AB 110: In-home supportive services provider wages: emergency caregiver payments for foster care: civil immigration detainees: recording fees.

(1)Existing law, the California Values Act, prohibits state and local law enforcement agencies from contracting with the federal government for use of their facilities to house individuals as federal detainees, except as specified.

This bill would specify that state and local law enforcement agencies are prohibited from contracting with the federal government for use of their facilities to house individuals as federal detainees for purposes of civil immigration custody, except as specified.

(2)Existing law imposes a fee, except as provided, of $75 to be paid at the time of the recording of every real estate instrument, paper, or notice required or permitted by law to be recorded, per each single transaction per single parcel of real property, not to exceed $225. Existing law exempts from this fee any real estate instrument, paper, or notice recorded in connection with a transfer subject to the imposition of a documentary transfer tax, as provided, or with a transfer of real property that is a residential dwelling to an owner-occupier.

This bill would additionally exempt from this fee any real estate instrument, paper, or notice executed or recorded by the federal government pursuant to the Uniform Federal Lien Registration Act, or by the state, or any county, municipality, or other political subdivision of the state. The bill would provide that these exemptions apply retroactively to any real estate instrument, paper, or notice executed or recorded by the federal government, or by the state, or any county, municipality, or other political subdivision of the state on or after January 1, 2018. The bill would also state that the exemption for real estate instruments, papers, or notices executed or recorded by the state, or any county, municipality, or other political subdivision of the state is declaratory of existing law.

By adding to the duties of county recorders in administering this recording fee, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

(3)Existing law establishes the county-administered In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) program, under which qualified aged, blind, and disabled persons are provided with services in order to permit them to remain in their own homes and avoid institutionalization. Existing law prohibits an increase in provider wages or benefits that were locally negotiated, mediated, imposed, or adopted by ordinance from taking effect unless and until, prior to its implementation, certain conditions are met, including that the State Department of Social Services has obtained the approval of the State Department of Health Care Services, as specified.

This bill would prohibit the increase in wages or benefits from taking effect unless and until the increase is reviewed and determined to be in compliance with state law.

(4)Existing law requires the state and counties to share the annual cost of providing in-home supportive services and requires all counties to have a County IHSS Maintenance of Effort (MOE) commencing July 1, 2017, as prescribed. Existing law requires the County IHSS MOE to be adjusted for the annualized cost increases in provider wages or health benefits that are locally negotiated, mediated, or imposed on or after July 1, 2017. Existing law authorizes a county to negotiate a wage supplement and requires the countys County IHSS MOE to include a one-time adjustment by the amount of the increase, as specified, for the first time the wage supplement is applied. Existing law requires the wage supplement to subsequently be applied to the county individual provider wage when the increase takes effect at the same time as, and is the same amount as, the state minimum wage increases, and the minimum wage increase exceeds the county individual provider wage prior to applying the minimum wage increase.

This bill would instead require the wage supplement to subsequently be applied to the minimum wage when the minimum wage increase is equal to or exceeds the county wage paid without the inclusion of the wage supplement and the increase to the county wage paid takes effect at the same time as the minimum wage increase. The bill would require that the wage supplement be in addition to the highest wage rate paid in the county as of June 30, 2017. The bill would provide that these new requirements do not apply for any changes to provider wages or health benefits locally negotiated, mediated, or imposed by a county, public authority, or nonprofit consortium, for which a rate change request was submitted to the State Department of Social Services for review prior to January 1, 2018, and instead would require that in these cases, the wage supplement subsequently be applied to the minimum wage when the minimum wage is equal to or exceeds the county individual provider wage including the wage supplement. The bill would appropriate $1,000,000 to the State Department of Social Services for the purposes of the provisions relating to cases in which a rate change request was submitted to the department for review prior to January 1, 2018.

(5)Existing law requires each county to provide cash assistance and other social services to needy families through the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program using federal Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) block grant program, state, and county funds. Existing law specifies the amounts of cash aid to be paid each month to CalWORKs recipients.

Existing law establishes the Aid to Families with Dependent Children-Foster Care (AFDC-FC) program, under which counties provide payments to foster care providers on behalf of qualified children in foster care. Under existing law, a child who is placed in the approved home of a relative is eligible for AFDC-FC if he or she is eligible for federal financial participation in the AFDC-FC payment, as specified. Existing law provides for benefits for a child who is placed in the approved home of a relative and who is ineligible for AFDC-FC pursuant to the CalWORKs program. Existing law establishes the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Program (ARC) for the purpose of making the amount paid to relative caregivers for the in-home care of children placed with them who are ineligible for AFDC-FC payments equal to the amount paid on behalf of children who are eligible for AFDC-FC payments.

Existing law provides for the implementation of the resource family approval process, which replaces the multiple processes for licensing foster family homes, certifying foster homes by foster family agencies, approving relatives and nonrelative extended family members as foster care providers, and approving guardians and adoptive families. Existing law defines a resource family as an individual or family that has successfully met both home environment assessment standards and permanency assessment criteria, as specified, necessary for providing care for a child placed by a public or private child placement agency by court order, or voluntarily placed by a parent or legal guardian.

Existing law provides for the temporary or emergency placement of dependent children of the juvenile court and nonminor dependents with relative caregivers or nonrelative extended family members under specified circumstances. Under existing law, a relative caregiver or nonrelative extended family member is required to submit an application for approval as a resource family and initiate a home environment assessment within 5 business days after the placement.

This bill would state the Legislatures intent to provide interim support to an emergency caregiver, as defined, who has a pending application under the Resource Family Approval Program that has been temporarily delayed due to the need to increase capacity for statewide implementation of the program. This bill would require counties to provide an emergency assistance payment or ARC payment to that emergency caregiver who also meets specified requirements, and is caring for a child or nonminor dependent placed in the caregivers home under specified circumstances, if the child or nonminor dependent resides in California, and is not otherwise eligible for AFDC-FC or ARC. The bill would require the payments to be made either through ARC or through the TANF block grant emergency assistance program for child welfare services, as specified. The bill would make payments available through June 30, 2018, if specified conditions are met. The bill would provide that counties would not be liable for any federal disallowance or penalty imposed on the state based on implementing these provisions. The bill would make these provisions inoperative on July 1,2018, and would repeal the provisions on January 1, 2019.

By expanding the duties of counties relating to foster care, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

(6)Existing law continuously appropriates moneys from the General Fund to defray a portion of county costs under the CalWORKs program.

This bill would provide that the continuous appropriation would not be made for purposes of implementing the bill.

(7)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 no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

(8)This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.