AB 2311, as amended, Bradford. General assistance: employable veterans.
Existing law requires each county to provide aid to its indigent residents not supported by other means. These county programs are known as general assistance programs.
Existing law permits a county to prohibit an employable individual from receiving general assistance benefits for more than 3 months in any 12-month period, whether or not the months are consecutive, if he or she has been offered an opportunity to attend job skills or job training sessions.
This billbegin delete would provide that the prohibition shall not apply toend deletebegin insert
would, commencing July 1, 2015, exempt from that prohibitionend insert an employable veteran who was honorably discharged from thebegin delete armed forcesend deletebegin insert Armed Forces, unless the county enacts an ordinance making the prohibition applicable to an employable veteran who was honorably discharged from the Armed Forcesend insert. Bybegin delete expandingend deletebegin insert requiring a county to expandend insert eligibility for general assistance programs,begin insert or enact an ordinance to make the prohibition applicable to an employable veteran,end insert 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:
This act shall be known and may be cited as the
2General Assistance “Thank You For Your Service” Act of 2014.
Section 17001.5 of the Welfare and Institutions Code
4 is amended to read:
(a) Notwithstanding any other law, including, but
6not limited to, Section 17000.5, the board of supervisors of each
7county, or the agency authorized by the county charter, may do
8any of the following:
9(1) (A) Adopt residency requirements for purposes of
10determining a persons’ eligibility for general assistance. Any
11residence requirement under this paragraph shall not exceed 15
12days.
13(B) Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to authorize
14the adoption of a requirement that an applicant or recipient have
15an address or to require a homeless person to acquire an
address.
16(2) (A) Establish a standard of general assistance for applicants
17and recipients who share housing with one or more unrelated
18persons or with one or more persons who are not legally
19responsible for the applicant or recipient. The standard of general
20assistance aid established pursuant to Section 17000.5 for a single
21adult applicant or recipient may be reduced pursuant to this
22paragraph by not more than the following percentages, as
23appropriate:
24(i) Fifteen percent if the applicant or recipient shares housing
25with one other person described in this subparagraph.
26(ii) Twenty percent if the applicant or recipient shares housing
27with two other persons described in this subparagraph.
P3 1(iii) Twenty-five percent if the applicant or recipient shares
2housing with three or more other persons described in this
3paragraph.
4(B) Any standard of aid adopted pursuant to this paragraph shall
5constitute a sufficient standard of aid for any recipient who shares
6housing.
7(C) Counties with shared housing reductions larger than the
8amounts specified in subparagraph (A) as of August 19, 1992, may
9continue to apply those adjustments.
10(3) Discontinue aid under this part for a period of not more than
11180 days with respect to any recipient who is employable and has
12received aid under this part for three months if the recipient engages
13in any of the
following conduct:
14(A) Fails, or refuses, without good cause, to participate in a
15qualified job training program, participation of which is a condition
16of receipt of assistance.
17(B) After completion of a job training program, fails, or refuses,
18without good cause, to accept an offer of appropriate employment.
19(C) Persistently fails, or refuses, without good cause, to
20cooperate with the county in its efforts to do any of the following:
21(i) Enroll the recipient in a job training program.
22(ii) After completion of a job training program, locate and secure
23appropriate employment for the recipient.
24(D) For purposes of this paragraph, lack of good cause may be
25demonstrated by a showing of any of the following:
26(i) The willful failure, or refusal, of the recipient to participate
27in a job training program, accept appropriate employment, or
28cooperate in enrolling in a training program or locating
29employment.
30(ii) Not less than three separate acts of negligent failure of the
31recipient to engage in any of the activities described in clause (i).
32(4) Prohibit an employablebegin delete individual, other than an employable
33veteran who was honorably discharged from the armed forces,end delete
34begin insert
individualend insert from receiving aid under this part for more than three
35months in any 12-month period, whether or not the months are
36consecutive. This paragraph shall apply to aid received on or after
37the effective date of this paragraph. This paragraph shall apply
38only to those individuals who have been offered an opportunity to
39attend job skills or job training sessions.
P4 1(5) Notwithstanding paragraph (3), discontinue aid to, or
2sanction, recipients for failure or refusal without good cause to
3follow program requirements. For purposes of this subdivision,
4lack of good cause may be demonstrated by a showing of either
5(A) willful failure or refusal of the recipient to follow program
6requirements, or (B) not less than three separate acts of negligent
7failure of the recipient to follow program requirements.
8(b) (1) The Legislative Analyst shall conduct an evaluation of
9the impact of this section on general assistance recipients and
10applicants.
11(2) The evaluation required by paragraph (1) shall include, but
12need not be limited to, all of the following:
13(A) The impact on the extent of homelessness among applicants
14and recipients of general assistance.
15(B) The rate at which recipients of general assistance are
16sanctioned by county welfare departments.
17(C) The impact of the 15-day residency requirement on
18applicants or recipients of general assistance, including how often
19the
requirement is invoked.
20(3) The Legislative Analyst shall, in the conduct of the study
21required by this section, consult with the State Department of
22Social Services, the County Welfare Directors Association, and
23organizations that advocate on behalf of recipients of general
24assistance.
