BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    �



                                                                  SB 1440
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   July 2, 2014

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                  Mike Gatto, Chair

                    SB 1440 (Wolk) - As Amended:  April 22, 2014 

          Policy Committee:                             Veterans  
          AffairsVote: 9-0

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program:  
          No     Reimbursable:               

           SUMMARY  

          This bill creates, what is in effect, a cap on the charges that  
          non-veteran spouses living in a veterans' home must pay by  
          requiring non-veteran spouses to pay the same sliding scale fees  
          and charges as the veteran spouse. 

           FISCAL EFFECT  

          Moderate annual GF costs, likely in excess of $300,000 in out  
          years. The Department of Veterans Affairs does not receive  
          federal reimbursement for non-veteran spouses, therefore, the GF  
          would have to cover the difference, which is about $5,000 per  
          year for each non-veteran spouse according to the department.  
          Non-veteran spouses are grandfathered in under the 2009 cap, but  
          there are about 55 who are not. This number would presumably  
          increase in future years.

          This bill reverses a 2009-10 budget action that removed the cap  
          on residential fees. Until 2009 there was a cap on residential  
          fees for each classification of care:  $1,200 per month for  
          residential care, $2,300 per month for intermediate care, and  
          $2,500 per month for skilled nursing care.  The budget action  
          removed caps for all levels of care, added a separate fee  
          structure for the Residential Care Facility for the Elderly  
          (RCFE), and required non-veteran spouses to pay either the same  
          fees and charges as their veteran spouses, or an amount equal to  
          the annual amount of federal per diem received for a veteran  
          member in residential care, whichever is greater. If the  
          non-veteran spouse's income is less than the annual amount of  
          federal per diem for a veteran member in residential care, the  
          non-veteran member must pay a maximum of 90% of his/her annual  








                                                                  SB 1440
                                                                  Page  2

          income.

           COMMENTS

          1)Rationale  . The author contends restoring a cap on the amount a  
            non-veteran's spouse must pay for residence in a veterans'  
            home is sound fiscal policy. The author notes that if the  
            non-veteran spouse's income is less than what the federal  
            government would pay, then the non-veteran spouse pays 90% of  
            his/her income. Thus, under existing law the non-veteran  
            spouse may pay more for the same services and/or must choose  
            between that pay structure and living apart from his or her  
            spouse. 
           
          2)Prior legislation  , AB 488 (Cook), 2011, was identical to this  
            bill and was held on this committee's Suspense File. 
              
           Analysis Prepared by  :    Geoff Long / APPR. / (916) 319-2081