BILL ANALYSIS
AB 378
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Date of Hearing: April 14, 2009
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES
Jim Beall, Jr., Chair
AB 378 (Cook) - As Introduced: February 23, 2009
SUBJECT : In-Home Supportive Services: Provider training.
SUMMARY : Requires each public authority or nonprofit
consortium, with input from its advisory committee and other
stakeholders, to develop training standards and core topics for
the trainings it provides to In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS)
providers and recipients.
EXISTING LAW
1)Establishes the IHSS program to provide personal services and
home care for eligible poor, aged, blind and disabled
individuals.
2)Requires every public authority or nonprofit consortium
providing for the delivery of IHSS to provide for the training
of providers and recipients.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : This bill requires that public authorities and
nonprofit consortia providing for the delivery of IHSS to
develop standards and core topics to be used in training of
providers and recipients. According to the author, "a statewide
program should have uniform standards for training in order to
ensure all consumers receive quality care." Because it requires
each public authority and nonprofit consortium to establish
standards, however, it is not clear how this bill would result
in uniform standards.
A prior bill--AB 182 (Ma 2007)--initially required the state
Department of Social Services (DSS), in consultation with public
authorities, to develop training standards and core topics. The
Senate Appropriations Committee analysis identified $150,000 in
2007-08 costs and $100,000 in 2008-09 costs "for increased
workload for convening stakeholders meetings and developing the
training standards and topics." AB 182 was subsequently amended
to, instead, require the public authorities and nonprofit
consortia to develop the standards and core topics. In vetoing
AB 378
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AB 182, the Governor said that the bill "could lead to the
development of dozens of different training standards across the
state. I believe consistent training standards can be more
effectively developed at the state level." The Governor further
said that he was "directing [DSS], in consultation with
consumers, counties and other key stakeholders, to establish
appropriate training standards for IHSS providers
administratively to the extent resources are available to
accomplish this task." To date, DSS has not established such
statewide standards, which supports the need for this bill.
Suggested amendment : This bill, like the amended versions of AB
182, by placing responsibility for developing standards with
individual public authorities and nonprofit consortia, would not
result in uniform statewide standards. One possible alternative
to having each public authority or nonprofit consortium develop
its own standards, which the author may wish to consider as a
means of achieving more statewide uniformity, would be to
require the public authorities and nonprofit consortia to
collaborate in developing model training standards and core
topics, which counties could adopt or modify to meet local needs
and circumstances.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
United Domestic Workers of America, American Federation of
State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) (sponsor)
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Eric Gelber / HUM. S. / (916) 319-2089