BILL ANALYSIS �
SENATE HUMAN
SERVICES COMMITTEE
Senator Carol Liu, Chair
BILL NO: AB 2280
A
AUTHOR: Lara
B
VERSION: August 24, 2012
HEARING DATE: August 28, 2012 - pursuant to Rule 29.10
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2
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CONSULTANT: Mareva Brown
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SUBJECT
California Special Supplemental Food Program for Women,
Infants and Children
SUMMARY
Requires the Department of Public Health, within 30 days
after the department has completed its first investigation,
to provide written notice to a vendor who has been found to
overcharge a nutrition coupon upon determination of an
initial violation, when the violation could be used later
to establish a pattern to impose a sanction. Requires the
department to deliver the notice to the vendor 30 days
before conducting a second investigation for purpose of
establishing a pattern of violation. States legislative
intent that these provisions clarify existing law.
ABSTRACT
1.Establishes in federal law the Special Supplemental Food
Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) in
recognition of the demonstrated relationship between good
nutrition and the capacity of children to develop and
learn (7 C.F.R. 246) and creates the California WIC
Continued---
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program to provide nutritional food supplements through
the issuance of nutrition coupons to low-income pregnant,
post-partum and lactating women and low-income infants
and children aged 5 and younger. (HSC 123280)
2.Establishes protocols for vendors to accept nutrition
coupons from recipients, including a requirement that
coupon redemption be used only for specified foods and
that vendors redeem nutrition coupons at an amount that
is the same as, or lesser than, that charged other
customers for identical foods. (HSC 123315).
3.Establishes that the state may levy sanctions, as
specified, against a vendor who knowingly redeems food
coupons in excess of prices charged other customers or
commits fraud, and authorizes the state to enter a
vendor's business to verify food prices, investigate or
otherwise determine compliance. (HSC 123325 et seq.)
4.Defines in federal law specified vendor violations (7
C.F.R. 246.2)
This bill
1.Requires that the Department of Public Health (DPH)
provide written notice to a retail food vendor if the
department determines that the vendor has committed an
initial violation for which a pattern of the violation
must be established to impose a sanction.
2.Requires that DPH provide that notice no later than 30
days after the department completes the investigation.
3.Requires that DPH deliver notice to a WIC vendor that it
is in violation of law 30 days before conducting a second
investigation of the same vendor for purposes of
establishing a pattern of violation. This notice must be
delivered:
a. to the vendor's most recent business
ownership address on file with DPH, or
b. to the vendor location upon
identification of a violation during a vendor
monitoring visit, as specified.
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4.Requires that the written notice to the vendor includes a
description of the initial violation and permits the
department to include information to assist the vendor to
take corrective action, including identifying a 60-day
window in which the violation occurred.
5.Defines a "violation," as specified.
6.Declares legislative intent that this bill clarifies
existing law.
FISCAL IMPACT
An Assembly Appropriations Committee analysis indicates
that costs associated with this legislation would be minor
and absorbable within existing resources. The Senate
Appropriations committee did not analyze this bill.
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION
Purpose of the bill
According to the author, this bill would reconcile current
inconsistencies between state regulations and federal law
pertaining to vendor notifications of WIC program
violations.
Federal WIC program regulations and a USDA WIC Final Policy
Memorandum (2005-1A) require states to notify vendors of an
initial violation prior to documenting another violation if
the violations are among those that require a pattern to
impose a sanction. The only exception in federal law is
when the state agency determines that notifying the vendor
would compromise an investigation. In contrast, the
California Code of Regulations directs that "a warning that
violations are occurring or have occurred is not required
prior to any adverse action taken against food vendors."
In order for WIC participants to access healthy, nutritious
foods, they must have access to state-approved WIC retail
food vendors in their communities. The author states that,
in addition to being contrary to federal regulations, the
state's failure to notify a vendor of a first or subsequent
violation before sanctions are imposed denies the vendor
the opportunity to take corrective action to prevent future
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violations.
Additionally, it puts the vendor in danger of
disqualification, potentially exacerbating the problem of
"food deserts" which restrict a community's access to
eligible food vendors and necessary food products.
According to USDA data provided by the author, 10 percent
of the nation resides in a food desert, including 1 million
low-income Californians who do not have nearby supermarkets
or large grocery stores.
WIC
WIC is a 100% federally funded nutrition and health
program, providing funds for buying healthy supplemental
foods from WIC-authorized vendors. It also provides as
nutrition education, help finding healthcare and other
community services. The program aids low-income pregnant,
breastfeeding and post-partum women, as well as a
low-income parent who is the sole provider of a child under
age 5. Participants must be at nutritional risk, as
determined by a health professional, and at or below 185
percent of the federal poverty level ($42,642 for a family
of four). Many WIC recipients are working parents.
In California, DPH administers contracts with 84 local WIC
agencies - half local governments and half private,
non-profit community organizations - to provide services at
more than 650 sites statewide to nearly 1.5 million
participants each month. Additionally, WIC checks can be
redeemed at any of the more than 5,500 participating
grocery stores. According to DPH, six million food checks
are issued each month. Each check is valid for a 30-day
period and is payable for a specific type and quantity of
food. DPH states that WIC is a direct infusion into the
California economy of about $1.1 billion per year, with the
retail value of WIC checks about $63 per month, per
participant.
Recent Amendments :
This bill was heard in the Senate Human Services committee
on June 27, 2012 and amended on the floor on Friday, August
24. The author states that amendments were requested by the
Department of Public Health to conform to federal law.
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The bill's intent is to provide vendors with an opportunity
to correct violations before subsequent violations are
issued that may imperil their participation on the WIC
program. The intent of the bill has not changed. These
amendments alter the bill by prohibiting the DPH from
initiating a second investigation of a WIC vendor until 30
days after the vendor has been notified of a first
violation and specify where that notice is to be delivered.
They remove language that would have allowed DPH to bypass
the notification process in cases where DPH felt
notification would hamper an investigation.
The amendments delete the requirement that the DPH provide
vendors with specific information about a violation,
including the location, date and description of the illegal
transaction. That language is replaced with general
language requiring "a description of the initial violation"
with permission to "include information that may assist the
vendor to take corrective action" including providing a
60-day window of the date in which the violation occurred.
PRIOR VOTES
Senate Human Services 5 - 0
Assembly Floor 70 - 0
Assembly Appropriations17 - 0
Assembly Health 19 - 0
POSITIONS
Support: California Chamber of Commerce
California Grocers Association
California Retailers Association
Oppose: None received
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