California Senate Bill SB831 Amended / Bill

 BILL NUMBER: SB 831AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY AUGUST 19, 2016 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 13, 2016 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 10, 2016 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 25, 2016 INTRODUCED BY Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review JANUARY 7, 2016  An act to amend Section 155 of the Code of Civil Procedure, and to amend Sections 11253.4, 11320.32, 11402, 11450.025, 11461.3, 11465, 12301.02, 15200, 16519.5, 17601.50, and 18910.1 of, to amend and repeal Sections 11322.63 and 11450.04 of, to amend, repeal, and add Sections 11320.15, 11322.64, 11323.25, and 11450 of, to add Sections 11253.45, 11322.83, 11461.4, 12201.06, 16501.9, and 18920 to, to add Article 6 (commencing with Section 16523) to Chapter 5 of Part 4 of Division 9 of, to add Chapter 17 (commencing with Section 18999) to Part 6 of Division 9 of, and to repeal Section 15200.15 of, the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to public social services, and making an appropriation therefor, to take effect immediately, bill related to the budget.   An   act to amend Section 51013.1 of, and to add Section 51015.6 to, the Government Code, to amend Section 44273 of the Health and Safety Code, to amend Section 1546.1 of the Penal Code, to amend Sections 3401 and 25751 of the Public Resources Code, and to amend Sections 388 and 399.20 of, to add Section 784.1 to, to add and repeal Section 388.2 of, and to repeal Section 2834 of, the Public Utilities Code, relating to energy, and making an appropriation therefor, to take effect immediately, bill related to the budget.  LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SB 831, as amended, Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review.  Public social services omnibus.   Public resources: energy.   (1) Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has regulatory authority over public utilities. Existing law authorizes the PUC to fix the rates and charges for every public utility and requires that those rates and charges be just and reasonable. Existing law authorizes certain public utilities, including gas corporations, to propose research and development programs and authorizes the PUC to allow inclusion of expenses for research and development in the public utility's rates. Existing law requires the PUC to consider specified guidelines in evaluating the research, development, and demonstration programs proposed by gas corporations.   The California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program requires the PUC to adopt policies and programs that promote the in-state production and distribution of biomethane. Existing law requires the PUC to adopt, by rule or order, standards for biomethane that specify the concentrations of constituents of concern that are reasonably necessary to protect public health and ensure pipeline integrity and safety, as specified, and requirements for monitoring, testing, reporting, and recordkeeping, as specified. Existing law requires a gas corporation to comply with those standards and requirements and requires that gas corporation tariffs condition access to common carrier pipelines on the applicable customer meeting those standards and requirements. Under existing law, a violation of the Public Utilities Act or any order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the PUC is a crime.   This bill would request the California Council on Science and Technology to undertake and complete a study analyzing the regional and gas corporation specific issues relating to minimum heating value and maximum siloxane specifications adopted by the PUC for biomethane before it can be injected into common carrier gas pipelines. If the California Council on Science and Technology agrees to undertake and complete the study, the bill would require each gas corporation operating common carrier pipelines in California to proportionately contribute to the expenses to undertake the study with the cost recoverable in rates. The bill would authorize the PUC to modify certain available monetary incentives to allocate some of the incentive moneys to pay for the costs of the study so as to not further burden ratepayers with additional expense. If the California Council on Science and Technology agrees to undertake and complete the study, the bill would require the PUC, within 6 months of its completion, to reevaluate requirements and standards adopted for injection of biomethane into common carrier pipelines and, if appropriate, change those requirements and standards or adopt new requirements and standards, giving due deference to the conclusions and recommendations made in the study. Because certain provisions of the bill would be a part of the act and a violation of an order or decision of the PUC implementing its requirements would be a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program by creating a new crime.   Existing law requires the PUC to direct the electrical corporations to collectively procure at least 250 megawatts of cumulative rated generating capacity from developers of bioenergy projects that commence operation on or after June 1, 2013. Existing law requires the PUC, for each electrical corporation, to allocate shares of the 250 megawatts based on the ratio of each electrical corporation's peak demand compared to the total statewide peak demand. Existing law requires the PUC to allocate those 250 megawatts to electrical corporations from specified categories of bioenergy project types, with specified portions of that 250 megawatts to be allocated from each category. Existing law requires the PUC to encourage gas and electrical corporations to develop and offer programs and services to facilitate development of in-state biogas for a broad range of purposes. Existing law authorizes the PUC, in consultation with specified state agencies, if it finds that the categorical allocations of those 250 megawatts are not appropriate, to reallocate those 250 megawatts among those categories.   This bill would establish interconnection requirements for certain bioenergy projects from which generation capacity is to be procured pursuant to the above requirement. Because the above requirements would be codified in the act, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program by creating a new crime.   The Green Tariff Shared Renewables Program requires a participating utility, defined as being an electrical corporation with 100,000 or more customers in California, to file with the PUC an application requesting approval of a tariff to implement a program enabling ratepayers to participate directly in offsite electrical generation facilities that use eligible renewable energy resources, consistent with certain legislative findings and statements of intent. Existing law requires the PUC, by July 1, 2014, to issue a decision concerning the participating utility's application, determining whether to approve or disapprove the application, with or without modifications. Existing law requires the PUC, after notice and opportunity for public comment, to approve the application if the PUC determines that the proposed program is reasonable and consistent with the legislative findings and statements of intent and requires the PUC to require that a participating utility's green tariff shared renewables program be administered in accordance with specified provisions. Existing law repeals the program on January 1, 2019.   This bill would extend the operation of the program indefinitely. By extending the requirements of the Green Tariff Shared Renewables Program the bill would impose a state-mandated local program by extending the application of a crime.   Decisions of the PUC adopted the California Solar Initiative administered by electrical corporations and subject to the PUC's supervision. Existing law requires the PUC and the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission) to undertake certain steps in implementing the California Solar Initiative and requires the PUC to ensure that the total cost over the duration of the program does not exceed $3,550,800,000. Existing law specifies that the financial components of the California Solar Initiative include the New Solar Homes Partnership Program, which is administered by the Energy Commission. Existing law requires the program to be funded by charges in the amount of $400,000,000 collected from customers of the state's 3 largest electrical corporations. If moneys from the Renewable Resource Trust Fund for the program are exhausted, existing law authorizes the PUC, upon notification by the Energy Commission, to require those electrical corporations to continue the administration of the program pursuant to the guidelines established by the Energy Commission for the program until the $400,000,000 monetary limit is reached. Existing law authorizes the PUC to determine whether a 3rd party, including the Energy Commission, should administer the electrical corporation's continuation of the program. Existing law establishes the Renewable Resource Trust Fund as a fund that is continuously appropriated, with certain exceptions for administrative expenses, in the State Treasury.   This bill would require, if the PUC orders a continuation of the New Solar Homes Partnership Program and determines that the Energy Commission should be the 3rd-party administrator for the program, that any funding made available for the program be deposited into the Emerging Renewable Resources Account of the Renewable Resource Trust Fund and used for the program.   (2) The Public Utilities Act requires the PUC to submit various reports to the Legislature relative to the actions of the PUC.   This bill would require the PUC to submit 2 reports to the relevant policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature by March 1, 2017. The first report would pertain to the PUC's business process inventory efforts. The 2nd report would concern options to locate operations and staff outside of the PUC's San Francisco headquarters and would explore options to allow the PUC to collaborate with other state entities and provide staff more opportunities for training, career development, and exchange placements with other state entities.   Existing law, with exceptions, prohibits a government entity from compelling the production of or access to electronic communication information or electronic device information without a search warrant, wiretap order, order for electronic reader records, or subpoena.   This bill would provide that the above provisions do not limit the authority of the PUC or the Energy Commission to obtain energy or water supply and consumption information pursuant to the powers granted to them under the Public Utilities Code or the Public Resources Code and other applicable state laws.   (3) Existing law authorizes the Department of General Services or any other state or local agency intending to enter into an energy savings contract to establish a pool of qualified energy service companies, as specified. Existing law authorizes energy service contracts for individual projects undertaken by any state or local agency to be awarded through a competitive selection process to those companies identified in the pool.   This bill would authorize the department or another state or local agency intending to enter into contracts for energy retrofit projects, as defined, to establish one of those pools. The bill would, until January 1, 2020, authorize the department and other state agencies to establish one or more pools of qualified energy service companies, as defined, that have provided the department or state agency with a specific enforceable commitment regarding the use of a skilled and trained workforce. The bill would authorize the department or state agency to select a qualified energy service company from that pool for a specific energy retrofit project on a rotational basis. The bill would require those qualified energy service companies working on a contract or project to submit a monthly report to the department or state agency, as appropriate, demonstrating their compliance with the commitment regarding the use of a skilled and trained workforce.   Under existing law, a violation of the Public Utilities Act is a crime.   Because the above provisions would be codified in the act, a violation of which would be a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.   (4) The Elder California Pipeline Safety Act of 1981, among other things, by January 1, 2018, requires any new or replacement pipeline that is near environmentally or ecologically sensitive areas to use the best technology available to reduce the amount of oil released in a spill, as specified. Existing law requires operators of existing pipelines near these areas to submit plans by January 1, 2018, to retrofit those pipelines for these purposes using the best available technology by January 1, 2020. A violation of these provisions is a crime.   This bill would define "oil" for these provisions of the act concerning pipeline safety, by reference to a specified federal regulation, to mean petroleum, petroleum products, anhydrous ammonia, and ethanol. By expanding the scope of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.   Under the Elder California Pipeline Safety Act of 1981, the State Fire Marshal administers provisions regulating the inspection of intrastate pipelines that transport hazardous liquids.   This bill would require the State Fire Marshal, on or before January 31, 2017, and on or before January 31 annually thereafter until January 31, 2021, to submit a report to the Legislature containing specified information regarding the inspection of those pipelines, shutoff systems in those pipelines, and the status of 2 specified pipelines.   (5) Existing law imposes, among other things, an annual charge upon each person operating or owning an interest in an oil or gas well, with respect to the production of the well, which charge is payable to the Treasurer for deposit into the Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Administrative Fund. Existing law requires that moneys from charges levied, assessed, and collected upon the properties of every person operating or owning an interest in the production of a well be used exclusively, upon appropriation, for the support and maintenance of the Department of Conservation, which is charged with the supervision of oil and gas operations, and for the support of the State Water Resources Control Board and the regional water quality control boards for their activities related to oil and gas operations that may affect water resources.   This bill would additionally authorize the use of those moneys for the support of the State Air Resources Board and the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment for their activities related to oil and gas operations that may affect air quality, public health, or public safety.   (6) Existing law establishes the Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Program, administered by the Energy Commission, to provide to specified entities, upon appropriation by the Legislature, grants, loans, loan guarantees, revolving loans, or other appropriate measures for the development and deployment of innovative technologies that transform California's fuel and vehicle types to help attain the state's climate change goals. Existing law establishes the Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Fund, moneys in which are to be expended by the Energy Commission, upon appropriation, to implement the program. Existing law creates the Public Interest Research, Development, and Demonstration Fund in the State Treasury and required that specified moneys collected by the state's 3 largest electrical corporations, until January 1, 2012, be paid into the Public Interest Research, Development, and Demonstration Fund. Existing law requires $10,000,000 to be transferred annually from the Public Interest Research, Development, and Demonstration Fund to the Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Fund.   This bill would repeal the requirement that $10,000,000 be transferred annually from the Public Interest Research, Development, and Demonstration Fund to the Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Fund.   (7) Existing law vests with the Energy Commission jurisdiction over specified matters related to energy. Existing law requires the Attorney General, upon the request of the Energy Commission, to petition a court of competent jurisdiction to enjoin violations of law that are within the subject matter of the Energy Commission. Existing law requires the Energy Commission to prescribe, by regulation, building design and construction standards, energy and water efficiency design standards for new residential and nonresidential buildings, and appliance efficiency standards. Existing law authorizes the Energy Commission to establish an administrative enforcement process to enforce the appliance efficiency standards. Existing law establishes the Appliance Efficiency Enforcement Subaccount in the Energy Resources Program Account for the deposition of the penalties collected. Existing law authorizes the moneys subaccount to be expended by the Energy Commission, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for the education of the public regarding appliance energy efficiency and for the enforcement of specified regulations.   This bill would appropriate $275,000 from the Appliance Efficiency Enforcement Subaccount in the Energy Resources Programs Account to the Energy Commission to support the Title 20 Appliance Efficiency Standards Compliance Assistance and Enforcement Program.   (8) The bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 399.20 of the Public Utilities Code, proposed by AB 1923, to be operative only if AB 1923 and this bill are both chaptered and become effective on or before January 1, 2017, and this bill is chaptered last.   (9) The bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 1546.1 of the Penal Code, proposed by AB 1924, to be operative only if AB 1924 and this bill are both chaptered and become effective on or before January 1, 2017, and this bill is chaptered last.   (10) 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.   (11) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.   (1) Existing federal law, the Immigration and Nationality Act, establishes a procedure for classification of certain aliens as special immigrants who have been declared dependent on a juvenile court and authorizes those aliens to apply for an adjustment of status to that of a lawful permanent resident within the United States. Under federal regulations, an alien is eligible for special immigrant juvenile status if, among other things, he or she is under 21 years of age. Existing state law provides that the juvenile, probate, and family divisions of the superior court have jurisdiction to make judicial determinations regarding the custody and care of children within the meaning of the federal Immigration and Nationality Act.   This bill would clarify that the court has jurisdiction to make the factual findings necessary to enable a child to petition the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services for classification as a special immigrant juvenile. The bill would also provide that the factual findings may be made at any point in a proceeding, as specified, if certain requirements are met.   (2) Existing law requires the court, upon request, to make the necessary findings regarding special immigrant juvenile status if there is evidence to support those findings, which may consist of, but is not limited to, a declaration by the child who is the subject of the petition. Existing law also authorizes the court to make additional findings that are supported by evidence if requested by a party.   This bill would specify that the evidence to support those findings may consist solely of, but is not limited to, the above declaration. The bill would also authorize the court to make the additional findings only if requested by a party. The bill would provide that the asserted, purported, or perceived motivation of the child seeking classification as a special immigrant juvenile is not admissible in making findings and would prohibit the court from including or referencing the motivation of the child, as specified, in the court's findings.   (3) Existing law establishes the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program, under which each county provides cash assistance and other benefits to qualified low-income families using federal, state, and county funds. Existing law requires a recipient of CalWORKs to participate in welfare-to-work activities as a condition of eligibility. Under existing law, a recipient of CalWORKs aid is required to assign to the county any rights to child support for a family member for whom the recipient is receiving aid, as specified. Existing law also requires the first $50 of any amount of child support collected in a month to be paid to a recipient of CalWORKs aid.   Existing law also 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 home of a relative is eligible for AFDC-FC only if he or she is eligible for federal financial participation in the AFDC-FC payment.   Existing law establishes the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program, in counties that choose to participate, 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. Under existing law, a child who is eligible for the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program is not subject to the requirements of CalWORKs, except as specified.   This bill would specify that the above-described CalWORKs requirements relating to the assignment of child support apply to assistance units participating in the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program. The bill would state that these provisions are intended to clarify existing law.   (4) Existing law requires a county that has opted into the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program to pay an approved relative caregiver a per child per month rate that is equal to the basic rate paid to foster care providers and that is funded, in part, through the CalWORKs program.   This bill, commencing January 1, 2017, would generally require a child who has been placed in the home of a relative who has been approved as a resource family to receive a grant that equals the resource family basic rate at the child's assessed level of care, as specified. By requiring counties to increase grants to children who are placed in the home of a relative who has been approved as a resource family, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.   (5) Existing law requires that, in order to be eligible for AFDC-FC, a child be placed in one of several specified placements, including the approved home of a resource family, and provides that a child placed with a resource family is eligible for AFDC-FC payments.   This bill, commencing January 1, 2017, would instead provide that a child placed in the approved home of a resource family is eligible for AFDC-FC if the caregiver is a nonrelative or the caregiver is a relative and the child or youth is otherwise eligible for federal financial participation in the AFDC-FC payment. The bill would also specify that a child placed with a resource family is eligible for the resource family basic rate.   (6) Existing law authorizes the Director of Social Services to enter into an agreement with a tribe, consortium of tribes, or tribal organization, regarding the care and custody of Indian children and jurisdiction over Indian child custody proceedings, under specified circumstances. Existing law requires these agreements to provide for the delegation to the tribe, consortium of tribes, or tribal organization, of the responsibility that would otherwise be the responsibility of the county for the provision of child welfare services or assistance payments under the AFDC-FC program, or both. Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services to annually allocate appropriated funds to each federally recognized American Indian tribe with reservation lands or rancherias in the state that administers a federal tribal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program.   This bill would establish the Tribal Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program and would require participating tribes that opt to participate in the program to pay an approved relative caregiver a per child per month rate, as specified, in return for the care and supervision of an AFDC-FC ineligible child placed with the approved relative caregiver if the participating tribe has notified the department of its decision to participate in the program, as specified, and certain requirements are met, including that the child resides in California. The bill would require the department, in consultation with the participating tribe, to determine the initial base caseload of the tribe and to determine the amount necessary to fund the base caseload.   (7) Existing law requires, when a child is living with a parent who receives AFDC-FC or Kin-GAP benefits, that the rate paid to the foster care provider on behalf of the parent include an additional amount, known as an infant supplement, for the care and supervision of the child. Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services to adopt a uniform rate for the infant supplement for each category of eligible licensed community care facility.   This bill, commencing July 1, 2016, would require the infant supplement rate to be increased by $489 per month, if funding for this purpose is appropriated in the annual Budget Act.   (8) Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services to administer a voluntary Temporary Assistance Program (TAP) to provide cash assistance and other benefits to specified current and future CalWORKs recipients who meet the exemption criteria for participation in welfare-to-work activities and are not single parents who have a child under one year of age. Existing law requires the TAP to commence no later than October 1, 2016.   This bill would make that provision inoperative on June 30, 2016.   (9) Existing law requires, for counties that implement a welfare-to-work plan that includes subsidized private sector or public sector employment activities, the State Department of Social Services to pay the county 50%, less $113, of the total wage costs of an employee for whom a wage subsidy is paid, subject to specified conditions.   This bill would make that provision inoperative on July 1, 2016, and would repeal that provision on January 1, 2017. The bill would make related changes.   (10) Existing law requires the department to develop an allocation methodology to distribute additional funding for expanded subsidized employment programs for CalWORKs recipients.   This bill would require, on and after July 1, 2016, a county that accepts additional funding for expanded subsidized employment in accordance with that provision to continue to expend no less than the aggregate amount of specified funding received by the county that the county expended on subsidized employment in the 2012-13 fiscal year, except as specified.   (11) Existing law requires a recipient of CalWORKs to participate for a specified number of hours each week in welfare-to-work activities as a condition of eligibility.   The federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014 provides for workforce investment activities, including activities in which states may participate. Existing federal law requires the local chief elected officials in a local workforce development area to form, pursuant to specified guidelines, a local workforce development board to, among other things, plan and oversee the workforce development system and lead efforts in the local area to develop and implement career pathways within the local area.   This bill would deem a recipient who is making satisfactory progress in a career pathway program established in accordance with the federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act to be in compliance with the hourly participation requirements of the CalWORKS program under specified conditions. By increasing the duties of counties administering the CalWORKs program, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.   (12) As part of the CalWORKs program, existing law provides that a homeless family that has used all available liquid resources in excess of $100 may be eligible for homeless assistance benefits to pay the costs of temporary shelter. The CalWORKs program also provides permanent housing assistance to pay rent or a security deposit, as specified, in order to secure housing for the family or prevent eviction.   Under existing law, eligibility for temporary shelter assistance is limited to one period of up to 16 consecutive days of temporary assistance in a lifetime, and eligibility for permanent housing assistance is limited to one payment of assistance, subject to specified exceptions. Existing law provides that a 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 is not eligible for further homeless assistance.   This bill, commencing January 1, 2017, would expand the provision of temporary shelter assistance and permanent housing assistance to be available every 12 months. The bill would make conforming changes regarding an applicant for homeless assistance benefits being informed of the availability of the benefits every 12 months. The bill would delete the above limitation on a family's eligibility for homeless assistance. Because this bill would increase the administrative duties of counties, it would impose a state-mandated local program.   (13) Existing law, referred to as the maximum family grant rule, prohibits the number of needy persons in the same family from being increased, for purposes of determining a family's maximum aid payment, for any child born into a family that has received aid under the CalWORKs program continuously for the 10 months prior to the birth of the child, with specified exceptions.   This bill would repeal the maximum family grant rule on January 1, 2017.   (14) Existing law establishes maximum aid grant amounts to be provided to each family receiving aid under CalWORKs. Existing law increases the maximum aid payments by 5% commencing March 1, 2014, and by an additional 5% commencing April 1, 2015. Existing law specifies a process by which increases may be made to the maximum aid payments depending on projections of revenue and costs by the Department of Finance.   This bill would, effective October 1, 2016, increase the maximum aid grant amounts by an additional 1.43%. The bill would also, effective January 1, 2017, require households eligible for CalWORKs aid to receive an increased aid payment consistent with the repeal of the maximum family grant rule and would require those costs to be paid from moneys deposited into the Child Poverty and Family Supplemental Support Subaccount. To the extent that this bill affects eligibility under the CalWORKs program, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.   (15) 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 provides, as part of the Coordinated Care Initiative, that IHSS is a Medi-Cal benefit available through managed care health plans in specified counties. Existing law provides for a 7% reduction in authorized hours of service to each IHSS recipient, as specified.   Existing law, commencing July 1, 2016, until July 1, 2019, establishes a managed care organization provider tax, to be administered by the State Department of Health Care Services, as specified, subject to approval from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, as specified.   This bill would suspend the 7% reduction in hours of service to each IHSS recipient until July 1, 2019, if the managed care organization provider tax remains operative. The bill would require the reduction to be reinstated by a specified date if the managed care organization provider tax ceases to be operative for any reason. By increasing the administrative duties of counties under the IHSS program, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.   (16) Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services to implement a single statewide Child Welfare Services Case Management System (CWS/CMS) to administer and evaluate the state's child welfare services and foster care programs.   This bill would require the State Department of Social Services and the Office of Systems Integration (OSI), in collaboration with the County Welfare Directors Association (CWDA), to seek resources to enable the necessary level of engagement by the counties in the Child Welfare Services-New System (CWS-NS), as specified. The bill would require the department and OSI to provide a voting seat on all governance bodies of the CWS-NS for a CWDA representative. The bill would also require the department and OSI to continue to provide monthly updates to the Legislature and to stakeholders, including CWDA, regarding efforts to develop and implement the CWS-NS. The bill would also require CWS/CMS operations and functionality to be maintained at a level at least commensurate with its December 2015 status, as specified. The bill would make related findings and declarations.   (17) Existing law establishes a system of statewide child welfare services, administered by the State Department of Social Services and county child welfare agencies, with the intent that all children are entitled to be safe and free from abuse and neglect.   This bill would establish the Bringing Families Home Program, and would, to the extent funds are appropriated in the annual Budget Act, require the State Department of Social Services to award program funds to counties for the purpose of providing housing-related supports to eligible families experiencing homelessness if specified criteria are met. The bill would require the department to award program funds to counties according to criteria developed by the department, in consultation with specified entities, subject to a requirement that a county that receives funds under the program provide matching funds for these purposes, as specified.   (18) Existing federal law provides for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), known in California as CalFresh, under which supplemental nutrition assistance benefits allocated to the state by the federal government are distributed to eligible individuals by each county. Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services to redetermine recipient eligibility and grant amounts under CalFresh on a semiannual basis, as specified. Existing law states the intent of the Legislature to assign certification periods for CalFresh households that are the maximum number of months allowed under federal law based on the household's circumstances, subject to a specified exception.   This bill would instead require the assignment of certification periods in the above-described manner, as specified, and would provide an additional exception, on a case-by-case basis only, for a household's individual circumstances requiring a shorter certification period. Because this bill would increase the administrative duties of counties, it would impose a state-mandated local program.   (19) Existing law, the State Department of Health Services Cooperative Agreement Act, provides for the establishment of cooperative agreements between the State Department of Public Health and other public and private entities for the purposes of, among other things, simplifying the administration of public health programs by the department. The act requires cooperative agreements to be subject to review and approval by the Department of General Services with certain exceptions.   This bill would deem an agreement between the State Department of Social Services and a unit of local government, any other unit of state government, or a nonprofit organization that provides for a contract relating to outreach programs related to CalFresh and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: Nutrition Education and Obesity Prevention Grant Program to be a "cooperative agreement," as defined. The bill would specify that these changes apply retroactively.   (20) Existing federal law establishes various disability benefits programs, including the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program, under which cash assistance is provided to qualified low-income aged, blind, and disabled persons, and the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program, under which benefits are provided to persons with disabilities who have paid social security taxes. Existing federal law also provides for disability compensation for veterans under specified circumstances.   Existing state law provides for disability benefits programs, including the State Supplementary Program for the Aged, Blind, and Disabled (SSP), under which state funds are provided in supplementation of federal SSI benefits, and the Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants, which provides benefits to aged, blind, and disabled legal immigrants who meet specified criteria. Existing law also establishes various housing programs directed by the Department of Housing and Community Development, including special housing programs to provide housing assistance for persons with developmental and physical disabilities and persons with mental health disorders.   This bill would establish the Housing and Disability Income Advocacy Program under the administration of the State Department of Social Services, subject to an appropriation of funds in the annual Budget Act. The program would provide state grant funds to participating counties for the provision of outreach, case management, and advocacy services to assist clients who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless to obtain disability benefits. The bill would require participating counties to provide housing assistance to these clients during their application periods for disability benefits programs, as specified. The bill would also require participating counties to annually report to the department regarding their funding of advocacy and outreach programs and use of state funding provided under the program, as specified. The bill would require the department to periodically inform the Legislature of the implementation progress of the program, to make related data available on the department's Internet Web site, and to report to the Legislature by October 1, 2018, regarding the implementation of the program, as specified.   (21) Under existing law, benefit payments under SSP are calculated by establishing the maximum level of nonexempt income and federal SSI and state SSP benefits for each category of eligible recipient. The state SSP payment is the amount required, when added to the nonexempt income and SSI benefits available to the recipient, to provide the maximum benefit payment. Existing law prohibits, for each calendar year, commencing with the 2011 calendar year, any cost-of-living adjustment from being made to the maximum benefit payment unless otherwise specified by statute, except for the pass along of any cost-of-living increase in the federal SSI benefits. Existing law continuously appropriates funds for the implementation of SSP.   This bill, commencing January 1, 2017, would increase the amount of aid paid under SSP that is in effect on December 31, 2016, less the federal benefit portion received, by 2.76%. The bill would instead provide that the continuous appropriation would not be made for purposes of implementing these provisions.   (22) Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services and the State Department of Health Care Services to carry out specified duties relating the administration of foster care services.   The bill would require the State Department of Social Services and the State Department of Health Care Services, during the 2017 and 2018 legislative budget hearings, to update the legislative budget committees on activities taken by the departments to implement specified reform measures relating to foster care. The bill would also require the State Department of Social Services to convene stakeholders, including county placing agencies, providers, foster youth, and legislative staff, commencing no later than July 1, 2016, to discuss the adequacy of the proposed foster care rates and rate structure and the extent to which the rates will achieve the desired outcomes for those reform measures, to report to legislative budget committees, and to provide updated project costs, as specified.   (23) The bill would authorize the State Department of Social Services to adopt emergency regulations implementing specified provisions of the bill.   (24) 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 with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.   With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.   (25) Existing federal law provides for the allocation of federal funds through the federal TANF block grant program to eligible states. The state CalWORKs program is funded through a combination of federal funds received through the federal TANF block grant program and state and county funds. Existing law continuously appropriates moneys from the General Fund to defray a portion of county costs under the CalWORKs program.   By expanding eligibility for, increasing assistance payments to recipients of, and adjusting funding formulas for counties providing benefits under, the CalWORKs program, and by providing funding for the Tribal Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program, which is also funded by TANF, the bill would make an appropriation.   (26) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.  Vote: majority. Appropriation: yes. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:  SECTION 1.   Section 51013.1 of the   Government Code   is amended to read:  51013.1. (a) By January 1, 2018, any new or replacement pipeline near environmentally and ecologically sensitive areas in the coastal zone shall use best available technology, including, but not limited to, the installation of leak detection technology, automatic shutoff systems, or remote controlled sectionalized block valves, or any combination of these technologies, based on a risk analysis conducted by the operator, to reduce the amount of oil released in an oil spill to protect state waters and wildlife. (b) (1) By July 1, 2018, an operator of an existing pipeline near environmentally and ecologically sensitive areas in the coastal zone shall submit a plan to retrofit, by January 1, 2020, existing pipelines near environmentally and ecologically sensitive areas in the coastal zone with the best available technology, including, but not limited to, installation of leak detection technologies, automatic shutoff systems, or remote controlled sectionalized block valves, or any combination of these technologies, based on a risk analysis conducted by the operator to reduce the amount of oil released in an oil spill to protect state waters and wildlife. (2) An operator may request confidential treatment of information submitted in the plan required by paragraph (1) or contained in any documents associated with the risk analysis described in this section, including, but not limited to, information regarding the proposed location of automatic shutoff valves or remote controlled sectionalized block valves. (c) The State Fire Marshal shall adopt regulations pursuant to this section by July 1, 2017. The regulations shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following: (1) A definition of automatic shutoff systems. (2) A process to assess the adequacy of the operator's risk analysis. (3) A process by which an operator may request confidential treatment of information submitted in the plan required by paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) or contained in any documents associated with the risk analysis described in this section. (4) A determination of how near to an environmentally and ecologically sensitive area a pipeline must be to be subject to the requirements of this section based on the likelihood of the pipeline impacting those areas. (d) An operator of a pipeline near environmentally and ecologically sensitive areas in the coastal zone shall notify the Office of the State Fire Marshal of any new construction or retrofit of pipeline in these waters. (e) For purposes of implementing this section, the State Fire Marshal shall consult with the Office of Spill Prevention and Response about the potential impacts to state water and wildlife. (f) For purposes of this section, "environmentally and ecologically sensitive areas" is the same term as described in subdivision (d) of Section 8574.7. (g) (1) For purposes of this section, "best available technology" means technology that provides the greatest degree of protection by limiting the quantity of release in the event of a spill, taking into consideration whether the processes are currently in use and could be purchased anywhere in the world. (2) The State Fire Marshal shall determine what is the best available technology and shall consider the effectiveness and engineering feasibility of the technology when making this determination.  (h) For the purposes of this section, "oil" means hazardous liquid as defined in Section 195.2 of Title 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations.   SEC. 2.   Section 51015.6 is added to the   Government Code   , to read:   51015.6. (a) On or before January 31, 2017, and on or before January 31 annually thereafter, the State Fire Marshal shall submit a report to the Legislature containing information, including, but not limited to, all of the following: (1) The number of annual inspections conducted pursuant to Section 51015.1. (2) The status of the installation of automatic shutoff systems pursuant to Section 51013.1, including a summary of the types of shutoff systems installed, and the number of miles of pipeline covered by an automatic shutoff system. (3) The status of Line 901 and Line 903 in the County of Santa Barbara. (b) (1) A report required to be submitted pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795. (2) Pursuant to Section 10231.5, this section is inoperative on January 31, 2021.   SEC. 3.   Section 44273 of the   Health and Safety Code   is amended to read:  44273. (a) The Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Fund is hereby created in the State Treasury, to be administered by the commission. The moneys in the fund, upon appropriation by the Legislature, shall be expended by the commission to implement the Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Program in accordance with this chapter.  (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the sum of ten million dollars ($10,000,000) shall be transferred annually from the Public Interest Research, Development, and Demonstration Fund created by Section 384 of the Public Utilities Code to the Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Fund. Prior to the award of any funds from this source, the commission shall make a determination that the proposed project will provide benefits to electric or natural gas ratepayers based upon the commission's adopted criteria.   (c)   (b)  Beginning with the integrated energy policy report adopted in 2011, and in the subsequent reports adopted thereafter, pursuant to Section 25302 of the Public Resources Code, the commission shall include an evaluation of research, development, and deployment efforts funded by this chapter. The evaluation shall include all of the following: (1) A list of projects funded by the Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Fund. (2) The expected benefits of the projects in terms of air quality, petroleum use reduction, greenhouse gas emissions reduction, technology advancement, benefit-cost assessment, and progress towards achieving these benefits. (3) The overall contribution of the funded projects toward promoting a transition to a diverse portfolio of clean, alternative transportation fuels and reduced petroleum dependency in California. (4) Key obstacles and challenges to meeting these goals identified through funded projects. (5) Recommendations for future actions.  SEC. 4.   Section 1546.1 of the   Penal Code   is amended to read:  1546.1. (a) Except as provided in this section, a government entity shall not do any of the following: (1) Compel the production of or access to electronic communication information from a service provider. (2) Compel the production of or access to electronic device information from any person or entity other than the authorized possessor of the device. (3) Access electronic device information by means of physical interaction or electronic communication with the electronic device. This section does not prohibit the intended recipient of an electronic communication from voluntarily disclosing electronic communication information concerning that communication to a government entity. (b) A government entity may compel the production of or access to electronic communication information from a service provider, or compel the production of or access to electronic device information from any person or entity other than the authorized possessor of the device only under the following circumstances: (1) Pursuant to a warrant issued pursuant to Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 1523) and subject to subdivision (d). (2) Pursuant to a wiretap order issued pursuant to Chapter 1.4 (commencing with Section 629.50) of Title 15 of Part 1. (3) Pursuant to an order for electronic reader records issued pursuant to Section 1798.90 of the Civil Code. (4) Pursuant to a subpoena issued pursuant to existing state law, provided that the information is not sought for the purpose of investigating or prosecuting a criminal offense, and compelling the production of or access to the information via the subpoena is not otherwise prohibited by state or federal law. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to expand any authority under state law to compel the production of or access to electronic information. (c) A government entity may access electronic device information by means of physical interaction or electronic communication with the device only as follows: (1) Pursuant to a warrant issued pursuant to Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 1523) and subject to subdivision (d). (2) Pursuant to a wiretap order issued pursuant to Chapter 1.4 (commencing with Section 629.50) of Title 15 of Part 1. (3) With the specific consent of the authorized possessor of the device. (4) With the specific consent of the owner of the device, only when the device has been reported as lost or stolen. (5) If the government entity, in good faith, believes that an emergency involving danger of death or serious physical injury to any person requires access to the electronic device information. (6) If the government entity, in good faith, believes the device to be lost, stolen, or abandoned, provided that the entity shall only access electronic device information in order to attempt to identify, verify, or contact the owner or authorized possessor of the device. (7) Except where prohibited by state or federal law, if the device is seized from an inmate's possession or found in an area of a correctional facility under the jurisdiction of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation where inmates have access and the device is not in the possession of an individual and the device is not known or believed to be the possession of an authorized visitor. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to supersede or override Section 4576. (d) Any warrant for electronic information shall comply with the following: (1) The warrant shall describe with particularity the information to be seized by specifying the time periods covered and, as appropriate and reasonable, the target individuals or accounts, the applications or services covered, and the types of information sought. (2) The warrant shall require that any information obtained through the execution of the warrant that is unrelated to the objective of the warrant shall be sealed and not subject to further review, use, or disclosure without a court order. A court shall issue such an order upon a finding that there is probable cause to believe that the information is relevant to an active investigation, or review, use, or disclosure is required by state or federal law. (3) The warrant shall comply with all other provisions of California and federal law, including any provisions prohibiting, limiting, or imposing additional requirements on the use of search warrants. If directed to a service provider, the warrant shall be accompanied by an order requiring the service provider to verify the authenticity of electronic information that it produces by providing an affidavit that complies with the requirements set forth in Section 1561 of the Evidence Code. Admission of that information into evidence shall be subject to Section 1562 of the Evidence Code. (e) When issuing any warrant or order for electronic information, or upon the petition from the target or recipient of the warrant or order, a court may, at its discretion, do any or all of the following: (1) Appoint a special master, as described in subdivision (d) of Section 1524, charged with ensuring that only information necessary to achieve the objective of the warrant or order is produced or accessed. (2) Require that any information obtained through the execution of the warrant or order that is unrelated to the objective of the warrant be destroyed as soon as feasible after the termination of the current investigation and any related investigations or proceedings. (f) A service provider may voluntarily disclose electronic communication information or subscriber information when that disclosure is not otherwise prohibited by state or federal law. (g) If a government entity receives electronic communication information voluntarily provided pursuant to subdivision (f), it shall destroy that information within 90 days unless one or more of the following circumstances apply: (1) The entity has or obtains the specific consent of the sender or recipient of the electronic communications about which information was disclosed. (2) The entity obtains a court order authorizing the retention of the information. A court shall issue a retention order upon a finding that the conditions justifying the initial voluntary disclosure persist, in which case the court shall authorize the retention of the information only for so long as those conditions persist, or there is probable cause to believe that the information constitutes evidence that a crime has been committed. (3) The entity reasonably believes that the information relates to child pornography and the information is retained as part of a multiagency database used in the investigation of child pornography and related crimes. (h) If a government entity obtains electronic information pursuant to an emergency involving danger of death or serious physical injury to a person, that requires access to the electronic information without delay, the entity shall, within three days after obtaining the electronic information, file with the appropriate court an application for a warrant or order authorizing obtaining the electronic information or a motion seeking approval of the emergency disclosures that shall set forth the facts giving rise to the emergency, and if applicable, a request supported by a sworn affidavit for an order delaying notification under paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) of Section 1546.2. The court shall promptly rule on the application or motion and shall order the immediate destruction of all information obtained, and immediate notification pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 1546.2 if such notice has not already been given, upon a finding that the facts did not give rise to an emergency or upon rejecting the warrant or order application on any other ground. (i) This section does not limit the authority of a government entity to use an administrative, grand jury, trial, or civil discovery subpoena to do any of the following: (1) Require an originator, addressee, or intended recipient of an electronic communication to disclose any electronic communication information associated with that communication. (2) Require an entity that provides electronic communications services to its officers, directors, employees, or agents for the purpose of carrying out their duties, to disclose electronic communication information associated with an electronic communication to or from an officer, director, employee, or agent of the entity. (3) Require a service provider to provide subscriber information.  (j) This section does not limit the authority of the Public Utilities Commission or the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission to obtain energy or water supply and consumption information pursuant to the powers granted to them under the Public Utilities Code or the Public Resources Code and other applicable state laws.   SEC. 4.5.   Section 1546.1 of the   Penal Code   is amended to read:  1546.1. (a) Except as provided in this section, a government entity shall not do any of the following: (1) Compel the production of or access to electronic communication information from a service provider. (2) Compel the production of or access to electronic device information from any person or entity other than the authorized possessor of the device. (3) Access electronic device information by means of physical interaction or electronic communication with the electronic device. This section does not prohibit the intended recipient of an electronic communication from voluntarily disclosing electronic communication information concerning that communication to a government entity. (b) A government entity may compel the production of or access to electronic communication information from a service provider, or compel the production of or access to electronic device information from any person or entity other than the authorized possessor of the device only under the following circumstances: (1) Pursuant to a warrant issued pursuant to Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 1523) and subject to subdivision (d). (2) Pursuant to a wiretap order issued pursuant to Chapter 1.4 (commencing with Section 629.50) of Title 15 of Part 1. (3) Pursuant to an order for electronic reader records issued pursuant to Section 1798.90 of the Civil Code. (4) Pursuant to a subpoena issued pursuant to existing state law, provided that the information is not sought for the purpose of investigating or prosecuting a criminal offense, and compelling the production of or access to the information via the subpoena is not otherwise prohibited by state or federal law. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to expand any authority under state law to compel the production of or access to electronic information.  (5) Pursuant to an order for a pen register or trap and trace device, or both, issued pursuant to Chapter 1.5 (commencing with Section 630) of Title 15 of Part 1.  (c) A government entity may access electronic device information by means of physical interaction or electronic communication with the device only as follows: (1) Pursuant to a warrant issued pursuant to Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 1523) and subject to subdivision (d). (2) Pursuant to a wiretap order issued pursuant to Chapter 1.4 (commencing with Section 629.50) of Title 15 of Part 1. (3) With the specific consent of the authorized possessor of the device. (4) With the specific consent of the owner of the device, only when the device has been reported as lost or stolen. (5) If the government entity, in good faith, believes that an emergency involving danger of death or serious physical injury to any person requires access to the electronic device information. (6) If the government entity, in good faith, believes the device to be lost, stolen, or abandoned, provided that the entity shall only access electronic device information in order to attempt to identify, verify, or contact the owner or authorized possessor of the device. (7) Except where prohibited by state or federal law, if the device is seized from an inmate's possession or found in an area of a correctional facility under the jurisdiction of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation where inmates have access and the device is not in the possession of an individual and the device is not known or believed to be the possession of an authorized visitor. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to supersede or override Section 4576.  (8) Pursuant to an order for a pen register or trap and trace device, or both, issued pursuant to Chapter 1.5 (commencing with Section 630) of Title 15 of Part 1.  (d) Any warrant for electronic information shall comply with the following: (1) The warrant shall describe with particularity the information to be seized by specifying the time periods covered and, as appropriate and reasonable, the target individuals or accounts, the applications or services covered, and the types of information sought. (2) The warrant shall require that any information obtained through the execution of the warrant that is unrelated to the objective of the warrant shall be sealed and not subject to further review, use, or disclosure without a court order. A court shall issue such an order upon a finding that there is probable cause to believe that the information is relevant to an active investigation, or review, use, or disclosure is required by state or federal law. (3) The warrant shall comply with all other provisions of California and federal law, including any provisions prohibiting, limiting, or imposing additional requirements on the use of search warrants. If directed to a service provider, the warrant shall be accompanied by an order requiring the service provider to verify the authenticity of electronic information that it produces by providing an affidavit that complies with the requirements set forth in Section 1561 of the Evidence Code. Admission of that information into evidence shall be subject to Section 1562 of the Evidence Code. (e) When issuing any warrant or order for electronic information, or upon the petition from the target or recipient of the warrant or order, a court may, at its discretion, do any or all of the following: (1) Appoint a special master, as described in subdivision (d) of Section 1524, charged with ensuring that only information necessary to achieve the objective of the warrant or order is produced or accessed. (2) Require that any information obtained through the execution of the warrant or order that is unrelated to the objective of the warrant be destroyed as soon as feasible after the termination of the current investigation and any related investigations or proceedings. (f) A service provider may voluntarily disclose electronic communication information or subscriber information when that disclosure is not otherwise prohibited by state or federal law. (g) If a government entity receives electronic communication information voluntarily provided pursuant to subdivision (f), it shall destroy that information within 90 days unless one or more of the following circumstances apply: (1) The entity has or obtains the specific consent of the sender or recipient of the electronic communications about which information was disclosed. (2) The entity obtains a court order authorizing the retention of the information. A court shall issue a retention order upon a finding that the conditions justifying the initial voluntary disclosure persist, in which case the court shall authorize the retention of the information only for so long as those conditions persist, or there is probable cause to believe that the information constitutes evidence that a crime has been committed. (3) The entity reasonably believes that the information relates to child pornography and the information is retained as part of a multiagency database used in the investigation of child pornography and related crimes. (h) If a government entity obtains electronic information pursuant to an emergency involving danger of death or serious physical injury to a person, that requires access to the electronic information without delay, the entity shall, within three days after obtaining the electronic information, file with the appropriate court an application for a warrant or order authorizing obtaining the electronic information or a motion seeking approval of the emergency disclosures that shall set forth the facts giving rise to the emergency, and if applicable, a request supported by a sworn affidavit for an order delaying notification under paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) of Section 1546.2. The court shall promptly rule on the application or motion and shall order the immediate destruction of all information obtained, and immediate notification pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 1546.2 if such notice has not already been given, upon a finding that the facts did not give rise to an emergency or upon rejecting the warrant or order application on any other ground. (i) This section does not limit the authority of a government entity to use an administrative, grand jury, trial, or civil discovery subpoena to do any of the following: (1) Require an originator, addressee, or intended recipient of an electronic communication to disclose any electronic communication information associated with that communication. (2) Require an entity that provides electronic communications services to its officers, directors, employees, or agents for the purpose of carrying out their duties, to disclose electronic communication information associated with an electronic communication to or from an officer, director, employee, or agent of the entity. (3) Require a service provider to provide subscriber information.  (j) This section does not limit the authority of the Public Utilities Commission or the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission to obtain energy or water supply and consumption information pursuant to the powers granted to them under the Public Utilities Code or the Public Resources Code and other applicable state laws.   SEC. 5.   Section 3401 of the   Public Resources Code   is amended to read:  3401. (a) The proceeds of charges levied, assessed, and collected pursuant to this article upon the properties of every person operating or owning an interest in the production of a well shall be used exclusively for the support and maintenance of the department charged with the supervision of oil and gas  operations and   operations,  for the State Water Resources Control Board and the regional water quality control boards for their activities related to oil and gas operations that may affect water  resources.   