Bill Text: CA AB1579 | 2013-2014 | Regular Session | Chaptered
Bill Title: CalWORKs: pregnant women.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Passed) 2014-09-26 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 632, Statutes of 2014. [AB1579 Detail]
Download: California-2013-AB1579-Chaptered.html
BILL NUMBER: AB 1579 CHAPTERED
BILL TEXT
CHAPTER 632
FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE SEPTEMBER 26, 2014
APPROVED BY GOVERNOR SEPTEMBER 26, 2014
PASSED THE SENATE AUGUST 21, 2014
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY AUGUST 25, 2014
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 19, 2014
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 27, 2014
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 1, 2014
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Stone
(Principal coauthor: Senator Mitchell)
JANUARY 30, 2014
An act to amend, repeal, and add Section 11450 of the Welfare and
Institutions Code, relating to public social services.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1579, Stone. CalWORKs: pregnant women.
Existing federal law provides for allocation of federal funds
through the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
block grant program to eligible states. Existing law provides for the
California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs)
program under which, through a combination of state and county funds
and federal funds received through the TANF program, each county
provides cash assistance and other benefits to qualified low-income
families. Existing law provides that when a family does not include a
needy child qualified for aid under CalWORKs, aid shall be paid to a
pregnant mother for the month in which the birth is anticipated and
for the 3-month period immediately prior to the month in which the
birth is anticipated.
This bill would, beginning July 1, 2015, instead provide that when
a family does not include a needy child qualified for aid under
CalWORKs, aid shall be paid to a pregnant woman for the month in
which the birth is anticipated and for the 6-month period immediately
prior to the month in which the birth is anticipated. The bill would
also authorize these provisions to be implemented by means of
all-county letters or similar instructions until regulations are
adopted.
Existing law continuously appropriates moneys from the General
Fund to defray a portion of county costs under the CalWORKs program.
This bill would instead provide that the continuous appropriation
would not be made for purposes of implementing the bill.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the Healthy
Babies Act of 2014.
SEC. 2. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) Women who experience multiple stressful situations during
pregnancy, such as homelessness, hunger, violence, and deep poverty,
are more likely to have premature and low birth weight babies, or to
experience high rates of mother and infant mortality. The cost of
medical care for pre-term births is much higher than for full-term
births, and the human costs of infant mortality are immeasurable.
(b) Children whose birth mothers experience the harmful stressor
of deep poverty are more likely to suffer poor health and less likely
to succeed academically.
(c) Domestic violence causes more health problems among pregnant
women than any other single cause. Without the support of the
CalWORKs program, low-income pregnant women have few alternatives and
are more likely to endure abuse that will cause long- and short-term
harm to both themselves and their unborn fetus.
SEC. 3. Section 11450 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, as
amended by Section 37 of Chapter 21 of the Statutes of 2013, is
amended to read:
11450. (a) (1) Aid shall be paid for each needy family, which
shall include all eligible brothers and sisters of each eligible
applicant or recipient child and the parents of the children, but
shall not include unborn children, or recipients of aid under Chapter
3 (commencing with Section 12000), qualified for aid under this
chapter. In determining the amount of aid paid, and notwithstanding
the minimum basic standards of adequate care specified in Section
11452, the family's income, exclusive of any amounts considered
exempt as income or paid pursuant to subdivision (e) or Section
11453.1, determined for the prospective semiannual period pursuant to
Sections 11265.1, 11265.2, and 11265.3, and then calculated pursuant
to Section 11451.5, shall be deducted from the sum specified in the
following table, as adjusted for cost-of-living increases pursuant to
Section 11453 and paragraph (2). In no case shall the amount of aid
paid for each month exceed the sum specified in the following table,
as adjusted for cost-of-living increases pursuant to Section 11453
and paragraph (2), plus any special needs, as specified in
subdivisions (c), (e), and (f):
Number
of
eligible
needy
persons
in Maximum
the same home aid
1.............................. $ 326
2.............................. 535
3.............................. 663
4.............................. 788
5.............................. 899
6.............................. 1,010
7.............................. 1,109
8.............................. 1,209
9.............................. 1,306
10 or more...................... 1,403
If, when, and during those times that the United States government
increases or decreases its contributions in assistance of needy
children in this state above or below the amount paid on July 1,
1972, the amounts specified in the above table shall be increased or
decreased by an amount equal to that increase or decrease by the
United States government, provided that no increase or decrease shall
be subject to subsequent adjustment pursuant to Section 11453.
