BILL ANALYSIS �
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 1258|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 1258
Author: Wolk (D) and Correa (D), et al.
Amended: 5/29/12
Vote: 21
SENATE VETERANS AFFAIRS COMMITTEE : 7-0, 4/10/12
AYES: Correa, Cannella, Berryhill, Calderon, Negrete
McLeod, Rubio, Lieu
NO VOTE RECORDED: Runner
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 7-0, 5/24/12
AYES: Kehoe, Walters, Alquist, Dutton, Lieu, Price,
Steinberg
SUBJECT : Department of Veterans Affairs: monitoring
outcomes for
veterans: Director of Employment Development:
disclosure of information
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill requires the Department of Veterans
Affairs (DVA) to establish a system in conjunction with the
Employment Development Department (EDD) to develop outcome
indicators of veterans, and to report to the Legislature
annually beginning March 1, 2015. This bill also
authorizes DVA to receive information held by other state
agencies as it relates to outcomes for veterans in
California, for purposes of monitoring these outcomes and
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improving the operations of services and programs intended
to support the needs of veterans.
ANALYSIS : Existing law:
1.Establishes DVA, which is responsible for administering
various programs and services for the benefit of
veterans.
2.Ensures the information obtained in the administration of
the Unemployment Insurance Law is for the exclusive use
and information of the Director of EDD in the discharge
of his or her duties and is not open to the public.
3.Requires the director to permit the use of specified
information for specified purposes, and allows the
director to require reimbursement for direct costs
incurred.
4.Provides that a person who knowingly accesses, uses, or
discloses this confidential information without
authorization is guilty of a misdemeanor.
This bill:
1.Requires the DVA to develop outcome indictors for
veterans including employment and employment-related
earnings, incidence of suicide, higher education, and
involvement with the child welfare system and with the
criminal justice system.
2.Authorizes the DVA to receive data from other state
agencies or departments as long as access to that data is
not limited by state or federal law.
3.Requires the DVA to ensure confidentiality of the
information it receives from other departments.
4.Authorizes DVA to establish advisory bodies as necessary,
and to use the California Interagency Council on Veterans
as an advisory body.
5.Requires DVA to provide a progress report by March 1,
2015, on the outcome indicators developed by DVA. The
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report shall also include recommendations on ways to
establish a system for monitoring outcomes of veterans,
including additional staffing or technology that might be
necessary, as well as any regulatory or fiscal barriers
that may hinder future progress on the development of a
monitoring system. This requirement is inactive on March
1, 2019.
6.Requires the Director of EDD to release quarterly wage
data to the DVA.
This bill is intended to provide a mechanism that will
allow the state to track veterans and the benefits they
obtain such as employment, length of employment, college
attendance, as well as whether the veterans have been
reported to other state agencies for instances relating to
suicide, child welfare instances, or involvement with the
criminal justice system. Once the data is identified,
future programs can be initiated that will assist veterans
in getting the benefits they need and are eligible to
receive under both existing state and federal programs.
Background
The Federal Veterans Administration (VA) is backlogged over
1 million cases in admitting veterans into its system.
This means that often veterans are not treated in the
meantime. As a result that means veterans with mental
health issues are going untreated by the Federal
Government.
In May of 2011 the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals labeled
VA's treatment of veterans with mental health issues as
"unchecked incompetence" and then ordered a complete
overhaul of the VA mental health system.
Veterans represent a disproportionate percentage of those
who commit suicide. 18 veterans per day are committing
suicide, and VA has said it identifies 1,000 suicide
attempts per month. It is believed that one out of five
veterans returning from Iraq will have Post Traumatic
Stress Disorder.
There is no state system for mental health treatment,
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mental health is a local issue. Since there is not
necessarily consistent treatment at the county level, then
there is no guarantee that a veteran who is not receiving
treatment from the VA will be treated locally. Treatment
depends on the county mental health plan.
Veterans represent a disproportionate percentage of those
who are unemployed. Testimony before the Senate Veterans
Affairs Committee by the California Military Department in
2011 put unemployment at over 20 percent for the Army
National Guard veterans and 28 percent for Air National
Guard veterans.
State agencies have been reluctant to share, and in some
cases even to gather, statistics about veterans within
their purview. AB 716 of 2009 (Huber) would have allowed
DVA to enter into MOUs with state agencies to collect this
data. However, Governor Schwarzenegger vetoed the bill as
unnecessary.
Because of hurdles that veterans now face and because
information is not shared, a new Interagency Council on
Veterans now exists by executive order of the new governor.
Comments
Although there are numerous federal and state benefits
available for California veterans, there appears to be a
disconnect between those veterans and their ability to
actually obtain available benefits. Additionally, there is
no current system that tracks California veterans and
monitors the benefits they receive.
In August 2011, Governor Brown issued Executive Order
B-9-11 which created the California Interagency Council on
Veterans and ordered that the Secretaries of the Labor and
Workforce Development Agency, California Volunteers, the
Business Transportation and Housing Agency, the Health and
Human Services Agency, and the Department of Corrections
and Rehabilitation, the Adjutant General of the Military
Department, and the Directors of the Employment Development
Department, the Department of Consumer Affairs, the
Department of Rehabilitation, and the Department of Housing
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and Community Development are appointed as members of the
California Interagency Council on Veterans. The purpose of
the Council is to identify and prioritize the needs of
California's veterans, and to coordinate the activities at
all levels of government in addressing those needs. The
Council has held several meetings to date, and in February
brought together more than 130 representatives from
federal, state, and local organizations to discuss ways to
streamline the process to enable veterans and their
families to claim benefits and services they have earned
through military service.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee,
approximately $20,000 one time. General Fund.
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/29/12 )
American Federation of State, County and Municipal
Employees
American Legion, Department of California
AMVETS, Department of California
California Association of County Veterans Service Officers
California Association of Veteran Service Agencies
California Senior Legislature
Vietnam Veterans of America, California State Council
OPPOSITION : (Verified 5/29/12)
Department of Finance
RM:nl 5/29/12 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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