resources, and for the support of the State Air Resources Board and the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment for their activities related to oil and gas operations that may affect air quality, public health, or public safety.  (b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), the proceeds of charges levied, assessed, and collected pursuant to this article upon the properties of every person operating or owning an interest in the production of a well undergoing a well stimulation treatment, may be used by public entities, subject to appropriation by the Legislature, for all costs associated with both of the following: (1) Well stimulation treatments, including rulemaking and scientific studies required to evaluate the treatment, inspections, any air and water quality sampling, monitoring, and testing performed by public entities. (2) The costs of the State Water Resources Control Board and the regional water quality control boards in carrying out their responsibilities pursuant to Section 3160 and Section 10783 of the Water Code.  SEC. 6.   Section 25751 of the   Public Resources Code   is amended to read:  25751. (a) The Renewable Resource Trust Fund is hereby created in the State Treasury. (b) The Emerging Renewable Resources Account is hereby established within the Renewable Resources Trust Fund. Notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, the moneys in the account are hereby continuously appropriated to the commission without regard to fiscal years for the following purposes: (1) To close out the award of incentives for emerging technologies in accordance with former Section 25744, as this law existed prior to the enactment of the Budget Act of 2012, for which applications had been approved before the enactment of the Budget Act of 2012. (2) To close out consumer education activities in accordance with former Section 25746, as this law existed prior to the enactment of the Budget Act of 2012. (3) To provide funding for the New Solar Homes Partnership pursuant to paragraph (3) of subdivision (e) of Section 2851 of the Public Utilities Code. (c) The Controller shall provide to the commission funds pursuant to the continuous appropriation in, and for purposes specified in, subdivision (b). (d) The Controller shall provide to the commission moneys from the fund sufficient to satisfy all contract and grant awards that were made by the commission pursuant to former Sections 25744 and 25746, and Chapter 8.8 (commencing with Section 25780), as these laws existed prior to the enactment of the Budget Act of 2012.  (e) If the Public Utilities Commission determines that the commission should be the third-party administrator for the New Solar Homes Partnership Program pursuant to subparagraph (A) of paragraph (3) of subdivision (e) of Section 2851 of the Public Utilities Code, any moneys made available to fund the New Solar Homes Partnership Program shall be deposited into the Emerging Renewable Resources Account of the Renewable Resource Trust Fund and used for this purpose.   SEC. 7.   Section 388 of the   Public Utilities Code   is amended to read:  388. (a) Notwithstanding any other  provision of law, any   law, a  state agency may enter into an energy savings contract with a qualified energy service company for the purchase or exchange of thermal or electrical energy or water, or to acquire energy efficiency  and/or   or  water conservation services,  or both energy efficiency and water conservation services,  for a term not exceeding 35 years, at  those  rates and upon  those  terms  that are  approved by the agency. (b) The Department of General Services or any other state or local agency intending to enter into an energy savings contract or a contract for an energy retrofit project  may establish a pool of qualified energy service companies based on qualifications, experience,  pricing   pricing,  or other pertinent factors. Energy service contracts for individual projects undertaken by any state or local agency may be awarded through a competitive selection process to individuals or firms identified in  such a   the  pool. The pool of qualified energy service companies and contractors shall be reestablished at least every two years or shall expire. (c) For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:  (1) (A) "Energy retrofit project" means a project for which the state or local agency works with a qualified energy service company to identify, develop, design, and implement energy conservation measures in existing facilities to reduce energy or water use or make more efficient use of energy or water.   (B) "Energy retrofit project" does not include the erection or installation of a power generation system, a power purchase agreement, or a project utilizing a site license or lease agreement.   (1)   (2)  "Energy savings" means a measured and verified reduction in fuel,  energy   energy,  or water consumption when compared to an established baseline of consumption.  (2)   (3)  "Qualified energy service company" means a company with a demonstrated ability to provide or arrange for building or facility energy auditors, selection and design of appropriate energy savings measures, project financing, implementation of these measures, and maintenance and ongoing measurement of these measures as to ensure and verify energy savings.  SEC. 8.   Section 388.2 is added to the   Public Utilities Code   , to read:   388.2. (a) For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply: (1) "Apprenticeable occupation" means an occupation for which the chief has approved an apprenticeship program pursuant to Section 3075 of the Labor Code before January 1, 2014. (2) "Chief" means the Chief of the Division of Apprenticeship Standards of the Department of Industrial Relations. (3) "Department" means the Department of General Services. (4) (A) "Energy retrofit project" means a project for which the state works with a qualified energy service company to identify, develop, design, and implement energy conservation measures in existing facilities to reduce energy or water use or make more efficient use of energy or water. (B) "Energy retrofit project" does not include the erection or installation of a power generation system, a power purchase agreement, or a project utilizing a site license or lease agreement. (5) "Energy savings" means a measured and verified reduction in fuel, energy, or water consumption when compared to an established baseline of consumption. (6) "Enforceable commitment" means an enforceable agreement with the department or state agency that the entity and its subcontractors at every tier will comply with this section. (7) (A) "Qualified energy service company" means a company with a demonstrated ability to provide or arrange for building or facility energy auditors, selection and design of appropriate energy savings measures, project financing, implementation of these measures, and maintenance and ongoing measurement of these measures as to ensure and verify energy savings. (B) An entity is not a qualified energy service company unless the entity has provided to the agency an enforceable commitment that the entity and its subcontractors at every tier will use a skilled and trained workforce to perform all work on the project or contract that falls within an apprenticeable occupation in the building and construction trades. (8) "Skilled and trained workforce" means a workforce that meets all of the following conditions: (A) All workers performing work in an apprenticeable occupation in the building and construction trades are either skilled journeypersons or apprentices in an apprenticeship program approved by the chief. (B) (i) Except as provided in clause (ii), at least 60 percent of the skilled journeypersons employed to perform work on a contract or project by every contractor and each of its subcontractors at every tier are graduates of an apprenticeship program that was either approved by the chief pursuant to Section 3075 of the Labor Code, or an apprenticeship program located outside the state that is approved pursuant to the apprenticeship regulations adopted by the United States Secretary of Labor, for the applicable occupation. (ii) For an apprenticeable occupation in which no apprenticeship program had been approved by the chief before January 1, 1995, up to one-half of the requirement in clause (i) may be satisfied by skilled journeypersons who commenced working in an apprenticeable occupation before the chief's approval of an apprenticeship program in the county in which the project is located. (iii) The requirements of this subparagraph are satisfied if, in a particular calendar month, either of the following is true: (I) The percentage of the skilled journeypersons employed by the contractor or subcontractor to perform work on the contract or project is at least equal to 60 percent. (II) For the hours of work performed by skilled journeypersons employed by the contractor or subcontractor on the contract or project, the percentage of hours performed by skilled journeypersons is at least equal to 60 percent. (iv) This subparagraph does not apply to a contractor or subcontractor if, during the calendar month, the contractor or subcontractor employs skilled journeypersons to perform fewer than 10 hours of work on the contract or project. (v) This subparagraph does not apply to a subcontractor if both of the following are true: (I) The subcontractor is not a listed subcontractor in the investment grade audit or a substitute for a listed subcontractor. (II) The subcontract does not exceed one-half of 1 percent of the price of the prime contract. (9) "Skilled journeyperson" means a worker who is being paid at least the prevailing rate or per diem wages published by the Department of Industrial Relations for the occupation and geographic area and who either: (A) Graduated from either an apprenticeship program that was approved by the chief pursuant to Section 3075 of the Labor Code, or an apprenticeship program located outside the state that is approved pursuant to the apprenticeship regulations adopted by the United States Secretary of Labor, for the applicable occupation. (B) Has at least as many hours of on-the-job training experience in the applicable occupation as would be required to graduate from an apprenticeship program for the applicable occupation that is approved by the chief. (b) (1) The department or any other state agency intending to enter into an energy savings contract for an energy retrofit project may establish one or more pools of qualified energy service companies based on qualification, experience, pricing, or other pertinent factors. The department or state agency may select a qualified energy service company identified in the pool for a contract for a specific energy retrofit project on a rotational basis. (2) The department or state agency has the exclusive authority to reject the plan or proposal of a qualified energy service company selected for an energy retrofit project pursuant to paragraph (1) and may continue the selection process until a satisfactory proposal is identified. (c) (1) A qualified energy service company working on an energy retrofit project shall submit to the department or state agency, as appropriate, on a monthly basis, a report demonstrating compliance with this section. (2) If the qualified energy service company fails to submit the monthly report or submits a report that is incomplete, the department or state agency, as appropriate, shall withhold further payments until a complete report is submitted. (3) The monthly report is a public record under the California Public Records Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 6250) of Division 7 of Title 1 of the Government Code) and shall be available for public inspection. (d) Prior to performing an investment grade audit, the department or other state agency shall provide a public notification that includes the project location, assigned energy service company, and the appropriate contact information on the department's Internet Web site. (e) Subparagraph (B) of paragraph (7) of subdivision (a) and subdivision (c) do not apply if either of the following applies: (1) The department or state agency, as appropriate, has entered into a project labor agreement, as defined in paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) of Section 2500 of the Public Contract Code, that will bind all contractors and subcontractors performing work on the project or contract and the entity agrees to be bound by that project labor agreement. (2) The entity has entered into a project labor agreement, as defined in paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) of Section 2500 of the Public Contract Code, that will bind the entity and all contractors and subcontractors at every tier performing the project or contract. (f) Subparagraph (B) of paragraph (7) of subdivision (a) and subdivision (c) do not apply to work performed by the California Conservation Corps that is nontrades and nonconstruction related. (g) This section is not intended to waive other terms and conditions applicable to a state contract for an energy retrofit project. (h) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2020, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2020, deletes or extends that date.   SEC. 9.   Section 399.20 of the   Public Utilities Code   is amended to read:  399.20. (a) It is the policy of this state and the intent of the Legislature to encourage electrical generation from eligible renewable energy resources. (b) As used in this section, "electric generation facility" means an electric generation facility located within the service territory of, and developed to sell electricity to, an electrical corporation that meets all of the following criteria: (1) Has an effective capacity of not more than three megawatts. (2) Is interconnected and operates in parallel with the electrical transmission and distribution grid. (3) Is strategically located and interconnected to the electrical transmission and distribution grid in a manner that optimizes the deliverability of electricity generated at the facility to load centers. (4) Is an eligible renewable energy resource. (c) Every electrical corporation shall file with the commission a standard tariff for electricity purchased from an electric generation facility. The commission may modify or adjust the requirements of this section for any electrical corporation with less than 100,000 service connections, as individual circumstances merit. (d) (1) The tariff shall provide for payment for every kilowatthour of electricity purchased from an electric generation facility for a period of 10, 15, or 20 years, as authorized by the commission. The payment shall be the market price determined by the commission pursuant to paragraph (2) and shall include all current and anticipated environmental compliance costs, including, but not limited to, mitigation of emissions of greenhouse gases and air pollution offsets associated with the operation of new generating facilities in the local air pollution control or air quality management district where the electric generation facility is located. (2) The commission shall establish a methodology to determine the market price of electricity for terms corresponding to the length of contracts with an electric generation facility, in consideration of the following: (A) The long-term market price of electricity for fixed price contracts, determined pursuant to an electrical corporation's general procurement activities as authorized by the commission. (B) The long-term ownership, operating, and fixed-price fuel costs associated with fixed-price electricity from new generating facilities. (C) The value of different electricity products including baseload, peaking, and as-available electricity. (3) The commission may adjust the payment rate to reflect the value of every kilowatthour of electricity generated on a time-of-delivery basis. (4) The commission shall ensure, with respect to rates and charges, that ratepayers that do not receive service pursuant to the tariff are indifferent to whether a ratepayer with an electric generation facility receives service pursuant to the tariff. (e) An electrical corporation shall provide expedited interconnection procedures to an electric generation facility located on a distribution circuit that generates electricity at a time and in a manner so as to offset the peak demand on the distribution circuit, if the electrical corporation determines that the electric generation facility will not adversely affect the distribution grid. The commission shall consider and may establish a value for an electric generation facility located on a distribution circuit that generates electricity at a time and in a manner so as to offset the peak demand on the distribution circuit. (f) (1) An electrical corporation shall make the tariff available to the owner or operator of an electric generation facility within the service territory of the electrical corporation, upon request, on a first-come-first-served basis, until the electrical corporation meets its proportionate share of a statewide cap of 750 megawatts cumulative rated generation capacity served under this section and Section 387.6. The proportionate share shall be calculated based on the ratio of the electrical corporation's peak demand compared to the total statewide peak demand. (2) By June 1, 2013, the commission shall, in addition to the 750 megawatts identified in paragraph (1), direct the electrical corporations to collectively procure at least 250 megawatts of cumulative rated generating capacity from developers of bioenergy projects that commence operation on or after June 1, 2013. The commission shall, for each electrical corporation, allocate shares of the additional 250 megawatts based on the ratio of each electrical corporation's peak demand compared to the total statewide peak demand. In implementing this paragraph, the commission shall do all of the following: (A) Allocate the 250 megawatts identified in this paragraph among the electrical corporations based on the following categories: (i) For biogas from wastewater treatment, municipal organic waste diversion, food processing, and codigestion, 110 megawatts. (ii) For dairy and other agricultural bioenergy, 90 megawatts. (iii) For bioenergy using byproducts of sustainable forest management, 50 megawatts. Allocations under this category shall be determined based on the proportion of bioenergy that sustainable forest management providers derive from sustainable forest management in fire threat treatment areas, as designated by the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. (B) Direct the electrical corporations to develop standard contract terms and conditions that reflect the operational characteristics of the projects, and to provide a streamlined contracting process. (C) Coordinate, to the maximum extent feasible, any incentive or subsidy programs for bioenergy with the agencies listed in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (3) in order to provide maximum benefits to ratepayers and to ensure that incentives are used to reduce contract prices. (D) The commission shall encourage gas and electrical corporations to develop and offer programs and services to facilitate development of in-state biogas for a broad range of purposes. (3) (A) The commission, in consultation with the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission, the State Air Resources Board, the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, the Department of Food and Agriculture, and the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, may review the allocations of the 250 additional megawatts identified in paragraph (2) to determine if those allocations are appropriate. (B) If the commission finds that the allocations of the 250 additional megawatts identified in paragraph (2) are not appropriate, the commission may reallocate the 250 megawatts among the categories established in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (2).  (4) (A) A project identified in clause (iii) of subparagraph (A) of paragraph (2) is eligible, in regards to interconnection, for the tariff established to implement paragraph (2) or to participate in any program or auction established to implement paragraph (2), if it meets at least one of the following requirements:   (i) The project is already interconnected.  (ii) The project has been found to be eligible for interconnection pursuant to the fast track process under the relevant tariff.   (iii) A system impact study or other interconnection study has been completed for the project under the relevant tariff, and there was no determination in the study that, with the identified interconnection upgrades, if any, a condition specified in paragraph (2), (3), or (4) of subdivision (n) would exist. Such a project is not required to have a pending, active interconnection application to be eligible.   (B) For a project meeting the eligibility requirements pursuant to clause (iii) of subparagraph (A) of this paragraph, both of the following apply:   (i) The project is hereby deemed to be able to interconnect within the required time limits for the purpose of determining eligibility for the tariff.   (ii) The project shall submit a new application for interconnection within 30 days of execution of a standard contract pursuant to the tariff if it does not have a pending, active interconnection application or a completed interconnection. For those projects, the time to achieve commercial operation shall begin to run from the date when the new system impact study or other interconnection study is completed rather than from the date of execution of the standard contract.   (4)   (5)  For the purposes of this subdivision, "bioenergy" means biogas and biomass. (g) The electrical corporation may make the terms of the tariff available to owners and operators of an electric generation facility in the form of a standard contract subject to commission approval. (h) Every kilowatthour of electricity purchased from an electric generation facility shall count toward meeting the electrical corporation's renewables portfolio standard annual procurement targets for purposes of paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) of Section 399.15. (i) The physical generating capacity of an electric generation facility shall count toward the electrical corporation's resource adequacy requirement for purposes of Section 380. (j) (1) The commission shall establish performance standards for any electric generation facility that has a capacity greater than one megawatt to ensure that those facilities are constructed, operated, and maintained to generate the expected annual net production of electricity and do not impact system reliability. (2) The commission may reduce the three megawatt capacity limitation of paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) if the commission finds that a reduced capacity limitation is necessary to maintain system reliability within that electrical corporation's service territory. (k) (1) Any owner or operator of an electric generation facility that received ratepayer-funded incentives in accordance with Section 379.6 of this code, or with Section 25782 of the Public Resources Code, and participated in a net metering program pursuant to Sections 2827, 2827.9, and 2827.10 of this code prior to January 1, 2010, shall be eligible for a tariff or standard contract filed by an electrical corporation pursuant to this section. (2) In establishing the tariffs or standard contracts pursuant to this section, the commission shall consider ratepayer-funded incentive payments previously received by the generation facility pursuant to Section 379.6 of this code or Section 25782 of the Public Resources Code. The commission shall require reimbursement of any funds received from these incentive programs to an electric generation facility, in order for that facility to be eligible for a tariff or standard contract filed by an electrical corporation pursuant to this section, unless the commission determines ratepayers have received sufficient value from the incentives provided to the facility based on how long the project has been in operation and the amount of renewable electricity previously generated by the facility. (3) A customer that receives service under a tariff or contract approved by the commission pursuant to this section is not eligible to participate in any net metering program. (  l  ) An owner or operator of an electric generation facility electing to receive service under a tariff or contract approved by the commission shall continue to receive service under the tariff or contract until either of the following occurs: (1) The owner or operator of an electric generation facility no longer meets the eligibility requirements for receiving service pursuant to the tariff or contract. (2) The period of service established by the commission pursuant to subdivision (d) is completed. (m) Within 10 days of receipt of a request for a tariff pursuant to this section from an owner or operator of an electric generation facility, the electrical corporation that receives the request shall post a copy of the request on its Internet Web site. The information posted on the Internet Web site shall include the name of the city in which the facility is located, but information that is proprietary and confidential, including, but not limited to, address information beyond the name of the city in which the facility is located, shall be redacted. (n) An electrical corporation may deny a tariff request pursuant to this section if the electrical corporation makes any of the following findings: (1) The electric generation facility does not meet the requirements of this section. (2) The transmission or distribution grid that would serve as the point of interconnection is inadequate. (3) The electric generation facility does not meet all applicable state and local laws and building standards and utility interconnection requirements. (4) The aggregate of all electric generating facilities on a distribution circuit would adversely impact utility operation and load restoration efforts of the distribution system. (o) Upon receiving a notice of denial from an electrical corporation, the owner or operator of the electric generation facility denied a tariff pursuant to this section shall have the right to appeal that decision to the commission. (p) In order to ensure the safety and reliability of electric generation facilities, the owner of an electric generation facility receiving a tariff pursuant to this section shall provide an inspection and maintenance report to the electrical corporation at least once every other year. The inspection and maintenance report shall be prepared at the owner's or operator's expense by a California-licensed contractor who is not the owner or operator of the electric generation facility. A California-licensed electrician shall perform the inspection of the electrical portion of the generation facility. (q) The contract between the electric generation facility receiving the tariff and the electrical corporation shall contain provisions that ensure that construction of the electric generating facility complies with all applicable state and local laws and building standards, and utility interconnection requirements. (r) (1) All construction and installation of facilities of the electrical corporation, including at the point of the output meter or at the transmission or distribution grid, shall be performed only by that electrical corporation. (2) All interconnection facilities installed on the electrical corporation's side of the transfer point for electricity between the electrical corporation and the electrical conductors of the electric generation facility shall be owned, operated, and maintained only by the electrical corporation. The ownership, installation, operation, reading, and testing of revenue metering equipment for electric generating facilities shall only be performed by the electrical corporation.  SEC. 9.5.   Section 399.20 of the   Public Utilities Code   is amended to read:  399.20. (a) It is the policy of this state and the intent of the Legislature to encourage electrical generation from eligible renewable energy resources. (b) As used in this section, "electric generation facility" means an electric generation facility located within the service territory of, and developed to sell electricity to, an electrical corporation that meets all of the following criteria: (1) Has an effective capacity of not more than three  megawatts.   megawatts, with the exception of those facilities participating in a tariff made   available pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (f).  (2) Is interconnected and operates in parallel with the electrical transmission and distribution grid. (3) Is strategically located and interconnected to the electrical transmission and distribution grid in a manner that optimizes the deliverability of electricity generated at the facility to load centers. (4) Is an eligible renewable energy resource. (c) Every electrical corporation shall file with the commission a standard tariff for electricity purchased from an electric generation facility. The commission may modify or adjust the requirements of this section for any electrical corporation with less than 100,000 service connections, as individual circumstances merit. (d) (1) The tariff shall provide for payment for every kilowatthour of electricity purchased from an electric generation facility for a period of 10, 15, or 20 years, as authorized by the commission. The payment shall be the market price determined by the commission pursuant to paragraph (2) and shall include all current and anticipated environmental compliance costs, including, but not limited to, mitigation of emissions of greenhouse gases and air pollution offsets associated with the operation of new generating facilities in the local air pollution control or air quality management district where the electric generation facility is located. (2) The commission shall establish a methodology to determine the market price of electricity for terms corresponding to the length of contracts with an electric generation facility, in consideration of the following: (A) The long-term market price of electricity for fixed price contracts, determined pursuant to an electrical corporation's general procurement activities as authorized by the commission. (B) The long-term ownership, operating, and fixed-price fuel costs associated with fixed-price electricity from new generating facilities. (C) The value of different electricity products including baseload, peaking, and as-available electricity. (3) The commission may adjust the payment rate to reflect the value of every kilowatthour of electricity generated on a time-of-delivery basis. (4) The commission shall ensure, with respect to rates and charges, that ratepayers that do not receive service pursuant to the tariff are indifferent to whether a ratepayer with an electric generation facility receives service pursuant to the tariff. (e) An electrical corporation shall provide expedited interconnection procedures to an electric generation facility located on a distribution circuit that generates electricity at a time and in a manner so as to offset the peak demand on the distribution circuit, if the electrical corporation determines that the electric generation facility will not adversely affect the distribution grid. The commission shall consider and may establish a value for an electric generation facility located on a distribution circuit that generates electricity at a time and in a manner so as to offset the peak demand on the distribution circuit. (f) (1) An electrical corporation shall make the tariff available to the owner or operator of an electric generation facility within the service territory of the electrical corporation, upon request, on a first-come-first-served basis, until the electrical corporation meets its proportionate share of a statewide cap of 750 megawatts cumulative rated generation capacity served under this section and Section 387.6. The proportionate share shall be calculated based on the ratio of the electrical corporation's peak demand compared to the total statewide peak demand. (2) By June 1, 2013, the commission shall, in addition to the 750 megawatts identified in paragraph (1), direct the electrical corporations to collectively procure at least 250 megawatts of cumulative rated generating capacity from developers of bioenergy projects that commence operation on or after June 1, 2013. The commission shall, for each electrical corporation, allocate shares of the additional 250 megawatts based on the ratio of each electrical corporation's peak demand compared to the total statewide peak demand. In implementing this paragraph, the commission shall do all of the following: (A) Allocate the 250 megawatts identified in this paragraph among the electrical corporations based on the following categories: (i) For biogas from wastewater treatment, municipal organic waste diversion, food processing, and codigestion, 110 megawatts. (ii) For dairy and other agricultural bioenergy, 90 megawatts. (iii) For bioenergy using byproducts of sustainable forest management, 50 megawatts. Allocations under this category shall be determined based on the proportion of bioenergy that sustainable forest management providers derive from sustainable forest management in fire threat treatment areas, as designated by the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. (B) Direct the electrical corporations to develop standard contract terms and conditions that reflect the operational characteristics of the projects, and to provide a streamlined contracting process. (C) Coordinate, to the maximum extent feasible, any incentive or subsidy programs for bioenergy with the agencies listed in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (3) in order to provide maximum benefits to ratepayers and to ensure that incentives are used to reduce contract prices. (D) The commission shall encourage gas and electrical corporations to develop and offer programs and services to facilitate development of in-state biogas for a broad range of purposes.  (E) Direct the electrical corporations to authorize a bioenergy electric generation facility with a nameplate generating capacity of up to five megawatts to participate in the tariff made available pursuant to this paragraph, if it meets the following conditions:   (i) It delivers no more than three megawatts to the grid at any time.   (ii) It complies with the electrical corporation's Electric Rule 21 tariff or other distribution access tariff.   (iii) Payment is made pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (d) and no payment is made for any electricity delivered to the grid in excess of three megawatts at any time.  (3) (A) The commission, in consultation with the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission, the State Air Resources Board, the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, the Department of Food and Agriculture, and the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, may review the allocations of the 250 additional megawatts identified in paragraph (2) to determine if those allocations are appropriate. (B) If the commission finds that the allocations of the 250 additional megawatts identified in paragraph (2) are not appropriate, the commission may reallocate the 250 megawatts among the categories established in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (2).  (4) (A) A project identified in clause (iii) of subparagraph (A) of paragraph (2) is eligible, in regards to interconnection, for the tariff established to implement paragraph (2) or to participate in any program or auction established to implement paragraph (2), if it meets at least one of the following requirements:   (i) The project is already interconnected.   (ii) The project has been found to be eligible for interconnection pursuant to the fast track process under the relevant tariff.   (iii) A system impact study or other interconnection study has been completed for the project under the relevant tariff, and there was no determination in the study that, with the identified interconnection upgrades, if any, a condition specified in paragraph (2), (3), or (4) of subdivision (n) would exist. Such a project is not required to have a pending, active interconnection application to be eligible.   (B) For a project meeting the eligibility requirements pursuant to clause (iii) of subparagraph (A) of this paragraph, both of the following apply:   (i) The project is hereby deemed to be able to interconnect within the required time limits for the purpose of determining eligibility for the tariff.   (ii) The project shall submit a new application for interconnection within 30 days of execution of a standard contract pursuant to the tariff if it does not have a pending, active interconnection application or a completed interconnection. For those projects, the time to achieve commercial operation shall begin to run from the date when the new system impact study or other interconnection study is completed rather than from the date of execution of the standard contract.   (4)   (5)  For the purposes of this subdivision, "bioenergy" means biogas and biomass. (g) The electrical corporation may make the terms of the tariff available to owners and operators of an electric generation facility in the form of a standard contract subject to commission approval. (h) Every kilowatthour of electricity purchased from an electric generation facility shall count toward meeting the electrical corporation's renewables portfolio standard annual procurement targets for purposes of paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) of Section 399.15. (i) The physical generating capacity of an electric generation facility shall count toward the electrical corporation's resource adequacy requirement for purposes of Section 380. (j) (1) The commission shall establish performance standards for any electric generation facility that has a capacity greater than one megawatt to ensure that those facilities are constructed, operated, and maintained to generate the expected annual net production of electricity and do not impact system reliability. (2) The commission may reduce the three megawatt capacity limitation of paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) if the commission finds that a reduced capacity limitation is necessary to maintain system reliability within that electrical corporation's service territory. (k) (1) Any owner or operator of an electric generation facility that received ratepayer-funded incentives in accordance with Section 379.6 of this code, or with Section 25782 of the Public Resources Code, and participated in a net metering program pursuant to Sections 2827, 2827.9, and 2827.10 of this code prior to January 1, 2010, shall be eligible for a tariff or standard contract filed by an electrical corporation pursuant to this section. (2) In establishing the tariffs or standard contracts pursuant to this section, the commission shall consider ratepayer-funded incentive payments previously received by the generation facility pursuant to Section 379.6 of this code or Section 25782 of the Public Resources Code. The commission shall require reimbursement of any funds received from these incentive programs to an electric generation facility, in order for that facility to be eligible for a tariff or standard contract filed by an electrical corporation pursuant to this section, unless the commission determines ratepayers have received sufficient value from the incentives provided to the facility based on how long the project has been in operation and the amount of renewable electricity previously generated by the facility. (3) A customer that receives service under a tariff or contract approved by the commission pursuant to this section is not eligible to participate in any net metering program. (  l  ) An owner or operator of an electric generation facility electing to receive service under a tariff or contract approved by the commission shall continue to receive service under the tariff or contract until either of the following occurs: (1) The owner or operator of an electric generation facility no longer meets the eligibility requirements for receiving service pursuant to the tariff or contract. (2) The period of service established by the commission pursuant to subdivision (d) is completed. (m) Within 10 days of receipt of a request for a tariff pursuant to this section from an owner or operator of an electric generation facility, the electrical corporation that receives the request shall post a copy of the request on its Internet Web site. The information posted on the Internet Web site shall include the name of the city in which the facility is located, but information that is proprietary and confidential, including, but not limited to, address information beyond the name of the city in which the facility is located, shall be redacted. (n) An electrical corporation may deny a tariff request pursuant to this section if the electrical corporation makes any of the following findings: (1) The electric generation facility does not meet the requirements of this section. (2) The transmission or distribution grid that would serve as the point of interconnection is inadequate. (3) The electric generation facility does not meet all applicable state and local laws and building standards and utility interconnection requirements. (4) The aggregate of all electric generating facilities on a distribution circuit would adversely impact utility operation and load restoration efforts of the distribution system. (o) Upon receiving a notice of denial from an electrical corporation, the owner or operator of the electric generation facility denied a tariff pursuant to this section shall have the right to appeal that decision to the commission. (p) In order to ensure the safety and reliability of electric generation facilities, the owner of an electric generation facility receiving a tariff pursuant to this section shall provide an inspection and maintenance report to the electrical corporation at least once every other year. The inspection and maintenance report shall be prepared at the owner's or operator's expense by a California-licensed contractor who is not the owner or operator of the electric generation facility. A California-licensed electrician shall perform the inspection of the electrical portion of the generation facility. (q) The contract between the electric generation facility receiving the tariff and the electrical corporation shall contain provisions that ensure that construction of the electric generating facility complies with all applicable state and local laws and building standards, and utility interconnection requirements. (r) (1) All construction and installation of facilities of the electrical corporation, including at the point of the output meter or at the transmission or distribution grid, shall be performed only by that electrical corporation. (2) All interconnection facilities installed on the electrical corporation's side of the transfer point for electricity between the electrical corporation and the electrical conductors of the electric generation facility shall be owned, operated, and maintained only by the electrical corporation. The ownership, installation, operation, reading, and testing of revenue metering equipment for electric generating facilities shall only be performed by the electrical corporation.  SEC. 10.   The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:   (a) California imports 91 percent of its natural gas, which is responsible for 25 percent of the state's emissions of greenhouse gases.   (b) California made a commitment to address climate change with the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (Division 25.5 (commencing with Section 38500) of the Health and Safety Code) and the adoption of a comprehensive strategy to reduce emissions of short-lived climate pollutants (Chapter 4.2 (commencing with Section 39730) of Part 2 of Division 26 of the Health and Safety Code). For California to meet its goals for reducing emissions of greenhouse gases and short-lived climate pollutants, the state must reduce emissions from the natural gas sector and increase the production and distribution of renewable and low-carbon gas supplies.   (c) Biomethane is gas generated from organic waste through anaerobic digestion, gasification, pyrolysis, or other conversion technology that converts organic matter to gas. Biomethane may be produced from multiple sources, including agricultural waste, forest waste, landfill gas, wastewater treatment byproducts, and diverted organic waste.   (d) Biomethane provides a sustainable and clean alternative to natural gas. If 10 percent of California's natural gas use were to be replaced with biomethane use, emissions of greenhouse gases would be reduced by tens of millions of metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent every year.   (e) Investing in biomethane would create cobenefits, including flexible generation of electricity from a renewable source that is available 24 hours a day, reduction of fossil fuel use, reduction of air and water pollution, and new jobs.   (f) Biomethane can also be used as transportation fuel or injected into natural gas pipelines for other uses. The most appropriate use of biomethane varies depending on the source, proximity to existing natural gas pipeline injection points or large vehicle fleets, and the circumstances of existing facilities.   (g) The biomethane market has been slow to develop in California because the collection, purification, and pipeline injection of biomethane can be costly.   (h) Biomethane is poised to play a key role in future natural gas and hydrogen fuel markets as a blendstock that can significantly reduce the carbon footprint of these two fossil-based alternative fuels.   (i) Biomethane is one of the most promising alternative vehicle fuels because it generates the least net emissions of greenhouse gases. According to the low-carbon fuel standard regulations (Subarticle 7 (commencing with Section 95480) of Article 4 of Subchapter 10 of Chapter 1 of Division 3 of Title 17 of the California Code of Regulations) adopted by the State Air Resources Board, vehicles running on biomethane generate significantly lower emissions of greenhouse gases than vehicles running on electricity or fossil fuel-derived hydrogen.   (j) The California Council on Science and Technology was established by California academic research institutions, including the University of California, the University of Southern California, the California Institute of Technology, Stanford University, and the California State University, and was organized as a nonprofit corporation pursuant to Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, in response to Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 162 (Resolution Chapter 148 of the Statutes of 1988).   (k) The California Council on Science and Technology was uniquely established at the request of the Legislature for the specific purpose of offering expert advice to state government on public policy issues significantly related to science and technology.   (l) It is in the public's interests, and in the interest of ratepayers of the state's gas corporations, that the policies and programs adopted by the Public Utilities Commission be guided by the best science reasonably available.   SEC. 11.   Section 784.1 is added to the   Public Utilities Code   , to read:   784.1. (a) The Legislature requests that the California Council on Science and Technology undertake and complete a study analyzing the regional and gas corporation specific issues relating to minimum heating value and maximum siloxane specifications for biomethane before it can be injected into common carrier gas pipelines, including those specifications adopted in Sections 4.4.3.3 and 4.4.4 of commission Decision 14-01-034 (January 16, 2014), Decision Regarding the Biomethane Implementation Tasks in Assembly Bill 1900. The study shall consider and evaluate other states' standards, the source of biomethane, the dilution of biomethane after it is injected into the pipeline, the equipment and technology upgrades required to meet the minimum heating value specifications, including the impacts of those specifications on the cost, volume of biomethane sold, equipment operation, and safety. The study shall also consider whether different sources of biogas should have different standards or if all sources should adhere to one standard for the minimum heating value and maximum permissible level of siloxanes. The study shall develop the best science reasonably available and not merely be a literature review. In order to meet the state's goals for reducing emissions of greenhouse gases and short-lived climate pollutants and the state's goals for promoting the use of renewable energy resources in place of burning fossil fuels, the California Council on Science and Technology, if it agrees to undertake and complete the study, shall complete the study within nine months of entering into a contract to undertake and complete the study. (b) (1) If the California Council on Science and Technology agrees to undertake and complete the study pursuant to subdivision (a), the commission shall require each gas corporation operating common carrier pipelines in California to proportionately contribute to the expenses to undertake the study pursuant to Sections 740 and 740.1. The commission may modify the monetary incentives made available pursuant to commission Decision 15-06-029 (June 11, 2015), Decision Regarding the Costs of Compliance with Decision 14-01-034 and Adoption of Biomethane Promotion Policies and Program, to allocate some of the moneys that would be made available for incentives to instead be made available to pay for the costs of the study so as to not further burden ratepayers with additional expense. (2) The commission's authority pursuant to paragraph (1) shall apply notwithstanding whether the gas corporation has proposed the program pursuant to Section 740.1. (c) If the California Council on Science and Technology agrees to undertake and complete the study pursuant to subdivision (a), within six months of its completion, the commission shall reevaluate its requirements and standards adopted pursuant to Section 25421 of the Health and Safety Code relative to the requirements and standards for biomethane to be injected into common carrier pipelines and, if appropriate, change those requirements and standards or adopt new requirements and standards, giving due deference to the conclusions and recommendations made in the study by the California Council on Science and Technology.   SEC. 12.   Section 2834 of the   Public Utilities Code   is repealed.   2834. This chapter shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2019, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2019, deletes or extends that date.   SEC. 13.   (a) By March 31, 2017, the Public Utilities Commission shall report to the relevant policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature on its business process inventory efforts. The report shall include documentation and measurement of commission processes, including administrative and monitoring processes shaped by law and judicial review, program performance and communications pursuant to the commission's rules and procedures, and internal processes related to administration and managing human resources.   (b) The report shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.   (c) Pursuant to Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, this section is repealed on April 1, 2021.   SEC. 14.   (a) By March 31, 2017, the Public Utilities Commission shall report to the relevant policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature on options to locate operations and staff outside of the commission's San Francisco headquarters. The report shall explore options for leveraging additional facilities in areas of the state, including Sacramento, that would allow the commission to collaborate with other state entities and provide staff more opportunities for training, career development, and exchange placements with other state entities. The report shall do both of the following:   (1) Consider categories of operations in different offices.   (2) Analyze recruitment and retention, salary disparities by location based on duty statements, and costs associated with using locations outside of San Francisco with no, or minimal, disruption of current commission employees.   (b) The commission shall conduct one or more public workshops to obtain suggestions, concerns, ideas, and comments from stakeholders and interested members of the public in furtherance of the purpose of the report.   (c) (1) The report shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.   (2) Pursuant to Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, this section is repealed on April 1, 2021.   SEC. 15.   Section 4.5 of this bill incorporates amendments to Section 1546.1 of the Penal Code proposed by both this bill and Assembly Bill 1924. It shall only become operative if (1) both bills are enacted and become effective on or before January 1, 2017, (2) each bill amends Section 1546.1 of the Penal Code, and (3) this bill is enacted after Assembly Bill 1924, in which case Section 4 of this bill shall not become operative.   SEC. 16.   Section 9.5 of this bill incorporates amendments to Section 399.20 of the Public Utilities Code proposed by both this bill and Assembly Bill 1923. It shall only become operative if (1) both bills are enacted and become effective on or before January 1, 2017, (2) each bill amends Section 399.20 of the Public Utilities Code, and (3) this bill is enacted after Assembly Bill 1923, in which case Section 9 of this bill shall not become operative.  SEC. 17.   The sum of two hundred seventy-five thousand dollars ($275,000) is hereby appropriated from the Appliance Efficiency Enforcement Subaccount in the Energy Resources Programs Account to the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission to support the Title 20 Appliance Efficiency Standards Compliance Assistance and Enforcement Program.   SEC. 1   8.   No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.   SEC. 1   9.   This act is a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill within the meaning of subdivision (e) of Section 12 of Article IV of the California Constitution, has been identified as related to the budget in the Budget Bill, and shall take effect immediately.   SECTION 1.   Section 155 of the Code of Civil Procedure is amended to read: 155. (a) (1) A superior court has jurisdiction under California law to make judicial determinations regarding the custody and care of children within the meaning of the federal Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. Sec. 1101 et seq. and 8 C.F.R. Sec. 204.11), which includes, but is not limited to, the juvenile, probate, and family court divisions of the superior court. These courts have jurisdiction to make the factual findings necessary to enable a child to petition the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services for classification as a special immigrant juvenile pursuant to Section 1101(a)(27)(J) of Title 8 of the United States Code. (2) The factual findings set forth in paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) may be made at any point in a proceeding regardless of the division of the superior court or type of proceeding if the prerequisites of that subdivision are met. (b) (1) If an order is requested from the superior court making the necessary findings regarding special immigrant juvenile status pursuant to Section 1101(a)(27)(J) of Title 8 of the United States Code, and there is evidence to support those findings, which may consist solely of, but is not limited to, a declaration by the child who is the subject of the petition, the court shall issue the order, which shall include all of the following findings: (A) The child was either of the following: (i) Declared a dependent of the court. (ii) Legally committed to, or placed under the custody of, a state agency or department, or an individual or entity appointed by the court. The court shall indicate the date on which the dependency, commitment, or custody was ordered. (B) That reunification of the child with one or both of the child' s parents was determined not to be viable because of abuse, neglect, abandonment, or a similar basis pursuant to California law. The court shall indicate the date on which reunification was determined not to be viable. (C) That it is not in the best interest of the child to be returned to the child's, or his or her parent's, previous country of nationality or country of last habitual residence. (2) The superior court may make additional findings under this section that are supported by evidence only if requested by a party. The asserted, purported, or perceived motivation of the child seeking classification as a special immigrant juvenile shall not be admissible in making the findings under this section. The court shall not include nor reference the asserted, purported, or perceived motivation of the child seeking classification as a special immigrant juvenile in the court's findings under this section. (c) In any judicial proceedings in response to a request that the superior court make the findings necessary to support a petition for classification as a special immigrant juvenile, information regarding the child's immigration status that is not otherwise protected by state confidentiality laws shall remain confidential and shall be available for inspection only by the court, the child who is the subject of the proceeding, the parties, the attorneys for the parties, the child's counsel, and the child's guardian. (d) In any judicial proceedings in response to a request that the superior court make the findings necessary to support a petition for classification as a special immigrant juvenile, records of the proceedings that are not otherwise protected by state confidentiality laws may be sealed using the procedure set forth in California Rules of Court 2.550 and 2.551. (e) The Judicial Council shall adopt any rules and forms needed to implement this section.   SEC. 2.   Section 11253.4 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read: 11253.4. (a) (1) On and after January 1, 2015, a child eligible for the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program in accordance with Section 11461.3 is not subject to the provisions of this chapter relating to CalWORKs, including, but not limited to, the provisions that relate to CalWORKs eligibility, welfare-to-work, time limits, or grant computation. (2) All of the following shall apply to a child specified in paragraph (1): (A) He or she shall receive the applicable regional CalWORKs grant for recipient in an assistance unit of one, pursuant to the exempt maximum aid payment set forth in Section 11450, and any changes to the CalWORKs grant amount shall apply to the grant described in this subparagraph. (B) Notwithstanding any other law, the CalWORKs grant of the child shall be paid by the county with payment responsibility as described in subdivision (b) of Section 11461.3, rather than the county of residence of the child, unless the child resides in the county with payment responsibility. (C) For an assistance unit described in subparagraph (A), eligibility shall be determined in accordance with paragraph (3) of subdivision (a) of Section 672 of Title 42 of the United States Code and state law implementing those requirements for the purposes of Article 5 (commencing with Section 11400). (D) (i) Article 7 (commencing with Section 11475.2), as modified by subdivisions (j) and (k) of Section 11461.3, shall apply to an assistance unit described in subparagraph (A). (ii) This subparagraph is intended by the Legislature to clarify existing law. (b) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), a person who is an approved relative caregiver with whom a child eligible in accordance with Section 11461.3 is placed shall be exempt from Chapter 4.6 (commencing with Section 10830) of Part 2 governing the statewide fingerprint imaging system. (2) An approved relative caregiver who is also an applicant for or a recipient of benefits under this chapter shall comply with the statewide fingerprint imaging system requirements. (c) Notwithstanding Sections 11004 and 11004.1 or any other law, overpayments to an assistance unit described in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) shall be collected in accordance with subdivision (d) of Section 11461.3. (d) If an approved relative caregiver with whom a child eligible in accordance with Section 11461.3 is placed is also an applicant for or a recipient of benefits under this chapter, all of the following shall apply: (1) The applicant or recipient and each eligible child, excluding any child eligible in accordance with Section 11461.3, shall receive aid in an assistance unit separate from the assistance unit described in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (a), and the CalWORKs grant of the assistance unit shall be paid by the county of residence of the assistance unit. (2) For purposes of calculating the grant of the assistance unit, the number of eligible needy persons on which the grant is based pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 11450 shall not include any child eligible in accordance with Section 11461.3. (3) For purposes of calculating minimum basic standards of adequate care for the assistance unit, any child eligible in accordance with Section 11461.3 shall be included as an eligible needy person in the same family pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) of Section 11452. (e) This section shall apply retroactively to a child eligible for the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program and his or her approved relative caregiver as of January 1, 2015.   SEC. 3.   Section 11253.45 is added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, immediately following Section 11253.4, to read: 11253.45. (a) (1) A child to whom Section 309, 361.45, or 16519.5 applies, and who is placed in the home of a relative who has been approved as a resource family pursuant to Section 16519.5, shall receive a grant that equals the resource family basic rate at the child's assessed level of care, as set forth in subdivision (g) of Section 11461 and Section 11463. If the child is determined eligible for aid, the total grant shall be comprised of the CalWORKs grant plus an amount that, when combined with the CalWORKs grant, equals the resource family basic rate at the child's assessed level of care. (2) The non-CalWORKs portion of the grant provided in paragraph (1) shall be paid from funds separate from funds appropriated in the annual Budget Act and counties' share of costs for the CalWORKs program. (3) A child specified in paragraph (1) is not subject to the provisions of this chapter relating to CalWORKs, including, but not limited to, the provisions that relate to CalWORKs eligibility, welfare to work, child support enforcement, time limits, or grant computation. (4) All of the following shall apply to a child specified in paragraph (1): (A) He or she shall receive the applicable regional CalWORKs grant for a recipient in an assistance unit of one, pursuant to the exempt maximum aid payment set forth in Section 11450, and any changes to the CalWORKs grant amount shall apply to the grant described in this subparagraph. (B) Notwithstanding any other law, the CalWORKs grant for the child shall be paid by the county with payment responsibility in accordance with paragraph (1) regardless of the county of residence of the child. (C) For an assistance unit described in subparagraph (A), eligibility shall be determined in accordance with paragraph (3) of subdivision (a) of Section 672 of Title 42 of the United States Code and state law implementing those requirements for the purposes of Article 5 (commencing with Section 11400). (b) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), a person applying for aid on behalf of a child described in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a), shall be exempt from Chapter 4.6 (commencing with Section 10830) of Part 2 governing the statewide fingerprint imaging system. (2) A relative who is also an applicant for or a recipient of benefits under this chapter shall comply with the statewide fingerprint imaging system requirements. (c) Notwithstanding Sections 11004 and 11004.1 or any other law, overpayments to an assistance unit described in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (4) of subdivision (a) shall be collected using the standards and processes for overpayment recoupment as specified in Section 11466.24, and recouped overpayments shall not be subject to remittance to the federal government. (d) If a relative with whom a child eligible in accordance with this section is placed is also an applicant for, or a recipient of, benefits under this chapter, all of the following shall apply: (1) The applicant or recipient and each eligible child, excluding any child eligible in accordance with this section, shall receive aid in an assistance unit separate from the assistance unit described in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (4) of subdivision (a), and the CalWORKs grant of the assistance unit shall be paid by the county of residence of the assistance unit. (2) For purposes of calculating the grant of the assistance unit, the number of eligible needy persons on which the grant is based pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 11450 shall not include any child eligible in accordance with this section. (3) For purposes of calculating minimum basic standards of adequate care for the assistance unit, any child eligible in accordance with this section shall be included as an eligible needy person in the same family pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) of Section 11452. (e) This section shall apply only to a child under the jurisdiction of a county that has not opted into the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option pursuant to Section 11461.3. (f) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2017.   SEC. 4.   