(2) The sums specified in paragraph (1) shall not be adjusted for
cost of living for the 1990-91, 1991-92, 1992-93, 1993-94, 1994-95,
1995-96, 1996-97, and 1997-98 fiscal years, and through October 31,
1998, nor shall that amount be included in the base for calculating
any cost-of-living increases for any fiscal year thereafter.
Elimination of the cost-of-living adjustment pursuant to this
paragraph shall satisfy the requirements of Section 11453.05, and no
further reduction shall be made pursuant to that section.
(b) (1) When the family does not include a needy child qualified
for aid under this chapter, aid shall be paid to a pregnant child who
is 18 years of age or younger at any time after verification of
pregnancy, in the amount that would otherwise be paid to one person,
as specified in subdivision (a), if the child and her child, if born,
would have qualified for aid under this chapter. Verification of
pregnancy shall be required as a condition of eligibility for aid
under this subdivision.
(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), when the family does not
include a needy child qualified for aid under this chapter, aid shall
be paid to a pregnant woman for the month in which the birth is
anticipated and for the three-month period immediately prior to the
month in which the birth is anticipated, in the amount that would
otherwise be paid to one person, as specified in subdivision (a), if
the woman and child, if born, would have qualified for aid under this
chapter. Verification of pregnancy shall be required as a condition
of eligibility for aid under this subdivision.
(3) Paragraph (1) shall apply only when the Cal-Learn Program is
operative.
(c) The amount of forty-seven dollars ($47) per month shall be
paid to pregnant women qualified for aid under subdivision (a) or (b)
to meet special needs resulting from pregnancy if the woman and
child, if born, would have qualified for aid under this chapter.
County welfare departments shall refer all recipients of aid under
this subdivision to a local provider of the Women, Infants, and
Children program. If that payment to pregnant women qualified for aid
under subdivision (a) is considered income under federal law in the
first five months of pregnancy, payments under this subdivision shall
not apply to persons eligible under subdivision (a), except for the
month in which birth is anticipated and for the three-month period
immediately prior to the month in which delivery is anticipated, if
the woman and child, if born, would have qualified for aid under this
chapter.
(d) For children receiving AFDC-FC under this chapter, there shall
be paid, exclusive of any amount considered exempt as income, an
amount of aid each month that, when added to the child's income, is
equal to the rate specified in Section 11460, 11461, 11462, 11462.1,
or 11463. In addition, the child shall be eligible for special needs,
as specified in departmental regulations.
(e) In addition to the amounts payable under subdivision (a) and
Section 11453.1, a family shall be entitled to receive an allowance
for recurring special needs not common to a majority of recipients.
These recurring special needs shall include, but not be limited to,
special diets upon the recommendation of a physician for
circumstances other than pregnancy, and unusual costs of
transportation, laundry, housekeeping services, telephone, and
utilities. The recurring special needs allowance for each family per
month shall not exceed that amount resulting from multiplying the sum
of ten dollars ($10) by the number of recipients in the family who
are eligible for assistance.
(f) After a family has used all available liquid resources, both
exempt and nonexempt, in excess of one hundred dollars ($100), with
the exception of funds deposited in a restricted account described in
subdivision (a) of Section 11155.2, the family shall also be
entitled to receive an allowance for nonrecurring special needs.
(1) An allowance for nonrecurring special needs shall be granted
for replacement of clothing and household equipment and for emergency
housing needs other than those needs addressed by paragraph (2).
These needs shall be caused by sudden and unusual circumstances
beyond the control of the needy family. The department shall
establish the allowance for each of the nonrecurring special needs
items. The sum of all nonrecurring special needs provided by this
subdivision shall not exceed six hundred dollars ($600) per event.
