BILL NUMBER: AB 1899 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 23, 2014
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 22, 2014
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 24, 2014
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Brown
FEBRUARY 19, 2014
An act to amend Sections 1569.19 , 1569.35, and
1569.50 of , and to add Section 1569.346 to, the
Health and Safety Code, relating to residential care facilities.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1899, as amended, Brown. Residential care facilities for the
elderly.
Existing law, the California Residential Care Facilities for the
Elderly Act, provides for the licensure and regulation of residential
care facilities for the elderly by the State Department of Social
Services.
Existing law sets forth the qualifications of a licensee and
requires a license to be forfeited by operation of law when the
licensee abandons the facility. Existing law also authorizes the
department to deny an application for, or to suspend or
revoke a license upon specified grounds, including conduct inimical
to the health, morals, welfare, or safety of an individual in or
receiving services from a facility. Existing law authorizes a person
whose license has been revoked to petition the department for
reinstatement of the license after one year has elapsed since the
revocation. Under existing law, if an application for a license
indicates that the applicant was previously issued a license to
operate a residential care facility for the elderly or specified
other licenses, and that license was revoked within the last 2 years,
the department is required to cease reviewing the application until
2 years has elapsed since the revocation.
This bill would make a person whose license is revoked or
forfeited for abandonment of the facility ineligible for
reinstatement of the license.
The bill would also require the Director of Social Services to
establish and maintain a telephone hotline and an Internet Web site
dedicated for the purpose of receiving complaints regarding
residential care facilities for the elderly. The bill would require
the Internet Web site to include a listing, available to the public,
of all final actions resulting in citation, suspension, or revocation
taken against each licensee.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 1569.19 of the Health and Safety Code is
amended to read:
1569.19. A license shall be forfeited by operation of law prior
to its expiration date when one of the following occurs:
(a) The licensee sells or otherwise transfers the facility or
facility property, except when change of ownership applies to
transferring of stock when the facility is owned by a corporation and
when the transfer of stock does not constitute a majority change in
ownership. The sale of a facility shall be subject to the
requirements of this chapter.
(b) The licensee surrenders the license to the department.
(c) The licensee moves a facility from one location to another.
The department shall develop regulations to ensure that the
facilities are not charged a full licensing fee and do not have to
complete the entire application process when applying for a license
for the new location.
(d) The licensee is convicted of an offense specified in Section
220, 243.4, or 264.1, or paragraph (1) of Section 273a, Section 273d,
288, or 289 of the Penal Code, or is convicted of another crime
specified in subdivision (c) of Section 667.5 of the Penal Code.
(e) The licensee dies. When a licensee dies, the continued
operation shall be subject to the requirements of Section 1569.193.
(f) The licensee abandons the facility. A license forfeited
pursuant to this subdivision shall not be eligible for reinstatement
on or after January 1, 2015.
SEC. 2. Section 1569.346 is added to the Health
and Safety Code, to read:
1569.346. (a) The director shall establish and maintain a
telephone hotline and an Internet Web site dedicated for the purpose
of receiving complaints from members of the public regarding
residential care facilities for the elderly.
(b) The Internet Web site established under subdivision (a) shall
also include a listing, available to the public, of all final actions
resulting in citation, suspension, or revocation taken against each
licensee, listed both by the licensee's name and by the facility's
name. The actions shall be listed in a manner that protects the
privacy of the residents and the confidentiality of resident
information.
SEC. 3. Section 1569.35 of the Health and
Safety Code is amended to read:
1569.35. (a) Any person may request an inspection of any
residential care facility for the elderly in accordance with this
chapter by transmitting to the department notice of an alleged
violation of applicable requirements prescribed by statutes or
regulations of this state, including, but not limited to, a denial of
access of any person authorized to enter the facility pursuant to
Section 9722 of the Welfare and Institutions Code. A complaint may be
made either orally or in writing, including through the telephone
hotline and Internet Web site established under Section 1569.346.
(b) The substance of the complaint shall be provided to the
licensee no earlier than at the time of the inspection. Unless the
complainant specifically requests otherwise, neither the substance of
the complaint provided the licensee nor any copy of the complaint or
any record published, released, or otherwise made available to the
licensee shall disclose the name of any person mentioned in the
complaint except the name of any duly authorized officer, employee,
or agent of the department conducting the investigation or inspection
pursuant to this chapter.
(c) Upon receipt of a complaint, other than a complaint alleging
denial of a statutory right of access to a residential care facility
for the elderly, the department shall make a preliminary review and,
unless the department determines that the complaint is willfully
intended to harass a licensee or is without any reasonable basis, it
shall make an onsite inspection within 10 days after receiving the
complaint except where the visit would adversely affect the licensing
investigation or the investigation of other agencies, including, but
not limited to, law enforcement agencies. In either event, the
complainant shall be promptly informed of the department's proposed
course of action.
(d) Upon receipt of a complaint alleging denial of a statutory
right of access to a residential facility for the elderly, the
department shall review the complaint. The complainant shall be
notified promptly of the department's proposed course of action.
SEC. 4. SEC. 2. Section 1569.50 of
the Health and Safety Code is amended to read:
1569.50. (a) The department may deny an application for a license
or may suspend or revoke a license issued under this chapter upon
any of the following grounds and in the manner provided in this
chapter:
(1) Violation by the licensee of this chapter or of the rules and
regulations adopted under this chapter.
(2) Aiding, abetting, or permitting the violation of this chapter
or of the rules and regulations adopted under this chapter.
(3) Conduct that is inimical to the health, morals, welfare, or
safety of either an individual in or receiving services from the
facility or the people of the State of California.
(4) The conviction of a licensee, or other person mentioned in
Section 1569.17 at any time before or during licensure, of a crime as
defined in Section 1569.17.
(5) Engaging in acts of financial malfeasance concerning the
operation of a facility, including, but not limited to, improper use
or embezzlement of client moneys and property or fraudulent
appropriation for personal gain of facility moneys and property, or
willful or negligent failure to provide services for the care of
clients.
(b) The director may temporarily suspend a license, prior to a
hearing when, in the opinion of the director, the action is necessary
to protect residents or clients of the facility from physical or
mental abuse, abandonment, or any other substantial threat to health
or safety. The director shall notify the licensee of the temporary
suspension and the effective date of the temporary suspension and at
the same time shall serve the provider with an accusation. Upon
receipt of a notice of defense to the accusation by the licensee, the
director shall, within 15 days, set the matter for hearing, and the
hearing shall be held as soon as possible but not later than 30 days
after receipt of the notice. The temporary suspension shall remain in
effect until the time the hearing is completed and the director has
made a final determination on the merits. However, the temporary
suspension shall be deemed vacated if the director fails to make a
final determination on the merits within 30 days after the original
hearing has been completed.
(c) A license that is revoked pursuant to this section due to the
licensee's abandonment of the facility shall not be eligible for
reinstatement on or after January 1, 2015.