Bill Text: CA AB1056 | 2015-2016 | Regular Session | Chaptered
Bill Title: Second Chance Program.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Passed) 2015-10-02 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 438, Statutes of 2015. [AB1056 Detail]
Download: California-2015-AB1056-Chaptered.html
BILL NUMBER: AB 1056 CHAPTERED
BILL TEXT
CHAPTER 438
FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE OCTOBER 2, 2015
APPROVED BY GOVERNOR OCTOBER 2, 2015
PASSED THE SENATE SEPTEMBER 1, 2015
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY SEPTEMBER 2, 2015
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 31, 2015
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 21, 2015
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 30, 2015
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 20, 2015
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Atkins
(Principal coauthor: Senator De León)
FEBRUARY 26, 2015
An act to amend Sections 97013 and 97015 of the Government Code,
and to add Article 5 (commencing with Section 6046) to Chapter 5 of
Title 7 of Part 3 of the Penal Code, relating to recidivism
reduction, and making an appropriation therefor.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1056, Atkins. Second Chance Program.
(1) Existing law, until January 1, 2020, establishes the Social
Innovation Financing Program, and requires the Board of State and
Community Corrections to administer the program. Existing law, among
other things, authorizes the board, upon appropriation of funds by
the Legislature for deposit into the Recidivism Reduction Fund, to
award grants in amounts of not less than $500,000 and not more than
$2,000,000 to each of 3 counties, selected as specified, for the
purpose of entering into a pay for success or social innovation
financing contract, pursuant to which private investors agree to
provide financing to service providers to achieve social outcomes
agreed upon in advance and the government agency that is a party to
the contractual agreement agrees to pay a return on the investment to
the investors if successful programmatic outcomes are achieved by
the service provider. Existing law limits the total amount of the
grants awarded to $5,000,000. Existing law requires each county
receiving an award to report annually to the Governor and Legislature
on the status of its program. Existing law requires the board to
compile the county reports and submit a summary report to the
Governor and the Legislature annually.
This bill would extend the operation of that program and the
reporting requirements until January 1, 2022.
This bill would also require the board to administer a competitive
grant program that focuses on community-based solutions for reducing
recidivism. The bill would establish minimum criteria for the grant
program and would require the board to establish an executive
steering committee, as specified, to make recommendations regarding
the design, efficacy, and viability of proposals and to make
recommendations on guidelines for the submission of proposals for the
grant program, including threshold or scoring criteria, or both.
Among other things, the bill would require those guidelines to
prioritize proposals that advance principles of restorative justice
while demonstrating a capacity to reduce recidivism, and that
leverage certain other federal, state, and local funds or social
investments. The bill would define recidivism, for the purposes of
these provisions, as a conviction of a new felony or misdemeanor
committed within 3 years of release from custody or committed within
3 years of placement on supervision for a previous criminal
conviction.
(2) The Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act establishes within the
State Treasury the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Fund to receive
moneys transferred from the General Fund in an amount equal to the
savings resulting from the implementation of the act, as specified.
The act requires that 65% of the moneys in the Safe Neighborhoods and
Schools Fund be allocated the Board of State and Community
Corrections to administer a grant program to public agencies aimed at
supporting specified types of programs, including diversion
programs, for people in the criminal justice system with an emphasis
on programs that reduce recidivism, as specified.
This bill would create the Second Chance Fund in the State
Treasury for the purpose of funding the above-described recidivism
reduction program. The bill would require the Controller, upon order
of the Director of Finance, to transfer the moneys available to the
Board of State and Community Corrections from the Safe Neighborhoods
and Schools Fund into the Second Chance Fund. The bill would also
authorize the Second Chance Fund to receive moneys from any other
federal, state, or local grant, or from any private donation. The
bill would prohibit the board from using the moneys in the fund to
supplant existing programs and from spending more than 5% per year of
the total moneys in the fund for administrative purposes.
The bill would require the board to administer these provisions,
and moneys in the fund would be continuously appropriated to the
board for expenditure for these purposes. By creating a continuously
appropriated fund, this bill would make an appropriation.
(3) The Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act provides that its
provisions may be amended by a statute, passed by a 2/3 vote of each
house of the Legislature and signed by the Governor, that is
consistent with and furthers the intent of the act.
This bill would declare that its provisions further the intent of
the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act.
