BILL NUMBER: AB 479 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JANUARY 4, 2012
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Nestande
FEBRUARY 15, 2011
An act relating to public social services.
An act to amend Sections 11265.2, 11454, and 17021 of, to add
Article 3.7 (commencing with Section 11340) to Chapter 2 of Part 3 of
Division 9 of, and to repeal Section 11320.15 of, the Welfare and
Institutions Code, relating to CalWORKs.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 479, as amended, Nestande. In-Home Supportive Services
program. CalWORKs.
Existing federal law provides for allocation of federal funds
through the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
block grant program to eligible states. Existing law provides for the
California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs)
program under which, through a combination of state and county funds
and federal funds received through the TANF program, each county
provides cash assistance and other benefits to qualified low-income
families. Existing law provides that a parent or caretaker relative
shall not be eligible for CalWORKs aid when he or she has received
aid for a cumulative total of 48 months.
This bill would, instead, provide that an assistance unit shall
not be eligible for aid under CalWORKs when any member of the
assistance unit has received aid for a cumulative total of 48 months.
This bill would provide for continued aid after the 48-month time
limit for a child who is a member of an assistance unit that no
longer qualifies for aid, if the child's parent or caretaker relative
complies with applicable work requirements, as specified. This bill
would also make various conforming changes. Because counties
determine eligibility for the CalWORKs program, by increasing county
duties, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates
determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state,
reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these
statutory provisions.
Existing law provides for the county-administered In-Home
Supportive Services (IHSS) program, under which qualified aged,
blind, and disabled persons receive services enabling them to remain
in their own homes.
This bill would provide that it is the intent of the Legislature
to enact legislation that would implement reforms in the IHSS
program, as specified, secure choice of provider for all eligible
IHSS recipients within the chosen model, and ensure coordination of
programs for the aging to emphasize the most cost-effective care for
each IHSS recipient.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no
yes . State-mandated local program: no
yes .
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 11265.2 of the
Welfare and Institutions Code , as amended by Section 8 of
Chapter 501 of the Statutes of 2011, is amended to read:
11265.2. (a) The grant amount a recipient shall be entitled to
receive for each month of the quarterly reporting period shall be
prospectively determined as provided by this section. If a recipient
reports that he or she does not anticipate any changes in income
during the upcoming quarter, compared to the income the recipient
reported actually receiving on the quarterly report form, the grant
shall be calculated using the actual income received. If a recipient
reports that he or she anticipates a change in income in one or more
months of the upcoming quarter, the county shall determine whether
the recipient's income is reasonably anticipated. The grant shall be
calculated using the income that the county determines is reasonably
anticipated in each of the three months of the upcoming quarter.
(b) For the purposes of the quarterly reporting, prospective
budgeting system, income shall be considered to be "reasonably
anticipated" if the county is reasonably certain of the amount of
income and that the income will be received during the quarterly
reporting period. The county shall determine what income is
"reasonably anticipated" based on information provided by the
recipient and any other available information.
(c) If a recipient reports that his or her income in the upcoming
quarter will be different each month and the county needs additional
information to determine a recipient's reasonably anticipated income
for the following quarter, the county may require the recipient to
provide information about income for each month of the prior quarter.
(d) Grant calculations pursuant to subdivision (a) may not be
revised to adjust the grant amount during the quarterly reporting
period, except as provided in Section 11265.3 and subdivisions (e),
(f), (g), and (h), and as otherwise established by the department.
(e) Notwithstanding subdivision (d), statutes and regulations
relating to (1) the 48-month time limit, (2) age limitations for
children under Section 11253, and (3) post-48
months continued aid under Article 3.7 (commencing with Section
11340), and (4) sanctions and financial penalties affecting
eligibility or grant amount shall be applicable as provided in those
statutes and regulations. Eligibility and grant amount shall be
adjusted during the quarterly reporting period pursuant to those
statutes and regulations effective with the first monthly grant after
timely and adequate notice is provided.
(f) Notwithstanding Section 11056, if an applicant applies for
assistance for a child who is currently aided in another assistance
unit, and the county determines that the applicant has care and
control of the child, as specified by the department, and is
otherwise eligible, the county shall discontinue aid to the child in
the existing assistance unit and shall aid the child in the applicant'
s assistance unit effective as of the first of the month following
the discontinuance of the child from the existing assistance unit.
(g) If the county is notified that a child for whom CalWORKs
assistance is currently being paid has been placed in a foster care
home, the county shall discontinue aid to the child at the end of the
month of placement. The county shall discontinue the case if the
remaining assistance unit members are not otherwise eligible.
