BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 1212
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Date of Hearing: August 3, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Lorena Gonzalez, Chair
SB 1212
(Hueso) - As Amended June 20, 2016
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No
SUMMARY:
This bill authorizes the California Public Utilities Commission
(CPUC) to expend up to $1.5 million from the California
Teleconnect Fund (CTF) Administrative Committee Fund for
one-time costs to help close the 2-1-1 gap in counties lacking
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access to disaster preparedness, response, and recovery
information and referral services. Specifically, this bill:
1)Authorizes the CPUC to determine if expending funds from the
CTF Administrative Committee Fund for purposes of 2-1-1
expansion is an appropriate use of funds collected from
ratepayers. If the CPUC determines this is an appropriate use
of funds, costs may include local implementation of a
coordinated database that is owned by a city or county to
provide referrals to help with nonemergency aspects of
disaster planning, recovery, and response.
2)Authorizes California 2-1-1 to apply for use of the funds in
counties that lack 2-1-1 services.
3)Sunsets provisions of the bill on January 1, 2023.
FISCAL EFFECT:
1)Up to $1.5 million (CTF Administrative Committee Fund), over
five years, to assist California 2-1-1 with efforts to close
service gaps. The CPUC indicates they do not have prior
expertise with funding third party entities and would need to
develop a new administrative process to administer these
funds. The CPUC estimates annual administrative costs of
approximately $131,000 to fund one position to administer the
program.
COMMENTS:
1)Purpose. While most counties have 2-1-1 information and
referral providers, 21 counties currently lack the service.
Specifically, the following 10 counties are currently
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developing their 2-1-1 service: Colusa, El Dorado, Glenn,
Lassen, Mono, Plumas, Placer, Siskiyou, Sutter, and Yuba.
Another 11 counties lack the service and do not have programs
in development: Alpine, Amador, Calaveras, Del Norte, Inyo,
Lake, Madera, Modoc, Sierra, Trinity, and Tuolumne.
This bill authorizes the CPUC to expend up to $1.5 million in
CTF Administrative Committee Funds, over a five year period,
for one-time activities to expand 2-1-1 services. The CTF is
the California program that funds discounts for schools,
libraries, and community-based organizations for certain
communication services. The program is funded through a
surcharge on all customers that purchase intrastate
telecommunications services.
According to the sponsors, 2-1-1 California, the funds are
necessary to help support startup costs for counties without
2-1-1 services, such as connecting new counties to the
existing infrastructure and updating databases to include
relevant information and resources from the new counties.
2)Background. The national abbreviated dialing code for access
to health and human services information and referral is
2-1-1. The 2-1-1 dialing code makes a connection between
individuals and families in need and the appropriate community
based organizations and government agencies. During emergency
or disaster situations, 2-1-1 provides critical public
information, such as information on shelters, food
distribution, evacuations, road closures and transportation
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issues, utility outages, school closures, medical and housing
assistance, government aid, mitigation and repairs, emergency
alerts, as well as public health warnings. Additionally,
2-1-1 service providers offer contact information and access
to many local, state and national hotlines, including poison
control, suicide, child abuse, adult abuse, teen
bullying/cyber-bullying and other crises, domestic violence,
veteran issues, immediate shelter, food and health needs, and
many other social services that are not currently addressed by
either 9-1-1 or 3-1-1 services.
The CPUC authorizes one qualifying local agency in a county
the use of the 2-1-1 dial code. The CPUC ruled in 2003 that
2-1-1 service would be established on a county-by-county
basis. California's first 2-1-1 service launched on February
11, 2005 in Ventura County. Currently, 2-1-1 service has been
approved in 37 counties, serving approximately 95 percent of
California's population. Most of these counties have funded
their 2-1-1 services via partnerships between local health and
human services agencies and nonprofits.
Analysis Prepared by:Misty Feusahrens / APPR. / (916)
319-2081
SB 1212
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