Human services.

Existing law provides for 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 authorizes services to be provided under the IHSS program either through the employment of individual providers, a contract between the county and an entity for the provision of services, the creation by the county of a public authority, or a contract between the county and a nonprofit consortium. Existing law establishes the California In-Home Supportive Services Authority (Statewide Authority) and requires the authority to be the entity authorized to meet and confer in good faith regarding wages, benefits, and other terms and conditions of employment with representatives of recognized employee organizations for any individual provider who is employed by a recipient of supportive services. Existing law establishes the In-Home Supportive Services Employer-Employee Relations Act, which serves to resolve disputes regarding wages, benefits, and other terms and conditions of employment between the Statewide Authority and recognized employee organizations. Existing law authorizes individual providers to form, join, and participate in the activities of employee organizations for the purpose of representation on all matters within the scope of representation. Under existing law, the Statewide Authority is the employer of record, for collective bargaining purposes, of individual providers of in-home supportive services in each county upon implementation by a county. This bill, would, among other things, clarify that predecessor agencies to the Statewide Authority cannot meet and confer in good faith with a recognized employee organization after the Statewide Authority assumes those agencies' rights and responsibilities. The bill would also require, if the Statewide Authority and the recognized employee organization negotiate changes to locally administered health benefits, the Statewide Authority to give a county and a specified entity 90 days' notice before the changes are implemented. This bill would provide that the scope of representation shall exclude providing assistance to IHSS recipients through the establishment of emergency backup services. This bill would change references from the employer and public agency to the Statewide Authority in these provisions, and would make other technical and clarifying changes to these provisions. Existing law authorizes managed care health plans, as defined, to assume the authority, previously granted to counties, to contract for the provision of in-home supportive services with a qualified agency, as defined, subject to specified restrictions and requirements. Existing law requires qualified agencies to establish procedures to ensure specified contract limitations on caseload are being met and there is coordination of information between managed care health plans, qualified agencies, counties, and the department. This bill would, among other things, create an alternative means to meet a documentation requirement for entities seeking authorization as a qualified agency, as specified, and would specify that counties and managed care health plans are also required to establish those procedures. By increasing the duties of local entities, this bill would create a state-mandated local program. This bill would provide that the state shall be immune from liability resulting from the state's implementation of those provisions, and from the negligence or intentional torts of a contract provider providing services pursuant to those provisions. Existing law requires all counties, commencing July 1, 2012, to have a County IHSS Maintenance of Effort (MOE) , and requires counties to pay the County IHSS MOE instead of paying the nonfederal share of IHSS costs, as specified. This bill would specify that the MOE shall be adjusted for the annualized cost of increases in provider wages or health benefits that are locally negotiated, mediated, or imposed before the Statewide Authority assumes specified responsibilities for certain counties. This bill would require the Department of Finance to consult with a specified organization, as prescribed, to implement the MOE. Existing law provides for the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services, under which qualified low-income individuals receive health care services. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid Program provisions. One of the methods by which these services are provided is pursuant to contracts with various types of managed care plans. Existing law provides that, not sooner than March 1, 2013, IHSS shall be a Medi-Cal benefit available through managed care health plans in specified counties, and requires managed care health plans to, among other things, enter into a contract with the State Department of Social Services to pay wages to IHSS providers, as specified. Existing law requires the department to assume responsibility for providing workers' compensation coverage for specified employees who provide in-home supportive services pursuant to contracts with counties. This bill would, among other things, require managed care health plans to enter into a contract with the department to pay benefits to IHSS providers, as specified. This bill would provide that a managed care health plan shall not be deemed to be the employer of an in-home supportive services provider for purposes of liability, as specified. This bill would also require the department to provide workers' compensation coverage for specified employees pursuant to contracts with managed care health plans. Existing law provides that specified provisions relating to the California In-Home Supportive Services Authority and managed care health plans that contract for the provision of in-home supportive services shall become inoperative under certain circumstances. This bill would include among those provisions the In-Home Supportive Services Employer-Employee Relations Act. Existing law, the California Community Care Facilities Act, among other provisions, authorizes a licensee of certain adult residential facilities or group homes to utilize secured perimeters, as defined. Under existing law, only individuals meeting specified criteria may reside in a facility that utilizes secured perimeters. These criteria include a requirement that the individual is not a foster care child under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court pursuant to specified law. This bill would revise the list of laws, pursuant to which the juvenile court has jurisdiction over a foster child, for purposes of eligibility to reside in a facility with secured perimeters, as described above. Under existing law, prior to the initial licensure or first renewal of a license of any person to operate or manage specified psychiatric and mental health care facilities, the State Department of Social Services is required to submit fingerprint images and other information pertaining to the applicant or licensee to the Department of Justice. Existing law imposes similar requirements on the State Department of Social Services upon the employment of, or contract with or for, any direct care staff. This bill would transfer the responsibilities of the State Department of Social Services with respect to submitting the fingerprint images and information described above to the applicant, licensee, or direct care staff person, as appropriate. Existing law requires each county to pay 30% of the nonfederal share of costs of administering the CalFresh program. Existing law also requires counties to expend an amount for programs that provide services to needy families that, when combined with the funds expended above for the administration of the CalFresh program, equals or exceeds the amount spent by the county for corresponding activities during the 1996–97 fiscal year. Existing law provides that any county that equals or exceeds the amount spent by the county for corresponding activities during the 1996–97 fiscal year entirely through expenditures for the administration of the CalFresh program in the 2010–11 and 2011–12 fiscal years shall receive the full state General Fund allocation for the administration of the CalFresh program without paying the county's share of the nonfederal costs for the amount above the 1996–97 expenditure requirement. This bill would extend counties' eligibility to receive the full allocation for CalFresh administration under the above circumstances to the 2012–13 state fiscal year. This bill would make various other technical changes to provisions relating to health and human services programs. This bill would appropriate $1,000 from the General Fund to the California Health and Human Services Agency. 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, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.