Section 11320.15 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read: 11320.15. (a) After a participant has been removed from the assistance unit under subdivision (a) of Section 11454, additional welfare-to-work services may be provided to the recipient, at the option of the county. If the county provides services to the recipient after the 48-month limit has been reached, the recipient shall participate in community service or subsidized employment, as described in Section 11322.63. (b) This section shall become inoperative on July 1, 2016, and, as of January 1, 2017, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that becomes operative on or before January 1, 2017, deletes or extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed.   SEC. 5.   Section 11320.15 is added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read: 11320.15. (a) After a participant has been removed from the assistance unit under subdivision (a) of Section 11454, additional welfare-to-work services may be provided to the recipient, at the option of the county. If the county provides services to the recipient after the 48-month limit has been reached, the recipient shall participate in community service or subsidized employment, as described in Section 11322.64. (b) This section shall become operative on July 1, 2016.   SEC. 6.   Section 11320.32 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read: 11320.32. (a) The department shall administer a voluntary Temporary Assistance Program (TAP) for current and future CalWORKs recipients who meet the exemption criteria for work participation activities set forth in Section 11320.3 and are not single parents who have a child under the age of one year. Temporary Assistance Program recipients shall be entitled to the same assistance payments and other benefits as recipients under the CalWORKs program. The purpose of this program is to provide cash assistance and other benefits to eligible families without any federal restrictions or requirements and without any adverse impact on recipients. The Temporary Assistance Program shall commence no later than October 1, 2016. (b) CalWORKs recipients who meet the exemption criteria for work participation activities set forth in subdivision (b) of Section 11320.3, and are not single parents with a child under one year of age, shall have the option of receiving grant payments, child care, and transportation services from the Temporary Assistance Program. The department shall notify all CalWORKs recipients and applicants meeting the exemption criteria specified in subdivision (b) of Section 11320.3, except for single parents with a child under the age of one year, of their option to receive benefits under the Temporary Assistance Program. Absent written indication that these recipients or applicants choose not to receive assistance from the Temporary Assistance Program, the department shall enroll CalWORKs recipients and applicants into the program. However, exempt volunteers shall remain in the CalWORKs program unless they affirmatively indicate, in writing, their interest in enrolling in the Temporary Assistance Program. A Temporary Assistance Program recipient who no longer meets the exemption criteria set forth in Section 11320.3 shall be enrolled in the CalWORKs program. (c) Funding for grant payments, child care, transportation, and eligibility determination activities for families receiving benefits under the Temporary Assistance Program shall be funded with General Fund resources that do not count toward the state's maintenance of effort requirements under clause (i) of subparagraph (B) of paragraph (7) of subdivision (a) of Section 609 of Title 42 of the United States Code, up to the caseload level equivalent to the amount of funding provided for this purpose in the annual Budget Act. (d) It is the intent of the Legislature that recipients shall have and maintain access to the hardship exemption and the services necessary to begin and increase participation in welfare-to-work activities, regardless of their county of origin, and that the number of recipients exempt under subdivision (b) of Section 11320.3 not significantly increase due to factors other than changes in caseload characteristics. All relevant state law applicable to CalWORKs recipients shall also apply to families funded under this section. This section does not modify the criteria for exemption in Section 11320.3. (e) To the extent that this section is inconsistent with federal regulations regarding implementation of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, the department may amend the funding structure for exempt families to ensure consistency with these regulations, not later than 30 days after providing written notification to the chair of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee and the chairs of the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature. (f) This section shall become inoperative on June 30, 2016.   SEC. 7.   Section 11322.63 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read: 11322.63. (a) For counties that implement a welfare-to-work plan that includes subsidized private sector or public sector employment activities, the State Department of Social Services shall pay the county 50 percent, less one hundred thirteen dollars ($113), of the total wage costs of an employee for whom a wage subsidy is paid, subject to all of the following conditions: (1) (A) For participants receiving CalWORKs aid, the maximum state contribution of the total wage cost shall not exceed 100 percent of the computed grant for the assistance unit in the month prior to participation in subsidized employment. (B) For participants who have received aid in excess of the time limits provided in subdivision (a) of Section 11454, the maximum state contribution of the total wage cost shall not exceed 100 percent of the computed grant for the assistance unit in the month prior to participation in subsidized employment. (C) In the case of an individual who participates in subsidized employment as a service provided by a county pursuant to Section 11323.25, the maximum state contribution of the total wage cost shall not exceed 100 percent of the computed grant that the assistance unit received in the month prior to participation in the subsidized employment. (D) The maximum state contribution, as defined in this paragraph, shall remain in effect until the end of the subsidy period as specified in paragraph (2), including with respect to subsidized employment participants whose wage results in the assistance unit no longer receiving a CalWORKs grant. (E) State funding provided for total wage costs shall only be used to fund wage and nonwage costs of the county's subsidized employment program. (2) State participation in the total wage costs pursuant to this section shall be limited to a maximum of six months of wage subsidies for each participant. If the county finds that a longer subsidy period is necessary in order to mutually benefit the employer and the participant, state participation in a subsidized wage may be offered for up to 12 months. (3) Eligibility for entry into subsidized employment funded under this section shall be limited to individuals who are not otherwise employed at the time of entry into the subsidized job, and who are current CalWORKs recipients, sanctioned individuals, or individuals described in Section 11320.15 who have exceeded the time limits specified in subdivision (a) of Section 11454. A county may continue to provide subsidized employment funded under this section to individuals who become ineligible for CalWORKs benefits in accordance with Section 11323.25. (b) Upon application for CalWORKs after a participant's subsidized employment ends, if an assistance unit is otherwise eligible within three calendar months of the date that subsidized employment ended, the income exemption requirements contained in Section 11451.5 and the work requirements contained in subdivision (c) of Section 11201 shall apply. If aid is restored after the expiration of that three-month period, the income exemption requirements contained in Section 11450.12 and the work requirements contained in subdivision (b) of Section 11201 shall apply. (c) The department, in conjunction with representatives of county welfare offices and their directors and the Legislative Analyst's Office, shall assess the cost neutrality of the subsidized employment program pursuant to this section and make recommendations to the Legislature, if necessary, to ensure cost neutrality. The department shall testify regarding the cost neutrality of the subsidized employment program during the 2012-13 fiscal year legislative budget hearings. (d) No later than January 10, 2013, the State Department of Social Services shall submit a report to the Legislature on the outcomes of implementing this section that shall include, but need not be limited to, all of the following: (1) The number of CalWORKs recipients that entered subsidized employment. (2) The number of CalWORKs recipients who found nonsubsidized employment after the subsidy ends. (3) The earnings of the program participants before and after the subsidy. (4) The impact of this program on the state's work participation rate. (e) Payment of the state's share in total wage costs required by this section shall be made in addition to, and independent of, the county allocations made pursuant to Section 15204.2. (f) (1) A county that accepts additional funding for expanded subsidized employment for CalWORKs recipients in accordance with Section 11322.64 shall continue to expend no less than the aggregate amount of funding received by the county pursuant to Section 15204.2 that the county expended on subsidized employment pursuant to this section in the 2012-13 fiscal year. (2) This subdivision shall not apply for any fiscal year in which the total CalWORKs caseload is projected by the department to increase more than 5 percent of the total actual CalWORKs caseload in the 2012-13 fiscal year. (g) For purposes of this section, "total wage costs" include the actual wage paid directly to the participant that is allowable under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program. (h) This section shall become inoperative on July 1, 2016, and, as of January 1, 2017, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that becomes operative on or before January 1, 2017, deletes or extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed.   SEC. 8.   Section 11322.64 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read: 11322.64. (a) (1) The department, in consultation with the County Welfare Directors Association of California, shall develop an allocation methodology to distribute additional funding for expanded subsidized employment programs for CalWORKs recipients. (2) Funds allocated pursuant to this section may be utilized to cover all expenditures related to the operational costs of the expanded subsidized employment program, including the cost of overseeing the program, developing work sites, and providing training to participants, as well as wage and nonwage costs. (3) The department, in consultation with the County Welfare Directors Association of California, shall determine the amount or proportion of funding allocated pursuant to this section that may be utilized for operational costs, consistent with the number of employment slots anticipated to be created and the funding provided. (b) Funds allocated for expanded subsidized employment shall be in addition to, and independent of, the county allocations made pursuant to Section 15204.2 and shall not be used by a county to fund subsidized employment pursuant to Section 11322.63. (c) Each county shall submit to the department a plan regarding how it intends to utilize the funds allocated pursuant to this section. (d) (1) Participation in subsidized employment pursuant to this section shall be limited to a maximum of six months for each participant. (2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a county may extend participation beyond the six-month limitation described in paragraph (1) for up to an additional three months at a time, to a maximum of no more than 12 total months. Extensions may be granted pursuant to this paragraph if the county determines that the additional time will increase the likelihood of either of the following: (A) The participant obtaining unsubsidized employment with the participating employer. (B) The participant obtaining specific skills and experiences relevant for unsubsidized employment in a particular field. (e) A county may continue to provide subsidized employment funded under this section to individuals who become ineligible for CalWORKs benefits in accordance with Section 11323.25. (f) Upon application for CalWORKs assistance after a participant's subsidized employment ends, if an assistance unit is otherwise eligible within three calendar months of the date that subsidized employment ended, the income exemption requirements contained in Section 11451.5 and the work requirements contained in subdivision (c) of Section 11201 shall apply. If aid is restored after the expiration of that three-month period, the income exemption requirements contained in Section 11450.12 and the work requirements contained in subdivision (b) of Section 11201 shall apply. (g) No later than April 1, 2015, the State Department of Social Services shall submit at least the following information regarding implementation of this section to the Legislature: (1) The number of CalWORKs recipients that entered subsidized employment. (2) The number of CalWORKs recipients who found nonsubsidized employment after the subsidy ends. (3) The earnings of the program participants before and after the subsidy. (4) The impact of this program on the state's work participation rate. (h) This section shall become inoperative on July 1 2016, and, as of January 1, 2017, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that becomes operative on or before January 1, 2017, deletes or extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed.   SEC. 9.   Section 11322.64 is added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read: 11322.64. (a) (1) The department, in consultation with the County Welfare Directors Association of California, shall develop an allocation methodology to distribute additional funding for expanded subsidized employment programs for CalWORKs recipients, or individuals described in Section 11320.15 who have exceeded the time limits specified in subdivision (a) of Section 11454. (2) Funds allocated pursuant to this section may be utilized to cover all expenditures related to the operational costs of the expanded subsidized employment program, including the cost of overseeing the program, developing work sites, and providing training to participants, as well as wage and nonwage costs. (3) The department, in consultation with the County Welfare Directors Association of California, shall determine the amount or proportion of funding allocated pursuant to this section that may be utilized for operational costs, consistent with the number of employment slots anticipated to be created and the funding provided. (b) Funds allocated for expanded subsidized employment shall be in addition to, and independent of, the county allocations made pursuant to Section 15204.2. (c) (1) A county that accepts additional funding for expanded subsidized employment in accordance with this section shall continue to expend no less than the aggregate amount of funding received by the county pursuant to Section 15204.2 that the county expended on subsidized employment in the 2012-13 fiscal year pursuant to Section 11322.63, as that section read on June 30, 2016. (2) This subdivision shall not apply for any fiscal year in which the total CalWORKs caseload is projected by the department to increase by more than 5 percent of the total actual CalWORKs caseload in the 2012-13 fiscal year. (d) Each county shall submit to the department a plan regarding how it intends to utilize the funds allocated pursuant to this section. (e) (1) Participation in subsidized employment pursuant to this section shall be limited to a maximum of six months for each participant. (2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a county may extend participation beyond the six-month limitation described in paragraph (1) for up to an additional three months at a time, to a maximum of no more than 12 total months. Extensions may be granted pursuant to this paragraph if the county determines that the additional time will increase the likelihood of either of the following: (A) The participant obtaining unsubsidized employment with the participating employer. (B) The participant obtaining specific skills and experiences relevant for unsubsidized employment in a particular field. (f) A county may continue to provide subsidized employment funded under this section to individuals who become ineligible for CalWORKs benefits in accordance with Section 11323.25. (g) Upon application for CalWORKs assistance after a participant's subsidized employment ends, if an assistance unit is otherwise eligible within three calendar months of the date that subsidized employment ended, the income exemption requirements contained in Section 11451.5 and the work requirements contained in subdivision (c) of Section 11201 shall apply. If aid is restored after the expiration of that three-month period, the income exemption requirements contained in Section 11450.12 and the work requirements contained in subdivision (b) of Section 11201 shall apply. (h) No later than April 1, 2015, the State Department of Social Services shall submit at least the following information regarding implementation of this section to the Legislature: (1) The number of CalWORKs recipients that entered subsidized employment. (2) The number of CalWORKs recipients who found nonsubsidized employment after the subsidy ends. (3) The earnings of the program participants before and after the subsidy. (4) The impact of this program on the state's work participation rate. (i) This section shall become operative on July 1, 2016.   SEC. 10.   Section 11322.83 is added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, immediately following Section 11322.8, to read: 11322.83. (a) A recipient who is making satisfactory progress in a career pathway program established in accordance with the federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (Public Law 113-128) shall be deemed to be in compliance with the hourly participation requirements described in subdivision (a) of Section 11322.8. (b) Subdivision (a) applies only if a local workforce development board established under Section 3122 of Title 29 of the United States Code provides its approval that the career pathway program meets the requirements of Section 3102(7) of Title 29 of the United States Code and the county verifies that the recipient is making satisfactory progress in that program.   SEC. 11.   Section 11323.25 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read: 11323.25. (a) In addition to its authority under subdivision (b) of Section 11323.2, if provided in a county plan, the county may continue to provide welfare-to-work services to former participants who became ineligible for CalWORKs benefits because they became employed under Section 11322.63 or 11322.64. The county may provide these services for up to the first 12 months of employment, to the extent they are not available from other sources and are needed for the individual to retain the subsidized employment. (b) This section shall become inoperative on July 1 2016, and, as of January 1, 2017, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that becomes operative on or before January 1, 2017, deletes or extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed.   SEC. 12.   Section 11323.25 is added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read: 11323.25. (a) In addition to its authority under subdivision (b) of Section 11323.2, if provided in a county plan, the county may continue to provide welfare-to-work services to former participants who became ineligible for CalWORKs benefits because they became employed under Section 11322.64. The county may provide these services for up to the first 12 months of employment, to the extent they are not available from other sources and are needed for the individual to retain the subsidized employment. (b) This section shall become operative on July 1, 2016.   SEC. 13.   Section 11402 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, as amended by Section 65 of Chapter 773 of the Statutes of 2015, is amended to read: 11402. In order to be eligible for AFDC-FC, a child or nonminor dependent shall be placed in one of the following: (a) Prior to January 1, 2019, the approved home of a relative, provided the child or youth is otherwise eligible for federal financial participation in the AFDC-FC payment. (b) (1) Prior to January 1, 2019, the licensed family home of a nonrelative. (2) Prior to January 1, 2019, the approved home of a nonrelative extended family member as described in Section 362.7. (c) The approved home of a resource family, as defined in Section 16519.5, if either of the following is true: (1) The caregiver is a nonrelative. (2) The caregiver is a relative, and the child or youth is otherwise eligible for federal financial participation in the AFDC-FC payment. (d) A licensed group home, as defined in subdivision (h) of Section 11400, excluding a runaway and homeless youth shelter as defined in subdivision (ab) of Section 11400, provided that the placement worker has documented that the placement is necessary to meet the treatment needs of the child or youth and that the facility offers those treatment services. (e) The home of a nonrelated legal guardian or the home of a former nonrelated legal guardian when the guardianship of a child or youth who is otherwise eligible for AFDC-FC has been dismissed due to the child or youth attaining 18 years of age. (f) An exclusive-use home. (g) A housing model certified by a licensed transitional housing placement provider as described in Section 1559.110 of the Health and Safety Code and as defined in subdivision (r) of Section 11400. (h) An out-of-state group home, provided that the placement worker, in addition to complying with all other statutory requirements for placing a child or youth in an out-of-state group home, documents that the requirements of Section 7911.1 of the Family Code have been met. (i) An approved supervised independent living setting for nonminor dependents, as defined in subdivision (w) of Section 11400. (j) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2017, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2017, deletes or extends that date.   SEC. 14.   Section 11402 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, as added by Section 66 of Chapter 773 of the Statutes of 2015, is amended to read: 11402. In order to be eligible for AFDC-FC, a child or nonminor dependent shall be placed in one of the following: (a) Prior to January 1, 2019, the approved home of a relative, provided the child or youth is otherwise eligible for federal financial participation in the AFDC-FC payment. (b) (1) Prior to January 1, 2019, the home of a nonrelated legal guardian or the home of a former nonrelated legal guardian when the guardianship of a child or youth who is otherwise eligible for AFDC-FC has been dismissed due to the child or youth attaining 18 years of age. (2) Prior to January 1, 2019, the approved home of a nonrelative extended family member, as described in Section 362.7. (c) (1) Prior to January 1, 2019, the licensed family home of a nonrelative. (2) The approved home of a resource family, as defined in Section 16519.5, if either of the following is true: (A) The caregiver is a nonrelative. (B) The caregiver is a relative, and the child or youth is otherwise eligible for federal financial participation in the AFDC-FC payment. (d) (1) A housing model certified by a licensed transitional housing placement provider, as described in Section 1559.110 of the Health and Safety Code, and as defined in subdivision (r) of Section 11400. (2) An approved supervised independent living setting for nonminor dependents, as defined in subdivision (w) of Section 11400. (e) A licensed foster family agency, as defined in subdivision (g) of Section 11400 and paragraph (4) of subdivision (a) of Section 1502 of the Health and Safety Code, for placement into a certified or approved home. (f) A short-term residential treatment center licensed as a community care facility, as defined in subdivision (ad) of Section 11400 and paragraph (18) of subdivision (a) of Section 1502 of the Health and Safety Code. (g) An out-of-state group home that meets the requirements of paragraph (2) of subdivision (c) of Section 11460, provided that the placement worker, in addition to complying with all other statutory requirements for placing a child or youth in an out-of-state group home, documents that the requirements of Section 7911.1 of the Family Code have been met. (h) A community treatment facility set forth in Article 5 (commencing with Section 4094) of Chapter 3 of Part 1 of Division 4. (i) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2017.   SEC. 15.   Section 11450 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended 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. (3) (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. (m) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2017, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2017, deletes or extends that date.  SEC. 16.   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. (3) (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 every 12 months. A 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 every 12 months, with certain exceptions, and that a break in the consecutive use of the benefit constitutes exhaustion of the temporary benefit for that 12-month period. (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 January 1, 2017.  SEC. 17.   Section 11450.025 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read: 11450.025. (a) (1) Notwithstanding any other law, effective on March 1, 2014, the maximum aid payments in effect on July 1, 2012, as specified in subdivision (b) of Section 11450.02, shall be increased by 5 percent. (2) Effective April 1, 2015, the maximum aid payments in effect on July 1, 2014, as specified in paragraph (1), shall be increased by 5 percent. (3) Effective October 1, 2016, the maximum aid payments in effect on July 1, 2016, as specified in paragraph (2), shall be increased by 1.43 percent. (4) (A) Effective January 1, 2017, households eligible for aid under this chapter shall receive an increased aid payment consistent with the repeal of former Section 11450.04, as it read on January 1, 2016, known as the "maximum family grant rule." (B) In recognition of the increased cost of aid payments resulting from that repeal, moneys deposited into the Child Poverty and Family Supplemental Support Subaccount shall be allocated to counties pursuant to Section 17601.50 as follows: (i) One hundred seven million forty-seven thousand dollars ($107,047,000) for January 1, 2017, to June 30, 2017, inclusive. (ii) Two hundred twenty-three million four hundred fifty-four thousand dollars ($223,454,000) for the 2017-18 fiscal year and for every fiscal year thereafter. (b) Commencing in 2014 and annually thereafter, on or before January 10 and on or before May 14, the Director of Finance shall do all of the following: (1) Estimate the amount of growth revenues pursuant to subdivision (f) of Section 17606.10 that will be deposited in the Child Poverty and Family Supplemental Support Subaccount of the Local Revenue Fund for the current fiscal year and the following fiscal year and the amounts in the subaccount carried over from prior fiscal years. (2) For the current fiscal year and the following fiscal year, determine the total cost of providing the increases described in subdivision (a), as well as any other increase in the maximum aid payments subsequently provided only under this section, after adjusting for updated projections of CalWORKs costs associated with caseload changes, as reflected in the local assistance subvention estimates prepared by the State Department of Social Services and released with the annual Governor's Budget and subsequent May Revision update. (3) If the amount estimated in paragraph (1) plus the amount projected to be deposited for the current fiscal year into the Child Poverty and Family Supplemental Support Subaccount pursuant to subparagraph (3) of subdivision (e) of Section 17600.15 is greater than the amount determined in paragraph (2), the difference shall be used to calculate the percentage increase to the CalWORKs maximum aid payment standards that could be fully funded on an ongoing basis beginning the following fiscal year. (4) If the amount estimated in paragraph (1) plus the amount projected to be deposited for the current fiscal year into the Child Poverty and Family Supplemental Support Subaccount pursuant to subparagraph (3) of subdivision (e) of Section 17600.15 is equal to or less than the amount determined in paragraph (2), no additional increase to the CalWORKs maximum aid payment standards shall be provided in the following fiscal year in accordance with this section. (5) (A) Commencing with the 2014-15 fiscal year and for all fiscal years thereafter, if changes to the estimated amounts determined in paragraphs (1) or (2), or both, as of the May Revision, are enacted as part of the final budget, the Director of Finance shall repeat, using the same methodology used in the May Revision, the calculations described in paragraphs (3) and (4) using the revenue projections and grant costs assumed in the enacted budget. (B) If a calculation is required pursuant to subparagraph (A), the Department of Finance shall report the result of this calculation to the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature upon enactment of the Budget Act. (c) An increase in maximum aid payments calculated pursuant to paragraph (3) of subdivision (b), or pursuant to paragraph (5) of subdivision (b) if applicable, shall become effective on October 1 of the following fiscal year. (d) (1) An increase in maximum aid payments provided in accordance with this section shall be funded with growth revenues from the Child Poverty and Family Supplemental Support Subaccount in accordance with paragraph (3) of subdivision (e) of Section 17600.15 and subdivision (f) of Section 17606.10, to the extent funds are available in that subaccount. (2) If funds received by the Child Poverty and Family Supplemental Support Subaccount in a particular fiscal year are insufficient to fully fund any increases to maximum aid payments made pursuant to this section, the remaining cost for that fiscal year will be addressed through existing provisional authority included in the annual Budget Act. Additional increases to the maximum aid payments shall not be provided until and unless the ongoing cumulative costs of all prior increases provided pursuant to this section are fully funded by the Child Poverty and Family Supplemental Support Subaccount. (e) Notwithstanding Section 15200, counties shall not be required to contribute a share of the costs to cover the increases to maximum aid payments made pursuant to this section.   SEC. 18.   Section 11450.04 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read: 11450.04. (a) For purposes of determining the maximum aid payment specified in subdivision (a) of Section 11450 and for no other purpose, the number of needy persons in the same family shall not be increased for any child born into a family that has received aid under this chapter continuously for the 10 months prior to the birth of the child. For purposes of this section, aid shall be considered continuous unless the family does not receive aid during two consecutive months. This subdivision shall not apply to applicants for, or recipients of, aid unless notification is provided pursuant to this section. (b) This section shall not apply with respect to any of the following children: (1) Any child who was conceived as a result of an act of rape, as defined in Sections 261 and 262 of the Penal Code, if the rape was reported to a law enforcement agency, medical or mental health professional or social services agency prior to, or within three months after, the birth of the child. (2) Any child who was conceived as a result of an incestuous relationship if the relationship was reported to a medical or mental health professional or a law enforcement agency or social services agency prior to, or within three months after, the birth of the child, or if paternity has been established. (3) Any child who was conceived as a result of contraceptive failure if the parent was using an intrauterine device, a Norplant, or the sterilization of either parent. (c) This section shall not apply to any child born on or before November 1, 1995. (d) (1) This section shall not apply to any child to whom it would otherwise apply if the family has not received aid for 24 consecutive months while the child was living with the family. (2) This section shall not apply to any child conceived when either parent was a nonneedy caretaker relative. (3) This section shall not apply to any child who is no longer living in the same home with either parent. (e) One hundred percent of any child support payment received for a child born into the family, but for whom the maximum aid payment is not increased pursuant to this section, shall be paid to the assistance unit. Any such child support payment shall not be considered as income to the family for the purpose of calculating the amount of aid for which the family is eligible under this article. (f) Commencing January 1, 1995, each county welfare department shall notify applicants for assistance under this chapter, in writing, of the provisions of this section. The notification shall also be provided to recipients of aid under this chapter, in writing, at the time of recertification, or sooner. The notification required by this section shall set forth the provisions of this section and shall state explicitly the impact these provisions would have on the future aid to the assistance unit. This section shall not apply to any recipient's child earlier than 12 months after the mailing of an informational notice as required by this subdivision. (g) (1) The department shall seek all appropriate federal waivers for the implementation of this section. (2) The department shall implement this section commencing on the date the Director of Social Services executes a declaration, that shall be retained by the director, stating that the administrative actions required by paragraph (1) as a condition of implementation of this section have been taken by the United States Secretary of Health and Human Services. (h) Subdivisions (a) to (g), inclusive, shall become operative on January 1, 1995. (i) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2017, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2017, deletes or extends that date.   