(h) If the county determines that a recipient is no longer a
California resident, pursuant to Section 11100, the recipient shall
be discontinued. The county shall discontinue the case if the
remaining assistance unit members are not otherwise eligible.
(i) (1) A county shall comply with the quarterly reporting
provisions of this section until the county certifies to the director
that semiannual reporting has been implemented in the county.
(2) This section shall become inoperative on October 1, 2013, and,
as of January 1, 2014, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute,
that becomes operative on or before January 1, 2014, deletes or
extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed.
SEC. 2. Section 11265.2 of the Welfare
and Institutions Code , as added by Section 9 of Chapter
501 of the Statutes of 2011, is amended to read:
11265.2. (a) The grant amount a recipient shall be entitled to
receive for each month of the semiannual reporting period shall be
prospectively determined as provided by this section. If a recipient
reports that he or she does not anticipate any changes in income
during the upcoming quarter, compared to the income the recipient
reported actually receiving on the semiannual report form, the grant
shall be calculated using the actual income received. If a recipient
reports that he or she anticipates a change in income in one or more
months of the upcoming semiannual period, the county shall determine
whether the recipient's income is reasonably anticipated. The grant
shall be calculated using the income that the county determines is
reasonably anticipated in each of the six months of the upcoming
semiannual period.
(b) For the purposes of the semiannual reporting, prospective
budgeting system, income shall be considered to be "reasonably
anticipated" if the county is reasonably certain of the amount of
income and that the income will be received during the semiannual
reporting period. The county shall determine what income is
"reasonably anticipated" based on information provided by the
recipient and any other available information.
(c) If a recipient reports that his or her income in the upcoming
semiannual period will be different each month and the county needs
additional information to determine a recipient's reasonably
anticipated income for the following semiannual period, the county
may require the recipient to provide information about income for
each month of the prior semiannual period.
(d) Grant calculations pursuant to subdivision (a) may not be
revised to adjust the grant amount during the semiannual reporting
period, except as provided in Section 11265.3 and subdivisions (e),
(f), (g), and (h), and as otherwise established by the department.
(e) Notwithstanding subdivision (d), statutes and regulations
relating to (1) the 48-month time limit, (2) age limitations for
children under Section 11253, and (3) post-48
months continued aid under Article 3.7 (commencing with Section
11340), and (4) sanctions and financial penalties affecting
eligibility or grant amount shall be applicable as provided in those
statutes and regulations. Eligibility and grant amount shall be
adjusted during the semiannual reporting period pursuant to those
statutes and regulations effective with the first monthly grant after
timely and adequate notice is provided.
(f) Notwithstanding Section 11056, if an applicant applies for
assistance for a child who is currently aided in another assistance
unit, and the county determines that the applicant has care and
control of the child, as specified by the department, and is
otherwise eligible, the county shall discontinue aid to the child in
the existing assistance unit and shall aid the child in the applicant'
s assistance unit effective as of the first of the month following
the discontinuance of the child from the existing assistance unit.
(g) If the county is notified that a child for whom CalWORKs
assistance is currently being paid has been placed in a foster care
home, the county shall discontinue aid to the child at the end of the
month of placement. The county shall discontinue the case if the
remaining assistance unit members are not otherwise eligible.
(h) If the county determines that a recipient is no longer a
California resident, pursuant to Section 11100, the recipient shall
be discontinued. The county shall discontinue the case if the
remaining assistance unit members are not otherwise eligible.
(i) (1) This section shall become operative on April 1, 2013. A
county shall implement the semiannual reporting requirements in
accordance with the act that added this section no later than October
1, 2013.
(2) Upon implementation described in paragraph (1), each county
shall provide a certificate to the director certifying that
semiannual reporting has been implemented in the county.
(3) Upon filing the certificate described in paragraph (2), a
county shall comply with the semiannual reporting provisions of this
section.
SEC. 3. Section 11320.15 of the Welfare
and Institutions Code is repealed.
11320.15. After a participant has been removed from the
assistance unit under subdivision (a) of Section 11454, additional
welfare-to-work services may be provided to the recipient, at the
option of the county. If the county provides services to the
recipient after the 48-month limit has been reached, the recipient
shall participate in community service or subsidized employment, as
described in Section 11322.63.
