BILL ANALYSIS �
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair
SB 1060 (Hancock) - CalWORKs benefits: lifetime ban.
Amended: As Introduced Policy Vote: Human Services 4-2
Urgency: No Mandate: Yes
Hearing Date: April 30, 2012
Consultant: Jolie Onodera
This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File.
Bill Summary: SB 1060 would delete the existing lifetime
prohibition from receipt of California Work Opportunity and
Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) benefits for an individual
convicted in state or federal court of a drug-related felony,
and would instead provide that a person convicted of a
drug-related felony shall be eligible to receive CalWORKs
benefits subject to certain conditions related to drug
treatment, as specified. This bill would also remove the
existing prohibition from eligibility for General Assistance
(GA) benefits for an individual ineligible for CalWORKs aid due
to a disqualifying drug-felony conviction who is a member of an
assistance unit receiving CalWORKs aid.
Fiscal Impact:
Increased CalWORKs assistance, services, and child care costs
potentially in the range of $49 to $80 million (TANF/MOE)
annually to add approximately 5,900 to 10,000 individuals to
existing CalWORKs child-only cases. To the extent the CalWORKs
budget exceeds available TANF/MOE funds, any increased costs
above the base Maintenance of Effort (MOE) requirement would
be funded with General Fund.
Unknown, increased annual CalWORKs assistance payments likely
in the tens of millions of dollars to add previously
ineligible adults due to a drug felony conviction to existing
CalWORKs Assistance Units (AUs) with an ineligible adult. For
every 10,000 cases, increased annual CalWORKs assistance costs
of $14.6 million (based on an increase of $122 per month to
the CalWORKs grant).
State-reimbursable CalWORKs administration costs in the low
hundreds of thousands of dollars for county eligibility
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workers to verify drug treatment program participation upon
enrollment.
One-time costs for automation system changes to the IEVS match
process. Potentially significant costs in excess of hundreds
of thousands of dollars (Federal/General) if significant
programming changes are required for both CalWORKs and GA.
Unknown, increased GA benefit and administration costs,
potentially state-reimbursable, in the tens of millions of
dollars. Individuals unable to meet the drug treatment or
other eligibility requirements for CalWORKs (for example, not
living with his/her children), could be eligible for GA.
Annual costs for GA assistance for 10,000 individuals is
estimated at $26 million (assumes an average GA benefit of
$217 per month).
To the extent increased CalWORKs and GA participation assist
in reducing the rate at which these individuals violate the
terms of their parole/probation or are convicted of new
crimes, substantial future cost savings in state/local
incarceration and child welfare services costs.
Background: Federal law prohibits individuals who have been
convicted of certain drug felony offenses from receiving federal
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Supplemental
Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, but allows a state
to opt out partially or entirely from the provisions of the
automatic aid disqualification through the enactment of
legislative exemptions removing or limiting the class of drug
felons that are otherwise affected by the federal lifetime ban.
Existing California law provides that an individual is
ineligible for aid under the CalWORKs program if the individual
has been convicted in state or federal court, including any plea
of guilty or nolo contendere, of any offense classified as a
felony and that has as an element the possession, use, or
distribution of a controlled substance. California law also
excludes those who are disqualified from TANF by the federal ban
from receiving state GA benefits. The lifetime ban applies to
all persons convicted of a drug felony after December 31, 1997.
California partially opts out of the federal prohibition against
SNAP (known as CalFresh in California) eligibility for persons
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convicted of a drug felony unrelated to distribution or sales
who can prove participation in a drug treatment program or
provide other evidence that illegal use of controlled substances
has ceased. Existing state law retains the federal prohibition
against eligibility for CalFresh benefits for persons convicted
of a felony involving transporting, importing, selling,
furnishing, giving away, possessing for sale, manufacturing a
controlled substance, possessing precursors with intent to sell,
cultivating or processing marijuana, or convicted of a felony
involving soliciting, inducing, encouraging, or intimidating a
minor to participate in any such crimes.
According to the Legal Action Center, as of November 2011, 14
states (including Kansas, Michigan, New York, Ohio, and
Pennsylvania) have opted out of the ban on TANF benefits and 16
states and Washington, D.C. have opted out of the ban on SNAP
benefits. Many states have modified bans for one or both
programs subject to various conditions related to drug treatment
and/or fulfilling sentencing requirements.
Proposed Law: This bill would opt California out of the
provisions under federal law prohibiting eligibility for TANF
benefits through a state program and would provide that persons
convicted in state or federal court, including any plea of
guilty or nolo contendere, of any offense classified as a felony
that has an element the possession, use, or distribution of a
controlled substance shall be eligible to receive CalWORKs
benefits subject to specified conditions.
As a condition of eligibility to receive CalWORKs benefits, an
applicant would be required to provide proof of one of the
following subsequent to the most recent drug-related conviction
or plea:
Completion of a government-recognized drug treatment
program;
Participation in a government-recognized drug treatment
program;
Enrollment in a government-recognized drug treatment
program;
Placement on a waiting list for a government-recognized
drug treatment program;
Other evidence that all illegal use, possession, or
distribution of controlled substances has ceased, as
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established by the Department of Social Services (DSS)
regulations.
Further, this bill would delete the existing prohibition from
eligibility for GA benefits for an individual ineligible for
CalWORKs benefits who is a member of an assistance unit
receiving CalWORKs.
Related Legislation: SB 659 (Wright) 1999 would have ended the
lifetime ban on CalWORKs and CalFresh benefits if individuals
participated in or completed specified drug-treatment programs
as well as periodic medical drug screening tests. The bill was
vetoed by the Governor with the following message:
I am returning Senate Bill No. 659 without my signature. This
bill would expand eligibility for certain programs such as
CalWORKs and Food Stamps for persons convicted of a felony for
possession, use, manufacture or distribution of a controlled
substance, if they meet certain conditions relating to drug
treatment and testing. Convicted felons do not deserve the same
treatment as law-abiding citizens, especially those that
manufacture, transport, or distribute drugs.
