BILL ANALYSIS Ó SB 855 Page 1 SENATE THIRD READING SB 855 (Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review) As Amended August 15, 2016 Majority vote. Budget Bill Appropriation Takes Effect Immediately SENATE VOTE: 25-11 -------------------------------------------------------------------- |Committee |Votes|Ayes |Noes | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |----------------+-----+-----------------------+---------------------| |Budget |18-2 |Ting, Bloom, Bonta, |Harper, Wilk | | | |Campos, Chiu, Cooper, | | | | |Gordon, Holden, Irwin, | | | | |Kim, McCarty, | | | | |Melendez, Mullin, | | | | |Nazarian, O'Donnell, | | | | |Rodriguez, Thurmond, | | | | |Williams | | | | | | | |----------------+-----+-----------------------+---------------------| |Budget |18-2 |Ting, Bloom, Bonta, |Harper, Wilk | | | |Campos, Chiu, Cooper, | | | | |Gordon, Holden, Irwin, | | | | |Kim, McCarty, | | | | |Melendez, Mullin, | | | | |Nazarian, O'Donnell, | | SB 855 Page 2 | | |Rodriguez, Thurmond, | | | | |Williams | | | | | | | | | | | | -------------------------------------------------------------------- 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 (Leno), 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 2 X2 (Hernández), Chapter 2, Statutes of 2015-16 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 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: SB 855 Page 3 Child Fatalities 1)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 10 business days for this information to be released. 2)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. 3)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. 4)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. 5)Requires rulemaking to implement these changes pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act to commence no later than January 1, 2018. SB 855 Page 4 CAPTA Compliance: Near Child Fatalities 1) Defines "near fatality" as the identical meaning in federal law. 2) 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. 3) 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. 4) 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. SB 855 Page 5 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. 5) Specifies that the documents in the juvenile case file, subject to the redaction specified in the bill, shall be released, upon request, upon completion of the child abuse or neglect investigation into the child's near fatality. 6) Requires that findings or information disclosed regarding the child near fatality, upon request, must 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. SB 855 Page 6 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. 7) 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. 8) 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: a) All previous referrals of abuse or neglect of the child suffering the near fatality while living with that parent or guardian. SB 855 Page 7 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. 9) 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. SB 855 Page 8 c) Records of the training completed by the foster parents if in the case file. 10)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. 11)Prohibits the following information and records from 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, consistent with the regulations, all-county letters, or similar instructions issued, and that these documents shall provide further guidance regarding persons or conduct that is not relevant. This includes, but is not limited to, any information in any document regarding any SB 855 Page 9 adult whose activities are not part of an event or events or do not have a material bearing on the circumstances that led to the near fatality. 12)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. 13)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. 14)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. 15)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 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. 16)Establishes that this law shall only apply to near fatalities that occur on, or after, January 1, 2017. SB 855 Page 10 17)Clarifies that nothing in this section of law requires a county welfare department or agency to obtain documents not in the case file. 18)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. 19)Authorizes 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, representatives of organizations that have filed requests pursuant to Welfare and Institutions Code Section 10850.4, advocates for foster youth, labor organizations, representatives of counties, and legislative staff. 20)Requires rulemaking to implement these changes pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act to commence no later than January 1, 2018, and shall be concluded as soon as practicable. Approved Relative Caregiver 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. SB 855 Page 11 CalWORKs Expanded Subsidized Employment 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 Appropriates $705,000 from the General Fund to the Department of Rehabilitation (DOR) 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 1)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 the California Constitution Article XIII Section 36 and to determinations by the Commission on State Mandates. 2)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. FISCAL EFFECT: Proposed amendments to SB 853 (Budget and Fiscal Review Committee) and AB 1623 (Budget Committee), both of the current legislative session, the vehicles that include changes to the Budget Act of 2016, provide resources that correspond to SB 855 Page 12 the changes in responsibilities included in this measure. These add $120,000 General Fund and $120,000 in federal funds for DSS to support four new positions to provide technical assistance to counties and review the circumstances surrounding a near child fatality, among other responsibilities. The DOR appropriation in this measure qualifies it as a budget trailer bill. 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 federal Administration for Children, Youth, and Families (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 ACYF has indicated that statutory compliance prior to October 1, 2016 is necessary to not jeopardize this funding. SB 855 Page 13 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 California DSS 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. Analysis Prepared by: Nicole Vazquez / BUDGET / (916) 319-2099 FN: 0004137