CDCAN REPORT #051-2011: Final Assembly and Senate budget hearings today (February 18)

FINAL BUDGET COMMITTEE HEARINGS TODAY -

• Assembly Budget Committee Staff Recommends Rolling Back Regional Center $750 Million Cut By About $226 Million In Action Nearly Identical To Senate
• Both Senate and Assembly Budget Committees Meet Upon Adjournment of Senate and Assembly Floor Sessions Sometime After 09:30 AM – Next Week Budget Conference Committee Acts On Unresolved Issues and Then Full Assembly and State Senate Vote On Entire Budget Package

SACRAMENTO, CALIF  (CDCAN) [Updated 02/18/2011 – 03:55 AM  (Pacific Time)] –   The Assembly Budget Committee and the Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee will hold their final crucial hearings today (February 18th, Friday) on Governor Brown’s proposed 2011-2012 State Budget plan including actions on proposed cuts to In-Home Supportive Services, Adult Day Health Care, and CalWORKS.

Assembly Budget Committee Releases Budget Subcommittee Report That Outlines What Action Will Taken At Today’s Hearing

• As previously reported in CDCAN Report #049-2011 and #050-2011 Thursday evening, the Assembly Budget Committee released a 56 page Assembly Budget Subcommittee Report dated February 18th that lists all the Governor’s proposals and the recommended actions by Assembly budget staff.  [CDCAN sent copy of that report as attachment to CDCAN Report #050-2011 – and can also be viewed at the CDCAN website at www.cdcan.us]
• It is nearly certain the Assembly Budget Committee will take those actions recommended by budget staff when it convenes Friday morning. 
• In some cases actions recommended by Assembly Budget Committee staff through the various Assembly Budget Subcommittees are identical or similar to the actions taken by the Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee, such as the cuts in the Medi-Cal program.
• CDCAN Note: the term “placeholder” trailer bill language means that  legislative language (budget trailer bill language) is needed for a particular budget action taken by the committee and that the language still needs to be drafted or finalized by committee staff.
• Among those  recommended actions include In-Home Supportive Services, CalWORKS, Medi-Cal and developmental services. [CDCAN Note: A  $226 million amount was incorrectly reported in CDCAN Report #049-2011 as a possible unallocated reduction – it is in fact the amount by which the Assembly – and Senate – rolled back the level of the Governor’s proposed cut – apologies! See below for details].

Two Items on Foster Youth Transitional Housing Program and Repeal of IHSS Recipient Fingerprinting Requirement

Two Important Items Not Included In CDCAN Report #049-2011 that was in the Assembly Budget Subcommittee Report dated February 18th (Assembly Budget Committee staff recommended actions that the Committee will approve when it meets Friday morning, February 18th: 

• FOSTER YOUTH TRANSITIONAL HOUSING PROGRAM PLUS (THP-PLUS) – Assembly Budget Committee staff recommends that the full committee APPROVE the Governor’s reduction of $19 million State general funds reflecting savings as a result of the implementation of AB 12, sustaining funding of $16.8 million for youth served in the program not served by AB 12. [this action would be different than the one taken by the Senate budget committee on 2/17]
• IHSS (IN-HOME SUPPORTIVE SERVICES) RECIPIENT FINGERPRINTING REQUIREMENTS REPEAL – Assembly Budget Committee staff recommends that committee APPROVE action taken by Senate to repeal to Senate action to repeal the 2009 state law that required fingerprinting of all IHSS recipients and including fingerprints on timesheets.

Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee

• Meets Friday morning (February 18th) upon adjournment of the Senate floor session at the State Capitol in Room 4203  [CDCAN Note: Senate floor session is scheduled to convene at 09:30 AM Friday morning and is expected to last only briefly – so the budget committee will likely meet between 09:30 and 10:00 AM]
• No public testimony (all issues were previously heard and public testimony taken at previous hearings)
• The hearing will be televised live and webcasted live on CalChannel (check local cable listings or go to www.calchannel.com)
• Agenda: as of February 18th Friday morning at 3:30 AM, there is no posted agenda for the Senate hearing yet available. 
• For the Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee, chaired by Sen. Mark Leno (Democrat – San Francisco, 3rd State Senate District), it will be the third and final hearing the committee has held since Wednesday, with an agenda this morning that will focus on certain human services issues (CalWORKS and In-Home Supportive Services), budget issues related to the Governor’s “realignment” or transfer of certain State programs to the counties (including Adult Protective Services and Child Welfare Services), education and some “open” health issues including Adult Day Health Care.