AB 1796 (Leno) Chapter 932/2004 established a partial exemption
to the federal ban for individuals who were convicted of drug
possession and use felonies to receive CalFresh benefits subject
to conditions related to drug treatment. The bill did not modify
eligibility for CalWORKs benefits.
AB 508 (Swanson) 2007 proposed a complete opt out of the ban for
CalFresh eligibility for applicants convicted of felony drug
offenses, but did not address CalWORKs eligibility. The bill was
vetoed by the Governor.
AB 828 (Swanson) 2011 proposed a complete opt out of the ban for
CalFresh eligibility for applicants convicted of felony drug
offenses, but did not address CalWORKs eligibility. The bill was
held on the Suspense File of this committee in June 2011.
SB 1506 (Leno) 2012 proposes to revise the penalty for simple
possession of a controlled substance from a felony to a
misdemeanor offense. This bill passed out of Senate Committee on
Public Safety and has been ordered to third reading on the
Senate Floor. In the event SB 1506 is enacted, costs associated
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with increased CalWORKs and GA benefits for the group of
individuals convicted on and after January 1, 2013, of felony
offenses for simple drug possession would not be attributable to
the provisions of this bill (although the practical effect of
increased eligibility for public assistance programs would still
occur).
Staff Comments: This bill will result in a significant increase
in the number of individuals potentially eligible for CalWORKs
and GA. Since it is a lifetime ban on eligibility, the number of
affected individuals continues to grow over time, and the number
of individuals who may become eligible at any point in time
during their lifetimes increases. A 2005 Government
Accountability Office (GAO) study indicated approximately 15
percent of all offenders and 27 percent of female offenders
convicted of drug felonies at the time of the study could have
met the program eligibility requirements and could have been
negatively impacted by the federal TANF ban.
Based on statistics from the Department of Justice Crime in
California annual reports through 2010 (the most recent year for
which data is available), there have been over 850,000 adult
felony convictions in state courts for drug offenses in
California since the ban was established (61,000 felony drug
convictions per year). This data does not include data for
juveniles. At the federal court level, information from the U.S.
Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, reflects
approximately 240,000 felony convictions related to drug
offenses over the last nine years (26,500 per year) through
2009. Although the data does not disaggregate those who have
previously been convicted of a drug felony, data from the
Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) for FYs
2008-09 to 20010-11 indicates annual new admissions to state
prison of about 10,600 individuals, and 5,400 repeat offenders
admitted to state prison for a felony drug conviction.
Information from the DSS reflects there are currently 5,900
child-only CalWORKs cases that include an ineligible adult due
to a felony drug conviction. Increased CalWORKs assistance,
services, and child care costs to add one individual to the
5,900 cases is estimated at $49 million (TANF/MOE) assuming an
increase to the AU grant of $122 per month (the difference
between an AU of 2 and 3), employment services cost of $453 per
month, and monthly child care costs of $800 (assuming a
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utilization rate of 24 percent and 1.6 children per family per
case). This estimate reflects full compliance with the drug
treatment program provisions for eligibility. Annual ongoing
costs would increase or decrease commensurate with the number of
eligible cases successfully meeting these requirements. Should
the CalWORKs child-only caseload increase to 10,000 cases,
annual costs would increase up to $80 million for cash
assistance, services, and child care.
There would also be an impact to CalWORKs cases in larger AUs
with an ineligible drug felon that would need to be considered.
It is unknown how many individuals previously convicted of a
drug felony who would impact existing or prospective CalWORKs
cases. For every 10,000 individuals added to an existing or
prospective CalWORKs case, increased CalWORKs assistance costs
are estimated of $14.6 million ($122 per month per case) per
year.
Administrative costs to verify drug treatment program
requirements would vary dependent on the number of enrollments
and the process of verification required. Assuming simple
verification of documentation, an additional 15 minutes per case
at enrollment would result in additional costs likely in the low
hundreds of thousands of dollars. The one-time costs for
automation system changes to the IEVS match process are unknown
at this time. Automation costs could potentially be significant
if substantial programming changes are required for both
CalWORKs and GA.
The provisions of this bill could result in increased GA benefit
and administration costs in the tens of millions of dollars.
Although the GA program was in existence prior to January 1,
1975, the subsequent restriction on GA eligibility was enacted
with the ban on CalWORKs in 1998. To the extent the Commission
on Mandates determines the expansion of the program results in a
higher level of service from the level established under the
existing GA eligibility standards, it is unclear if the costs
would be considered a state-reimbursable mandate. Annual costs
for GA assistance for 10,000 individuals is estimated at $26
million assuming an average GA benefit of $217 per month per
individual.
To the extent increased CalWORKs and GA participation assist in
reducing the rate at which these individuals violate the terms
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of their parole/probation or are convicted of new crimes,
substantial future cost savings in state/local incarceration and
child welfare services costs could be realized.
Recommended Amendments: Staff recommends a technical amendment
to specifically cite Section 115(a) (1) of Public Law 104-193 to
clarify the provision of federal law being addressed.
The provisions of the bill appear to place conditional
eligibility requirements on individuals who under current law
are eligible for CalWORKs (and GA) without condition if the
individual had been convicted in state or federal court on or
prior to December 31, 1997, of a drug-related felony. For
individuals convicted between August 22, 1996 (date of federal
ban), and December 31, 1997, inclusive, the provisions of this
bill could require these individuals to provide proof of
specified drug treatment program involvement. Staff recommends
clarifying language to avoid ambiguity and clearly define the
population intended.