SEC. 19.   Section 11461.3 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read: 11461.3. (a) The Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program is hereby established for the purpose of making the amount paid to approved 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. This is an optional program for counties choosing to participate, and in so doing, participating counties agree to the terms of this section as a condition of their participation. It is the intent of the Legislature that the funding described in paragraph (1) of subdivision (g) for the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program be appropriated, and available for use from January through December of each year, unless otherwise specified. (b) Subject to subdivision (e), effective January 1, 2015, participating counties shall pay an approved relative caregiver a per child per month rate in return for the care and supervision, as defined in subdivision (b) of Section 11460, of a child that is placed with the relative caregiver that is equal to the basic rate paid to foster care providers pursuant to subdivision (g) of Section 11461, if both of the following conditions are met: (1) The county with payment responsibility has notified the department in writing by October 1 of the year before participation begins of its decision to participate in the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program. (2) The related child placed in the home meets all of the following requirements: (A) The child resides in California. (B) The child is described by subdivision (b), (c), or (e) of Section 11401 and the county welfare department or the county probation department is responsible for the placement and care of the child. (C) The child is not eligible for AFDC-FC while placed with the approved relative caregiver because the child is not eligible for federal financial participation in the AFDC-FC payment. (c) Any income or benefits received by an eligible child or the approved relative caregiver on behalf of the eligible child that would be offset against the basic rate paid to a foster care provider pursuant to subdivision (g) of Section 11461, shall be offset from any funds that are not CalWORKs funds paid to the approved relative caregiver pursuant to this section. (d) Participating counties shall recoup an overpayment in the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program received by an approved relative caregiver using the standards and processes for overpayment recoupment that are applicable to overpayments to an approved home of a relative, as specified in Section 11466.24. Recouped overpayments shall not be subject to remittance to the federal government. Any overpaid funds that are collected by the participating counties shall be remitted to the state after subtracting both of the following: (1) An amount not to exceed the county share of the CalWORKs portion of the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program payment, if any. (2) Any other county funds that were included in the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program payment. (e) A county's election to participate in the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program shall affirmatively indicate that the county understands and agrees to all of the following conditions: (1) Commencing October 1, 2014, the county shall notify the department in writing of its decision to participate in the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program. Failure to make timely notification, without good cause as determined by the department, shall preclude the county from participating in the program for the upcoming calendar year. Annually thereafter, any county not already participating who elects to do so shall notify the department in writing no later than October 1 of its decision to participate for the upcoming calendar year. (2) The county shall confirm that it will make per child per month payments to all approved relative caregivers on behalf of eligible children in the amount specified in subdivision (b) for the duration of the participation of the county in this program. (3) The county shall confirm that it will be solely responsible to pay any additional costs needed to make all payments pursuant to subdivision (b) if the state and federal funds allocated to the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision(g) are insufficient to make all eligible payments. (f) (1) A county deciding to opt out of the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program shall provide at least 120 days' prior written notice of that decision to the department. Additionally, the county shall provide at least 90 days' prior written notice to the approved relative caregiver or caregivers informing them that his or her per child per month payment will be reduced and the date that the reduction will occur. (2) The department shall presume that all counties have opted out of the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program if the funding appropriated for the current 12-month period is reduced below the amount specified in subparagraph (B), subparagraph (C), or subparagraph (D) of paragraph(2) of subdivision (g) for that 12-month period, unless a county notifies the department in writing of its intent to opt in within 60 days of enactment of the State Budget. The counties shall provide at least 90 days' prior written notice to the approved relative caregiver or caregivers informing them that his or her per child per month payment will be reduced, and the date that reduction will occur. (3) Any reduction in payments received by an approved relative caregiver on behalf of a child under this section that results from a decision by a county, including the presumed opt-out pursuant to paragraph (2), to not participate in the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program shall be exempt from state hearing jurisdiction under Section 10950. (g) (1) The following funding shall be used for the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program: (A) The applicable regional per-child CalWORKs grant, in accordance with subdivision (a) of Section 11253.4. (B) General Fund resources, as appropriated in paragraph (2). (C) County funds only to the extent required under paragraph (3) of subdivision (e). (D) Funding described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) is intended to fully fund the base caseload of approved relative caregivers, which is defined as the number of approved relative caregivers caring for a child who is not eligible to receive AFDC-FC payments, as of July 1, 2014. (2) The following amount is hereby appropriated from the General Fund as follows: (A) The sum of fifteen million dollars ($15,000,000), for the period of January 1, 2015, to June 30, 2015, inclusive. (B) For the period of July 1, 2015, to June 30, 2016, inclusive, there shall be appropriated an amount equal to the sum of all of the following: (i) Two times the amount appropriated pursuant to subparagraph (A), inclusive of any increase pursuant to paragraph (3). (ii) The amount necessary to increase or decrease the CalWORKs funding associated with the base caseload described in subparagraph (D) of paragraph (1) to reflect any change from the prior fiscal year in the applicable regional per-child CalWORKs grant described in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1). (iii) The additional amount necessary to fully fund the base caseload described in subparagraph (D) of paragraph (1), reflective of the annual California Necessities Index increase to the basic rate paid to foster care providers. (C) For every 12-month period thereafter, commencing with the period of July 1, 2016, to June 30, 2017, inclusive, the sum of all of the following shall be appropriated for purposes of this section: (i) The total General Fund amount provided pursuant to this paragraph for the previous 12-month period. (ii) The amount necessary to increase or decrease the CalWORKs funding associated with the base caseload described in subparagraph (D) of paragraph (1) to reflect any change from the prior fiscal year in the applicable regional per-child CalWORKs grant described in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1). (iii) The additional amount necessary to fully fund the base caseload described in subparagraph (D) of paragraph (1), reflective of the annual California Necessities Index increase to the basic rate paid to foster care providers. (D) Notwithstanding clauses (ii) and (iii) of subparagraph (B) and clauses (ii) and (iii) of subparagraph (C), the total General Fund appropriation made pursuant to subparagraph (B) shall not be less than the greater of the following amounts: (i) Thirty million dollars ($30,000,000). (ii) Two times the amount appropriated pursuant to subparagraph (A), inclusive of any increase pursuant to paragraph (3). (3) To the extent that the appropriation made by subparagraph (A) of paragraph (2) is insufficient to fully fund the base caseload of approved relative caregivers as of July 1, 2014, as described in subparagraph (D) of paragraph (1), for the period of January 1, 2015, to June 30, 2015, inclusive, as jointly determined by the department and the County Welfare Directors' Association and approved by the Department of Finance on or before October 1, 2015, the amount specified in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (2) shall be increased by the amount necessary to fully fund that base caseload. (4) Funds available pursuant to paragraph (2) shall be allocated to participating counties proportionate to the number of their approved relative caregiver placements, using a methodology and timing developed by the department, following consultation with county human services agencies and their representatives. (5) Notwithstanding subdivision (e), if in any calendar year the entire amount of funding appropriated by the state for the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program has not been fully allocated to or utilized by participating counties, a participating county that has paid any funds pursuant to subparagraph (C) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (g) may request reimbursement for those funds from the department. The authority of the department to approve the requests shall be limited by the amount of available unallocated funds. (h) An approved relative caregiver receiving payments on behalf of a child pursuant to this section shall not be eligible to receive additional CalWORKs payments on behalf of the same child under Section 11450. (i) To the extent permitted by federal law, payments received by the approved relative caregiver from the Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program shall not be considered income for the purpose of determining other public benefits. (j) Prior to referral of any individual or recipient, or that person's case, to the local child support agency for child support services pursuant to Section 17415 of the Family Code, the county human services agency shall determine if an applicant or recipient has good cause for noncooperation, as set forth in Section 11477.04. If the applicant or recipient claims good cause exception at any subsequent time to the county human services agency or the local child support agency, the local child support agency shall suspend child support services until the county social services agency determines the good cause claim, as set forth in Section 11477.04. If good cause is determined to exist, the local child support agency shall suspend child support services until the applicant or recipient requests their resumption, and shall take other measures that are necessary to protect the applicant or recipient and the children. If the applicant or recipient is the parent of the child for whom aid is sought and the parent is found to have not cooperated without good cause as provided in Section 11477.04, the applicant's or recipient's family grant shall be reduced by 25 percent for the time the failure to cooperate lasts. (k) Consistent with Section 17552 of the Family Code, if aid is paid under this chapter on behalf of a child who is under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court and whose parent or guardian is receiving reunification services, the county human services agency shall determine, prior to referral of the case to the local child support agency for child support services, whether the referral is in the best interest of the child, taking into account both of the following: (1) Whether the payment of support by the parent will pose a barrier to the proposed reunification in that the payment of support will compromise the parent's ability to meet the requirements of the parent's reunification plan. (2) Whether the payment of support by the parent will pose a barrier to the proposed reunification in that the payment of support will compromise the parent's current or future ability to meet the financial needs of the child. (  l  ) Effective January 1, 2017, if a relative has been approved as a resource family pursuant to Section 16519.5, the approved relative shall be paid an amount equal to the resource family basic rate at the child's assessed level of care as set forth in subdivision (g) of Section 11461 and Section 11463.  SEC. 20.   Section 11461.4 is added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read: 11461.4. (a) Notwithstanding any other law, a tribe that has entered into an agreement pursuant to Section 10553.1 may, subject to the provisions of this section, elect to participate in the Tribal Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program. (b) (1) In return for the care and supervision of a child placed with an approved relative caregiver, a participating tribe shall pay the approved relative caregiver a per child per month rate that, when added to the tribal Temporary Aid to Needy Families (tribal TANF) benefit received by the approved relative caregiver on behalf of the child, shall equal the basic rate paid to a foster care provider pursuant to subdivision (g) of Section 11461. (2) Payments made pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be made only if all of the following conditions exist: (A) The tribe has notified the department in writing of its decision to participate in the program, consistent with subdivision (c). (B) The child has been removed from the parent or guardian and has been placed into the placement and care responsibility of the tribal child welfare agency pursuant to a voluntary placement agreement or by the tribal court, consistent with the tribe's Title IV-E agreement. (C) The child resides within California. (D) The caregiver is receiving tribal TANF payments, or an application for tribal TANF has been made, on behalf of the child. (E) The child is not eligible for AFDC-FC while placed with the approved relative caregiver because the child is not eligible for federal financial participation in the AFDC-FC payment. (3) Any income or benefits received by an eligible child, or by the approved relative caregiver on behalf of an eligible child, which would be offset against a payment made to a foster care provider, shall be offset from the amount paid by the tribe under the program. This paragraph shall not apply to any tribal TANF payments received on behalf of an eligible child. (4) An approved relative caregiver receiving payments on behalf of a child pursuant to this section shall not be eligible to receive CalWORKs payments on behalf of the same child under Section 11450. (5) To the extent permitted by federal law, payments received by the approved relative caregiver from the program shall not be considered income for the purpose of determining other public benefits. (c) (1) (A) A tribe electing to participate in the program in the 2016-17 fiscal year shall notify the department on or before October 1, 2016, that it intends to begin participation. Failure to make timely notification, without good cause as determined by the department, shall preclude the tribe from participating in the program for the 2016-17 fiscal year. (B) In any fiscal year after the 2016-17 fiscal year, a tribe electing to participate in the program shall notify the department on or before January 1 that it intends to begin participation on or after the following July 1. Failure to make timely notification, without good cause as determined by the department, shall preclude the tribe from participating in the program for the upcoming fiscal year. (2) As a condition of opting into the program, the tribe shall do all of the following: (A) Provide to the department the tribal TANF maximum aid payment (MAP) rate in effect at the time that the tribe elects to participate in the program, consistent with the tribe's approved tribal TANF plan. (B) Provide data necessary, as determined by the department in consultation with the tribe, to determine the base caseload for the tribe as of July 1, 2016, consistent with subdivision (d). (C) Agree to recoup overpayments to an approved relative caregiver utilizing the standards for determining whether an overpayment is recoupable, and the processes for overpayment recoupment, that are applicable to overpayments as described in the tribe's Title IV-E agreement entered into pursuant to Section 10553.1. (D) Agree that the tribe shall be solely responsible for any additional costs incurred in making payments under this section in the event that the funds allocated to a tribe from the appropriation made by the Legislature for the tribe's participation in the program are not sufficient to fully fund all payments specified in paragraph (1) of subdivision (b). (E) Agree to make child support referrals for program cases, consistent with processes applied by the tribe to Title IV-E program cases. (3) The participating tribe shall provide the information specified in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (2) at least 60 days prior to the date the tribe will begin participating in the program. (d) (1) In consultation with the participating tribe, the department shall determine the initial base caseload of the participating tribe, using the most recent available data provided by the tribe. (2) The department shall determine the amount necessary to fund the base caseload of the participating tribe. The allocation methodology shall consider the tribal TANF rate of the participating tribe in effect on July 1, 2016. (e) (1) A tribe electing to opt out of the program shall provide at least 120 days' prior written notice of that election to the department and at least 90 days' prior written notice to all approved relative caregivers to whom the tribe is making payments under the program. The notice to caregivers shall specify the date on which the per child per month payment will be reduced and the date the tribe's participation in the program will cease. (2) If the Legislature, for any given fiscal year, appropriates an amount less than that specified in paragraph (2) of subdivision (f), the department shall presume that all participating tribes have opted out of the program for that fiscal year unless a tribe notifies the department in writing of its intent to opt in within 60 days of the enactment of the annual Budget Act. A tribe that does not elect to continue participating in the program shall provide the notice to caregivers specified in paragraph (1). (3) A tribe that has opted out of the program for any reason may resume participating in the program on July 1 of any year, upon providing the department with written notice on or before the preceding March 1 of its intent to resume participation. (f) (1) (A) The following funding shall be used for the program: (i) The tribe's applicable per-child tribal TANF grant at the MAP rate in effect on July 1, 2016. (ii) General Fund resources, as specified in paragraph (2). (iii) Tribal funds only to the extent required under subparagraph (D) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (c). (B) Funding described in clauses (i) and (ii) of subparagraph (A) is intended to fully fund the base caseload of approved relative caregivers, which is defined as the number of approved relative caregivers caring for a child who is not eligible to receive AFDC-FC payments as of July 1, 2016. (2) The following amounts are hereby appropriated from the General Fund: (A) For the 2016-17 fiscal year, the sum sufficient to fund the initial base caseload, as determined in subdivision (d), for tribes eligible for participation as of July 1, 2016. (B) For the 2017-18 fiscal year, and every fiscal year thereafter, the sum of the following: (i) The total General Fund amount appropriated for the purposes of this section for the previous fiscal year. (ii) The additional amount necessary to fully fund the base caseload described in subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1), reflective of the annual California Necessities Index increase to the basic rate paid to foster care providers pursuant to subdivision (g) of Section 11461. (3) Funds specified in paragraph (2) shall be allocated to participating tribes proportionate to their number of approved relative caregiver placements, using a methodology and timing developed by the department, following consultation with participating tribes. (4) Notwithstanding subdivision (c), if in any fiscal year the entire amount of funding appropriated by the Legislature for the program has not been fully allocated to, or utilized by, participating tribes, a participating tribe that has paid any funds pursuant to subparagraph (D) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (c) may request reimbursement for those funds from the department. The authority of the department to approve the requests shall be limited by the amount of available unallocated funds. (g) If more than two eligible tribes elect to participate in the program and, as a result, the appropriation made pursuant to subdivision (f) is insufficient to fully fund the base caseload of approved relative caregivers, as jointly determined by the department and the participating tribes and approved by the Department of Finance, the amount specified in subdivision (f) shall be increased by the amount necessary to fully fund that base caseload. (h) For the purposes of this section, the following definitions apply: (1) "Basic foster care rate" means the monthly rate paid to foster care providers pursuant to subdivision (g) of Section 11461. (2) "Program" means the Tribal Approved Relative Caregiver Funding Option Program established in this section. (3) "Relative" means an adult who is related to the child by blood, adoption, or affinity within the fifth degree of kinship, including stepparents, stepsiblings, and all relatives whose status is preceded by the words "great," "great-great," or "grand," or the spouse of any of these persons even if the marriage was terminated by death or dissolution, or as otherwise established consistent with the tribe's Title IV-E agreement. (4) "Tribe" means a federally-recognized Indian tribe, consortium of tribes, or tribal organization with an agreement pursuant to Section 10553.1.   SEC. 21.   Section 11465 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read: 11465. (a) When a child is living with a parent who receives AFDC-FC or Kin-GAP benefits, the rate paid to the provider on behalf of the parent shall include an amount for care and supervision of the child. (b) For each category of eligible licensed community care facility, as defined in Section 1502 of the Health and Safety Code, the department shall adopt regulations setting forth a uniform rate to cover the cost of care and supervision of the child in each category of eligible licensed community care facility. (c) (1) On and after July 1, 1998, the uniform rate to cover the cost of care and supervision of a child pursuant to this section shall be increased by 6 percent, rounded to the nearest dollar. The resultant amounts shall constitute the new uniform rate. (2) (A) On and after July 1, 1999, the uniform rate to cover the cost of care and supervision of a child pursuant to this section shall be adjusted by an amount equal to the California Necessities Index computed pursuant to Section 11453, rounded to the nearest dollar. The resultant amounts shall constitute the new uniform rate, subject to further adjustment pursuant to subparagraph (B). (B) In addition to the adjustment specified in subparagraph (A), on and after January 1, 2000, the uniform rate to cover the cost of care and supervision of a child pursuant to this section shall be increased by 2.36 percent, rounded to the nearest dollar. The resultant amounts shall constitute the new uniform rate. (3) Subject to the availability of funds, for the 2000-01 fiscal year and annually thereafter, these rates shall be adjusted for cost of living pursuant to procedures in Section 11453. (4) On and after January 1, 2008, the uniform rate to cover the cost of care and supervision of a child pursuant to this section shall be increased by 5 percent, rounded to the nearest dollar. The resulting amount shall constitute the new uniform rate. (5) Commencing July 1, 2016, the uniform rate to cover the cost of care and supervision of a child pursuant to this section shall be supplemented by an additional monthly amount of four hundred eighty-nine dollars ($489). This monthly supplement shall only be provided if funding for this purpose is appropriated in the annual Budget Act. (d) (1) Notwithstanding subdivisions (a) to (c), inclusive, the payment made pursuant to this section for care and supervision of a child who is living with a teen parent in a whole family foster home, as defined in Section 11400, shall equal the basic rate for children placed in a licensed or approved home as specified in subdivisions (a) to (d), inclusive, and subdivision (g), of Section 11461. (2) (A) The amount paid for care and supervision of a dependent infant living with a dependent teen parent receiving AFDC-FC benefits in a group home placement shall equal the infant supplement rate for group home placements. (B) Commencing January 1, 2017, the amount paid for care and supervision of a dependent infant living with a dependent teenage parent receiving AFDC-FC benefits in a short-term residential treatment center shall equal the infant supplement rate for short-term residential treatment centers established by the department. (3) (A) The caregiver shall provide the county child welfare agency or probation department with a copy of the shared responsibility plan developed pursuant to Section 16501.25 and shall advise the county child welfare agency or probation department of any subsequent changes to the plan. Once the plan has been completed and provided to the appropriate agencies, the payment made pursuant to this section shall be increased by an additional two hundred dollars ($200) per month to reflect the increased care and supervision while he or she is placed in the whole family foster home. (B) A nonminor dependent parent residing in a supervised independent living placement, as defined in subdivision (w) of Section 11400, who develops a written parenting support plan pursuant to Section 16501.26 shall provide the county child welfare agency or probation department with a copy of the plan and shall advise the county child welfare agency or probation department of any subsequent changes to the plan. The payment made pursuant to this section shall be increased by an additional two hundred dollars ($200) per month after all of the following have been satisfied: (i) The plan has been completed and provided to the appropriate county agency. (ii) The plan has been approved by the appropriate county agency. (iii) The county agency has determined that the identified responsible adult meets the criteria specified in Section 16501.27. (4) In a year in which the payment provided pursuant to this section is adjusted for the cost of living as provided in paragraph (1) of subdivision (c), the payments provided for in this subdivision shall also be increased by the same procedures. (5) A Kin-GAP relative who, immediately prior to entering the Kin-GAP program, was designated as a whole family foster home shall receive the same payment amounts for the care and supervision of a child who is living with a teen parent they received in foster care as a whole family foster home. (6) On and after January 1, 2012, the rate paid for a child living with a teen parent in a whole family foster home as defined in Section 11400 shall also be paid for a child living with a nonminor dependent parent who is eligible to receive AFDC-FC or Kin-GAP pursuant to Section 11403.   SEC. 22.   Section 12201.06 is added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, immediately following Section 12201.05, to read: 12201.06. Commencing January 1, 2017, the amount of aid paid pursuant to this article, in effect on December 31, 2016, less the federal benefit portion received under Part A of Title XVI of the federal Social Security Act, shall be increased by 2.76 percent.   SEC. 23.   Section 12301.02 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read: 12301.02. (a) (1) Notwithstanding any other law, except as provided in subdivisions (c) and (e), the department shall implement a 7-percent reduction in hours of service to each recipient of services under this article, which shall be applied to the recipient' s hours as authorized pursuant to the most recent assessment. This reduction shall become effective 12 months after the implementation of the reduction set forth in Section 12301.01. The reduction required by this section shall not preclude any reassessment to which a recipient would otherwise be entitled. However, hours authorized pursuant to a reassessment shall be subject to the 7-percent reduction required by this section. (2) A request for reassessment based only on the reduction required in paragraph (1) may be administratively denied by the county. (3) A recipient of services under this article may direct the manner in which the reduction of hours is applied to the recipient's previously authorized services. (4) For those individuals who have a documented unmet need, excluding protective supervision because of the limitations on authorized hours under Section 12303.4, the reduction shall be taken first from the documented unmet need. (b) The notice of action informing the recipient of the reduction pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be mailed at least 20 days prior to the reduction going into effect. The notice of action shall be understandable to the recipient and translated into all languages spoken by a substantial number of the public served by the In-Home Supportive Services program, in accordance with Section 7295.2 of the Government Code. The notice shall not contain any recipient financial or confidential identifying information other than the recipient's name, address, and Case Management Information and Payroll System (CMIPS) client identification number, and shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following information: (1) The aggregate number of authorized hours before the reduction pursuant to subdivision (a) and the aggregate number of authorized hours after the reduction. (2) That the recipient may direct the manner in which the reduction of authorized hours is applied to the recipient's previously authorized services. (3) A county shall assess a recipient's need for supportive services any time that the recipient notifies the county of a need to adjust the supportive services hours authorized, or when there are other indications or expectations of a change in circumstances affecting the recipient's need for supportive services. Counties shall not require recipients to submit a medical certification form or a doctor's note to show evidence of a change in the recipient's circumstances. (c) A recipient shall have all appeal rights otherwise provided for under Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 10950) of Part 2. (d) The reduction specified in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) shall be ongoing and may be adjusted pursuant to Section 12301.03. (e) (1) The reduction specified in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) shall be suspended until July 1, 2019, if the managed care organization provider tax imposed pursuant to Article 6.7 (commencing with Section 14199.50) of Chapter 7 remains operative. (2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), if the managed care organization provider tax imposed pursuant to Article 6.7 (commencing with Section 14199.50) of Chapter 7 ceases to be operative for any reason, the reduction specified in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) shall be reinstated effective no later than the first day of the first full month occurring 90 days after the date on which the managed care organization provider tax ceases to be operative. (3) Notwithstanding 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 this subdivision through an all-county letter or similar instructions from the director until January 1, 2020.   