SEC. 4. Article 3.7 (commencing with Section
11340) is added to Chapter 2 of Part 3 of Division 9 of the
Welfare and Institutions Code , to read:
Article 3.7. Post-48 Months Continued Aid for Children
11340. For purposes of this chapter, a child who is a member of
an assistance unit that no longer qualifies for aid pursuant to
Section 11454 may be eligible for post-48 months continued aid,
subject to the following requirements:
(a) A parent or caretaker relative with whom a child resides
complies with the work requirements of Section 11341. Both parents in
a two-parent household may contribute to the work requirements of
Section 11341.
(b) A parent or caretaker relative who has not, at any time, been
eligible for aid, or who has been ineligible pursuant to Section
11251.3 or 11486.5, complies with the work requirements of Section
11341.
11341. (a) A parent or caretaker relative, as described in
Section 11340, shall comply with the work requirements, as defined in
Section 607(c) of Title 42 of the United States Code, unless the
parent or caretaker relative is either of the following:
(1) A nonneedy caretaker relative of the aided child.
(2) Currently receiving benefits under Section 12200.
(b) Article 3.2 (commencing with Section 11320) shall not be
applicable to the work requirements of this article.
(c) Additional services may be provided to the parent or caretaker
relative at the option of the county, but the lack of these services
shall not excuse the parent or caretaker relative from complying
with the work requirements specified in subdivision (a).
(d) Except as provided in subdivision (a), there is no good cause
exception to, or other exemption from, the documentation and work
requirements of this article.
11342. (a) A child receiving post-48 months continued aid shall
be subject to discontinuance of aid as described in this section.
(b) (1) Upon a determination that the parent or caretaker
relative, as described in Section 11340, has not complied with the
requirements of Section 11341, the county shall issue a notice of
action effective no earlier than 30 calendar days from the date of
issuance.
(2) The notice of action shall inform the parent or caretaker
relative that the post-48 months continued aid for the child will be
discontinued unless the county is provided with documentation, as
determined by the department, that the parent or caretaker relative
has complied with the requirements of Section 11341.
(3) Aid shall be discontinued unless the documentation described
in paragraph (2) is provided to the county prior to the expiration of
that 30-day period.
(4) Notwithstanding Article 3.5 (commencing with Section 11331), a
pregnant or parenting teen, who is a head of household and does not
meet the requirements of Section 11341, shall be subject to this
section.
(c) A parent or caretaker relative, as described in Section 11340,
who fails to provide the required documentation or fails to comply
with the requirements of Section 11341, shall cause the
discontinuance of post-48 months continued aid for a child, as of the
first day of the next calendar month subsequent to the expiration of
the 30-day period specified in subdivision (b).
(d) The post-48 months continued aid for the child shall be
restored prospectively if the parent or caretaker relative meets the
requirements of Section 11341 and documentation, as determined by the
department, of meeting the requirements is provided to the county.
The post-48 months continued aid shall be restored as of the first
day of the next calendar month subsequent to the date upon which that
documentation was provided to the county.
(e) The amount of the restored aid shall be based on the
eligibility of the child as of the date upon which aid is restored.
Eligibility shall be determined as follows:
(1) If the post-48 months continued aid is restored in accordance
with this subdivision within three calendar months of the date aid
was discontinued pursuant to subdivision (c), Section 11451.5 shall
apply.
(2) If aid is restored after the expiration of the three-month
period described in paragraph (1), Section 11450.12 shall apply.
SEC. 5. Section 11454 of the Welfare
and Institutions Code is amended to read:
11454. (a) A parent or caretaker relative
(1) An assistance unit shall not be
eligible for aid under this chapter when he or she
any member of the assistance unit has received aid under
this chapter or from any state under the Temporary Assistance for
Needy Families program (Part A (commencing with Section 401) of Title
IV of the federal Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 601 et seq.))
for a cumulative total of 48 months.
(2) When a member of an assistance unit becomes ineligible to
receive aid in accordance with paragraph (1), all members of the
assistance unit, whether or not each member has met the 48-month time
limit specified in paragraph (1), shall be ineligible to continue to
receive aid. All aid shall be discontinued for all of the members of
the assistance unit except children who may be eligible for post-48
months continued aid in accordance with Article 3.7 (commencing with
Section 11340) if a parent or caretaker relative as described in
Section 11340 complies with the work requirements set forth in
Section 11341.
(b) (1) Except as otherwise specified in subdivision (c), Section
11454.5, or other provisions of law, all months of aid received under
this chapter from January 1, 1998, to the operative date of this
section, inclusive, shall be applied to the 48-month time limit
described in subdivision (a).
