Bill Text: CA AB1220 | 2021-2022 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Homelessness: California Interagency Council on Homelessness.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Passed) 2021-09-29 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 398, Statutes of 2021. [AB1220 Detail]
Download: California-2021-AB1220-Amended.html
Amended
IN
Assembly
April 14, 2021 |
Amended
IN
Assembly
March 11, 2021 |
Introduced by Assembly Member Luz Rivas |
February 19, 2021 |
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
(1)Existing law establishes various state programs in connection with assisting the homeless.
This bill would create the Office to End Homelessness, which would be administered by the Secretary on Homelessness appointed by the Governor. The bill would require that the office serve the Governor as the lead entity for ending homelessness in California and would task the office with coordinating homeless programs, services, data, and policies between federal, state, and local agencies, among other responsibilities. The bill would require the office to exercise various powers and duties, including, among others, making recommendations to the Governor and the Legislature regarding new state policies, programs, and actions on homelessness. The bill would require the office to be comprised of specified employees serving within
the state civil service and to oversee and carry out the existing mandates of the Homeless Coordinating and Financing Council, as defined and described below.
(2)
(3)
(4)Existing law charges the coordinating council, among other duties, with the goal of creating a statewide data system or warehouse to match data on homelessness to programs impacting homeless recipients of state programs.
This bill would require that statewide data system or warehouse to be known as the Homeless Data Integration System. The bill would require all Continuums of Care, as defined, which are currently operating in California, to provide collected data elements, as provided, to the Homeless Management Information System. The bill would prohibit any health information or personal identifying information provided to, or maintained within, that system from being subject to public inspection or disclosure under the California Public Records Act.
(5)Existing law provides that the goals of the coordinating council include, among other things, creating partnerships among state agencies and departments, local government agencies, federal agencies, and specified other entities for the purpose of arriving at specific strategies to end homelessness. Existing law requires agencies and departments administering state
programs, as defined, to collaborate with the coordinating council to adopt guidelines and regulations, or to revise existing guidelines and regulations, as applicable, to incorporate core components of Housing First, as defined.
This bill would require, upon the request of the coordinating council, an agency or department that administers one or more state programs to furnish to the coordinating council any relevant information regarding those state programs.
(6)
Digest Key
Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NOBill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
For purposes of this chapter:
(a)“Council” means the Homeless Coordinating and Financing Council, as described in Section 8257 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
(b)“Office” means the Office to End Homelessness.
(c)“Secretary” means the Secretary on Homelessness of the Office to End Homelessness.
(a)The Office to End Homelessness is hereby established in state government. The office shall be under the direct control of a secretary, who shall report to the Governor.
(b)The Governor shall appoint the Secretary on Homelessness who shall perform all duties, exercise all powers, assume and discharge all responsibilities, and carry out and effect all purposes vested by law in the office, including contracting for professional or consultant services in connection with the work of the office.
(c)The salary of the Secretary on Homelessness shall be fixed pursuant to Section 12001.
(a)The office’s primary purposes are to do all of the following:
(1)Coordinate homelessness programs, services, data, and policies between federal, state, and local agencies.
(2)Coordinate the timing of release of funds and applications for funding for housing and housing-based services impacting Californians experiencing homelessness.
(3)Collaborate with local homeless continuums of care and jurisdictions receiving state funding.
(4)Coordinate with philanthropic organizations with the goal of seeding innovations in moving people experiencing
homelessness into permanent housing.
(5)Adopt a model of housing and services the state funds across agencies to serve Californians experiencing homelessness.
(b)State agencies and departments with representatives on the council, or work groups established by the council, shall report to and coordinate with the secretary and the office.
(a)The office shall serve the Governor as the lead entity for ending homelessness in California. In this capacity, the office shall:
(1)Fulfill the duties and responsibilities of the council.
(2)Recommend to the Governor and the Legislature new state policies, programs, and actions, or amendments to existing programs.
(3)(A)Convene staff from state agencies and departments represented on the council that provide services to individuals and families experiencing homelessness for the purposes of both:
(i)Following evidence-based models for housing and service programs.
(ii)Aligning requests for proposals, notices of funding availability, grant agreements, or contracts that state agencies and departments shall use in administering programs offering housing or housing-based services.
(B)The office may convene a funder’s workgroup to accomplish the activities of this paragraph that includes staff of the council and staff working for agencies or departments represented on the council. The funder’s workgroup may also include philanthropic organizations focused on ending homelessness, reducing health disparities, ending domestic violence, or ensuring Californians do not exit incarceration to homelessness.
(4)If adequate funding exists to undertake, establish a process for agencies and departments to
collectively identify and assist individuals exiting state-funded institutions, including, but not limited to, people leaving prisons, state-funded hospitals or nursing homes, and foster care, who are at risk of homelessness, along with procedures or programs for state agencies and departments to implement to prevent discharges into homelessness.
(5)Collaborate with existing state agency staff to develop a universal application for developers, service providers, and other entities to apply to agencies and departments represented on the council for funding for homeless services and housing.
(6)Examine and promote racially and gender equitable policies for departments and agencies that provide housing and services to individuals experiencing homelessness.
(b)The office, as appropriate, shall coordinate with staff in
the Governor’s office to solicit monetary donations or in-kind donations from businesses, nonprofit organizations, or individuals for the purpose of encouraging innovation in ending homelessness and augmenting funding for evidence-based housing and services.
