BILL NUMBER: SB 320 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 12, 2012
AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 25, 2011
AMENDED IN SENATE MARCH 29, 2011
INTRODUCED BY Senator Wright
FEBRUARY 14, 2011
An act to add Sections 10968, 10969, and 10970
, and 10971 to the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating
to public social services.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 320, as amended, 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. Existing law requires the hearing
to be conducted by an administrative law judge, with an exception,
and authorizes the administrative law judge, under certain
circumstances, to render and adopt final decisions, which decision
the county director is required to comply and execute.
This bill would authorize the department to develop a policy for
hearing settlements that would be cost neutral or result in cost
savings, including, but not limited to, the timely issuance of aid
paid pending.
This bill would authorize the department to conduct a hearing by
telephone.
This bill would authorize the department to develop a policy for
expedited adjudication of cases where the county fails to meet its
burden of proof as required by the department, provided that the
implementation of this policy would be cost neutral or result in cost
savings.
This bill would authorize the department to set up a prescribed
workgroup to meet with stakeholders.
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 or notice of action, as specified.
This bill would require the conditional withdrawal to specify the
actions that the applicant or recipient and the county is required to
complete within 30 days of the conditional withdrawal being signed
by the claimant and received by the county representative, except as
provided, and require the county to issue to the claimant a notice of
action describing its compliance with the final decision. This bill
would authorize a claimant to file for and reopen a state hearing
under certain circumstances, at which the administrative law judge
may render a final decision and order the county to comply with the
final decision.
This bill would provide a claimant with the right to an in-person
hearing, as defined, and authorize a claimant to request a hearing
conducted by telephone, or other electronic means, or at his or her
home. This bill would require the notice informing the claimant of
the hearing to contain prescribed information. This bill would
require the department to determine the format of the hearing if the
county and the claimant disagree on its format.
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.
This bill would require the county representative to prepare and
transmit to a claimant who is scheduled for specified types of
hearings and his or her representative the position statement so that
it is received at least 2 working days prior to the hearing. This
bill would require the administrative law judge to determine whether
the county has met its burden of proof of establishing a prima facie
case, with exceptions. This bill would require the administrative law
judge to grant the claim if the judge finds that the county has not
met its burden.
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: no 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 or concludes that the county erred, the county
representative shall offer the claimant a conditional withdrawal
agreeing that the county shall issue the benefits or provide the
services for which the claimant is eligible after the claimant meets
conditions, if any, of the conditional withdrawal. If the county has
rescinded the proposed adverse action, the county shall issue a
notice of action informing the claimant of the county's action and
contact the client to advise the claimant the action was rescinded
and determine whether there were any other issues for the hearing.
(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 offer the claimant a conditional
withdrawal agreeing 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) (1) A conditional withdrawal pursuant to this section shall
specify the actions that both parties shall complete within 30 days
from the date the county appeals representative receives the
conditional withdrawal form signed by the claimant. The county's
30-day conditional withdrawal compliance period may be extended by an
additional 15 days from the date the claimant completes his or her
action required by the conditional withdrawal.
(2) The county shall comply with the terms set forth in the
conditional withdrawal, and issue a notice of action to the claimant
describing its compliance with the terms of the conditional
withdrawal. The notice of action shall be sent by the county within
the timeframe set forth in paragraph (1).
(3) (A) Upon receiving a timely notice of action 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 county's actions specified in the notice of
action. This notice shall be treated like any other notice of action.
(B) If the notice of action relates to the agreed upon terms of
the conditional withdrawal pursuant to paragraph (2), the
administrative law judge at the hearing shall have complete
discretion to determine if there is sufficient evidence in the record
to render a final decision resolving the dispute on the merits and
to order the county to comply with the terms of the final decision.
(4) If the county does not issue a notice of action as required in
paragraph (2), the claimant may reopen the state hearing to enforce
the terms of the conditional withdrawal. A reopened hearing pursuant
to this paragraph shall address whether the county has complied with
the terms of the conditional withdrawal, and if the administrative
law judge finds noncompliance with the terms of the conditional
withdrawal, the judge shall have complete discretion to determine if
there is sufficient evidence in the record to render a final decision
resolving the dispute on the merits and to order the county to
comply with the decision.
(c) (1) If a written conditional withdrawal is not provided to the
claimant in person at the time the county and the claimant agree
upon the conditional withdrawal, the county shall mail the
conditional withdrawal to the claimant.
(2) (A) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the county shall, upon
request of the claimant and with the claimant's written permission,
electronically transmit a copy of the conditional withdrawal to the
claimant.
(B) This paragraph shall become operative only after the director
of the department certifies to the Legislature that the department
has the technology to implement this paragraph in compliance with
privacy laws. Until this certification is made to the Legislature,
the department shall report annually to the budget committees of the
Legislature on the status of the technology available to implement
this paragraph.
SEC. 2. Section 10969 is added to the
Welfare and Institutions Code , to read:
10969. (a) The Legislature finds and declares that the financial
cost of attending an administrative hearing, and the limitations on
the ability to attend imposed by work, training, education, living in
areas lacking public transportation, lack of child care coverage,
illness or disability, and inclement weather, prevent a claimant from
accessing a hearing and exercising his or her full right to due
process of law. A hearing conducted by telephone, or other electronic
means, would enable the claimant to access the fair hearing process
when he or she is unable to attend the hearing in person.
(b) For purposes of this section, "in-person hearing" and "hearing
conducted in person" means a hearing conducted in person with
face-to-face interaction between the parties.
