California 2017-2018 Regular Session Status: To Executive

SB 926 — CalWORKs and CalFresh: work requirements.

Last action — In Senate. Consideration of Governor's veto pending.

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  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. ✓
    In Committee
  3. ✓
    Passed Senate
  4. ✓
    Passed Assembly
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill died with 2017-2018 Regular Session. It reached “To Executive” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.

This bill is no longer active — its legislative session has ended, so there is no live prognosis. It would have to be reintroduced in the current session to move again.

Summary

Existing law provides for the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program, under which each county provides cash assistance and other benefits to qualified low-income families and individuals. Existing law generally requires a recipient of CalWORKs benefits to participate in welfare-to-work activities as a condition of eligibility for aid. Existing law prohibits sanctions from being applied for a failure or refusal to comply with program requirements if, among other reasons, the employment, offer of employment, activity, or other training for employment discriminates on specified bases or involves conditions that are in violation of applicable health and safety standards, or the employment or offer of employment exceeds the daily or weekly hours of work customary to the occupation. This bill would additionally prohibit sanctions from being applied for a failure or refusal to comply with program requirements if the recipient provides documentation that the anticipated hours would be so unpredictable for that specific recipient that they would not allow the recipient to anticipate compliance with program requirements related to the job, or if the recipient provides documentation that the scheduled hours exhibit a pattern of unpredictability for that specific recipient so that he or she cannot anticipate compliance with program requirements related to the job. The bill would also prohibit sanctions from being applied if the recipient self-certifies that the employment or offer of employment fails to comply with the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014, that his or her rights under the New Parent Leave Act, the Wage Theft Prevention Act of 2011, or the Domestic Worker Bill of Rights were violated, or that he or she experienced sexual harassment or other abusive conduct at the workplace. The bill would require the county human services agency, when an applicant or recipient reports refusing any offer of employment, reducing hours, voluntarily quitting any employment, or being discharged from any employment, to provide the applicant or recipient with information regarding workplace rights generally, as specified, and would require the State Department of Social Services to convene stakeholders to develop instructions for county human services agencies on how to best inform applicants and recipients of aid of those rights and remedies, and how to document self-certification, as specified. By increasing the duties of local officials, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. Existing federal law provides for the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) , known in California as CalFresh, under which supplemental nutrition assistance benefits allocated to the state by the federal government are distributed to eligible individuals by each county. Existing federal law, as a condition of eligibility for CalFresh, requires a household member who is not exempt to comply with specified work requirements, including the requirement that a member does not voluntarily and without good cause quit a job of 30 or more hours a week or reduce work effort less than 30 hours a week. Existing federal law defines "good cause" to include, among other things, circumstances beyond a member's control, resigning from a job that is unsuitable, and discrimination by an employer based on age, race, sex, color, handicap, religious beliefs, national origin, or political beliefs. This bill would, to the extent permitted by federal law, regulation, or waiver thereof, require that good cause exists for purposes of the above-mentioned work requirement if an applicant for, or recipient of, CalFresh benefits has voluntarily quit a job or reduced work hours based on at least one of the above-mentioned reasons for which welfare-to-work sanctions for a recipient of CalWORKs benefits shall not be applied, or because the scheduled work hours were so unpredictable that they did not allow the applicant or recipient to anticipate the amount of monthly income from the job. When the applicant or recipient reports refusing any offer of employment, reducing hours, voluntarily quitting any employment, or being discharged from any employment, the bill would require the county human services agency to provide the applicant or recipient with information regarding workplace rights generally, as specified. By increasing the duties of local officials, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would authorize the State Department of Social Services to implement these provisions through an all-county letter or similar instruction from the Director of Social Services, until regulations are adopted on or before October 1, 2020. The bill would require the all-county letter, or similar instruction, or regulation to provide, among other things, that an applicant or recipient of CalFresh or CalWORKs is authorized to self-certify under penalty of perjury that specified reasons qualify for a good cause exemption or a relief from sanction. By expanding the crime of perjury, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. Existing law continuously appropriates moneys from the General Fund to defray a portion of county costs under the CalWORKs program. This bill would provide that the continuous appropriation would not be made for purposes of implementing the bill. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Bill Text

Action History

  1. In Senate. Consideration of Governor's veto pending.

  2. Vetoed by the Governor.

  3. Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 3:30 p.m.

  4. Assembly amendments concurred in. (Ayes 28. Noes 9. Page 5545.) Ordered to engrossing and enrolling.

  5. In Senate. Concurrence in Assembly amendments pending.

  6. Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 55. Noes 25. Page 6409.) Ordered to the Senate.

  7. Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

  8. From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 12. Noes 5.) (August 8).

  9. From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 5. Noes 2.) (June 26). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

  10. From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on HUM. S.

  11. Referred to Com. on HUM. S.

  12. In Assembly. Read first time. Held at Desk.

  13. Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 27. Noes 10. Page 4382.) Ordered to the Assembly.

  14. Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

  15. Read second time and amended. Ordered to second reading.

  16. From committee: Do pass as amended. (Ayes 5. Noes 2. Page 4299.) (May 25).

  17. Set for hearing May 25.

  18. May 14 hearing: Placed on APPR. suspense file.

  19. Set for hearing May 14.

  20. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

  21. From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 5. Noes 2. Page 4813.) (April 24).

  22. April 24 set for first hearing. Reconsideration of favorable vote granted.

  23. From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 5. Noes 1. Page 4813.) (April 24).

  24. Set for hearing April 24.

  25. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on JUD.

