Asm. Cecilia Aguiar-Curry

Existing law establishes the University of California, under the administration of the Regents of the University of California. Existing law requires the Office of Emergency Services, in coordination with all interested state agencies with designated response roles in the state emergency plan and interested local emergency management agencies, to jointly establish by regulation a standardized emergency management system for use by all emergency response agencies, and to include specified components. Existing law requires the office to approve, adopt, and incorporate the California Animal Response Emergency System (CARES) program developed under the oversight of the Department of Food and Agriculture into the standardized emergency management system. This bill would require the University of California, Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine to develop a program called the California Veterinary Emergency Team, and would require the program to assist in the support and training of a network of government agencies, nongovernmental organizations, and individuals to assist in the veterinary care of household and domestic animals and livestock in emergencies, including disaster preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation. The bill would also require the program to conduct or support research on best practices for the evacuation and care of the animals in disasters. The bill would require the university, the Secretary of Food and Agriculture, and the Director of Emergency Services to develop a memorandum of understanding for the university to consult with the secretary and the director regarding the coordination of the program's activities with the state government's disaster response practices and the deployment of the program's participants during disasters. The bill would require these provisions to apply to the university only to the extent that the Regents of the University of California, by resolution, make any of these provisions applicable to the university. The bill would establish the California Veterinary Emergency Team Fund in the State Treasury to, upon appropriation, be used solely to support the program. The bill would specify that moneys in the fund are not to be considered offsets to any other state funds appropriated to the university.

Existing law provides for the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services (department) , 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. The federal Medicaid program provisions prohibit payment to a state for medical assistance furnished to an alien who is not lawfully admitted for permanent residence or otherwise permanently residing in the United States under color of law. Existing law requires individuals under 19 years of age enrolled in restricted-scope Medi-Cal at the time the Director of Health Care Services makes a determination that systems have been programmed for implementation of these provisions to be enrolled in the full scope of Medi-Cal benefits, if otherwise eligible, and extends eligibility for full-scope Medi-Cal benefits to individuals under 25 years of age, and who are otherwise eligible for those benefits but for their immigration status. Existing law makes the effective date of enrollment for those individuals the same day that systems are operational to begin processing new applications pursuant to the director's determination, and requires the department to maximize federal financial participation for purposes of implementing the requirements. To the extent that federal financial participation is unavailable, existing law requires the department to implement those provisions using state funds appropriated for that purpose. Existing law provides that Medi-Cal benefits for individuals who are 65 years of age or older, and who do not have satisfactory immigration statuses or are unable to establish satisfactory immigration statuses, will be prioritized in the Budget Act for the upcoming fiscal year if the Department of Finance projects a positive ending balance in the Special Fund for Economic Uncertainties for the upcoming fiscal year and each of the ensuing 3 fiscal years that exceeds the cost of providing those individuals with full-scope Medi-Cal benefits. This bill would, subject to an appropriation by the Legislature, and effective July 1, 2022, extend eligibility for full-scope Medi-Cal benefits to individuals who are 60 years of age or older, and who are otherwise eligible for those benefits but for their immigration status. The bill would delete provisions delaying implementation until the director makes the determination described above. The bill would require the department to seek federal approvals to obtain federal financial participation to implement these requirements, and would require that state-only funds be used for those benefits if federal financial participation is unavailable. Because counties are required to make Medi-Cal eligibility determinations and this bill would expand Medi-Cal eligibility, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. Existing law authorizes the department, in implementing the above provisions, to contract, as necessary, on a bid or nonbid basis, and establishes an accelerated process for issuing contracts pursuant to the above provisions. Existing law authorizes those contracts to be on a noncompetitive bid basis and exempt from specified laws, policies, procedures, and regulations. This bill would make the above provision inapplicable to any contracts newly entered into, or renewed, on or after January 1, 2022. The bill would make various conforming or technical changes to related provisions. 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 the statutory provisions noted above.

Existing law requires a school of a school district or county office of education and a charter school to notify pupils and parents or guardians of pupils no less than twice during the school year on how to initiate access to available pupil mental health services on campus or in the community, as provided. Existing law authorizes a county to use funds from the Mental Health Services Act, enacted by the voters at the November 2, 2004, statewide general election as Proposition 63, to provide a grant to a school district or county office of education, or to a charter school, within the county, for purposes of funding specified activities relating to pupil mental health. This bill would establish, within the State Department of Education, the School Health Demonstration Project, a pilot project, to be administered by the department, in consultation with the State Department of Health Care Services, to expand comprehensive health and mental health services to public school pupils by providing training and support services to selected local educational agencies to secure ongoing Medi-Cal funding for those health and mental health services, as provided. The bill would, subject to an appropriation, require a local educational agency selected to serve as a pilot project participant to receive $500,000 each year of the 2-year pilot project, to be used for contracting with one of 3 technical assistance teams selected by the Superintendent of Public Instruction. The bill would authorize the funds to also be used by the local educational agency for staffing, professional development, outreach, and data analysis and reporting, related to the project. The bill would require the State Department of Education, in consultation with the State Department of Health Care Services, participating local educational agencies, and the technical assistance teams, to prepare and submit a report to the Legislature that includes specified information related to the results of the pilot project.

This measure would declare the week of May 9, 2021, to May 15, 2021, inclusive, as Food Allergy Awareness Week.

This measure would proclaim May 7, 2021, as Provider Appreciation Day in California, and would urge all Californians to recognize childcare providers for their important work.