 from the General Fund to the
Department of Rehabilitation for the three independent
living centers that have been both established and
maintained using federal funding, to the exclusion of
subsequent state funds, as their primary base grant.
Additional Provisions
13. Subjects any overall effect of increasing the costs
already borne by a local agency for programs or levels of
service mandated by the 2011 Realignment Legislation to
Section 36 of Article XIII of the California Constitution
and to determinations by the Commission on State Mandates.
14. States that this action is a bill providing for an
appropriation related to the Budget Bill and has been
identified as related to the budget in the Budget Bill, and
shall take effect immediately.
EXISTING LAW:
FISCAL EFFECT: Specific changes to appropriations detailed
above.
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COMMENTS: The federal Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act
(CAPTA) and its implementing regulations establish requirements
regarding the disclosure of findings and information in child
near fatality incidents resulting from abuse and neglect. The
Administration has stated that achieving compliance with CAPTA
is necessary in order for California to continue receiving $4.8
million annually in federal child abuse prevention funding. In
the 2016 May Revision, the Administration released proposed
trailer bill language that was subsequently held open to allow
for more time to consider a potential compromise.
At the end of 2015, the ACYF required California to prepare a
Program Improvement Plan describing how the State will comply
with CAPTA Section 106(b)(4), as a condition of retaining its $3
million CAPTA grant and its $1.8 million Children's Justice Act
grant administered by the California Office of Emergency
Services. DSS asserts that achieving compliance is necessary to
continue receipt of the federal grants identified.
California has been out of compliance with the CAPTA
requirements of CAPTA concerning the disclosure of findings and
information in child near fatality cases since 2012, when
federal guidance was issued, because California has no existing
laws governing the disclosure of information following
near-fatal incidents for children. The federal Administration
for Children, Youth, and Families (ACYF) has indicated that
statutory compliance prior to October 1, 2016 is necessary to
not jeopardize this funding.
Over $500,000 in combined state and federal funding for purposes
of compliance was proposed and approved in the 2016 Budget Act,
displayed as the "Reports of Child Near Fatalities" premise in
the CDSS Local Assistance Budget. The budgeted amounts reflect
generally the costs associated with compiling and publishing
reports, and disclosing information on all near fatalities
caused by suspected child abuse or neglect, but have not yet
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been fully reconciled
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by:Nicole Vazquez / BUDGET / (916)
319-2099