BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    �



                                                                  AB 1554
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   March 28, 2012

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                Felipe Fuentes, Chair

                  AB 1554 (Jefferies) - As Amended:  March 8, 2012 

          Policy Committee:                              Human 
          ServicesVote:6 - 0 

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program: 
          No     Reimbursable:              

           SUMMARY  

          This bill requires regional centers (RC) under contract with the 
          Department of Developmental Services (DDS) make specific 
          information available on their websites. Specifically, this bill 
          requires the posting of the following information: 

          1)Actual rates paid to each vendor.

          2)Any public funds provided to a nonprofit housing organization 
            outside of the regular request for proposal process.

           FISCAL EFFECT  

          One-time GF costs likely in excess of $200,000 for 21 Regional 
          Centers (RCs), combined, to gather and report the information 
          required, particularly the actual rates paid to vendors. 
          On-going GF costs in the range of $50,000 to maintain and update 
          the required information. 

          This bill establishes statewide requirements on the 21 RCs, 
          which are non-profit, nonpublic entities, serving 225,000 
          consumers via approximately 65,000 providers, including parents 
          of consumers. 

           COMMENTS  

           1)Purpose  . The author's intent is to require the 21 RCs to 
            disclose additional information on their websites in order to 
            increase transparency in the DDS system. Each of the 21 
            centers operates independently under a non-profit status and 
            is funded entirely with state money. The author contends that 








                                                                  AB 1554
                                                                  Page  2

            the RCs use their non-profit status to deny requestors 
            information that would typically be covered under the 
            California Public Records Act. 

           2)Budget Trailer Bill  .  To promote transparency, the recently 
            chaptered 2011-12 Budget Trailer Bill pertaining to DDS and 
            the RCs, SB 74 (Committee on Budget & Fiscal Review; Chapter 
            9, Statutes of 2011), requires each RC to adopt, maintain, and 
            post on its Internet Web site a board-approved policy 
            regarding transparency and access to public information.  In 
            addition, each RC would be required to post certain 
            information, including fiscal audits, annual reports, contract 
            awards, names and addresses of all vendors, and board meeting 
            agendas.

           3)Related Legislation  . AB 862 (Silva & Jeffries), 2011, was 
            similar to this bill but included additional items to be 
            posted on RC Web sites and required semiannual updates of 
            vendor rates.  AB 862 was vetoed by Gov. Brown.  The veto 
            message referred to the inclusion of one of the items required 
            to be posted (related to conflict-of-interest statements), 
            which is not included in this bill.


            AB 2220 (Silva), 2010, added RCs the list of public entities 
            bound by the requirements of the California Public Records 
            Act. That bill was held on this committee's Suspense File. 

           Analysis Prepared by  :    Julie Salley-Gray / APPR. / (916) 
          319-2081