BILL ANALYSIS
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair
549 (Furutani)
Hearing Date: 8/12/2010 Amended: 8/2/2010
Consultant: Katie Johnson Policy Vote: BP&ED 5-2
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BILL SUMMARY: AB 549 would add clinical biochemical geneticist
to the list of clinical laboratory personnel that are eligible
for licensure by the California Department of Public Health
(CDPH). The bill would also require CDPH to issue a temporary
license to a histocompatibility laboratory director and 7 other
specified personnel within 30 days of receiving a completed
application and would require CDPH to adopt emergency
regulations related to creating a trainee license category for
specified categories.
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Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 Fund
CDPH regulations $110 $220
$155Special*
and licensing activities
*Clinical Laboratory Improvement Fund
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STAFF COMMENTS: SUSPENSE FILE. AS PROPOSED TO BE AMENDED.
This bill would add clinical biochemical geneticist to the list
of clinical laboratory personnel that are eligible for licensure
by the California Department of Public Health (CDPH). There are
approximately 276 clinical biochemical geneticists that are
board certified by the American Board of Medical Genetics, Inc.,
which certifies people nationally and internationally.
Approximately 10 percent live in California, or 25 - 30 people.
Applicants would pay application and annual renewal fees and
examination fees of $333 and $200, respectively, to support
staff work of approximately $16,000 annually.
This bill would also require CDPH to issue temporary licenses to
a histocompatibility laboratory director and 7 other specified
licensing categories within 30 days of receiving a completed
application. To support this new requirement, the expedited
licensing timeline, and the development of the application,
staff recommends that the bill be amended to require CDPH to
assess a fee on applicants that would be sufficient to cover the
costs of the program's administration. Costs would be
approximately $50,000 in FY 2010-2011, $100,000 in FY 2011-2012
and ongoing.
For all licensing categories, this bill would also require CDPH
to post application forms and instructions for each category of
clinical laboratory practice on its website, to respond in
writing to each applicant acknowledging receipt and completeness
of an application within 30 days of submission, and to process
each completed application within 90 days.
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AB 549 (Furutani)
No later than April 1, 2011, this bill would require CDPH to
adopt emergency regulations related to creating a trainee
license category for 7 specified licensing categories: clinical
chemistry, clinical microbiology, clinical toxicology, clinical
molecular biology, clinical biochemical genetics, clinical
cytogenetics, and clinical histocompatibility and immunology
laboratory director. Staff recommends that the bill be amended
to require CDPH to set and assess a fee on trainee license
applicants that would be sufficient to cover the costs of the
program.
In order to implement the provisions of this bill discussed
above, CDPH would need staff to promulgate regulations at a cost
of approximately $60,000 in FY 2010-2011, $110,000 in FY
2011-2012, and $50,000 in FY 2012-2013.
All of the costs in the bill would be paid for from the Clinical
Laboratory Improvement Fund. Where the fees are not sufficient
to cover the costs of promulgating regulations or implementing
the temporary license requirement, costs would be paid out of
the fund's reserve.
The proposed author's amendments would amend the bill to require
that CDPH set and assess a fee on applicants for a clinical
biochemical geneticist license and for a trainee license that
would be sufficient to cover the costs of the program. While
there would be up-front costs to develop license applications
and to promulgate regulations, the fees could be used to repay
the special fund in the future for the up-front costs.