(2) Homeless assistance is available to a homeless family seeking
shelter when the family is eligible for aid under this chapter.
Homeless assistance for temporary shelter is also available to
homeless families that are apparently eligible for aid under this
chapter. Apparent eligibility exists when evidence presented by the
applicant, or that is otherwise available to the county welfare
department, and the information provided on the application documents
indicate that there would be eligibility for aid under this chapter
if the evidence and information were verified. However, an alien
applicant who does not provide verification of his or her eligible
alien status, or a woman with no eligible children who does not
provide medical verification of pregnancy, is not apparently eligible
for purposes of this section.
A family is considered homeless, for the purpose of this section,
when the family lacks a fixed and regular nighttime residence; or the
family has a primary nighttime residence that is a supervised
publicly or privately operated shelter designed to provide temporary
living accommodations; or the family is residing in a public or
private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, a regular
sleeping accommodation for human beings. A family is also considered
homeless for the purpose of this section if the family has received a
notice to pay rent or quit. The family shall demonstrate that the
eviction is the result of a verified financial hardship as a result
of extraordinary circumstances beyond their control, and not other
lease or rental violations, and that the family is experiencing a
financial crisis that could result in homelessness if preventative
assistance is not provided.
(A) (i) A nonrecurring special needs benefit of sixty-five dollars
($65) a day shall be available to families of up to four members for
the costs of temporary shelter, subject to the requirements of this
paragraph. The fifth and additional members of the family shall each
receive fifteen dollars ($15) per day, up to a daily maximum of one
hundred twenty-five dollars ($125). County welfare departments may
increase the daily amount available for temporary shelter as
necessary to secure the additional bedspace needed by the family.
(ii) This special needs benefit shall be granted or denied
immediately upon the family's application for homeless assistance,
and benefits shall be available for up to three working days. The
county welfare department shall verify the family's homelessness
within the first three working days and if the family meets the
criteria of questionable homelessness established by the department,
the county welfare department shall refer the family to its early
fraud prevention and detection unit, if the county has such a unit,
for assistance in the verification of homelessness within this
period.
(iii) After homelessness has been verified, the three-day limit
shall be extended for a period of time which, when added to the
initial benefits provided, does not exceed a total of 16 calendar
days. This extension of benefits shall be done in increments of one
week and shall be based upon searching for permanent housing which
shall be documented on a housing search form, good cause, or other
circumstances defined by the department. Documentation of a housing
search shall be required for the initial extension of benefits beyond
the three-day limit and on a weekly basis thereafter as long as the
family is receiving temporary shelter benefits. Good cause shall
include, but is not limited to, situations in which the county
welfare department has determined that the family, to the extent it
is capable, has made a good faith but unsuccessful effort to secure
permanent housing while receiving temporary shelter benefits.
(B) (i) A nonrecurring special needs benefit for permanent housing
assistance is available to pay for last month's rent and security
deposits when these payments are reasonable conditions of securing a
residence, or to pay for up to two months of rent arrearages, when
these payments are a reasonable condition of preventing eviction.
(ii) The last month's rent or monthly arrearage portion of the
payment (I) shall not exceed 80 percent of the family's total monthly
household income without the value of CalFresh benefits or special
needs benefit for a family of that size and (II) shall only be made
to families that have found permanent housing costing no more than 80
percent of the family's total monthly household income without the
value of CalFresh benefits or special needs for a family of that
size.
(iii) However, if the county welfare department determines that a
family intends to reside with individuals who will be sharing housing
costs, the county welfare department shall, in appropriate
circumstances, set aside the condition specified in subclause (II) of
clause (ii).
(C) The nonrecurring special needs benefit for permanent housing
assistance is also available to cover the standard costs of deposits
for utilities which are necessary for the health and safety of the
family.
