CalWORKs

AB 1560 (Fuentes) – Support
As Amended on May 25, 2012

AB 1560, by Assembly Member Felipe Fuentes, will help low-income families who are eligible for the state’s Medi-Cal program to also receive CalFresh nutritional benefits. 

Specifically, AB 1560 would waive the gross income test for any individual who receives, or is eligible to receive, Medi-Cal medical benefits. The measure would also allow those who live in households with those who receive or are eligible to receive Medi-Cal benefits to qualify for the CalFresh program. 

CSAC supports AB 1560, which was passed by the Assembly on May 30. It now goes to the Senate. 

AB 1640 (Mitchell) – Support
As Amended on May 25, 2012

AB 1640, by Assembly Member Holly Mitchell, would change the state’s CalWORKs statute to allow for pregnant women (with no other children in the household) to become eligible for CalWORKs basic needs grants and full-scope 1931(b) Medi-Cal benefits upon verification of a pregnancy.
The Assembly Appropriations Committee passed AB 1640 on May 25, and the Assembly passed it on May 31. It now goes to the Senate. 

AB 1673 (Mitchell) – Support
As Amended on April 9, 2012

AB 1673, as introduced by Assembly Member Holly Mitchell, would streamline eligibility for child care subsidies. Specifically, AB 1673 would require a 12-month eligibility period, and impose limited interim reporting requirements for families enrolled in certain programs. These changes will make the eligibility process more efficient for both counties and families. 

The Assembly Appropriations Committee heard AB 1673 on April 25 and placed it on their suspense file. The Committee declined to pass it by the May 25 legislative deadline and the measure is now dead. 

AB 1998 (Achadjian) – Support
As Amended on May 25, 2012

AB 1998, by Assembly Member Katcho Achadjian, would help bridge the “digital divide” by allowing counties to donate surplus computer property directly to recipients of public assistance to aid in employment and assistance efforts.

CSAC supports AB 1998, which was passed by the Assembly on May 30. It now goes to the Senate. 

Medi-Cal

AB 1785 (Lowenthal, B.) – Support
As Introduced on February 21, 2012

AB 1785, by Assembly Member Bonnie Lowenthal, allow federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) and rural health clinics to draw down federal funding for patient visits with marriage and family therapists.

The Assembly Appropriations Committee placed AB 1785 on their Suspense File in April, and declined to pass it out by the May 25 legislative deadline. The measure is now dead. 

Child Welfare Services/Foster Care

SB 1432 (Steinberg) – Pending
As Amended on April 26, 2012

SB 1432, by Senate President pro Tempore Darrell Steinberg, is a measure supported by children’s advocates to impose additional state oversight over the child welfare services (CWS) system, which was realigned to counties in 2011. 

CSAC, along with the County Welfare Directors Association, raised concerns about the measure. The Assembly Appropriations Committee declined to pass the measure out of committee by the May 25 legislative deadline. 

AB 1707 (Ammiano) – Support
As Amended on March 13, 2012

AB 1707, by Assembly Member Tom Ammiano, would amend the Child Abuse Central Index (CACI) statute to automatically remove the name of a person who is listed as a perpetrator of child abuse after 10 years if the incident occurred when the perpetrator was under 18 years old at the time of the incident. The perpetrator’s name would only be removed if no subsequent reportable incidents have occurred. AB 1707 would also modify CACI notice requirements to require the Department of Justice to report any listings involving a minor under the jurisdiction of a juvenile court to the minor’s attorney. 

CSAC supports AB 1707, which was [assed by the Assembly on May 14 and is scheduled to be heard by the Senate Public Safety Committee on June 12. 

AB 1712 (Beall) – Support
As Amended on May 25, 2012

AB 1712, by Assembly Member Jim Beall, is a technical clean up measure relating to 2010’s Fostering Connections to Success Act. The Act extended foster care services to youth up to age 21 and helps the state draw down additional foster care funding from the federal government. 

AB 1712 was created with input from counties, foster family agencies, and myriad other stakeholders, all with a singular goal in mind: To make foster care services as accessible and efficient as possible for all youth and non-minor dependents that need them. 

The Assembly Appropriations Committee passed the measure on May 25 and the full Assembly passed AB 1712 on May 30. It now goes to the Senate. 

AB 2093 (Skinner) – Support
As Amended on May 1, 2012

AB 2093, by Assembly Member Nancy Skinner, would provide students in foster care who transition from high school to college with a Student Services Representative. This goal is to provide assistance that is tailored to the specific challenges that current and former foster youth face and increase their rates of success in a higher education environment. 
The Assembly Appropriations Committee failed to pass AB 2093 by the May 25 legislative deadline and the measure is now dead. 

Adult Protective Services

AB 2149 (Butler) – Support
As Amended on May 21, 2012 

AB 2149, by Assembly Member Betsy Butler, would allow victims of elder abuse to continue to contact, cooperate with or file a claim of elder abuse regardless of whether a civil settlement action has been rendered. 
The Assembly passed AB 2149 on May 25 and it now goes to the Senate. 

Public Health

AB 2002 (Cedillo) – Oppose
As Amended on April 30, 2012

AB 2002 by Assembly Member Gil Cedillo, would expand the definition of a safety net provider in instances where a Medi-Cal beneficiary must be automatically assigned to a managed care plan. 

Assembly Member Cedillo’s AB 2002 seeks to add plan-owned clinics, certain medical groups, and independent practice associations to the definition of safety net providers, which would disrupt the current Auto Assignment Incentive Program selection process by crowding out existing safety net providers. Furthermore, AB 2002 comes at a pivotal time for the Medi-Cal program as approach the implementation of the federal Affordable Care Act. Both the California Department of Health Care Services and the state’s Health Benefits Exchange are currently working with stakeholder groups, including the Legislature, to develop a system to handle the expansion of Medi-Cal to some 3 million Californians in 2014. In light of those ongoing efforts, counties believe that any changes to the plan assignment process must occur within that framework, rather than a stand-alone measure that will benefit specific plans at the expense of existing safety net providers.

CSAC, along with the County Health Executives Association of California (CHEAC), the California Association of Public Hospitals (CAPH), and Los Angeles County, oppose AB 2002. The Assembly Appropriations Committee placed AB 2002 on the Suspense File on May 16 and failed to pass it by the May 25 legislative deadline. The measure is now dead. CSAC wishes to thank Assembly Member Cedillo for his careful consideration of our concerns on this measure and looks forward to working with him on health care policy in the future. 

AB 2246 (Pérez, J.) – Support
As Amended on April 23, 2012

AB 2246, by Assembly Speaker John A. Pérez, requires the new California Healthy Food Financing Initiative Council to establish and maintain a web site that outlines information on the Council’s actions to support access to healthy foods by March 31, 2013. 

The measure builds upon the Speaker’s AB 581 from 2011, which created the California Healthy Food Financing Initiative to promote access to healthy food throughout California. Counties support these efforts to combat “food deserts” within communities – areas with little to no access to quality foods that are both healthy and affordable. 

CSAC supported AB 581 last year and now supports AB 2246. The Assembly passed the measure on May 25 and it now goes to the Senate.