BILL NUMBER: SB 1258INTRODUCED BILL TEXT INTRODUCED BY Senators Wolk and Correa FEBRUARY 23, 2012 An act to add Section 712 to the Military and Veterans Code, relating to veterans. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SB 1258, as introduced, Wolk. Department of Veterans Affairs: monitoring outcomes for veterans. Existing law establishes the Department of Veterans Affairs, which is responsible for administering various programs and services for the benefit of veterans. This bill would require the Department of Veterans Affairs, for the purpose of ensuring the adequacy of services being provided to veterans and that the needs of veterans are being addressed in California, to establish a system for monitoring specified outcomes for veterans and to report these outcomes. This bill would require the department to submit reports to the Senate and Assembly Committees on Veterans Affairs on the establishment of the system and on any outcomes for veterans identified by the department, as provided. Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 712 is added to the Military and Veterans Code, to read: 712. (a) The department shall, for the purpose of ensuring the adequacy of services being provided to veterans and that the needs of veterans are being addressed in California, do both of the following: (1) Establish a system for monitoring outcomes for veterans, including, but not limited to, employment and employment-related information including employment earnings, incidence of suicide, higher education including access to higher education, involvement with the child welfare system, and involvement with the criminal justice system. (2) Report the outcomes specified in paragraph (1). (b) The department may access any data, the access to which is not restricted by any state or federal law, that is necessary to monitor the outcomes specified in subdivision (a), including, but not limited to, data held by other state agencies or departments. (c) The department shall prescribe a manner in which to ensure the confidentiality of information in the possession of the department accessed pursuant to this section, that is equal to, or greater than, the protections in place for data accessed through other state agencies or departments. (d) The department may establish one or more advisory bodies to guide and inform the selection of outcomes and the strategy for monitoring and reporting those outcomes, as determined by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs. Any existing state entity that involves diverse representation of state and local veterans, including, but not limited to, the Interagency Council for Veterans, may act as an advisory body for purposes of this section. (e) (1) The department shall report to the Senate and Assembly Committees on Veterans Affairs both of the following: (A) On or before March 1, 2015, the progress on the establishment of the system required pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (a). The report shall specify any barriers faced by the department in accessing the information necessary to report the outcomes for veterans, and shall specify any outcomes identified by the department as required pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (a). (B) On or before March 1, 2016, and on or before March 1 of each year thereafter, any outcomes identified by the department pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (a). (2) The reports required to be submitted pursuant to this subdivision shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.