BILL ANALYSIS �
AJR 29
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AJR 29 (Brown)
As Introduced August 5, 2013
Majority vote
AGING 5-0
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|Ayes:|Yamada, Wagner, Brown, |
| |Daly, Levine |
| | |
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SUMMARY : Urges the Congress of the United States (Congress) to
restore federal funding cuts, due to sequestration, to senior
nutrition programs, and to declare senior nutrition services and
programs exempt from further budget cuts. Specifically, this
resolution makes the following legislative findings and
declarations, among others:
1)In 2011, the one-hundred and twelfth Congress adopted and the
President signed, the Budget Control Act (the Act) of 2011
(Public Law (P.L.) 112-25), as both a compromise and an
incentive to address federal budgetary principles.
2)The Act included provisions to either adopt a 10-year deficit
reduction plan, or face automatic, across-the-board reductions
in mandatory and discretionary funding in the amount of $1.2
trillion during the period between 2013 and 2021, inclusive.
3)That every federal program is cut equally under sequester,
including programs authorized by the Older Americans Act (OAA)
of 1965 and administered by the Administration for Community
Living.
4)That congregate nutrition programs provide important links to
other in-home and community-based services including
transportation, health and wellness, education, counseling,
and assessments.
5)That home-delivered meals provide nutrition for home-bound
individuals, as well as volunteers to check-up on homebound
elders and other, younger, functionally challenged adults in
order to decrease feelings of isolation.
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6)That nutrition programs enhance the ability for eligible
individuals to remain independent and in their own homes
longer, thus preventing or delaying costly
institutionalization.
7)That older adults are far less likely to obtain employment to
compensate for lost nutrition benefits, which forces families
to back-fill with resources intended to support children, thus
jeopardizing entire families' well-being.
8)That funding reduction threatens loss of necessary equipment,
as well as fragile networks created through local innovations
developed by local governments, community-based organizations,
and faith-based entities.
9)That the Legislature memorializes the President and Congress
to restore nutrition program funding, similar to the way
funding was restored for small airport air-traffic controller
services.
10)That nutrition program funding be exempt from any further
cuts due to the disproportionate growth of the aging
population and the corresponding disproportionate impact upon
the senior population.
EXISTING LAW : The Older Americans Act (OAA) of 1965 provides
for the Nutrition Program to reduce hunger and food insecurity,
promote socialization of older individuals, to promote the
health and well-being of older individuals, among other things.
Services are targeted to those in greatest social and economic
need with particular attention to those at risk of isolation,
such as low income individuals, those in rural communities,
those with limited English proficiency, and those at risk of
institutional care. Nutrition Services Incentive Program grants
are allocated to states, territories, and eligible Indian Tribal
Organizations. These grants are in addition to congregate and
home-delivered meals and may only be used for food.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown. This bill is keyed non-fiscal by the
Legislative Counsel.
COMMENTS :
SEQUESTER : Under the Budget Control Act of 2011 (P.L. 112-25),
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sequestration was tied to enforcement of new statutory limits on
discretionary spending and achievement of the budget goal
established for the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction.
Sequester cuts have reduced congregate meals by 8.1% and home
delivered meals by 4.3%, or, $6.6 million.
In 2013, the California State Assembly entered into an
inter-agency agreement with the California Department of Aging
to provide $2.7 million from the Assembly's operations account,
reducing the impact of cuts by about 30%.
The federal Omnibus Budget for Federal fiscal year 2014 restores
all nutrition cuts for one year, effective retroactively to
October 1, 2013.
Analysis Prepared by : Robert MacLaughlin / AGING & L.T.C. /
(916) 319-3990
FN: 0003044