(D) A payment for or denial of permanent housing assistance shall
be issued no later than one working day from the time that a family
presents evidence of the availability of permanent housing. If an
applicant family provides evidence of the availability of permanent
housing before the county welfare department has established
eligibility for aid under this chapter, the county welfare department
shall complete the eligibility determination so that the denial of
or payment for permanent housing assistance is issued within one
working day from the submission of evidence of the availability of
permanent housing, unless the family has failed to provide all of the
verification necessary to establish eligibility for aid under this
chapter.
(E) (i) Except as provided in clauses (ii) and (iii), eligibility
for the temporary shelter assistance and the permanent housing
assistance pursuant to this paragraph shall be limited to one period
of up to 16 consecutive calendar days of temporary assistance and one
payment of permanent assistance. Any family that includes a parent
or nonparent caretaker relative living in the home who has previously
received temporary or permanent homeless assistance at any time on
behalf of an eligible child shall not be eligible for further
homeless assistance. Any person who applies for homeless assistance
benefits shall be informed that the temporary shelter benefit of up
to 16 consecutive days is available only once in a lifetime, with
certain exceptions, and that a break in the consecutive use of the
benefit constitutes permanent exhaustion of the temporary benefit.
(ii) A family that becomes homeless as a direct and primary result
of a state or federally declared natural disaster shall be eligible
for temporary and permanent homeless assistance.
(iii) A family shall be eligible for temporary and permanent
homeless assistance when homelessness is a direct result of domestic
violence by a spouse, partner, or roommate; physical or mental
illness that is medically verified that shall not include a diagnosis
of alcoholism, drug addiction, or psychological stress; or, the
uninhabitability of the former residence caused by sudden and unusual
circumstances beyond the control of the family including natural
catastrophe, fire, or condemnation. These circumstances shall be
verified by a third-party governmental or private health and human
services agency, except that domestic violence may also be verified
by a sworn statement by the victim, as provided under Section
11495.25. Homeless assistance payments based on these specific
circumstances may not be received more often than once in any
12-month period. In addition, if the domestic violence is verified by
a sworn statement by the victim, the homeless assistance payments
shall be limited to two periods of not more than 16 consecutive
calendar days of temporary assistance and two payments of permanent
assistance. A county may require that a recipient of homeless
assistance benefits who qualifies under this paragraph for a second
time in a 24-month period participate in a homelessness avoidance
case plan as a condition of eligibility for homeless assistance
benefits. The county welfare department shall immediately inform
recipients who verify domestic violence by a sworn statement of the
availability of domestic violence counseling and services, and refer
those recipients to services upon request.
(iv) If a county requires a recipient who verifies domestic
violence by a sworn statement to participate in a homelessness
avoidance case plan pursuant to clause (iii), the plan shall include
the provision of domestic violence services, if appropriate.
(v) If a recipient seeking homeless assistance based on domestic
violence pursuant to clause (iii) has previously received homeless
avoidance services based on domestic violence, the county shall
review whether services were offered to the recipient and consider
what additional services would assist the recipient in leaving the
domestic violence situation.
(vi) The county welfare department shall report necessary data to
the department through a statewide homeless assistance payment
indicator system, as requested by the department, regarding all
recipients of aid under this paragraph.
(F) The county welfare departments, and all other entities
participating in the costs of the CalWORKs program, have the right in
their share to any refunds resulting from payment of the permanent
housing. However, if an emergency requires the family to move within
the 12-month period specified in subparagraph (E), the family shall
be allowed to use any refunds received from its deposits to meet the
costs of moving to another residence.
(G) Payments to providers for temporary shelter and permanent
housing and utilities shall be made on behalf of families requesting
these payments.
(H) The daily amount for the temporary shelter special needs
benefit for homeless assistance may be increased if authorized by the
current year's Budget Act by specifying a different daily allowance
and appropriating the funds therefor.
(I) No payment shall be made pursuant to this paragraph unless the
provider of housing is a commercial establishment, shelter, or
person in the business of renting properties who has a history of
renting properties.
(g) The department shall establish rules and regulations ensuring
the uniform statewide application of this section.
(h) The department shall notify all applicants and recipients of
aid through the standardized application form that these benefits are
available and shall provide an opportunity for recipients to apply
for the funds quickly and efficiently.
