Bill Text: CA ACR38 | 2015-2016 | Regular Session | Chaptered
Bill Title: California Task Force on Family Caregiving.
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 52-27-1)
Status: (Passed) 2015-09-25 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Res. Chapter 200, Statutes of 2015. [ACR38 Detail]
Download: California-2015-ACR38-Chaptered.html
BILL NUMBER: ACR 38 CHAPTERED
BILL TEXT
RESOLUTION CHAPTER 200
FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE SEPTEMBER 25, 2015
ADOPTED IN SENATE SEPTEMBER 8, 2015
ADOPTED IN ASSEMBLY SEPTEMBER 9, 2015
AMENDED IN SENATE SEPTEMBER 2, 2015
AMENDED IN SENATE SEPTEMBER 1, 2015
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 15, 2015
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 2, 2015
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 7, 2015
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 27, 2015
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Brown
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Baker, Calderon, Dodd, Cristina
Garcia, Lackey, McCarty, Steinorth, Waldron, Achadjian, Alejo,
Atkins, Bigelow, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Burke, Chang, Chau,
Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Eggman,
Frazier, Beth Gaines, Gallagher, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson,
Gomez, Gonzalez, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Holden, Irwin, Jones,
Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mathis,
Mayes, Medina, Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell,
Olsen, Patterson, Perea, Quirk, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez,
Salas, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Weber, Wilk, Williams, and
Wood)
(Coauthors: Senators Allen, Bates, Hancock, Huff, and Liu)
FEBRUARY 27, 2015
Relative to unpaid family caregivers.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
ACR 38, Brown. California Task Force on Family Caregiving.
This measure would establish the California Task Force on Family
Caregiving, to meet, if a nonstate organization agrees to provide
administrative support to the task force, to examine issues relative
to the challenges faced by family caregivers and opportunities to
improve caregiver support, review the current network and the
services and supports available to caregivers, and make policy
recommendations to the Legislature. The task force would be required
to submit an interim report to the Legislature no later than January
1, 2017, and a final report no later than July 1, 2018.
WHEREAS, A caregiver can be any relative, spouse, partner, friend,
or neighbor who has a significant relationship with, and who
provides a broad range of assistance to, an older person or an adult
with a chronic or disabling condition; and
WHEREAS, Almost three-fourths of older people living in a typical
community who receive personal assistance rely exclusively on unpaid
caregivers for help; and
WHEREAS, At present, there is no complete inventory of caregiving
programs available to Californians performing unpaid caregiving
services for an aging or disabled family member, friend, or neighbor;
and
WHEREAS, An estimated 5.8 million adults in the state provide care
to adult relatives or friends, which equates to an estimated 3.9
billion hours a year at an estimated value of $47 billion each year;
and
WHEREAS, The economic value of caregivers' unpaid contributions is
equivalent to 1.25 times the total Medi-Cal spending, and 4.1 times
the funding allotted to Medi-Cal long-term services and supports; and
WHEREAS, If family caregivers were no longer available, the
economic cost to California's health care and long-term services and
supports systems would increase astronomically; and
WHEREAS, Family support is a key driver in remaining in one's home
and community, but it comes at substantial physical, emotional, and
financial cost to the caregivers, their families, and to society; and
WHEREAS, Fifty-nine percent of all family caregivers are employed
full or part time and family caregivers typically spend 20 hours a
week caring for a family member who needs help with bathing,
dressing, and other kinds of personal care, as well as household
tasks such as shopping and managing finances; and
WHEREAS, Seventy percent of people with Alzheimer's disease or a
related disorder live at home and need assistance with activities of
daily living; and
WHEREAS, Testimony and data acquired during an Assembly "Faces of
Aging" hearing series in 2014, conducted by the Assembly Committee on
Aging and Long-Term Care, documented variations in the way different
populations respond to caregiving needs and responsibilities, thus
informing policymakers of specific cultural competencies necessary to
meet a diverse population's needs, as well as specific untapped
resources and strategies that could relieve caregiver stress; and
WHEREAS, It is critical to family caregivers for there to be a
state-led effort to compile an inventory of the resources available
to family caregivers, determine where access barriers in the current
system exist, and consider the cultural and linguistic factors that
impact caregivers and care recipients who are from diverse
populations; and
WHEREAS, Consistency of access across the counties is critical for
caregivers and the vulnerable population they serve, so the best
practices in California and in other states should be identified and
considered as means to improve caregiving programs; and
WHEREAS, Technology is a critical tool for family caregivers, and
the development of an internet Web site or portal that contains
information about California's current resources and supports
available in the state's family caregivers' community will help
family caregivers better navigate current support services; and
WHEREAS, To successfully address the surging population of older
adults who have significant needs for long-term services and
supports, the state must develop methods to both encourage and
support families to assist their aging loved ones and develop ways to
recruit and retain a qualified, culturally competent, responsive
in-home care workforce; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, the Senate
thereof concurring, That the California Task Force on Family
Caregiving is hereby established, which shall consist of 12 members
as follows:
(a) The Speaker of the Assembly and the Senate Committee on Rules
shall each appoint 6 members of the task force.
(b) These 12 members shall include some who have demonstrated
knowledge and expertise in any of the following:
(1) Family caregiving.
(2) Geriatric research.
(3) Alzheimer's disease research.
(4) Senior and disability advocacy; and be it further
Resolved, That the task force shall perform the following duties:
(a) Meet to examine issues relative to the challenges faced by
family caregivers and opportunities to improve caregiver support,
review the current network and the services and supports available to
caregivers, and make policy recommendations to the Legislature.
(b) Consult, as necessary, with a broad range of stakeholders,
including, but not limited to, family caregivers, community-based and
institutional providers, caregiving researchers and academics,
caregiver resource centers, and other state entities; and be it
further
Resolved, That the task force is encouraged to partner, whenever
possible, with the California Commission on Aging in order to link
the efforts of the Legislature and the administration; and be it
further
Resolved, That state funds shall not be used to support task force
activities, but the task force may solicit and accept private funds
and in-kind donations from public and private foundations to pay
expenses incurred in conducting its business, as long as that support
would not pose any conflict of interest. These expenses include, but
are not limited to, staff, administrative, meeting, and other
expenses incurred by task force members in the performance of their
official duties; and be it further
Resolved, That the task force shall convene, once members have
been appointed, if a nonstate organization agrees to provide
administrative support to the task force; and be it further
Resolved, That the task force shall be subject to the Bagley-Keene
Open Meeting Act (Article 9 (commencing with Section 11120) of
Chapter 1 of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code);
and be it further
Resolved, That the task force shall submit one or more reports to
the Legislature and to the Governor, including an interim report no
later than January 1, 2017, and a final report no later than July 1,
2018; and be it further
Resolved, That the task force is authorized to act until July 31,
2018; and be it further
Resolved, That members of the task force shall serve without
compensation, but shall receive reimbursement for travel and other
necessary expenses actually incurred in the performance of their
official duties, to the extent that private funds are available; and
be it further
Resolved, That members of the task force shall be appointed to
serve for the duration of the task force; and be it further
Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of
this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.