SEC. 24.   Section 15200 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read: 15200. There is hereby appropriated out of any money in the State Treasury not otherwise appropriated the following sums: (a) To each county for the support and maintenance of needy children, the sums specified in subdivisions (a), (e), and (f) of Section 11450, after subtracting all the following amounts: (1) (A) Except as described in subparagraph (B), a 2.5-percent county share of cost. (B) If Section 1613 of Title 8 of the United States Code applies, a 5-percent county share of cost. (C) The county share described in this paragraph shall not apply to increases in maximum aid payments made in accordance with Section 11450.025. (2) Federal funds utilized for this purpose. (3) The amount allocated to each county from the Family Support Subaccount pursuant to Section 17601.75. (4) The amount allocated to each county from the Child Poverty and Family Supplemental Support Subaccount pursuant to Section 17601.50. (5) The amount allocated to each county from the CalWORKs Maintenance of Effort Subaccount pursuant to Section 17601.25. (b) To each county for the support and maintenance of pregnant mothers, the sums specified in subdivisions (b) and (c) of Section 11450 after subtracting all of the following amounts: (1) (A) Except as described in subparagraph (B), a 2.5-percent county share of cost. (B) If Section 1613 of Title 8 of the United States Code applies, a 5-percent county share of cost. (C) The county share described in this paragraph shall not apply to increases in maximum aid payments made in accordance with Section 11450.025. (2) Federal funds utilized for this purpose. (3) The amount allocated to each county from the Family Support Subaccount pursuant to Section 17601.75. (4) The amount allocated to each county from the Child Poverty and Family Supplemental Support Subaccount pursuant to Section 17601.50. (5) The amount allocated to each county from the CalWORKs Maintenance of Effort Subaccount pursuant to Section 17601.25. (c) After deducting federal funds available for the adequate care of each child pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 11450, as follows: (1) Prior to the 2011-12 fiscal year, an amount equal to 40 percent of the sum necessary for the adequate care of each child. (2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), beginning in the 2011-12 fiscal year, and for each fiscal year thereafter, funding and expenditures for programs and activities under this subdivision shall be in accordance with the requirements provided in Sections 30025 and 30026.5 of the Government Code. (d) (1) Prior to the 2011-12 fiscal year for each county for the support and care of hard-to-place adoptive children, and after deducting federal funds available, 75 percent of the nonfederal share of the amount specified in Section 16121. (2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), beginning in the 2011-12 fiscal year, and for each fiscal year thereafter, funding and expenditures for programs and activities under this subdivision shall be in accordance with the requirements provided in Sections 30025 and 30026.5 of the Government Code.   SEC. 25.   Section 15200.15 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is repealed.   SEC. 26.   Section 16501.9 is added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read: 16501.9. (a) (1) The Legislature hereby finds and declares the Child Welfare Services-New System (CWS-NS) is the most important system in the state for child welfare services staff to ensure the safety and well-being of California's children. The State of California has embarked upon on an agile procurement of the CWS-NS. (2) The Legislature further finds and declares that this approach requires significant engagement with the end user throughout the life of the system, including the county human services agencies and child welfare services and probation staff. (b) (1) The State Department of Social Services and the Office of Systems Integration (OSI), in collaboration with the County Welfare Directors Association (CWDA), shall seek resources to enable the necessary level of engagement by the counties in the CWS-NS agile development and maintenance process to prevent the disruption of services to families and children at risk. This shall include, but not be limited to, timely and expeditious execution of contracts and contract amendments for participation in this effort, effective monitoring and evaluation of the CWS-NS effort, and implementation of mitigation strategies for risks and issues arising in the procurement, development, implementation, or operation of digital services pursuant to this section. (2) The department and OSI shall provide a voting seat on all governance bodies of the CWS-NS for a CWDA representative and shall support and provide necessary accommodation for the stationing of county representatives at the project site. (3) The department and OSI shall continue to provide monthly updates to the Legislature and to stakeholders, including CWDA, regarding efforts to develop and implement the CWS-NS. The updates shall include, but not be limited to, (A) the vacancy rate, the duration of each vacant position and its classification, and the status of efforts to fill the position, (B) challenges with recruiting and retaining qualified staff and a description of efforts to resolve the issues, (C) challenges with procurement, including any delays, and a description of efforts to resolve the issues, (D) any issues or risks, including, but not limited to, pending state and federal approvals and impacts on county child welfare programs that may jeopardize the project's completion or result in delays relative to the approved project schedule, budget, and scope, and (E) progress on the project, by digital service (module) along with a description of each digital service, and projected completion dates for any significant upcoming project milestones. Following the effective date of this section, a list of newly executed contracts, their purpose, and amounts shall be added to the monthly update. (4) The department and OSI, in coordination with CWDA and the Department of Technology, shall convene a regularly scheduled quarterly forum to provide project updates to stakeholders and legislative staff. These forums shall include updates on (A) the progress of the CWS-NS development and implementation, (B) expenditures incurred to date, (C) significant issues and risks overcome in the last quarter and significant issues and risks presently being addressed, (D) upcoming project milestones and significant events, (E) how the agile approach has affected the project's overall cost and schedule, (F) how the Department of Technology's approval and oversight processes are being applied to the agile implementation approach, and (G) how lessons learned from the agile implementation of the CWS-NS project can be leveraged by other state IT projects. (c) The existing Child Welfare Services Case Management System (CWS/CMS) operations and functionality shall be maintained at a level at least commensurate with its December 2015 status and shall not be decommissioned prior to the full statewide implementation of the CWS-NS in all counties. Full statewide implementation is defined as after all existing CWS/CMS functionality has been replaced in CWS-NS and has been implemented in all 58 counties for a minimum of six months with no significant (noncosmetic) defects outstanding.   SEC. 27.   Section 16519.5 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read: 16519.5. (a) The State Department of Social Services, in consultation with county child welfare agencies, foster parent associations, and other interested community parties, shall implement a unified, family friendly, and child-centered resource family approval process to replace the existing multiple processes for licensing foster family homes, approving relatives and nonrelative extended family members as foster care providers, and approving adoptive families. (b) (1) Counties shall be selected to participate on a voluntary basis as early implementation counties for the purpose of participating in the initial development of the approval process. Early implementation counties shall be selected according to criteria developed by the department in consultation with the County Welfare Directors Association. In selecting the five early implementation counties, the department shall promote diversity among the participating counties in terms of size and geographic location. (2) Additional counties may participate in the early implementation of the program upon authorization by the department. (c) (1) For the purposes of this chapter, "resource family" means an individual or couple that a participating county or foster family agency, as defined in subdivision (g) of Section 11400 of this code, and paragraph (4) of subdivision (a) of Section 1502 of the Health and Safety Code, determines to have successfully met both the home environment assessment standards and the permanency assessment criteria adopted pursuant to subdivision (d) necessary for providing care for a related or unrelated child who is under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court, or otherwise in the care of a county child welfare agency or probation department. A resource family shall demonstrate all of the following: (A) An understanding of the safety, permanence, and well-being needs of children who have been victims of child abuse and neglect, and the capacity and willingness to meet those needs, including the need for protection, and the willingness to make use of support resources offered by the agency, or a support structure in place, or both. (B) An understanding of children's needs and development, effective parenting skills or knowledge about parenting, and the capacity to act as a reasonable, prudent parent in day-to-day decisionmaking. (C) An understanding of his or her role as a resource family and the capacity to work cooperatively with the agency and other service providers in implementing the child's case plan. (D) The financial ability within the household to ensure the stability and financial security of the family. (E) An ability and willingness to provide a family setting that promotes normal childhood experiences that serves the needs of the child. (2) Subsequent to meeting the criteria set forth in this subdivision and designation as a resource family, a resource family shall be considered eligible to provide foster care for related and unrelated children in out-of-home placement, shall be considered approved for adoption or guardianship, and shall not have to undergo any additional approval or licensure as long as the family lives in a county participating in the program. (3) Resource family approval means that the applicant successfully meets the home environment assessment and permanency assessment standards. This approval is in lieu of the existing foster care license, relative or nonrelative extended family member approval, and the adoption home study approval. (4) Approval of a resource family does not guarantee an initial or continued placement of a child with a resource family. (5) Notwithstanding paragraphs (1) to (4), inclusive, the department or county may cease any further review of an application if the applicant has had a previous application denial within the preceding year, or if the applicant has had a previous rescission, revocation, or exemption denial or rescission by the department or county within the preceding two years. However, the department or county may continue to review an application if it has determined that the reasons for the previous denial, rescission, or revocation were due to circumstances and conditions that either have been corrected or are no longer in existence. If an individual was excluded from a resource family home or facility licensed by the department, the department or county shall cease review of the individual's application unless the excluded individual has been reinstated pursuant to Section 11522 of the Government Code. The cessation of review shall not constitute a denial of the application for purposes of this section or any other law. (d) Prior to implementation of this program, the department shall adopt standards pertaining to the home environment and permanency assessments of a resource family. (1) Resource family home environment assessment standards shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following: (A) (i) Criminal records clearance of all adults residing in, or regularly present in, the home, and not exempted from fingerprinting, as set forth in subdivision (b) of Section 1522 of the Health and Safety Code, pursuant to Section 8712 of the Family Code, utilizing a check of the Child Abuse Central Index (CACI), and receipt of a fingerprint-based state and federal criminal offender record information search response. The criminal history information shall include subsequent notifications pursuant to Section 11105.2 of the Penal Code. (ii) Consideration of any substantiated allegations of child abuse or neglect against either the applicant or any other adult residing in the home. An approval may not be granted to applicants whose criminal record indicates a conviction for any of the offenses specified in subdivision (g) of Section 1522 of the Health and Safety Code. (iii) If the resource family parent, applicant, or any other person specified in subdivision (b) of Section 1522 of the Health and Safety Code has been convicted of a crime other than a minor traffic violation, except for the civil penalty language, the criminal background check provisions specified in subdivisions (d) through (f) of Section 1522 of the Health and Safety Code shall apply. Exemptions from the criminal records clearance requirements set forth in this section may be granted by the director or the early implementation county, if that county has been granted permission by the director to issue criminal records exemptions pursuant to Section 361.4, using the exemption criteria currently used for foster care licensing as specified in subdivision (g) of Section 1522 of the Health and Safety Code. (iv) For public foster family agencies approving resource families, the criminal records clearance process set forth in clause (i) shall be utilized. (v) For private foster family agencies approving resource families, the criminal records clearance process set forth in clause (i) shall be utilized, but the Department of Justice shall disseminate a fitness determination resulting from the federal criminal offender record information search. (B) Buildings and grounds and storage requirements set forth in Sections 89387 and 89387.2 of Title 22 of the California Code of Regulations. (C) In addition to the foregoing requirements, the resource family home environment assessment standards shall also require the following: (i) That the applicant demonstrates an understanding about the rights of children in care and his or her responsibility to safeguard those rights. (ii) That the total number of children residing in the home of a resource family shall be no more than the total number of children the resource family can properly care for, regardless of status, and shall not exceed six children, unless exceptional circumstances that are documented in the foster child's case file exist to permit a resource family to care for more children, including, but not limited to, the need to place siblings together. (iii) That the applicant understands his or her responsibilities with respect to acting as a reasonable and prudent parent, and maintaining the least restrictive environment that serves the needs of the child. (2) The resource family permanency assessment standards shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following: (A) The applicant shall complete caregiver training. (B) (i) The applicant shall complete a psychosocial assessment, which shall include the results of a risk assessment. (ii) A caregiver risk assessment shall include, but shall not be limited to, physical and mental health, alcohol and other substance use and abuse, family and domestic violence, and the factors listed in subparagraphs (A) and (D) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (c). (C) The applicant shall complete any other activities that relate to a resource family's ability to achieve permanency with the child. (e) (1) A child may be placed with a resource family that has successfully completed the home environment assessment prior to completion of a permanency assessment only if a compelling reason for the placement exists based on the needs of the child. (2) The permanency assessment shall be completed within 90 days of the child's placement in the home, unless good cause exists based upon the needs of the child. (3) If additional time is needed to complete the permanency assessment, the county shall document the extenuating circumstances for the delay and generate a timeframe for the completion of the permanency assessment. (4) The county shall report to the department on a quarterly basis the number of families with a child in an approved home whose permanency assessment goes beyond 90 days and summarize the reasons for these delays. (5) A child may be placed with a relative, as defined in Section 319, or nonrelative extended family member, as defined in Section 362.7, prior to applying as a resource family only on an emergency basis if all of the following requirements are met: (A) Consideration of the results of a criminal records check conducted pursuant to Section 16504.5 of the relative or nonrelative extended family member and of every other adult in the home. (B) Consideration of the results of the Child Abuse Central Index (CACI) consistent with Section 1522.1 of the Health and Safety Code of the relative or nonrelative extended family member, and of every other adult in the home. (C) The home and grounds are free of conditions that pose undue risk to the health and safety of the child. (D) For any placement made pursuant to this paragraph, the county shall initiate the home environment assessment no later than five business days after the placement, which shall include a face-to-face interview with the resource family applicant and child. (E) For any placement made pursuant to this paragraph, AFDC-FC funding shall not be available until approval of the resource family has been completed. (F) Any child placed under this section shall be afforded all the rights set forth in Section 16001.9. (f) The State Department of Social Services shall be responsible for all of the following: (1) Selecting early implementation counties, based on criteria established by the department in consultation with the County Welfare Directors Association. (2) Establishing timeframes for participating counties to submit an implementation plan, enter into terms and conditions for participation in the program, train appropriate staff, and accept applications from resource families. (3) Entering into terms and conditions for participation in the program by counties. (4) Administering the program through the issuance of written directives that shall have the same force and effect as regulations. Any directive affecting Article 1 (commencing with Section 700) of Chapter 7 of Title 11 of the California Code of Regulations shall be approved by the Department of Justice. The directives shall be exempt from 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. (5) Approving and requiring the use of a single standard for resource family approval. (6) Adopting and requiring the use of standardized documentation for the home environment and permanency assessments of resource families. (7) Requiring counties to monitor resource families including, but not limited to, all of the following: (A) Investigating complaints of resource families. (B) Developing and monitoring resource family corrective action plans to correct identified deficiencies and to rescind resource family approval if compliance with corrective action plans is not achieved. (8) Ongoing oversight and monitoring of county systems and operations including all of the following: (A) Reviewing the county's implementation of the program. (B) Reviewing an adequate number of approved resource families in each participating county to ensure that approval standards are being properly applied. The review shall include case file documentation, and may include onsite inspection of individual resource families. The review shall occur on an annual basis, and more frequently if the department becomes aware that a participating county is experiencing a disproportionate number of complaints against individual resource family homes. (C) Reviewing county reports of serious complaints and incidents involving approved resource families, as determined necessary by the department. The department may conduct an independent review of the complaint or incident and change the findings depending on the results of its investigation. (D) Investigating unresolved complaints against participating counties. (E) Requiring corrective action of counties that are not in full compliance with the terms and conditions of the program. (9) Updating the Legislature on the early implementation phase of the program, including the status of implementation, successes, and challenges during the early implementation phase, and relevant available data, including resource family satisfaction. (10) Implementing due process procedures, including all of the following: (A) Providing a statewide fair hearing process for denials, rescissions, or exclusion actions. (B) Amending the department's applicable state hearing procedures and regulations or using the Administrative Procedure Act, when applicable, as necessary for the administration of the program. (g) Counties participating in the program shall be responsible for all of the following: (1) Submitting an implementation plan, entering into terms and conditions for participation in the program, consulting with the county probation department in the development of the implementation plan, training appropriate staff, and accepting applications from resource families within the timeframes established by the department. (2) Complying with the written directives pursuant to paragraph (4) of subdivision (f). (3) Implementing the requirements for resource family approval and utilizing standardized documentation established by the department. (4) Ensuring staff have the education and experience necessary to complete the home environment and psychosocial assessments competently. (5) (A) Taking the following actions, as applicable: (i) Approving or denying resource family applications. (ii) Rescinding approvals of resource families. (iii) Excluding a resource family parent or other individual from presence in a resource family home, consistent with the established standard. (iv) Issuing a temporary suspension order that suspends the resource family approval prior to a hearing when urgent action is needed to protect a child or nonminor dependent from physical or mental abuse, abandonment, or any other substantial threat to health or safety, consistent with the established standard. (B) Providing a resource family parent, applicant, or excluded individual requesting review of that decision with due process pursuant to the department's statutes, regulations, and written directives. (C) Notifying the department of any decisions denying a resource family's application or rescinding the approval of a resource family, excluding an individual, or taking other administrative action. (D) Issuing a temporary suspension order that suspends the resource family approval prior to a hearing, when urgent action is needed to protect a child or nonminor dependent who is or may be placed in the home from physical or mental abuse, abandonment, or any other substantial threat to health or safety. (6) Updating resource family approval annually. (7) Monitoring resource families through all of the following: (A) Ensuring that social workers who identify a condition in the home that may not meet the approval standards set forth in subdivision (d) while in the course of a routine visit to children placed with a resource family take appropriate action as needed. (B) Requiring resource families to comply with corrective action plans as necessary to correct identified deficiencies. If corrective action is not completed as specified in the plan, the county may rescind the resource family approval. (C) Requiring resource families to report to the county child welfare agency any incidents consistent with the reporting requirements for licensed foster family homes. (8) Investigating all complaints against a resource family and taking action as necessary. This shall include investigating any incidents reported about a resource family indicating that the approval standard is not being maintained. (A) The child's social worker shall not conduct the formal investigation into the complaint received concerning a family providing services under the standards required by subdivision (d). To the extent that adequate resources are available, complaints shall be investigated by a worker who did not initially conduct the home environment or psychosocial assessments. (B) Upon conclusion of the complaint investigation, the final disposition shall be reviewed and approved by a supervising staff member. (C) The department shall be notified of any serious incidents or serious complaints or any incident that falls within the definition of Section 11165.5 of the Penal Code. If those incidents or complaints result in an investigation, the department shall also be notified as to the status and disposition of that investigation. (9) Performing corrective action as required by the department. (10) Assessing county performance in related areas of the California Child and Family Services Review System, and remedying problems identified. (11) Submitting information and data that the department determines is necessary to study, monitor, and prepare the report specified in paragraph (9) of subdivision (f). (12) Ensuring resource family applicants and resource families have the necessary knowledge, skills, and abilities to support children in foster care by completing caregiver training. The training should include a curriculum that supports the role of a resource family in parenting vulnerable children and should be ongoing in order to provide resource families with information on trauma-informed practices and requirements and other topics within the foster care system. (13) Ensuring that a resource family applicant completes a minimum of 12 hours of preapproval training. The training shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following courses: (A) An overview of the child protective and probation systems. (B) The effects of trauma, including grief and loss, and child abuse and neglect, on child development and behavior, and methods to behaviorally support children impacted by that trauma or child abuse and neglect. (C) Positive discipline and the importance of self-esteem. (D) Health issues in foster care. (E) Accessing services and supports to address education needs, physical, mental, and behavioral health, and substance use disorders, including culturally relevant services. (F) The rights of a child in foster care, and the resource family' s responsibility to safeguard those rights, including the right to have fair and equal access to all available services, placement, care, treatment, and benefits, and to not be subjected to discrimination or harassment on the basis of actual or perceived race, ethnic group identification, ancestry, national origin, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, mental or physical disability, or HIV status. (G) Cultural needs of children, including instruction on cultural competency and sensitivity, and related best practices for providing adequate care for children or youth across diverse ethnic and racial backgrounds, as well as children or youth identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender. (H) Basic instruction on existing laws and procedures regarding the safety of foster youth at school; and ensuring a harassment and violence free school environment pursuant to Article 3.6 (commencing with Section 32228) of Chapter 2 of Part 19 of Division 1 of Title 1 of the Education Code. (I) Permanence, well-being, and education needs of children. (J) Child and adolescent development, including sexual orientation, gender identity, and expression. (K) The role of resource families, including working cooperatively with the child welfare or probation agency, the child's family, and other service providers implementing the case plan. (L) The role of a resource family on the child and family team as defined in paragraph (4) of subdivision (a) of Section 16501. (M) A resource family's responsibility to act as a reasonable and prudent parent, and to provide a family setting that promotes normal childhood experiences and that serves the needs of the child. (N) An overview of the specialized training identified in subdivision (h). (14) Ensuring approved resource families complete a minimum of eight training hours annually, a portion of which shall be from one or more of the topics listed in paragraph (13). (h) In addition to any training required by this section, a resource family may be required to receive specialized training, as relevant, for the purpose of preparing the resource family to meet the needs of a particular child in care. This training may include, but is not limited to, the following: (1) Understanding how to use best practices for providing care and supervision to commercially sexually exploited children. (2) Understanding how to use best practices for providing care and supervision to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender children. (3) Understanding the requirements and best practices regarding psychotropic medications, including, but not limited to, court authorization, benefits, uses, side effects, interactions, assistance with self-administration, misuse, documentation, storage, and metabolic monitoring of children prescribed psychotropic medications. (4) Understanding the federal Indian Child Welfare Act (25 U.S.C. Sec. 1901 et seq.), its historical significance, the rights of children covered by the act, and the best interests of Indian children, including the role of the caregiver in supporting culturally appropriate, child-centered practices that respect Native American history, culture, retention of tribal membership and connection to the tribal community and traditions. (5) Understanding how to use best practices for providing care and supervision to nonminor dependents. (6) Understanding how to use best practices for providing care and supervision to children with special health care needs. (7) Understanding the different permanency options and the services and benefits associated with the options. (i) Nothing in this section shall preclude a county or a foster family agency from requiring resource family training in excess of the requirements in this section. (j) (1) Approved relatives and nonrelative extended family members, licensed foster family homes, or approved adoptive homes that have completed the license or approval process prior to full implementation of the program shall not be considered part of the program. The otherwise applicable assessment and oversight processes shall continue to be administered for families and facilities not included in the program. (2) Upon implementation of the program in a county, that county may not accept new applications for the licensure of foster family homes, the approval of relative and nonrelative extended family members, or the approval of prospective adoptive homes. (k) The department may waive regulations that pose a barrier to implementation and operation of this program. The waiver of any regulations by the department pursuant to this section shall apply to only those