(c)The office shall coordinate relevant state agencies and departments to reduce the risk of long-term homelessness by developing specific protocol and procedures that accomplish the following:
(1)Ensure that domestic violence survivors experiencing homelessness have access to safe and appropriate housing navigation and rental assistance programs specifically designed to meet their needs.
(2)Assist individuals reentering communities from jails and prisons with housing navigation and obtaining permanent housing.
(3)Connect older adults to programs and services that assist independent living, including the assisted living waiver program described in Section 14132.26 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, in-home supportive services described in Article 7 (commencing with Section 12300) of Chapter 3 of Part 3 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) services described in Chapter 8.75 (commencing with Section 14590) of Part 3 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, and other wraparound and personal care services.
(4)Provide high-cost and high-acuity health users, such as individuals who could be discharged from nursing homes and hospitals, with housing and services to avoid homelessness.
(a)The office shall be comprised of those employees serving in state civil service transferred pursuant to Section 8257.5 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, and shall oversee and carry out the council’s activities and existing mandates.
(b)The current position of Deputy Secretary on Homelessness within the Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency shall be eliminated once the Governor appoints a Secretary on Homelessness.
SECTION 1.
Section 50210 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read:50210.
For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply:SEC. 2.
Section 50216 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read:50216.
For purposes of this chapter:SEC. 3.
Section 8255 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read:8255.
For purposes of this chapter:SEC. 2.SEC. 4.
Section 8256 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read:8256.
(a) Agencies and departments administering state programs created on or after July 1, 2017, shall collaborate with the(d)In order to fulfill the purposes of this chapter, an agency or department that administers one or more state programs, including, but not limited to, an agency or department represented on the coordinating council pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (c) of Section 8257, shall, upon the request of the coordinating council, furnish to the coordinating council any relevant information regarding those state programs.
SEC. 3.SEC. 5.
Section 8257 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read:8257.
(a) The Governor shall create(A)Council staff shall specify the form and substance of the required data elements.
(B)Council
staff may, as required by operational necessity, amend or modify data elements, disclosure formats, or disclosure frequency.
(C)Any health information or personal identifying information provided to, or maintained within, the Homeless Data Integration System shall not be subject to public inspection or disclosure under the California Public Records Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 6250) of Division 7 of Title 1 of the Government Code).
(D)For purposes of this paragraph, “health information” includes “protected health information,” as defined in Part 160.103 of Title 45 of the Code of Federal Regulations, and “medical information,” as defined in subdivision (j) of Section 56.05 of the Civil Code.
(19)To develop and implement a statewide strategic plan on homelessness that shall establish measurable objectives and strategies to enhance state-level accountability and practices.
(K)A representative of the Victim Services Program within the Division of Grants
Management within the Office of Emergency Services, who shall be appointed by the
(L)
(M)
(2)
(A)
(B)
(C)Two representatives
(D)State advocates or other members of the public or state agencies, at the Governor’s discretion.
(E)One member to the council from two different stakeholder organizations, one appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules and the other appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly.
(3)The council may, at its discretion, invite stakeholders, individuals who have experienced homelessness, members of philanthropic communities, and experts to participate in meetings or provide information to the council.
(d)The council shall hold public meetings at least once every quarter.
(e)The members of the council shall serve at the pleasure of the appointing authority.
(f)
(h)
(i)
(j)
(k)
(a)The Homeless Coordinating and Financing Council is hereby placed under the jurisdiction of the Office to End Homelessness. The Office to End Homelessness is hereby successor to, and is vested with, all the duties, powers, and responsibilities of the office of the Governor under this chapter with respect to the coordinating council, except as provided in paragraph (1) of subdivision (c) of Section 8257.
(b)(1)All employees serving in state civil service, including temporary employees, who are engaged in the performance of functions for the Homeless Coordinating and Financing Council are transferred to the Office to End Homelessness. The status, positions, and rights of those persons shall not be affected by their
transfer and shall continue to be retained by them pursuant to the State Civil Service Act (Part 2 (commencing with Section 18570) of Division 5 of Title 2 of the Government Code), except as to positions the duties of which are vested in a position exempt from civil service. The personnel records of all transferred employees shall be transferred to the Office to End Homelessness.
(2)The person serving as executive director of the coordinating council under the supervision of the Secretary of Business, Consumer Services, and Housing as of the effective date of this section shall continue to serve as executive director until the Secretary on Homelessness of the Office to End Homelessness designates a successor.
(c)The Office to End Homelessness shall succeed to all of the rights and property of the Business, Consumer
Services, and Housing Agency used in connection with the Homeless Coordinating and Financing Council. The property of any office, agency, or other entity of state government related to functions transferred to the Office to End Homelessness is transferred to the Office to End Homelessness. If any doubt arises as to where that property is transferred, the Department of General Services shall determine where the property is transferred.
(d)All unexpended balances of appropriations and other funds available for use in connection with any function or the administration of any law transferred to the Office to End Homelessness shall be transferred to the Office to End Homelessness for the use and for the purpose for which the appropriation was originally made or the funds were originally available. If there is any doubt as to where those balances and funds are transferred, the
Department of Finance shall determine where the balances and funds are transferred.
(e)The Office to End Homelessness is subject to all the debts and liabilities of the Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency with respect to overseeing and supporting the Homeless Coordinating and Financing Council pursuant to this chapter.