Bill Text: CA SB462 | 2023-2024 | Regular Session | Introduced

California Senate Bill 462

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

Bill Title: General assistance.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 10-3)

Status: (Passed) 2023-07-21 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 110, Statutes of 2023. [SB462 Detail]

Download: California-2023-SB462-Introduced.html

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Bill

No. 462

Introduced by Senator Wahab
(Coauthor: Senator Cortese)

February 13, 2023

An act to amend Section 17006 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to public social services.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

SB 462, as introduced, Wahab. General assistance.

Existing law requires each county to provide aid to its indigent residents not supported by other means. These county programs are known as general assistance programs. Existing law requires the board of supervisors of every county to, among other things, investigate every application for relief from the funds of the county, to supervise every person receiving that relief, and to keep full and complete records of the investigation, supervision, relief, and rehabilitation. Existing law requires those records to be confidential and not be open to examination or inspection, except as specified.

This bill would provide that those provisions do not prohibit sharing of confidential information for purposes directly connected with the administration of relief or with the administration of public social services, as defined.

Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: NO Local Program: NO

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

Section 17006 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read:

17006.

(a) The board of supervisors of every county as a board, or by committee or by any person or society as it may authorize, shall investigate every application for relief from the funds of the county, shall supervise by periodic visitation every person receiving that relief, shall devise ways and means for bringing persons unable to maintain themselves to self-support, and shall keep full and complete records of the investigation, supervision, relief, and rehabilitation as shall be prescribed by the department. These records shall be confidential and shall not be open to examination or inspection, except by the grand jury of the county or by a board or an officer of the state or the county charged with the supervision or direction of that relief or with the control or expenditure of funds applicable to that relief. Any citizen shall be entitled to demand and receive from the board, officer, committee, person, or society having custody of these records a statement of the amount, character, and value of the relief received by any person.

(b) (1) This section shall not be construed to prohibit an employee of a county welfare department from disclosing confidential information concerning a public social services applicant or recipient to a state or local law enforcement agency investigating or gathering information regarding a criminal act committed in a welfare department office, a criminal act against any county or state welfare worker, or any criminal act witnessed by any county or state welfare worker while involved in the administration of public social services at any location. Further, this section shall not be construed to prohibit an employee of a county welfare department from disclosing confidential information concerning a public social services applicant or recipient to a state or local law enforcement agency investigating or gathering information regarding a criminal act intentionally committed by an applicant or recipient against any off-duty county or state welfare worker in retaliation for an act performed in the course of the welfare worker’s duty when the person committing the offense knows or reasonably should know that the victim is a state or county welfare worker.

(2) For purposes of this subdivision, “criminal act” means only an act that is in violation of state or local law.

(3) Disclosure of confidential information pursuant to this subdivision shall be limited to the applicant’s name, physical description, and address.

(c) This section does not prohibit sharing of confidential information for purposes directly connected with the administration of relief from the funds of any California county or for purposes directly connected with the administration of public social services as defined by Section 10051.