Appropriation: yes.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) California voters approved Proposition 47, known as the Safe
Neighborhoods and Schools Act of 2014. The measure was enacted to
ensure that prison spending is focused on violent and serious
offenses, to maximize alternatives for nonviolent and nonserious
crime, and to invest the resulting savings into prevention and
support programs.
(b) Research has shown that people in the criminal justice system
disproportionately suffer from mental health issues and substance use
disorders. Nationally, over one-half of all people in prisons or
jails have experienced a mental health issue within the last year,
and over one-half of women and 44 percent of men in jail have a drug
or alcohol dependency.
(c) People in the criminal justice system and formerly
incarcerated individuals have difficulty securing housing and
employment following their incarceration. These challenges are
compounded for people living with mental health issues or substance
use disorders. As a result, many formerly incarcerated people,
especially those with mental health issues or substance abuse
disorders experience homelessness. Experiencing homelessness greatly
increases the likelihood that a formerly incarcerated person will
recidivate.
(d) Offering people in the criminal justice system and formerly
incarcerated individuals meaningful access to mental health services,
substance use treatment services, housing, housing-related job
assistance, job skills training, and other community-based supportive
services has been shown to decrease the likelihood of future contact
with law enforcement and the criminal justice system.
(e) Prioritizing the state savings realized by the implementation
of the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act of 2014 for projects that
combine mental health services, substance use treatment services,
housing, housing-related job assistance, job skills training, and
other community-based supportive services will help the state
meaningfully reduce recidivism.
(f) By prioritizing projects that offer comprehensive
interventions, the Legislature intends for public agencies,
nonprofits, and other community-based providers of services to people
in the criminal justice system and formerly incarcerated individuals
to leverage additional federal, state, and local funds for social
investment resources.
(g) The Legislature intends to promote the use of restorative
justice principles in addressing recidivism.
SEC. 2. Section 97013 of the Government Code is amended to read:
97013. (a) Each county receiving an award shall report annually
to the board on the status of its ongoing social innovation financing
program. The report shall also contain an accounting of the moneys
awarded.
(b) The board shall compile the county reports and submit a
summary report to the Governor and Legislature annually.
(c) A report made pursuant to this section shall be made in
accordance with the requirements of Section 9795.
(d) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1,
2022, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted
statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2022, deletes or extends
that date.
SEC. 3. Section 97015 of the Government Code is amended to read:
97015. This title shall remain in effect only until January 1,
2022, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted
statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2022, deletes or extends
that date.
SEC. 4. Article 5 (commencing with Section 6046) is added to
Chapter 5 of Title 7 of Part 3 of the Penal Code, to read:
Article 5. Second Chance Program
6046. (a) The purpose of this article is to build safer
communities by investing in community-based programs, services, and
initiatives for formerly incarcerated individuals in need of mental
health and substance use treatment services.
(b) The program established pursuant to this article shall be
restricted to supporting mental health treatment, substance use
treatment, and diversion programs for persons in the criminal justice
system, with an emphasis on programs that reduce recidivism of
persons convicted of less serious crimes, such as those covered by
the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act of 2014, and those who have
substance use and mental health problems.
(c) The Board of State and Community Corrections shall administer
a grant program established pursuant to this article.
6046.1. For the purposes of this article, the following
definitions shall apply:
(a) "Board" means the Board of State and Community Corrections.
(b) "Fund" means the Second Chance Fund established pursuant to
Section 6046.2.
(c) "Public agency" means a county, city, whether a general law
city or a chartered city, or city and county, the duly constituted
governing body of an Indian reservation or rancheria, a school
district, municipal corporation, district, political subdivision, or
any board, commission, or agency thereof, entities that are
legislative bodies of a local agency pursuant to subdivision (c) or
(d) of Section 54952 of the Government Code, a housing authority
organized pursuant to Part 2 (commencing with Section 34200) of
Division 24 of the Health and Safety Code, a state agency, public
district, or other political subdivision of the state, or any
instrumentality thereof, which is authorized to engage in or assist
in the development or operation of housing for persons and families
of low or moderate income.
(d) "Recidivism" means a conviction of a new felony or misdemeanor
committed within three years of release from custody or committed
within three years of placement on supervision for a previous
criminal conviction.
6046.2. (a) The Second Chance Fund is hereby created in the State
Treasury. The board shall be responsible for administering the fund.
Moneys in the fund are hereby continuously appropriated without
regard to fiscal year for the purposes of this article.