25(c) A county may provide aid pursuant to Section 17000.5 either
26by cash assistance, in-kind aid, a two-party payment, voucher
27payment, or check drawn to the order of a third-party provider of
28services to the recipient. Nothing shall restrict a county from
29providing more than one method of aid to an individual recipient.
30(d) This section shall become
inoperative on July 1, 2015, and,
31as of January 1, 2016, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute,
32that becomes operative on or before January 1, 2016, deletes or
33extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed.
begin insertSection 17001.5 is added to the end insertbegin insertWelfare and Institutions
35Codeend insertbegin insert, to read:end insert
(a) Notwithstanding any other law, including, but
37not limited to, Section 17000.5, the board of supervisors of each
38county, or the agency authorized by the county charter, may do
39any of the following:
P5 1(1) (A) Adopt residency requirements for purposes of
2determining a person’s eligibility for general assistance. Any
3residence requirement under this paragraph shall not exceed 15
4days.
5(B) Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to authorize
6the adoption of a requirement that an applicant or recipient have
7an address or to require a homeless person to acquire an address.
8(2) (A) Establish a standard of general assistance for applicants
9and recipients who share housing with one or more unrelated
10persons or with one or more persons who are not legally
11responsible for the applicant or recipient. The standard of general
12assistance aid established pursuant to Section 17000.5 for a single
13adult applicant or recipient may be reduced pursuant to this
14paragraph by not more than the following percentages, as
15appropriate:
16(i) Fifteen percent if the applicant or recipient shares housing
17with one other person described in this subparagraph.
18(ii) Twenty percent if the applicant or recipient shares housing
19with two other persons described in this subparagraph.
20(iii) Twenty-five percent if the applicant or recipient shares
21housing with three or more other persons
described in this
22paragraph.
23(B) Any standard of aid adopted pursuant to this paragraph
24shall constitute a sufficient standard of aid for any recipient who
25shares housing.
26(C) Counties with shared housing reductions larger than the
27amounts specified in subparagraph (A) as of August 19, 1992, may
28continue to apply those adjustments.
29(3) Discontinue aid under this part for a period of not more
30than 180 days with respect to any recipient who is employable and
31has received aid under this part for three months if the recipient
32engages in any of the following conduct:
33(A) Fails, or refuses, without good cause, to participate in a
34qualified job training program, participation of which is a
35condition of receipt of assistance.
36(B) After completion of a job training program, fails, or refuses,
37without good cause, to accept an offer of appropriate employment.
38(C) Persistently fails, or refuses, without good cause, to
39cooperate with the county in its efforts to do any of the following:
40(i) Enroll the recipient in a job training program.
P6 1(ii) After completion of a job training program, locate and
2secure appropriate employment for the recipient.
3(D) For purposes of this paragraph, lack of good cause may be
4demonstrated by a showing of any of the following:
5(i) The willful failure, or refusal, of the recipient to participate
6in a job training program,
accept appropriate employment, or
7cooperate in enrolling in a training program or locating
8employment.
9(ii) Not less than three separate acts of negligent failure of the
10recipient to engage in any of the activities described in clause (i).
11(4) (A) Prohibit an employable individual, other than an
12employable veteran who was honorably discharged from the Armed
13Forces, from receiving aid under this part for more than three
14months in any 12-month period, whether or not the months are
15consecutive. This paragraph shall apply only to those individuals
16who have been offered an opportunity to attend job skills or job
17training sessions.
18(B) The board of supervisors of a county may enact an ordinance
19providing that any employable individual is subject to the limitation
20contained in subparagraph (A)
notwithstanding the fact that he
21or she is an employable veteran who was honorably discharged
22from the armed forces.
23(5) Notwithstanding paragraph (3), discontinue aid to, or
24sanction, recipients for failure or refusal without good cause to
25follow program requirements. For purposes of this subdivision,
26lack of good cause may be demonstrated by a showing of either
27(A) willful failure or refusal of the recipient to follow program
28requirements, or (B) not less than three separate acts of negligent
29failure of the recipient to follow program requirements.
30(b) (1) The Legislative Analyst shall conduct an evaluation of
31the impact of this section on general assistance recipients and
32applicants.
33(2) The evaluation required by paragraph (1) shall include, but
34need not be limited to, all of the
following:
35(A) The impact on the extent of homelessness among applicants
36and recipients of general assistance.
37(B) The rate at which recipients of general assistance are
38sanctioned by county welfare departments.
P7 1(C) The impact of the 15-day residency requirement on
2applicants or recipients of general assistance, including how often
3the requirement is invoked.
4(3) The Legislative Analyst shall, in the conduct of the study
5required by this section, consult with the State Department of
6Social Services, the County Welfare Directors Association, and
7organizations that advocate on behalf of recipients of general
8assistance.
9(c) A county may provide aid pursuant to Section 17000.5 either
10by cash
assistance, in-kind aid, a two-party payment, voucher
11payment, or check drawn to the order of a third-party provider of
12services to the recipient. Nothing shall restrict a county from
13providing more than one method of aid to an individual recipient.
14(d) This section shall become operative on July 1, 2015.
If the Commission on State Mandates determines that
17this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to
18local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made
19pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division
204 of Title 2 of the Government Code.
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