Licensed adult residential facilities and residential care facilities for the elderly: data collection.

The California Community Care Facilities Act provides for the licensure and regulation of community care facilities by the State Department of Social Services, including various adult residential facilities, as described. The act includes legislative findings and declarations that there is an urgent need to establish a coordinated and comprehensive statewide service of quality community care for persons with a mental illness, persons with developmental and physical disabilities, and children and adults who require care or services. A person who violates the California Community Care Facilities Act is guilty of a misdemeanor. Existing law, the California Residential Care Facilities for the Elderly Act, provides for the licensure and regulation of residential care facilities for the elderly, as defined, by the department and expresses the intent of the Legislature to require that those facilities be licensed as a separate category within the existing licensing structure of the department. Existing law requires the department to collect information and send a report to each county's department of mental health or behavioral health, beginning May 1, 2021, and annually thereafter, of all licensed adult residential facilities and residential care facilities for the elderly, as described, that accept a specified federal rate and accept residents with a serious mental disorder, as defined, and the number of licensed beds at each facility. This bill would require the department, beginning May 1, 2026, and annually thereafter until January 1, 2029, to collect information and send a report to each county's department of mental health or behavioral health of all licensed adult residential facilities and residential care facilities for the elderly, as described, that accept the above-described specified federal rate and accept residents with a serious mental disorder, as defined, and the number of licensed beds at each facility. The bill would also require the department to collect additional information, including the total number of residents occupying beds at licensed adult residential facilities and residential care facilities for the elderly who are a public benefits recipient, as defined, or a person diagnosed with a serious mental illness, as defined, who is currently receiving regional center funding or who has a previous history of homelessness, incarceration, or institutionalization. The bill would require the department to post the report on its internet website. Because a violation of the California Community Care Facilities Act is crime, the bill would create new crimes, thereby imposing a state-mandated local program. 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.