(i) Except for the purposes of Section 15200, the amounts payable
to recipients pursuant to Section 11453.1 shall not constitute part
of the payment schedule set forth in subdivision (a).
The amounts payable to recipients pursuant to Section 11453.1
shall not constitute income to recipients of aid under this section.
(j) For children receiving Kin-GAP pursuant to Article 4.5
(commencing with Section 11360) or Article 4.7 (commencing with
Section 11385) there shall be paid, exclusive of any amount
considered exempt as income, an amount of aid each month, which, when
added to the child's income, is equal to the rate specified in
Sections 11364 and 11387.
(k) (1) This section shall become operative on April 1, 2013. A
county shall implement the semiannual reporting requirements in
accordance with the act that added this section no later than October
1, 2013.
(2) Upon completion of the implementation described in paragraph
(1), each county shall provide a certificate to the director
certifying that semiannual reporting has been implemented in the
county.
(3) Upon filing the certificate described in paragraph (2), a
county shall comply with the semiannual reporting provisions of this
section.
(l) This section shall become inoperative on July 1, 2015, and, as
of January 1, 2016, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute,
that becomes operative on or before January 1, 2016, deletes or
extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed.
SEC. 4. Section 11450 is added to the Welfare and Institutions
Code, to read:
11450. (a) (1) (A) Aid shall be paid for each needy family, which
shall include all eligible brothers and sisters of each eligible
applicant or recipient child and the parents of the children, but
shall not include unborn children, or recipients of aid under Chapter
3 (commencing with Section 12000), qualified for aid under this
chapter. In determining the amount of aid paid, and notwithstanding
the minimum basic standards of adequate care specified in Section
11452, the family's income, exclusive of any amounts considered
exempt as income or paid pursuant to subdivision (e) or Section
11453.1, determined for the prospective semiannual period pursuant to
Sections 11265.1, 11265.2, and 11265.3, and then calculated pursuant
to Section 11451.5, shall be deducted from the sum specified in the
following table, as adjusted for cost-of-living increases pursuant to
Section 11453 and paragraph (2). In no case shall the amount of aid
paid for each month exceed the sum specified in the following table,
as adjusted for cost-of-living increases pursuant to Section 11453
and paragraph (2), plus any special needs, as specified in
subdivisions (c), (e), and (f):
Number
of
eligible
needy
persons
in Maximum
the same home aid
1.............................. $ 326
2.............................. 535
3.............................. 663
4.............................. 788
5.............................. 899
6.............................. 1,010
7.............................. 1,109
8.............................. 1,209
9.............................. 1,306
10 or more...................... 1,403
(B) If, when, and during those times that the United States
government increases or decreases its contributions in assistance of
needy children in this state above or below the amount paid on July
1, 1972, the amounts specified in the above table shall be increased
or decreased by an amount equal to that increase or decrease by the
United States government, provided that no increase or decrease shall
be subject to subsequent adjustment pursuant to Section 11453.
(2) The sums specified in paragraph (1) shall not be adjusted for
cost of living for the 1990-91, 1991-92, 1992-93, 1993-94, 1994-95,
1995-96, 1996-97, and 1997-98 fiscal years, and through October 31,
1998, nor shall that amount be included in the base for calculating
any cost-of-living increases for any fiscal year thereafter.
Elimination of the cost-of-living adjustment pursuant to this
paragraph shall satisfy the requirements of Section 11453.05, and no
further reduction shall be made pursuant to that section.
(b) (1) When the family does not include a needy child qualified
for aid under this chapter, aid shall be paid to a pregnant child who
is 18 years of age or younger at any time after verification of
pregnancy, in the amount that would otherwise be paid to one person,
as specified in subdivision (a), if the child and her child, if born,
would have qualified for aid under this chapter. Verification of
pregnancy shall be required as a condition of eligibility for aid
under this subdivision.
