Bill Text: CA AB1862 | 2017-2018 | Regular Session | Introduced
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Community colleges: waiver of student fees.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2018-08-15 - From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on RLS. [AB1862 Detail]
Download: California-2017-AB1862-Introduced.html
Bill Title: Community colleges: waiver of student fees.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2018-08-15 - From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on RLS. [AB1862 Detail]
Download: California-2017-AB1862-Introduced.html
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE—
2017–2018 REGULAR SESSION
| Assembly Bill | No. 1862 |
| Introduced by Assembly Members Santiago and Carrillo (Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Chiu) (Coauthor: Assembly Member Gloria) (Coauthors: Senators De León and Wiener) |
January 11, 2018 |
An act to amend Section 13303 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to immigration, making an appropriation therefor, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1862, as introduced, Santiago.
Immigration services: grants.
Existing federal law establishes the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program that authorizes the United States Secretary of Homeland Security to designate a foreign country for TPS due to conditions in the country that temporarily prevent the country's nationals from returning safely or if the country is unable to handle the return of its nationals adequately, as specified. The TPS program authorizes eligible nationals from TPS designated foreign counties to remain in the United States on a temporary and renewable basis. The TPS designation for El Salvador was terminated by the United States Secretary of Homeland Security on January 8, 2018.
Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services, subject to the availability of funding, to provide grants to qualified organizations, as specified, to be used to provide persons living in
California with specified services, including, among others, services to assist with the application process for initial or renewal requests of deferred action under the prior federal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy, and to provide legal training and technical assistance to other qualified organizations.
This bill would amend these provisions to include legal assistance to individuals affected by the termination of the TPS designation for El Salvador in the list of specified services to be provided by the qualified organizations described above.
This bill would appropriate $10,000,000 from the General Fund to the department for the 2017–2018 fiscal year for purposes of providing grants to qualified organizations that provide legal assistance to individuals affected by the termination of the federal Temporary Protected Status designation for El Salvador.
This
bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Digest Key
Vote: 2/3 Appropriation: YES Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NOBill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Section 13303 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read:13303.
(a) Subject to the availability of funding in the act that added this section or the annual Budget Act, the department shall provide grants, as described in subdivision (b), to organizations qualified under Section 13304.(b) Grants provided in accordance with subdivision (a) shall be for the purpose of providing one or more of the following services, as determined by the department:
(1) Services to persons residing in, or formerly residing in, California, including, but not limited to, any of the following:
(A) Services to assist with the application process for initial or renewal requests of deferred action under the DACA policy with
the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.
(B) Services to obtain other immigration remedies.
(C) Services to assist with the naturalization process and any appeals arising from the process.
(D) Services to provide legal assistance to individuals affected by the termination of the federal Temporary Protected Status designation for El Salvador.
(2) Services to provide legal training and technical assistance.
(3) (A) (i) Funds available for the purposes of this section shall not be used to provide legal services to an individual
who has been convicted of, or who is currently appealing a conviction for, a violent felony, as defined in subdivision (c) of Section 667.5 of the Penal Code, or a serious felony, as defined in subdivision (c) of Section 1192.7 of the Penal Code.
(ii) For the purposes of this subparagraph, “legal services” does not include activities relating to client intake, which shall be provided regardless of an individual’s criminal history.
(B) Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit eligibility for services pursuant to this section for individuals whose criminal records are shown to be inaccurate.
(c) For purposes of this chapter, the following terms shall have the following meanings:
(1) “DACA” refers to Deferred
Action for Childhood Arrivals status as described in guidelines issued by the United States Department of Homeland Security.
(2) “Services to assist” includes, but is not limited to, outreach, workshop presentations, document review, Freedom of Information Act requests, and screening services that seek to assist individuals with the services described in subdivision (b).
(3) “Legal training and technical assistance” includes, but is not limited to, educational and capacity building activities that will augment the competent provision of legal services to immigrants, including for organizations located in and serving underserved communities.
(4) “Immigration remedies” include, but shall not be limited to, U-visas, T-visas, special immigrant juvenile status, Violence Against Women Act self-petitions, family-based
petitions, cancellation of removal, and asylum, or other remedies that may also include remedies necessary to enable pursuit of immigration protections.
(d) No more than 40 percent of grant funds awarded to an organization qualified under Section 13304 shall be advanced to that organization.
(e) The department shall update the Legislature on the following information in the course of budget hearings:
(1) The timeline for implementation and administration of this section, including important upcoming dates.
(2) The participating organizations awarded contracts or grants, and the aggregate amounts awarded for each service described in subdivision (b).
(3) The number of applications
submitted, and the aggregate amounts requested for each service described in subdivision (b).
(4) The number of clients served.
(5) The types of services provided and in what language or languages.
(6) The regions served.
(7) The ethnic communities served.
(8) The identification of further barriers and challenges to the provision of services described in subdivision (b).
(f) In accordance with Section 1621(d) of Title 8 of the United States Code, this section provides services for undocumented persons.
(g) The sum of twenty million dollars ($20,000,000) is
hereby appropriated to the Department of Social Services in the 2017–18 fiscal year for immigration services funding to be available for payment to existing entities under contract pursuant to this section for work on behalf of clients involved in, applying for, or subject to, federal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals status.
(h) The sum of ten million dollars ($10,000,000) is hereby appropriated to the Department of Social Services in the 2017–2018 fiscal year for the purpose of providing grants to organizations qualified pursuant to Section 13304 that provide legal assistance to individuals affected by the termination of the federal Temporary Protected Status designation for El Salvador pursuant to subparagraph (D) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (b).
(h)
(i) Notwithstanding any other law, payments shall be made by the Controller to existing entities under contract pursuant to this chapter upon receipt of written notification from the State Department of Social Services of the amounts, contractors, and timing of the payments.
SEC. 2.
This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the meaning of Article IV of the California Constitution and shall go into immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:In order to assist California residents with legal complications arising from the termination of the Temporary Protected Status designation for El Salvador by the United States Secretary of Homeland Security on January 8, 2018, it is necessary that this act take effect immediately.
