BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 823
Page 1
Date of Hearing: May 11, 2011
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Felipe Fuentes, Chair
AB 823 (Dickinson) - As Amended: April 28, 2011
Policy Committee: Human
ServicesVote:4 - 2
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
No Reimbursable:
SUMMARY
This bill creates the Children's Cabinet of California until
Jan. 1, 2019. Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires that the state superintendent of public instruction
and the secretary of health and human services serve as
co-chairs of the cabinet.
2)Specifies the membership of the cabinet, which will include:
a) Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court or his or
her designee
b) Secretary of the Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation
c) Director of Social Services
d) State Public Health Officer
e) Director of Mental Health
f) Director of Alcohol and Drug Programs
g) Director of Developmental Services
h) Director of Child Support Services
i) Two members of the Assembly and the Senate respectively.
3)Requires that staffing of the cabinet be a shared
responsibility between the co-chairs within existing resources
or to the extent private funds are provided.
4)Requires the cabinet make recommendations to the governor and
Legislature on ways to improve the delivery of services to
children, youth and their families. Including, but not limited
to a report to the governor and Legislature by October 31 each
year.
AB 823
Page 2
FISCAL EFFECT
Annual costs of approximately $500,000 for workload associated
with staffing the Children's Cabinet and producing the required
annual report. This legislation requires that private funding or
existing resources be used for this purpose. However, nothing in
this bill states that funding must be secured before the cabinet
begins its required work. Therefore, to the extent this
workload is not absorbable and private funding is not
forthcoming, the costs of this legislation constitute a
significant cost pressure.
COMMENTS
1)Purpose . The intent of this legislation is to establish a
California Children's Cabinet asked with reviewing all of the
various programs and policies in the state that affect
children. According to the author, 18 other states have
established children's cabinets in an attempt to more
effectively serve the children in their states. Many of these
cabinets have been established through executive order by the
governor of that state.
According to the National Governors' Association, "A strong
and effective Children's Cabinet can improve coordination and
efficiency across state departments and local levels of
government; mobilize resources around the governor's
priorities for children; facilitate a holistic approach to
serving children; and strengthen partnerships with the
non-profit and private sectors."
2)Child Welfare Council (CWC. The California Legislature
created the CWC in 2006 with the passage of AB 2216 (Bass;
Chapter 384, Statutes of 2006). Charged with cross-agency
coordination and priority setting for children and families
involved in the state's child welfare and foster care systems,
the CWC has been successful in creating a forum for an ongoing
dialogue among state leaders and stakeholders. The CWC has
faced some challenges and has failed to comply with
statutorily mandated reports to the Legislature. It may be
AB 823
Page 3
that funding cutbacks have left the CWC understaffed and
unable to meet those requirements.
The Children's Cabinet would differ from the CWC in that it
would attempt to coordinate services and programs for all of
California's children, not just those in the child welfare
system.
3)Prior Legislation . In 2010, SB 1084 (Liu) created an Economic
Security Task Force and required it to develop recommendations
for reducing poverty and increasing economic security among
Californians. That bill was held on this committee's suspense
file.
In 2007, AB 1118 (Jones) would have created the California
Child Poverty Council for the purpose of developing a
comprehensive plan for reducing child poverty in California by
50% by January 1, 2017 and eliminating it completely by
January 1, 2027. The bill was held on this committee's
suspense file.
In 2007, AB 56 (Ma) would have created a cabinet-level
Secretary to End Poverty with the responsibility to review all
anti-poverty programs within the state and determine whether
they were operating in an efficient manner. The bill was held
on this committee's suspense file.
In 2007, AB 690 (Jones) would have declared that it is the
goal of the Legislature to reduce childhood poverty by half by
January 1, 2018 and to eliminate it entirely by January 1,
2028. The bill would have required the Department of Finance
to report, as part of the annual budget process, on how the
Governor's Budget proposal would impact the state's goal of
reducing childhood poverty and required the Legislative
Analyst to analyze the report. The bill was held in Senate
Appropriations Committee suspense file.
AB 2556 (Jones), 2006, declared a legislative goal of
eliminating child poverty within 20 years.
AB 2216 (Bass) Statutes of 2006, created the Child Welfare
Council, which was designed to improve outcomes for foster
youth. That council is housed in the Health and Human
Services Agency.
AB 823
Page 4
Analysis Prepared by : Julie Salley-Gray / APPR. / (916)
319-2081