SB 297: Medical marijuana.

(1)Existing law provides for financial and food assistance benefits to needy Californians including, among other programs, the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program and CalFresh, under which each county provides for financial and food assistance benefits to qualified individuals who meet specified eligibility criteria.

This bill would require the State Department of Social Services to develop and make available to the Statewide Automated Welfare System an electronic verification process that allows county human services agency eligibility workers to, at their option, access data available electronically from public and private agencies and programs for use in connection with the determination of eligibility for specified means-tested public benefit programs.

(2)Existing federal law provides for the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), known in California as CalFresh, formerly the Food Stamp Program, under which supplemental nutrition assistance benefits allocated to the state by the federal government are distributed to eligible individuals by each county. Under existing law, county human services agencies administer CalFresh.

Existing law requires each county human services agency, to the extent permitted by federal law, to exempt a household from complying with face-to-face interview requirements at initial application and recertification, and authorizes a person eligible for an exemption from the face-to-face interview requirement to request a face-to-face interview to establish initial eligibility or comply with recertification requirements.

This bill would instead require a county human services agency to conduct a telephone interview for purposes of determining eligibility at initial application and recertification, except as provided, and would require a county human services agency to facilitate submission of required documents using electronic and telephone technologies to the greatest extent possible. The bill would also expand the circumstances under which a face-to-face interview is required, and would authorize an electronic interview to be conducted if the county human services agency and the applicant or recipient both have the capacity to participate in an electronic interview. The bill would require the department to issue guidance for recording and storing electronic and telephonic signatures. By increasing the duties of county human services agencies administering CalFresh, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The bill would require the State Department of Social Services to coordinate with county human services agencies to make available a standard technological solution that has the capacity to store telephonic and electronic signatures, as specified.

(3)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.