BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    �




                   Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
                           Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair


          AB 1710 (Yamada) - Nursing home administrators: fees and fines.
          
          Amended: April 26, 2012         Policy Vote: Health 5-3
          Urgency: No                     Mandate: No
          Hearing Date: July 2, 2012      Consultant: Brendan McCarthy
          
          This bill does not meet the criteria for referral to the 
          Suspense File.
          
          
          Bill Summary:  AB 1710 revises the process for adjusting 
          existing licensing fees for nursing home administrators. The 
          bill authorizes the Department of Public Health to adjust the 
          fees so that the full cost of the Department's licensing program 
          is paid for by fee revenues.

          Fiscal Impact: 
              Increased fee revenues, likely between $200,000 and 
              $250,000 per year (Licensing and Certification Program 
              Fund).

              Minor administrative costs to adjust fee levels and report 
              on program activities, expenditures, and fee levels 
              (Licensing and Certification Program Fund).

          Background:  Under current law, nursing home administrators are 
          licensed by the Department of Public Health. Nursing home 
          administrators are required to pay fees to the Department as 
          part of the licensing process, at the time of initial licensing 
          and for biennial renewals. Under current law, license fees can 
          only be raised by up to twice the Consumer Price Index annually. 


          Proposed Law:  AB 1710 authorizes the Department of Public 
          Health to adjust hospital administrator license fees so that fee 
          revenues pay for the entire cost of the regulatory program. In 
          addition, the bill would require:

              The Department to develop a fee schedule, based on budgeted 
              program costs, within 30 days of the adoption of the annual 
              Budget Act. 
              The Department to notify hospital administrators of new fee 








          AB1710 (Yamada)
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              levels. 
              By March 31, 2013, the Department must develop a staffing 
              analysis of the regulatory program. 
              The Department must complete an annual analysis of fee 
              revenues and program expenditures. 
              Fee revenues collected from nursing home administrators 
              would be deposited in the Licensing and Certification 
              Program Fund.

          Staff Comments:  Under current law and practice, fees charged by 
          the Department are insufficient to meet budgeted program 
          activities. In the current year, the Department indicates that 
          budgeted program expenditures will be about $570,000 while fee 
          revenues are projected to be about $345,000.