counties or foster family agencies participating in the program and only for the duration of the program. (  l  ) Resource families approved under initial implementation of the program, who move within an early implementation county or who move to another early implementation county, shall retain their resource family status if the new building and grounds, outdoor activity areas, and storage areas meet home environment standards. The State Department of Social Services or early implementation county may allow a program-affiliated individual to transfer his or her subsequent arrest notification if the individual moves from one early implementation county to another early implementation county, as specified in subdivision (g) of Section 1522 of the Health and Safety Code. (m) (1) The approval of a resource family who moves to a nonparticipating county remains in full force and effect pending a determination by the county approval agency or the department, as appropriate, whether the new building and grounds and storage areas meet applicable standards, and whether all adults residing in the home have a criminal records clearance or exemptions granted, using the exemption criteria used for foster care licensing, as specified in subdivision (g) of Section 1522 of the Health and Safety Code. Upon this determination, the nonparticipating county shall either approve the family as a relative or nonrelative extended family member, as applicable, or the department shall license the family as a foster family home. (2) Subject to the requirements in paragraph (1), the family shall continue to be approved for guardianship and adoption. Nothing in this subdivision shall limit a county or adoption agency from determining that the family is not approved for guardianship or adoption based on changes in the family's circumstances or psychosocial assessment. (3) A program-affiliated individual who moves to a nonparticipating county may not transfer his or her subsequent arrest notification from a participating county to the nonparticipating county. (n) Implementation of the program shall be contingent upon the continued availability of federal Social Security Act Title IV-E (42 U.S.C. Sec. 670) funds for costs associated with placement of children with resource families assessed and approved under the program. (o) A child placed with a resource family is eligible for the resource family basic rate, pursuant to Sections 11253.45, 11460, 11461, and 11463, and subdivision (l) of Section 11461.3, at the child's assessed level of care. (p) Sharing ratios for nonfederal expenditures for all costs associated with activities related to the approval of relatives and nonrelative extended family members shall be in accordance with Section 10101. (q) The Department of Justice shall charge fees sufficient to cover the cost of initial or subsequent criminal offender record information and Child Abuse Central Index searches, processing, or responses, as specified in this section. (r) Except as provided, approved resource families under this program shall be exempt from all of the following: (1) Licensure requirements set forth under the Community Care Facilities Act, commencing with Section 1500 of the Health and Safety Code, and all regulations promulgated thereto. (2) Relative and nonrelative extended family member approval requirements set forth under Sections 309, 361.4, and 362.7, and all regulations promulgated thereto. (3) Adoptions approval and reporting requirements set forth under Section 8712 of the Family Code, and all regulations promulgated thereto. (s) (1) Early implementation counties shall be authorized to continue through December 31, 2016. The program shall be implemented by each county on or before January 1, 2017. (2) No later than July 1, 2017, each county shall provide the following information to all licensed foster family homes and all approved relatives and nonrelative extended family members: (A) A detailed description of the resource family approval program. (B) Notification that, in order to care for a foster child, resource family approval is required by December 31, 2019. (C) Notification that a foster family home license and an approval of a relative or nonrelative extended family member shall be forfeited by operation of law as provided for in paragraph (4). (3) By no later than January 1, 2018, the following shall apply to all licensed foster family homes and approved relative and nonrelative extended family members: (A) A licensed foster family home, and an approved relative or nonrelative extended family member with an approved adoptive home study completed prior to January 1, 2018, shall be deemed to be an approved resource family. (B) A licensed foster family home, and an approved relative or nonrelative extended family member who had a child in placement at any time, for any length of time, between January 1, 2017, and December 31, 2017, inclusive, may be approved as a resource family on the date of successful completion of a psychosocial assessment pursuant to subparagraph (B) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (d). (C) A county may provide supportive services to all licensed foster family home providers, relatives, and nonrelative extended family members with a child in placement to assist with the resource family transition and to minimize placement disruptions. (4) All foster family licenses and approvals of a relative or nonrelative extended family member shall be forfeited by operation of law on December 31, 2019, except as provided in this paragraph: (A) All licensed foster family homes that did not have a child in placement at any time, for any length of time, between January 1, 2017, and December 31, 2017, inclusive, shall forfeit the license by operation of law on January 1, 2018. (B) For foster family home licensees and approved relatives or nonrelative extended family members who have a pending resource family application on December 31, 2019, the foster family home license or relative and nonrelative extended family member approval shall be forfeited by operation of law on the date of approval as a resource family. If approval is denied, forfeiture by operation of law shall occur on the date of completion of any proceedings required by law to ensure due process. (t) On and after January 1, 2017, all licensed foster family agencies shall approve resource families in lieu of certifying foster homes. A foster family agency or a short-term residential treatment center pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 11462 shall require applicants and resource families to meet the resource family approval standards and requirements set forth in this chapter and in the written directives adopted pursuant to this chapter prior to approval and in order to maintain approval. (u) Commencing January 1, 2016, the department may establish participation conditions, and select and authorize foster family agencies that voluntarily submit implementation plans and revised plans of operation in accordance with requirements established by the department, to approve resource families in lieu of certifying foster homes. (1) Notwithstanding any other law, a participating foster family agency shall require resource families to meet and maintain the resource family approval standards and requirements set forth in this chapter and in the written directives adopted hereto prior to approval and in order to maintain approval. (2) A participating foster family agency shall implement the resource family approval program pursuant to Section 1517 of the Health and Safety Code. (3) Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the authority of the department to inspect, evaluate, or investigate a complaint or incident, or initiate a disciplinary action against a foster family agency pursuant to Article 5 (commencing with Section 1550) of Chapter 3 of Division 2 of the Health and Safety Code, or to take any action it may deem necessary for the health and safety of children placed with the foster family agency. (4) The department may adjust the foster family agency AFDC-FC rate pursuant to Section 11463 for implementation of this subdivision.  SEC. 28.   Article 6 (commencing with Section 16523) is added to Chapter 5 of Part 4 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read: Article 6. Bringing Families Home Program 16523. For purposes of this article, the following definitions shall apply: (a) "Child welfare services" has the same meaning as defined in Section 16501. (b) "Department" means the State Department of Social Services. (c) "Eligible family" means any individual or family that, at a minimum, meets all of the following conditions: (1) Receives child welfare services at the time eligibility is determined. (2) Is homeless. (3) Voluntarily agrees to participate in the program. (4) Either of the following: (A) Has been determined appropriate for reunification of a child to a biological parent or guardian by the county human services agency handling the case, the court with jurisdiction over the child, or both. (B) A child or children in the family is or are at risk of foster care placement, and the county human services agency determines that safe and stable housing for the family will prevent the need for the child's or children's removal from the parent or guardian. (d) "Homeless" means any of the following: (1) An individual or family who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence. (2) An individual or family with a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings, including, but not limited to, a car, park, abandoned building, bus station, train station, airport, or camping ground. (3) An individual or family living in a supervised publicly or privately operated shelter designated to provide temporary living arrangements, including hotels or motels paid for by federal, state, or local government programs for low-income individuals or by charitable organizations, congregate shelters, or transitional housing. (4) An individual who resided in a shelter or place not meant for human habitation and who is exiting an institution where he or she temporarily resided. (5) An individual or family who will imminently lose their housing, including, but not limited to, housing they own, rent, or live in without paying rent, are sharing with others, or rooms in hotels or motels not paid for by federal, state, or local government programs for low-income individuals or by charitable organizations, as evidenced by any of the following: (A) A court order resulting from an eviction action that notifies the individual or family that they must leave within 14 days. (B) The individual or family having a primary nighttime residence that is a room in a hotel or motel and where they lack the resources necessary to reside there for more than 14 days. (C) Credible evidence indicating that the owner or renter of the housing will not allow the individual or family to stay for more than 14 days, and any oral statement from an individual or family seeking homeless assistance that is found to be credible shall be considered credible evidence for purposes of this clause. (6) An individual or family who has no subsequent residence identified. (7) An individual or family who lacks the resources or support networks needed to obtain other permanent housing. (8) Unaccompanied youth and homeless families with children and youth defined as homeless under any other federal statute, as of the effective date of this program, who meet all of the following: (A) Have experienced a long-term period without living independently in permanent housing. (B) Have experienced persistent instability as measured by frequent moves over that long-term period. (C) Can be expected to continue in that status for an extended period of time because of chronic disabilities, chronic physical health or mental health conditions, substance addiction, histories of domestic violence or childhood abuse, the presence of a child or youth with a disability, or multiple barriers to employment. (e) "Homelessness" means the status of being homeless, as defined in subdivision (d). (f) "Permanent housing" means a place to live without a limit on the length of stay in the housing that exceeds the duration of funding for the program, subject to landlord-tenant laws pursuant to Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 1940) of Title 5 of Part 4 of Division 3 of the Civil Code. (g) "Program" means the Bringing Families Home Program established pursuant to this article. (h) "Supportive housing" has the same meaning as defined in paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 50675.14 of the Health and Safety Code, except that the program is not restricted to serving only projects with five or more units. 16523.1. (a) To the extent funds are appropriated in the annual Budget Act, the department shall award program funds to counties for the purpose of providing housing-related supports to eligible families experiencing homelessness if that homelessness prevents reunification between an eligible family and a child receiving child welfare services, or where lack of housing prevents a parent or guardian from addressing issues that could lead to foster care placement. (b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), this section does not create an entitlement to housing-related assistance, which is intended to be provided at the discretion of the county as a service to eligible families. (c) (1) It is the intent of the Legislature that housing-related assistance provided pursuant to this article utilize evidence-based models, including evidence-based practices in rapid rehousing and supportive housing. (2) Housing-related supports available to participating families shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following: (A) An assessment of each family's housing needs, including a plan to assist them in meeting those needs. (B) Housing navigation or search assistance to recruit landlords, and assist families in locating housing affordable to the family, under a presumption that the family will pay no more than one-third of their income in rent. (C) The use of evidence-based models, such as motivational interviewing and trauma-informed care, to build relationships with a parent or guardian. (D) Housing-related financial assistance, including rental assistance, security deposit assistance, utility payments, moving cost assistance, and interim housing assistance while housing navigators are actively seeking permanent housing options for the family. (E) Housing stabilization services, including ongoing tenant engagement, case management, public systems assistance, legal services, credit repair assistance, life skills training, and conflict mediation with landlords and neighbors. (F) If the family requires supportive housing, long-term services promoting housing stability. (d) The department shall award program funds to counties according to criteria developed by the department, in consultation with the County Welfare Directors Association, the Corporation for Supportive Housing, and Housing California, subject to both of the following requirements: (1) A county that receives state funds under this program shall match that funding on a dollar-by-dollar basis. The county funds used for this purpose shall supplement, not supplant, county funding already intended for these purposes. (2) A county that receives state funds under this program shall have a local continuum of care that participates in a homeless services coordinated entry and assessment system, as required by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. (e) The department, in consultation with Housing California, the Corporation for Supportive Housing, and the County Welfare Directors Association of California, shall develop all of the following: (1) The criteria by which counties may be awarded funds to provide housing-related assistance to eligible families pursuant to this article. (2) The proportion of program funding to be expended on reasonable and appropriate administrative activities to minimize overhead and maximize services. (3) Eligible sources of funds for a county's matching contribution. (4) Tracking and reporting procedures for the program. (5) A process for evaluating program data.   SEC. 29.   Section 17601.50 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read: 17601.50. The moneys in the Child Poverty and Family Supplemental Support Subaccount shall be allocated to the family support account in the local health and welfare trust fund in each county and city and county by the Controller pursuant to a schedule prepared by the Department of Finance. All funds allocated shall be attributable to the payment of increased aid payments, as authorized by Section 11450.025. Funds that are not allocated in a fiscal year, shall be available for allocation in the following fiscal year.   SEC. 30.   Section 18910.1 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read: 18910.1. All CalFresh households shall be assigned certification periods that are the maximum number of months allowable under federal law for the household type unless a county is complying with subdivision (b) of Section 18910 or, on a case-by-case basis only, the household's individual circumstances require a shorter certification period.   SEC. 31.   Section 18920 is added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read: 18920. (a) Notwithstanding any other law, an agreement between the department and a unit of local government, any other unit of state government, or a nonprofit organization that provides for a contract relating to either of the following is and shall be deemed a "cooperative agreement," as defined in subdivision (a) of Section 38072 of the Health and Safety Code: (1) Outreach programs related to CalFresh. (2) The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: Nutrition Education and Obesity Prevention Grant Program. (b) Notwithstanding subdivision (b) of Section 38072 of the Health and Safety Code, for purposes of Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 38070) of Division 25.2 of the Health and Safety Code, any reference to the term "department" in those provisions shall refer to the State Department of Social Services for purposes of an agreement described in subdivision (a). (c) In addition to the authority granted the department in subdivision (a) of Section 38081.1 of the Health and Safety Code, a change of subcontracts shall not be subject to review and approval by the Department of General Services pursuant to Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 10290) of Part 2 of Division 2 of the Public Contract Code. (d) The Legislature finds and declares that this section shall be applied retroactively to currently executed agreements that are described in subdivision (a).   SEC. 32.   Chapter 17 (commencing with Section 18999) is added to Part 6 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read: CHAPTER 17. HOUSING AND DISABILITY INCOME ADVOCACY PROGRAM 18999. In enacting this chapter, it is the intent of the Legislature to establish, for the 2016-17 fiscal year, the Housing and Disability Income Advocacy Program under which counties assist homeless Californians with disabilities to increase participation among individuals who may be eligible for disability benefits programs, including the Supplemental Security Income/State Supplementary Program for the Aged, Blind, and Disabled (SSI/SSP), the federal Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program, the Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants, and veterans benefits provided under federal law, including disability compensation. 18999.1. (a) Subject to an appropriation of funds for this purpose in the annual Budget Act, the State Department of Social Services shall administer the Housing and Disability Income Advocacy Program to provide state matching grant funds to participating counties for the provision of outreach, case management, and advocacy services and housing assistance to individuals in need. (b) Funds appropriated pursuant to this chapter shall be awarded to counties by the department according to criteria developed by the department, in consultation with the County Welfare Directors Association of California and advocates for clients, subject to the following restrictions: (1) State funds appropriated pursuant to this chapter shall be used only for the purposes specified in this chapter. (2) A county that receives state funds under this chapter shall match that funding on a dollar-for-dollar basis. The county matching funds used for this purpose shall supplement, and not supplant, other county funding for these purposes. (3) A county receiving state funds pursuant to this chapter shall, at a minimum, maintain a level of county funding for the outreach, active case management, advocacy, and housing assistance services described in this chapter that is at least equal to the total of the amounts expended by the county for those services in the 2015-16 fiscal year. (4) As part of its application to receive state funds under this chapter, a county shall identify how it will collaborate locally among, at a minimum, the county departments that are responsible for health, including behavioral health, and human or social services in carrying out the activities required by this chapter. This collaboration shall include, but is not limited to, the sharing of information among these departments as necessary to carry out the activities required by this chapter. 18999.2. (a) (1) A participating county shall provide, or contract for, outreach, active case management, and advocacy services related to all of the following programs, as appropriate: (A) The Supplemental Security Income/State Supplementary Program for the Aged, Blind, and Disabled (SSI/SSP). (B) The federal Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program. (C) The Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants. (D) Veterans benefits provided under federal law, including, but not limited to, disability compensation. (2) The outreach and case management services required by this subdivision shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following: (A) Receiving referrals. (B) Conducting outreach, training, and technical assistance. (C) Providing assessment and screening. (D) Coordinating record retrieval and other necessary means of documenting disability. (E) Coordinating the provision of health care, including behavioral health care, for clients, as appropriate. (3) The advocacy services required by this subdivision, which may be provided though legal representation, shall include, but not be limited to, the following: (A) Developing and filing competently prepared benefit applications, appeals, reconsiderations, reinstatements, and recertifications. (B) Coordinating with federal and state offices regarding pending benefit applications, appeals, reconsiderations, reinstatements, and recertifications and advocating on behalf of the client. (b) A participating county shall use screening tools to identify populations of individuals who are likely to be eligible for the programs listed in subdivision (a), in accordance with the following: (1) The county shall give highest priority to individuals who are chronically homeless or who rely the most heavily on state- and county-funded services. (2) Other populations to be targeted by the program include, but are not limited to, the following: (A) General assistance or general relief applicants or recipients who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. (B) Parents who receive CalWORKs assistance or whose children receive assistance or children who are recipients of CalWORKs in families that are homeless or at risk of homelessness. (C) Low-income individuals with disabilities who can be diverted from, or who are being discharged from, jails or prisons and who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. (D) Low-income veterans with disabilities who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. (E) Low-income individuals with disabilities who are being discharged from hospitals, long-term care facilities, or rehabilitation facilities and who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. (c) (1) As appropriate, a participating county may refer an individual to workforce development programs who is not likely to be eligible for the programs listed in subdivision (a) and who may benefit from workforce development programs. (2) In consultation with an individual who has been served by the Housing and Disability Income Advocacy Program and considering the circumstances of his or her disabilities, a participating county may, upon approval or final denial of disability benefits, refer an individual who may benefit from workforce development programs to those programs. (3) An individual's participation in a workforce development program pursuant to this subdivision is voluntary. 18999.4. (a) (1) A participating county shall use funds received under this program to establish or expand programs that provide housing assistance, including interim housing, recuperative care, rental subsidies, or, only when necessary, shelters, for clients receiving services under Section 18999.2 during the clients' application periods for disability benefits programs described in that section. The county shall place a client who receives subsidies in housing that the client can sustain without a subsidy upon approval of disability benefits. If the client is not approved for disability benefits, case management staff shall assist in developing a transition plan for housing support through other available resources. (2) A client's participation in housing assistance programs or services is voluntary. (b) A county, with the assistance of the department, shall seek reimbursement of funds used for housing assistance, general assistance, or general relief from the federal Commissioner of Social Security pursuant to an interim assistance reimbursement agreement authorized by Section 1631(g) of the federal Social Security Act. A county shall expend funds received as reimbursement for housing assistance only on additional housing assistance for clients receiving services under this chapter. 18999.6. (a) Each participating county shall annually report to the department regarding its funding of advocacy and outreach programs in the prior year, as well as the use of state funding provided under this chapter, including all of the following: (1) The number of clients served in each of the targeted populations described in subdivision (b) of Section 18999.2 and any other populations the county chose to target. (2) The demographics of the clients served, including race or ethnicity, age, and gender. (3) The number of applications for benefits, and type of benefits, filed with the assistance of the county. (4) The number of applications approved initially, the number approved after reconsideration, the number approved after appeal, and the number not approved, including the time to benefits establishment. (5) For applications that were denied, the reasons for denial. (6) The number of clients who received subsidized housing during the period that their applications were pending and a description of how that impacted the clients and the rates of completed applications or approval. (7) The number of clients who received subsidized housing who maintained that housing during the SSI application period. (8) The percentage of individuals approved for SSI who retain permanent housing 6, 12, and 24 months after benefits approval. (9) The amount and percentage of rental subsidy costs and of general assistance or general relief costs recovered through interim assistance reimbursement for individuals approved for benefits. (10) The number of individuals eligible to be served by this program but who have not yet received services. (11) Any additional data requirements established by the department after consultation with the County Welfare Directors Association of California and advocates for clients. (b) The department shall periodically inform the Legislature of the implementation progress of the program and make related data available on its Internet Web site. The department shall also report to the Legislature by October 1, 2018, in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code, regarding the implementation of the program, including the information reported by participating counties pursuant to this section. (c) Notwithstanding the rulemaking provisions of the Administrative Procedures 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 this chapter through all-county letters without taking any regulatory action.   SEC. 33.   (a) During the 2017 and 2018 legislative budget hearings, the State Department of Social Services and the State Department of Health Care Services shall update the legislative budget committees on activities taken by the departments to implement the Continuum of Care Reform (CCR) pursuant to AB 403 (Chapter 773, Statutes of 2015). (b) The information required pursuant to subdivision (a) shall include, but is not limited to, all of the following: (1) The specialty mental health services provided to foster children in short term residential treatment centers, by foster family agencies, and by resource families. (2) The roles to be performed by the county mental health plans, the Medi-Cal managed care plans, and the fee-for-service system to coordinate mental health services being provided to foster youth pursuant to subdivision (a). (3) The actual or projected fiscal information related to the implementation of CCR, as follows: (A) Funding sources available to provide mental health services to foster care children. (B) The state, county, and federal funding estimated for the 2016-17 fiscal year to provide mental health services to foster children who meet the medical necessity criteria for specialty mental health services under the Medi-Cal program.   SEC. 34.   No appropriation pursuant to Section 15201 of the Welfare and Institutions Code shall be made for purposes of implementing Section 22 of this act.   SEC. 35.   The State Department of Social Services shall convene stakeholders, including county placing agencies, providers, foster youth, and legislative staff, commencing no later than July 1, 2016, to discuss the adequacy of the proposed foster care rates and rate structure, and the extent to which the rates will achieve the desired outcomes for Continuum of Care Reform and AB 403 (Chapter 773, Statutes of 2015). The department shall report to the legislative budget committees no later than August 10, 2016, on the results of these discussions. To the extent the proposed rates have changed, the department shall provide updated projected costs no later than January 10, 2017.   SEC. 36.   (a) 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 State Department of Social Services may implement and administer Article 6 (commencing with Section 16523) of Chapter 5 of Part 4 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code and the changes made in this act to Sections 11253.45, 11320.15, 11322.63, 11322.64, 11322.83, 11323.25, 11402 (as amended by Section 65 of Chapter 773 of the Statutes of 2015), 11402 (as amended by Section 66 of Chapter 773 of the Statutes of 2015), 11450, 11450.04, 11461.3, 11461.4, 11465, 12301.02, 16519.5, and 18910.1 of the Welfare and Institutions Code through all-county letters or similar instructions until regulations are adopted. (b) The department shall adopt emergency regulations implementing the sections specified in subdivision (a) no later than January 1, 2018. The department may readopt any emergency regulation authorized by this section that is the same as, or substantially equivalent to, any emergency regulation previously adopted pursuant to this section. The initial adoption of regulations pursuant to this section and one readoption of emergency regulations shall be deemed to be an emergency and necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, safety, or general welfare. Initial emergency regulations and the one readoption of emergency regulations authorized by this section shall be exempt from review by the Office of Administrative Law. The initial emergency regulations and the one readoption of emergency regulations authorized by this section shall be submitted to the Office of Administrative Law for filing with the Secretary of State, and each shall remain in effect for no more than 180 days, by which time final regulations shall be adopted.   SEC. 37.   (a) To the extent that this act has an overall effect of increasing the costs already borne by a local agency for programs or levels of service mandated by the 2011 Realignment Legislation, Section 36 of Article XIII of the California Constitution shall govern this act's application to local agencies and the state's funding of those programs or levels of service. (b) However, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains other costs mandated by the state for programs or levels of service not described in subdivision (a), reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.   SEC. 38.   This act is a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill within the meaning of subdivision (e) of Section 12 of Article IV of the California Constitution, has been identified as related to the budget in the Budget Bill, and shall take effect immediately.