(c) The department shall schedule a claimant's initial hearing
pursuant to this chapter as the department deems appropriate and
within its resource limitations. However, a claimant shall have the
right to request and receive an in-person hearing.
(d) The notice acknowledging the receipt of the hearing request
shall provide information regarding the different formats of how a
hearing may be conducted, including in-person, by telephone, or other
electronic means, or at the claimant's home, the right to an
in-person hearing, and how to request a specific type of hearing
before the hearing is scheduled.
(1) If the notice informing the claimant of the scheduled hearing
indicates the hearing shall be conducted by telephone, or other
electronic means, the notice shall also inform the claimant of his or
her right to have the hearing conducted in person or at the claimant'
s home pursuant to subdivision (g), and how to request a change in
the format of the hearing, including information on the timeframe
within which to make the request without extending the time in which
to issue the decision.
(2) If the notice informing the claimant of the scheduled hearing
indicates the hearing shall be conducted in person, the notice shall
also inform the claimant of the opportunity to have the hearing
conducted by telephone, or other electronic means, or at the claimant'
s home pursuant to subdivision (g), and how to request a change in
the format of the hearing, including information on the timeframe
within which to make the request without extending the time in which
to issue the decision. The notice shall specify good cause reasons to
change the method of the hearing, which shall include, but not be
limited to, lack of transportation or child care, inclement weather
conditions, conflicts with work or education schedules, or other good
cause reasons as determined by the department.
(3) The department shall implement this subdivision in a manner
that provides sufficient notice to a claimant regarding his or her
ability to request a change in the format of the hearing, and shall
provide on the hearing acknowledgment notice and scheduling notice a
"yes" or "no" box that the claimant may check to request a change in
the format of the hearing.
(e) The claimant shall inform the department of his or her request
to change the format of the hearing within five days of receipt of
the notice of scheduled hearing. The claimant's failure to meet the
five-day requirement may result in a postponement of the scheduled
hearing. If the request to change the format of the hearing occurs
after this five-day period and the claimant's request for a hearing
conducted by telephone, or other electronic means, is granted by the
department, the claimant's original filing date shall be adjusted to
the date the request was granted.
(f) (1) If the county seeks to request an in-person hearing, the
hearing may be rescheduled to an in-person hearing with the
concurrence of the claimant. If the claimant disagrees, the
department shall decide the format of the hearing. The department may
deny a county's request for an in-person hearing for good cause, as
defined in paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 10951.
(2) Upon its decision to change the format of a hearing that was
already set, the department shall reset the hearing and give both the
claimant and the county 10 days advance notice of the time, place,
and format of the new hearing.
(g) The notice informing the claimant of the scheduled hearing
shall also inform the claimant of the right to request a hearing in
the claimant's home. The department may require from the claimant
seeking a hearing at his or her home medical verification
demonstrating that the claimant's condition prevents the claimant
from traveling to the hearing location. If the claimant is unable to
travel to a state hearing office and would prefer to attend the
hearing by telephone, or other electronic means, the claimant may
request that the hearing be conducted by telephone, or other
electronic means.
(h) The notice informing the claimant of the time and place of the
hearing shall also inform the claimant how to submit evidence and
other documents if the claimant or administrative law judge will be
appearing by telephone, or other electronic means.
(i) Notwithstanding Section 10952.5, for applicants or recipients
who are scheduled for hearings to be conducted by telephone, or other
electronic means, or at the claimant's home, the county responsible
for the hearing shall prepare and transmit the position statement to
the claimant and his or her designated representative so that the
position statement will be received at least two working days prior
to the hearing. The position statement may be transmitted to the
claimant electronically, if the claimant has an e-mail address and is
able to receive e-mail communications.
SEC. 3. Section 10970 is added to the
Welfare and Institutions Code , to read:
10970. (a) The county representative shall present the case with
appropriate evidence necessary to meet the county's burden of proof
of establishing a prima facie case. At the end of the county
presentation, the administrative law judge may determine on the
record whether or not the county has met its burden of proof. If the
administrative law judge determines that the county has failed to
meet its burden of proof, the claim shall be granted without any
further hearing.
(b) When determining whether the county has met its burden of
proof, the administrative law judge may take the matter under
submission and continue the hearing if he or she determines that the
issue is too complex to make a burden of proof determination
immediately following presentation of the county's case.
(c) Issues and claims not subject to a burden of proof
determination by the administrative law judge, include, but are not
limited to, jurisdiction, abandonment claims, and claims where the
claimant has failed to specify an issue and the county has been
unable to independently determine an issue in dispute.
SEC. 4. 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.
SECTION 1. Section 10968 is added to the
Welfare and Institutions Code, to read:
10968. The department may develop a policy for hearing
settlements that would be cost neutral or result in cost savings,
including, but not limited to, the timely issuance of aid paid
pending.
SEC. 2. 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 hearing by telephone would enable the claimant
to have a hearing from the claimant's residence without incurring
the cost of traveling to the hearing location. Hearings by telephone
would also save the state taxpayer funds by making it unnecessary for
administrative law judges to travel to remote locations to conduct
hearings if a hearing by telephone is requested by the claimant.
(b) The department may conduct a hearing by telephone.
SEC. 3. Section 10970 is added to the Welfare
and Institutions Code, to read:
10970. The department may develop a policy for the expedited
adjudication of a case where the county fails to meet its burden of
proof, as required by the department, provided that the
implementation of this policy would be cost neutral or result in cost
savings.
SEC. 4. Section 10971 is added to the Welfare
and Institutions Code, to read:
10971. The department may set up a workgroup to meet with
stakeholders to develop policies pursuant to Sections 10968 and
10970.