(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), when the family does not
include a needy child qualified for aid under this chapter, aid shall
be paid to a pregnant woman for the month in which the birth is
anticipated and for the six-month period immediately prior to the
month in which the birth is anticipated, in the amount that would
otherwise be paid to one person, as specified in subdivision (a), if
the woman and child, if born, would have qualified for aid under this
chapter. Verification of pregnancy shall be required as a condition
of eligibility for aid under this subdivision.
(3) Paragraph (1) shall apply only when the Cal-Learn Program is
operative.
(c) The amount of forty-seven dollars ($47) per month shall be
paid to pregnant women qualified for aid under subdivision (a) or (b)
to meet special needs resulting from pregnancy if the woman and
child, if born, would have qualified for aid under this chapter.
County welfare departments shall refer all recipients of aid under
this subdivision to a local provider of the Women, Infants, and
Children program. If that payment to pregnant women qualified for aid
under subdivision (a) is considered income under federal law in the
first five months of pregnancy, payments under this subdivision shall
not apply to persons eligible under subdivision (a), except for the
month in which birth is anticipated and for the three-month period
immediately prior to the month in which delivery is anticipated, if
the woman and child, if born, would have qualified for aid under this
chapter.
(d) For children receiving AFDC-FC under this chapter, there shall
be paid, exclusive of any amount considered exempt as income, an
amount of aid each month that, when added to the child's income, is
equal to the rate specified in Section 11460, 11461, 11462, 11462.1,
or 11463. In addition, the child shall be eligible for special needs,
as specified in departmental regulations.
(e) In addition to the amounts payable under subdivision (a) and
Section 11453.1, a family shall be entitled to receive an allowance
for recurring special needs not common to a majority of recipients.
These recurring special needs shall include, but not be limited to,
special diets upon the recommendation of a physician for
circumstances other than pregnancy, and unusual costs of
transportation, laundry, housekeeping services, telephone, and
utilities. The recurring special needs allowance for each family per
month shall not exceed that amount resulting from multiplying the sum
of ten dollars ($10) by the number of recipients in the family who
are eligible for assistance.
(f) After a family has used all available liquid resources, both
exempt and nonexempt, in excess of one hundred dollars ($100), with
the exception of funds deposited in a restricted account described in
subdivision (a) of Section 11155.2, the family shall also be
entitled to receive an allowance for nonrecurring special needs.
(1) An allowance for nonrecurring special needs shall be granted
for replacement of clothing and household equipment and for emergency
housing needs other than those needs addressed by paragraph (2).
These needs shall be caused by sudden and unusual circumstances
beyond the control of the needy family. The department shall
establish the allowance for each of the nonrecurring special needs
items. The sum of all
nonrecurring special needs provided by this subdivision shall not
exceed six hundred dollars ($600) per event.
(2) (A) Homeless assistance is available to a homeless family
seeking shelter when the family is eligible for aid under this
chapter. Homeless assistance for temporary shelter is also available
to homeless families that are apparently eligible for aid under this
chapter. Apparent eligibility exists when evidence presented by the
applicant, or that is otherwise available to the county welfare
department, and the information provided on the application documents
indicate that there would be eligibility for aid under this chapter
if the evidence and information were verified. However, an alien
applicant who does not provide verification of his or her eligible
alien status, or a woman with no eligible children who does not
provide medical verification of pregnancy, is not apparently eligible
for purposes of this section.
(B) A family is considered homeless, for the purpose of this
section, when the family lacks a fixed and regular nighttime
residence; or the family has a primary nighttime residence that is a
supervised publicly or privately operated shelter designed to provide
temporary living accommodations; or the family is residing in a
public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, a
regular sleeping accommodation for human beings. A family is also
considered homeless for the purpose of this section if the family has
received a notice to pay rent or quit. The family shall demonstrate
that the eviction is the result of a verified financial hardship as a
result of extraordinary circumstances beyond their control, and not
other lease or rental violations, and that the family is experiencing
a financial crisis that could result in homelessness if preventative
assistance is not provided.
