BILL ANALYSIS �
SENATE GOVERNANCE & FINANCE COMMITTEE
Senator Lois Wolk, Chair
BILL NO: AB 1998 HEARING: 6/27/12
AUTHOR: Achadjian FISCAL: No
VERSION: 5/25/12 TAX LEVY: No
CONSULTANT: Phan
COUNTY SURPLUS PROPERTY
Allows counties to donate surplus computers directly to
social service recipients.
Background and Existing Law
State law regulates how and under what circumstances
counties are allowed to acquire, use, and dispose of county
properties. Counties may sell, auction, lease, or donate
surplus real or tangible properties to specified parties.
A county board of supervisors may donate or lease any
property it deems to be surplus to any public agency,
school or community college district, a county children and
families commission, or an organization exempt from
taxation pursuant to specified provisions of law. The
board may impose any terms and conditions it deems
appropriate on the donation or lease.
The federal and state governments encourage service
agencies to use the Internet to provide clients with
greater access to their services. The Internet allows
clients to learn about services, apply for services,
recertify their eligibility, make appointments, update
their records, and contact county workers. A study in 2009
by the Public Policy Institute of California found that 25%
of Californians did not own a computer, with the Latino and
African American populations owning the least number of
computers.
Counties frequently update their technology. Although
figures differ across counties, Santa Barbara County
estimates it has around 100 computers in surplus each year
from its Department of Social Services (DSS), with about
half of those going to other county departments and half
going to social service recipients.
AB 1998 -- 5/25/12 -- Page 2
Currently, counties may not donate property directly to
social service recipients. If counties want to donate
computers to social service recipients, they must donate
the computers to a nonprofit, which can distribute them to
recipients. However, some counties do not have a
non-profit capable of distributing or willing to distribute
computers to social service recipients. In other counties,
nonprofits keep the computers for their own use. Although
some counties want their surplus computers to reach
eligible families, current law does not give them the power
to ensure surplus computers get to people who need them
most.
Proposed Law
Assembly Bill 1998 allows counties to directly donate
surplus computer equipment to social service recipients.
Specifically, it allows the county board of supervisors to
authorize the county welfare department to donate surplus
computer equipment directly to persons receiving public
benefits under one or more of the following programs:
CalFresh; California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to
Kids Act (CalWORKs); County Relief, General Relief, or
General Assistance; or, Medi-Cal. AB 1998 requires the
board to make findings and declarations relating to the
public purpose served by the donation, and develop terms
and conditions to govern any donations made pursuant to
this measure.
The bill also requires a participating county welfare
department to:
1) Maintain a list of all eligible persons receiving
public benefits who have requested to receive surplus
computer equipment;
2) Establish a fair and impartial selection process by
using a random lottery;
3) Follow any rules and regulations adopted by the
board; and,
4) Require the recipient of any surplus computer
equipment to sign an agreement prohibiting the
recipient from selling the equipment.
AB 1998 prohibits a county welfare department from donating
surplus computer equipment to a person receiving public
benefits who is in sanction status or otherwise
AB 1998 -- 5/25/12 -- Page 3
noncompliant with the rules and regulations of his or her
benefits program.
State Revenue Impact
No estimate.
Comments
1. Purpose of the bill . Access to a computer and the
Internet improves access to public resources and employment
information. Current law allows counties to donate or
lease surplus property only to an organization, not to
individuals. AB 1998 gives counties the option to donate
their surplus computers directly to a social service
recipient, ensuring that donated technology gets into the
hands of deserving recipients. AB 1998 is optional and
allows counties to create rules and regulations as they see
fit, giving counties flexibility and discretion in how it
designs its program. By eliminating the nonprofit
organization as the middleman, this bill streamlines the
steps of donating surplus computer equipment to individual
recipients, allowing recipients to receive their computers
sooner. Counties that do not have a nonprofit capable of
or willing to distribute computers to social service
recipients will have the ability to ensure their computers
reach a recipient. Counties also have greater control over
where their resources go. With approximately 20,000
families qualifying for the CalWORKS, CalFresh, and
Medi-Cal programs, this bill gives counties a tool to help
thousands of low income families acquire a computer.
2. Public versus private property . County surplus
properties were bought with public dollars and intended for
public use. AB 1998 allows counties to donate to private
individuals, which would take away public resources and
turn them into private property. The Committee may wish to
consider whether these computers can serve a greater public
purpose if they remained in the public domain -- such as
libraries, schools, or nonprofits that allow public access
to their computers -- instead of given to private
individuals.
3. Cutting out the middleman . Nonprofits that distribute
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resources to needy families already exist. Some may be
more adept at identifying needy families and distributing
resources than counties. AB 1998 gives counties the
authority to duplicate what some nonprofits are already
doing. The Committee may wish to consider whether
nonprofits are better suited to distribute these surplus
computers.
Assembly Actions
Assembly Local Government 8-0
Assembly Floor 78-0
Support and Opposition (6/21/12)
Support : County of Santa Barbara (Sponsor); California
State Association of Counties (CSAC); County Welfare
Directors Association of California (CWDA); Regional
Council of Rural Counties (RCRC); Santa Clara County Board
of Supervisors; Urban Counties Caucus (UCC).
Opposition : Unknown.