As we near the end of the 2019 legislative year, CSAC continues
to engage with several bill authors and sponsors to advocate for
the best outcomes for counties. CSAC was successful in
negotiating amendments on the two below bills that will allow us
to remove our opposition.
AB 1403, authored by Assembly Member Wendy Carrillo, would
have required counties to alter their locally-established General
Assistance (GA) or General Relief (GR) eligibility levels to
provide additional county-funded assistance to certain parents
who are no longer eligible for the California Work Opportunity
and Responsibility to Kids program.
Working with county affiliates, the author’s office, and the
sponsors, we were able to successfully negotiate language that
will be amended into the bill and removes our opposition. The
agreed upon language addresses the county fiscal concerns, which
continued to linger after the July 11 amendments. Specifically,
the language will make this expansion of GA/GR to the defined
target individuals, contingent on an appropriation in the budget,
and require consultation with counties on the appropriate amount
of funding. These amendments represent a positive outcome for
this bill that recognizes that an expansion of GA benefits needs
to be accompanied by a funding source and prioritized in the
annual state budget negotiations.
AB 1642, authored by Assembly Member Jim Wood, would expand
the authority for Department of Health Care Services to
impose sanctions on health plans including county-administered
mental health plans, while eliminating due process provisions in
current law. CSAC submitted a letter to the Legislature
requesting amendments that will enhance transparency and reflect
the principles of due process. The proposed amendments have
addressed those concerns by requiring network adequacy standards
to be established in statute or in contracts, and by aligning the
sanction appeal process for mental health plans with current
regulations. CSAC will submit a letter changing our “oppose
unless amended” to a neutral position when amendments are in
print.