(A) (i) A nonrecurring special needs benefit of sixty-five dollars
($65) a day shall be available to families of up to four members for
the costs of temporary shelter, subject to the requirements of this
paragraph. The fifth and additional members of the family shall each
receive fifteen dollars ($15) per day, up to a daily maximum of one
hundred twenty-five dollars ($125). County welfare departments may
increase the daily amount available for temporary shelter as
necessary to secure the additional bedspace needed by the family.
(ii) This special needs benefit shall be granted or denied
immediately upon the family's application for homeless assistance,
and benefits shall be available for up to three working days. The
county welfare department shall verify the family's homelessness
within the first three working days and if the family meets the
criteria of questionable homelessness established by the department,
the county welfare department shall refer the family to its early
fraud prevention and detection unit, if the county has such a unit,
for assistance in the verification of homelessness within this
period.
(iii) After homelessness has been verified, the three-day limit
shall be extended for a period of time which, when added to the
initial benefits provided, does not exceed a total of 16 calendar
days. This extension of benefits shall be done in increments of one
week and shall be based upon searching for permanent housing which
shall be documented on a housing search form, good cause, or other
circumstances defined by the department. Documentation of a housing
search shall be required for the initial extension of benefits beyond
the three-day limit and on a weekly basis thereafter as long as the
family is receiving temporary shelter benefits. Good cause shall
include, but is not limited to, situations in which the county
welfare department has determined that the family, to the extent it
is capable, has made a good faith but unsuccessful effort to secure
permanent housing while receiving temporary shelter benefits.
(B) (i) A nonrecurring special needs benefit for permanent housing
assistance is available to pay for last month's rent and security
deposits when these payments are reasonable conditions of securing a
residence, or to pay for up to two months of rent arrearages, when
these payments are a reasonable condition of preventing eviction.
(ii) The last month's rent or monthly arrearage portion of the
payment (I) shall not exceed 80 percent of the family's total monthly
household income without the value of CalFresh benefits or special
needs benefit for a family of that size and (II) shall only be made
to families that have found permanent housing costing no more than 80
percent of the family's total monthly household income without the
value of CalFresh benefits or special needs benefit for a family of
that size.
(iii) However, if the county welfare department determines that a
family intends to reside with individuals who will be sharing housing
costs, the county welfare department shall, in appropriate
circumstances, set aside the condition specified in subclause (II) of
clause (ii).
(C) The nonrecurring special needs benefit for permanent housing
assistance is also available to cover the standard costs of deposits
for utilities which are necessary for the health and safety of the
family.
(D) A payment for or denial of permanent housing assistance shall
be issued no later than one working day from the time that a family
presents evidence of the availability of permanent housing. If an
applicant family provides evidence of the availability of permanent
housing before the county welfare department has established
eligibility for aid under this chapter, the county welfare department
shall complete the eligibility determination so that the denial of
or payment for permanent housing assistance is issued within one
working day from the submission of evidence of the availability of
permanent housing, unless the family has failed to provide all of the
verification necessary to establish eligibility for aid under this
chapter.
(E) (i) Except as provided in clauses (ii) and (iii), eligibility
for the temporary shelter assistance and the permanent housing
assistance pursuant to this paragraph shall be limited to one period
of up to 16 consecutive calendar days of temporary assistance and one
payment of permanent assistance. Any family that includes a parent
or nonparent caretaker relative living in the home who has previously
received temporary or permanent homeless assistance at any time on
behalf of an eligible child shall not be eligible for further
homeless assistance. Any person who applies for homeless assistance
benefits shall be informed that the temporary shelter benefit of up
to 16 consecutive days is available only once in a lifetime, with
certain exceptions, and that a break in the consecutive use of the
benefit constitutes permanent exhaustion of the temporary benefit.
(ii) A family that becomes homeless as a direct and primary result
of a state or federally declared natural disaster shall be eligible
for temporary and permanent homeless assistance.