Assembly Budget Committee

• Meets Friday morning (February 18th) upon adjournment of the Assembly floor session at the State Capitol in Room 4202  [CDCAN Note: Senate floor session is scheduled to convene at 09:00 AM Friday morning and is expected to last only briefly – so the budget committee could meet anytime after that – most likely between 09:30 and 10:00 AM]
• No public testimony (all issues were previously heard and public testimony taken at previous hearings)
• The hearing will be televised live and webcasted live on CalChannel (check local cable listings or go to www.calchannel.com)
• Agenda: there is no posted agenda available, but it the Assembly Budget Committee released Thursday evening (February 17) a 56 page Assembly Budget Subcommittee Report that contains all of the Governor’s proposals and recommendations by Assembly Budget Committee staff that could serve as an agenda. It appears the Assembly Budget Committee will go through its agenda by subcommittee rather than by department. 
• For the Assembly Budget Committee, chaired by Assemblymember Bob Blumenfield (Democrat – Van Nuys, 40th Assembly District), it will be the first and only hearing taking final action on all of the Governor’s proposals, many which the Senate budget panel has already acted on Wednesday and Thursday including developmental services, Medi-Cal (except Adult Day Health Care), Healthy Families.

Stage Set for Budget Conference Committee Next Week Followed by Assembly and Senate Final Floor Votes on Budget Package

• The final hearings of the two full budget committees will set the stage for a joint committee composed of members of both the Senate and Assembly, called the Budget Conference Committee, that will meet next week to get agreement on those proposals where each house took a different action. 
• The Budget Conference Committee process will likely last only a week or less given the fast track the 2011-2012 State Budget is on. 
• Following the Budget Conference Committee work, the entire budget package goes to the floors of the Assembly and State Senate for final votes by all the members – which could happen as early as the last week of February (or first week of March).

ASSEMBLY BUDGET COMMITTEE WILL ROLL BACK THE GOVERNOR’S PROPOSED $750 MILLION STATE GENERAL FUND SPENDING CUT TO DEVELOPMENTAL SERVICES BY ABOUT $226 MILLION IN ACTION NEARLY IDENTICAL TO SENATE BUDGET PANEL

The Assembly Budget Committee staff recommended, in the subcommittee budget report dated February 18th that the committee take nearly identical actions in terms of reductions to developmental services that the Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee took on Thursday.

The Assembly Budget Committee staff recommended taking the same action the Senate took Thursday, and approve a  $150 million target in State general fund spending reductions for development of a statewide standards for purchase of services that would limit spending on regional center community based services. 

The Assembly committee would differ – at least for now – in details of what it would include in “placeholder” budget trailer bill dealing with how those standards would be developed.  

Similar to the Senate Budget Committee, the Assembly Budget Committee staff also recommends that the committee approve lowering the overall level of the reduction in State general fund spending of $750 million proposed by Governor Brown by about $226 million in State general funds [CDCAN Note: the numbers don’t quite add up and match exactly yet between the Senate and Assembly, but it could be due to rounding and other minor factors] .

The remaining level of reduction of about $530 million in State general fund spending would be achieved as follows:

• $13 million in increased Federal Funds for Porterville Developmental Center consumers
• $50 million in shifting Proposition 10 funds
• $60 million in new federal 1915 (i) Medicaid Waiver funds
• $10 million in new “Money Follows the Person” federal Grant,
• $15 million savings from the action by both Assembly and Senate Budget Committess in rejecting Medi-Cal hard caps on physician visits (if it was approved it would have shifted costs to regional centers) and
• $91.5 million reduction in State general funds by adopting budget trailer bill language to extend the 4.25%  reduction in payments to most regional center providers and to regional center operations
• $13.2 million reductions in State general fund spending resulting from Developmental Center reductions,
• $11.2 million reduction in State general fund spending from regional center operations savings.
• $109.6 million reduction in State general fund spending resulting from increased Administrative Accountability and Transparency at regional centers through ‘placeholder” budget trailer bill language for regional center Conflict of Interest, Third Party Liability, Audits, Contracts and Direct Services and regional center Accountability and Transparency.
• $150 million reduction in State general fund spending resulting from developing and implementing Statewide Standards for Purchase of Services that would place limits on regional center community-based spending.

Other Actions Assembly Budget Committee Staff Recommends Relating to Developmental Services:

• DEVELOPMENTAL CENTER AUTOMATIC SPRINKLER SYSTEM – Assembly Budget Committee staff recommends the committee APPROVE this proposal [this would be identical to action taken by Senate budget committee on 2/17]
• FAIRVIEW DEVELOPMENTAL CENTER – UPGRADE OF FIRE ALARM SYSTEM – Assembly Budget Committee staff recommends committee REJECT this proposal. [this would be identical action taken by Senate budget committee on 2/17]
• SONOMA DEVELOPMENTAL CENTER MEDICAL GASSES AND OXYGEN PIPING – Assembly Budget Committee staff recommends the committee APPROVE this proposal [this would be identical to action taken by Senate budget committee on 2/17]
• TRAILER BILL LANGUAGE: MEDI-CAL MANAGEMENT HEALTH PLANS FOR LANTERMAN DEVELOPMENTAL CENTER TRANSITION - Assembly Budget Committee staff recommends the committee APPROVE this proposal [this would be identical to action taken by Senate budget committee on 2/17]
• TRAILER BILL LANGUAGE – PREVENTION PROGRAM - Assembly Budget Committee staff recommends the committee APPROVE the language [this would be identical to action taken by Senate budget committee on 2/17]