BILL NUMBER: SB 320 INTRODUCED
BILL TEXT
INTRODUCED BY Senator Wright
FEBRUARY 14, 2011
An act to add Sections 10968, 10968.5, 10969, and 10970 to the
Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to public social services.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 320, as introduced, Wright. Public social services: hearings.
Existing law authorizes an applicant for or recipient of public
social services who is dissatisfied with certain actions of the
county welfare department to request a hearing from the State
Department of Social Services.
This bill would require the county appeals representative to
review all evidence in the county's possession prior to the hearing
and, if the representative finds prescribed occurrences, to offer the
claimant a conditional withdrawal. This bill would require the
conditional withdrawal to specify the actions that the applicant or
recipient and the county shall complete within 30 days of the
conditional withdrawal being signed by the claimant and received by
the county representative.
This bill would also require the county to issue aid paid pending
within 5 working days from the date of the filing of a hearing, and
if the county has not issued aid paid pending by the end of the 4th
business day, would require that the county representative to
authorize the aid paid pending, as prescribed.
This bill would authorize a claimant to request a hearing by
telephone, and require the notice of action informing recipients of
the right to a hearing to inform the applicant or recipient of his or
her right to have a hearing in person, by telephone, or in the
claimant's home if the claimant is unable to attend an in-person
hearing due to a disability. This bill would provide that if a
claimant does not request that he or she prefers to have a hearing by
telephone or an in-person hearing, the department is required to
schedule an in-person hearing.
Existing law requires, if regulations require an agency to write a
position statement concerning the issues in question in a fair
hearing or if the agency chooses to develop such a statement, that
not less than 2 working days prior to the date of the hearing the
agency make available to the applicant for, or recipient of, public
social services a copy of the agency's position statement, with an
exception. Existing law requires the hearing to be postponed at the
request of the applicant or recipient if the position statement is
not made available as required.
This bill would require the county representative to provide the
administrative law judge with the position statement, if any, and
authorize the administrative law judge to request this statement up
to 2 working days prior to the hearing. This bill would require the
administrative law judge to determine, based upon the position
statement and a tentative hearing, as prescribed, whether the county
has met its burden of proof of establishing a prima facie case. This
bill would require the administrative law judge to issue a decision
fully favorable to the claimant if the judge finds that the county
has not met its burden, and, if the county has met its burden, would
require the decision to set forth a finding of all the facts and laws
that led to that conclusion.
By imposing a higher level of service on county appeals
representatives, this bill would impose a state-mandated local
program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates
determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state,
reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these
statutory provisions.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 10968 is added to the Welfare and Institutions
Code, to read:
10968. (a) Prior to the hearing, the county appeals
representative shall review all evidence in the county's possession
relevant to the state hearing claim.
(1) If the hearing concerns a claimant's eligibility for a benefit
or service and the county representative finds that certain acts or
evidence would establish the claimant's eligibility for that benefit
or service, that the county has rescinded the proposed adverse
action, or concludes that the county erred, then the county
representative shall offer the claimant a conditional withdrawal
ordering the county to issue the benefits or provide the service for
which the claimant is eligible after the claimant meets conditions,
if any, of the conditional withdrawal.
(2) If the hearing concerns the validity of a CalWORKs overpayment
or CalFresh benefit overissuance allegation and the county
representative does not find evidence adequate to support the
validity of the overpayment or overissuance allegation then the
county representative shall shall offer the claimant a conditional
withdrawal ordering the county both to cancel permanently the
overpayment or overissuance allegation, and to refund to the claimant
any money already collected toward repayment of the alleged
overpayment or overissuance.
(b) A conditional withdrawal pursuant to this section shall
specify the actions that both parties shall complete within 30 days
from the date the conditional withdrawal form signed by the claimant
is received by the county appeals representative. The county shall
issue a compliance notice describing its compliance with the terms of
the conditional withdrawal, as well as any adequate, timely, and
language-compliant notices required by program rules for the action
at issue, within 30 days following the county hearing representative'
s receipt of the signed conditional withdrawal. If the county fails
to issue the compliance notice within 30 days, the claimant shall be
deemed to have prevailed on all of his or her claims. Upon receiving
a timely compliance notice from the county, the claimant shall have
90 days, subject to the good cause provisions of Section 10951, to
file for a state hearing if the claimant is dissatisfied with the
terms of the compliance notice.
SEC. 2. Section 10968.5 is added to the Welfare and Institutions
Code, to read:
10968.5. The county shall issue aid paid pending within five
working days from the date of the filing of a hearing, as
appropriate. If the county has not issued aid paid pending by the end
of the fourth business day of the filing of a hearing pursuant to
this division, the county appeals representative shall authorize aid
paid pending, as appropriate, in accordance with both federal and
state laws and regulations.
SEC. 3. Section 10969 is added to the Welfare and Institutions
Code, to read:
10969. (a) The Legislature finds and declares that the financial
cost of transportation to attend an administrative hearing prevents
claimants from accessing a hearing and exercising their full right to
due process of law. A telephone hearing would enable the claimant to
have a hearing from the claimant's residence without incurring the
cost of traveling to the hearing location.
(b) An applicant or recipient who requests a hearing pursuant to
this chapter shall have the right to have a hearing conducted in
person, or, in the case of disability, an in-person hearing in the
claimant's home. A claimant may request a hearing by telephone. The
notice of action informing recipients under this division of the
claimant's right to a hearing under this chapter shall inform the
applicant or recipient of his or her right to have a hearing in
person, by telephone, or in the claimant's home if the claimant is
unable to attend an in-person hearing due to a disability.
(c) The department shall accept the claimant's selection of
hearing type. The election by the applicant or recipient of any type
of hearing shall not affect the time period for setting the hearing.
(d) The notice informing the claimant of the time and place of the
hearing shall inform the claimant how to submit evidence and other
documents if the claimant will be appearing by telephone.
(e) For applicants or recipients who request either a hearing by
telephone or a home hearing, the county responsible for the
administrative hearing shall prepare and mail the position statement,
if any, to the claimant and the designated representative so that
the position statement will be received at least two working days
prior to the hearing, in accordance with Section 10952.5.
(f) If a claimant does not request that he or she prefers to have
a hearing by telephone or an in-person hearing, the department shall
schedule an in-person hearing.
SEC. 4. Section 10970 is added to the Welfare and Institutions
Code, to read:
10970. (a) The county representative shall provide the
administrative law judge with a copy of the county position
statement, if any, in accordance with Section 10952.5. The
administrative law judge may request this statement up to two working
days prior to the hearing.
(b) If the county position statement and any attachments to it
contain enough information to satisfy the county's burden of proof of
establishing a prima facie case, then the hearing shall go forward
and the administrative law judge shall set forth in his or her
decision a finding of all of the facts and laws that led to the
conclusion that the county met its burden of proof prior to the
commencement of the hearing.
(c) If the county position statement and its attachments do not
meet the county's burden of proof, then the administrative law judge
shall hold a limited hearing for the purposes of announcing the
tentative finding that the county has failed to meet its burden and
to hear any testimony regarding why the county believes its position
statement states a prima facie case. If the administrative law judge
upholds his or her tentative determination that the county has not
met its burden, the administrative law judge shall issue a decision
after the limited hearing fully favorable to the claimant.
SEC. 5. If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this
act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local
agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant
to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of
the Government Code.