(iii) A family shall be eligible for temporary and permanent
homeless assistance when homelessness is a direct result of domestic
violence by a spouse, partner, or roommate; physical or mental
illness that is medically verified that shall not include a diagnosis
of alcoholism, drug addiction, or psychological stress; or, the
uninhabitability of the former residence caused by sudden and unusual
circumstances beyond the control of the family including natural
catastrophe, fire, or condemnation. These circumstances shall be
verified by a third-party governmental or private health and human
services agency, except that domestic violence may also be verified
by a sworn statement by the victim, as provided under Section
11495.25. Homeless assistance payments based on these specific
circumstances may not be received more often than once in any
12-month period. In addition, if the domestic violence is verified by
a sworn statement by the victim, the homeless assistance payments
shall be limited to two periods of not more than 16 consecutive
calendar days of temporary assistance and two payments of permanent
assistance. A county may require that a recipient of homeless
assistance benefits who qualifies under this paragraph for a second
time in a 24-month period participate in a homelessness avoidance
case plan as a condition of eligibility for homeless assistance
benefits. The county welfare department shall immediately inform
recipients who verify domestic violence by a sworn statement of the
availability of domestic violence counseling and services, and refer
those recipients to services upon request.
(iv) If a county requires a recipient who verifies domestic
violence by a sworn statement to participate in a homelessness
avoidance case plan pursuant to clause (iii), the plan shall include
the provision of domestic violence services, if appropriate.
(v) If a recipient seeking homeless assistance based on domestic
violence pursuant to clause (iii) has previously received homeless
avoidance services based on domestic violence, the county shall
review whether services were offered to the recipient and consider
what additional services would assist the recipient in leaving the
domestic violence situation.
(vi) The county welfare department shall report necessary data to
the department through a statewide homeless assistance payment
indicator system, as requested by the department, regarding all
recipients of aid under this paragraph.
(F) The county welfare departments, and all other entities
participating in the costs of the CalWORKs program, have the right in
their share to any refunds resulting from payment of the permanent
housing. However, if an emergency requires the family to move within
the 12-month period specified in subparagraph (E), the family shall
be allowed to use any refunds received from its deposits to meet the
costs of moving to another residence.
(G) Payments to providers for temporary shelter and permanent
housing and utilities shall be made on behalf of families requesting
these payments.
(H) The daily amount for the temporary shelter special needs
benefit for homeless assistance may be increased if authorized by the
current year's Budget Act by specifying a different daily allowance
and appropriating the funds therefor.
(I) No payment shall be made pursuant to this paragraph unless the
provider of housing is a commercial establishment, shelter, or
person in the business of renting properties who has a history of
renting properties.
(g) The department shall establish rules and regulations ensuring
the uniform statewide application of this section.
(h) The department shall notify all applicants and recipients of
aid through the standardized application form that these benefits are
available and shall provide an opportunity for recipients to apply
for the funds quickly and efficiently.
(i) (A) Except for the purposes of Section 15200, the amounts
payable to recipients pursuant to Section 11453.1 shall not
constitute part of the payment schedule set forth in subdivision (a).
(B) The amounts payable to recipients pursuant to Section 11453.1
shall not constitute income to recipients of aid under this section.
(j) For children receiving Kin-GAP pursuant to Article 4.5
(commencing with Section 11360) or Article 4.7 (commencing with
Section 11385) there shall be paid, exclusive of any amount
considered exempt as income, an amount of aid each month, which, when
added to the child's income, is equal to the rate specified in
Sections 11364 and 11387.
(k) (1) A county shall implement the semiannual reporting
requirements in accordance with Chapter 501 of the Statutes of 2011
no later than October 1, 2013.
(2) Upon completion of the implementation described in paragraph
(1), each county shall provide a certificate to the director
certifying that semiannual reporting has been implemented in the
county.
(3) Upon filing the certificate described in paragraph (2), a
county shall comply with the semiannual reporting provisions of this
section.
(l) This section shall become operative on July 1, 2015.
SEC. 5. Notwithstanding the rulemaking provisions of the
Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section
11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code),
the department may implement, interpret, or make specific the
provisions of paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 11450 of
the Welfare and Institutions Code, as added by this act, by means of
all-county letters or similar instructions from the department until
regulations are adopted.
SEC. 6. No appropriation pursuant to Section 15200 of the Welfare
and Institutions Code shall be made for purposes of this act.