(b) (1) The Controller, upon order of the Director of Finance,
shall transfer moneys available to the Board of State and Community
Corrections pursuant to paragraph (3) of subdivision (a) of Section
7599.2 of the Government Code into the Second Chance Fund.
(2) The Second Chance Fund may receive moneys from any other
federal, state, or local grant, or from any private donation or
grant, for the purposes of this article.
(c) The board shall not spend more than 5 percent annually of the
moneys in the fund for administrative costs.
6046.3. (a) The board shall administer a competitive grant
program to carry out the purposes of this article that focuses on
community-based solutions for reducing recidivism. The grant program
shall, at minimum, do all of the following:
(1) Restrict eligibility to proposals designed to serve people who
have been arrested, charged with, or convicted of a criminal offense
and have a history of mental health or substance use disorders.
(2) Restrict eligibility to proposals that offer mental health
services, substance use disorder treatment services, misdemeanor
diversion programs, or some combination thereof.
(3) Restrict eligibility to proposals that have a public agency as
the lead applicant.
(b) The board shall form an executive steering committee that
includes, but is not limited to, a balanced and diverse membership
from relevant state and local government entities, community-based
treatment and service providers, and the formerly incarcerated
community. The committee shall have expertise in homelessness and
housing, behavioral health and substance abuse treatment, and
effective rehabilitative treatment for adults and juveniles. The
committee shall make recommendations regarding the design, efficacy,
and viability of proposals, and make recommendations on guidelines
for the submission of proposals, including threshold or scoring
criteria, or both, that do all of the following:
(1) Prioritize proposals that advance principles of restorative
justice while demonstrating a capacity to reduce recidivism.
(2) Prioritize proposals that leverage other federal, state, and
local funds or other social investments, such as the following
sources of funding:
(A) The Drug Medi-Cal Treatment Program (22 Cal. Code Regs.
51341.1, 51490.1, and 51516.1).
(B) The Mental Health Services Act, enacted by Proposition 63 at
the November 2, 2004, general election, as amended.
(C) Funds provided for in connection with the implementation of
Chapter 15 of the Statutes of 2011.
(D) The Community Corrections Performance Incentives Act (Stats.
2009, Ch. 608; Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 1228) of Title 8 of
Part 2).
(E) The tax credits established pursuant to Sections 12209,
17053.57, and 23657 of the Revenue and Taxation Code.
(F) The federal Department of Housing and Urban Development funds,
such as the Emergency Solutions Grant program (42 U.S.C. Sec. 11371
et seq.).
(G) The federal Department of Veterans Affairs Supportive Services
for Veteran Families program (38 U.S.C. Sec. 2044).
(H) Social Innovation Funds established by the Corporation for
National and Community Service pursuant to Section 12653k of Title 42
of the United States Code.
(I) The Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program (42
U.S.C. Sec. 3750 et seq.).
(3) Prioritize proposals that provide for all of the following:
(A) Mental health services, substance use disorder treatment
services, misdemeanor diversion programs, or some combination
thereof.
(B) Housing-related assistance that utilizes evidence-based
models, including, but not limited to, those recommended by the
federal Department of Housing and Urban Development. Housing-related
assistance may include, but is not limited to, the following:
(i) Financial assistance, including security deposits, utility
payments, moving-cost assistance, and up to 24 months of rental
assistance.
(ii) Housing stabilization assistance, including case management,
relocation assistance, outreach and engagement, landlord recruitment,
housing navigation and placement, and credit repair.
(C) Other community-based supportive services, such as job skills
training, case management, and civil legal services.
(4) Prioritize proposals that leverage existing contracts,
partnerships, memoranda of understanding, or other formal
relationships to provide one or more of the services prioritized in
paragraph (3).
(5) Prioritize proposals put forth by a public agency in
partnership with a philanthropic or nonprofit organization.
(6) Prioritize proposals that promote interagency and regional
collaborations.
(7) Consider ways to promote services for people with offenses
identical or similar to those addressed by the Safe Neighborhoods and
Schools Act of 2014, without precluding assistance to a person with
other offenses in his or her criminal history.
(8) Consider geographic diversity.
(9) Consider appropriate limits for administrative costs and
overhead.
(10) Consider proposals that provide services to juveniles.
(11) Permit proposals to expand the capacity of an existing
program and prohibit proposals from using the fund to supplant
funding for an existing program.
SEC. 5. The Legislature finds and declares that this act furthers
the intent of the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act enacted by
Proposition 47 at the November 4, 2014, general election.