(2) All months of aid received from January 1, 1998, to the
operative date of this section, inclusive, in any state pursuant to
the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program (Part A
(commencing with Section 401) of Title IV of the federal Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 601 et seq.)), shall be applied to the
48-month time limit described in subdivision (a).
(c) Subdivision (a) and paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) shall not
be applicable when all parents or caretaker relatives of the aided
child who are living in the home of the child meet any of the
following requirements:
(1) They are 60 years of age or older.
(2) They meet one of the conditions specified in paragraph (4) or
(5) of subdivision (b) of Section 11320.3.
(3) They are not included in the assistance unit.
(4) They are receiving benefits under Section 12200 or Section
12300, State Disability Insurance benefits or Workers' Compensation
Temporary Disability Insurance, if the disability significantly
impairs the recipient's ability to be regularly employed or
participate in welfare-to-work activities.
(5) They are incapable of maintaining employment or participating
in welfare-to-work activities, as determined by the county, based on
the assessment of the individual and the individual has a history of
participation and full cooperation in welfare-to-work activities.
SEC. 6. Section 17021 of the Welfare
and Institutions Code is amended to read:
17021. (a) (1) Any individual who is not
eligible for aid under Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 11200) of
Part 3 as a result of the 48-month limitation specified in
subdivision (a) of Section 11454 shall not be eligible for aid or
assistance under this part until all of the children of the
individual on whose behalf aid was received, whether or not currently
living in the home with the individual, are 18 years of age or
older.
(2) Any child who is not eligible for aid under Chapter 2
(commencing with Section 11200) of Part 3 as a result of the 48-month
limitation specified in subdivision (a) of Section 11454 shall not
be eligible for aid or assistance under this part, until he or she
turns 18 years of age.
(b) (1) Any individual who is receiving aid
under Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 11200) of Part 3 on behalf
of an eligible child, but who is either ineligible for aid or whose
needs are not otherwise taken into account in determining the amount
of aid to the family pursuant to Section 11450 due to the imposition
of a sanction or penalty, shall not be eligible for aid or assistance
under this part.
(2) Any child who is either ineligible for aid under Chapter 2
(commencing with Section 11200) of Part 3 or whose needs are not
otherwise taken into account in determining the amount of aid to the
family pursuant to Section 11450 due to the imposition of a sanction
or penalty, shall not be eligible for aid or assistance under this
part until he or she turns 18 years of age.
(c) This section shall not apply to health care benefits provided
under this part.
SEC. 7. (a) Notwithstanding the rulemaking
provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5
(commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of
the Government Code), the department may implement and administer
the changes made by this act through all-county letters or similar
instructions from the department until regulations are adopted. The
department shall adopt emergency regulations implementing these
provisions no later than July 1, 2013. The department may readopt any
emergency regulation authorized by this section that is the same as
or substantially equivalent to an emergency regulation previously
adopted under this section.
(b) The initial adoption of emergency regulations pursuant to this
section and one readoption of emergency regulations shall be deemed
an emergency and necessary for the immediate preservation of the
public peace, health, safety, or general welfare. Initial emergency
regulations and the one readoption of emergency regulations
authorized by this section shall be exempt from review by the Office
of Administrative Law. The initial emergency regulations and the one
readoption of emergency regulations authorized by this section shall
be submitted to the Office of Administrative Law for filing with the
Secretary of State and each shall remain in effect for no more than
180 days, by which time final regulations may be adopted.
SEC. 8. (a) If any portion of this act is held
unconstitutional or unenforceable by a court of law, that decision
shall not affect the validity of any other portion of this act. The
Legislature hereby declares that it would have passed this act, and
each portion thereof, irrespective of whether or not any other
portion is declared unconstitutional or unenforceable.
(b) It is the intent of the Legislature that the provisions of
this act that provide for a 48-month time limit for children
receiving assistance under the CalWORKs program shall apply
retroactively to any individual who received aid between January 1,
1998, and January 1, 2013.
SEC. 9. If the Commission on State Mandates
determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state,
reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs
shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of
Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.
SECTION 1. It is the intent of the Legislature
to enact legislation to do all of the following:
(a) Implement reforms in the In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS)
program patterned after the operational methodologies of other states
where the methodologies provide home care for those who would be at
risk of requiring skilled nursing care but at a significantly lower
cost.
(b) Secure choice of provider for all eligible IHSS recipients
within the chosen model.
(c) Ensure coordination of programs for the aging to emphasize the
most cost-effective care for each IHSS recipient.