  26. From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on JUD. (Ayes 5. Noes 0. Page 4624.) (April 10).

  27. From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on HUMAN S.

  28. Set for hearing April 10.

  29. Referred to Coms. on HUMAN S. and JUD.

  30. From printer. May be acted upon on or after February 24.

  31. Introduced. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. To print.

Sponsors

  • Skinner · Primary

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 121 not signed on · 11 voted No

Sponsors (1)

  • Skinner

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (121)

121 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 121 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Votes

Unfinished Business SB926 Skinner Concurrence

Passed 28 Yea · 9 Nay · 3 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 23903
Democratic 5000
Total 28903
% of votes cast 70%23%0%8%
How each member voted (40)
Member Party Vote
Anderson — Yea
Bates — Nay
Bradford — Yea
Hill — Yea
Hueso — Yea
Monning — Yea
Pan — Yea
Roth — Yea
Wilk — Yea
Dodd — Yea
Fuller — Nay
Galgiani — Yea
Portantino — Yea
Atkins — Yea
Glazer — Yea
Hernandez — Yea
Cannella — Yea
Allen — Yea
Hertzberg — Yea
Chang — Nay
De León — Not Voting
Mitchell — Not Voting
Lara — Yea
Delgado — Yea
Beall — Yea
Leyva — Yea
Moorlach — Nay
Morrell — Nay
Nielsen — Nay
Skinner — Yea
Vidak — Nay
Wieckowski — Yea
Beth Gaines — Nay
Bill Berryhill — Not Voting
Mark Stone — Nay
Jackson, Corey A. Democratic Yea
McGuire, Mike Democratic Yea
Nguyen, Stephanie Democratic Yea
Stern, Henry I. Democratic Yea
Wiener, Scott D. Democratic Yea

Official roll call →

SB 926 Skinner Senate Third Reading By REYES

Passed 55 Yea · 25 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 391900
Democratic 16000
Republican 0600
Total 552500
% of votes cast 69%31%0%0%
How each member voted (80)
Member Party Vote
Acosta — Nay
Bigelow — Nay
Bloom — Yea
Brough — Nay
Holden — Yea
Jones-Sawyer — Yea
Kiley — Nay
Low — Yea
Mathis — Nay
Mullin — Yea
O'Donnell — Yea
Steinorth — Nay
Thurmond — Yea
Wood — Yea
Eggman — Yea
Chau — Yea
Chu — Yea
Frazier — Yea
Gloria — Yea
Medina — Yea
Gonzalez Fletcher — Yea
Quirk — Yea
Gray — Yea
Rubio — Yea
Friedman — Yea
Rivas — Yea
Burke — Yea
Fong — Nay
Harper — Nay
Kamlager-Dove — Yea
Levine — Yea
Maienschein — Nay
Mayes — Nay
McCarty — Yea
Baker — Nay
Chiu — Yea
Chávez — Nay
Cooley — Yea
Cooper — Yea
Melendez — Nay
Nazarian — Yea
Obernolte — Nay
Rendon — Yea
Voepel — Nay
Waldron — Nay
Rodriguez — Yea
Santiago — Yea
Salas — Yea
Ting — Yea
Weber — Yea
Cunningham — Nay
Daly — Yea
Cristina Garcia — Yea
Eduardo Garcia — Yea
Jim Patterson — Nay
Mark Stone — Yea
Travis Allen — Nay
Wendy Carrillo — Yea
Aguiar-Curry, Cecilia M. Democratic Yea
Arambula, Joaquin Democratic Yea
Berman, Marc Democratic Yea
Bonta, Mia Democratic Yea
Caballero, Anna M. Democratic Yea
Calderon, Lisa Democratic Yea
Cervantes, Sabrina Democratic Yea
Gabriel, Jesse Democratic Yea
Gipson, Mike A. Democratic Yea
Grayson, Timothy S. Democratic Yea
Irwin, Jacqui Democratic Yea
Kalra, Ash Democratic Yea
Limón, Monique Democratic Yea
Muratsuchi, Al Democratic Yea
Quirk-Silva, Sharon Democratic Yea
Reyes, Eloise Gómez Democratic Yea
Chen, Phillip Republican Nay
Choi, Steven S. Republican Nay
Dahle, Megan Republican Nay
Flora, Heath Republican Nay
Gallagher, James Republican Nay
Lackey, Tom Republican Nay

Official roll call →

Do pass.

Passed 12 Yea · 5 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 9400
Democratic 3000
Republican 0100
Total 12500
% of votes cast 71%29%0%0%
How each member voted (17)
Member Party Vote
Bigelow — Nay
Bloom — Yea
Brough — Nay
Obernolte — Nay
Friedman — Yea
Gonzalez Fletcher — Yea
Fong — Nay
Nazarian — Yea
Chau — Yea
Quirk — Yea
Eggman — Yea
Eduardo Garcia — Yea
Wendy Carrillo — Yea
Bonta, Mia Democratic Yea
Calderon, Lisa Democratic Yea
Reyes, Eloise Gómez Democratic Yea
Gallagher, James Republican Nay

Official roll call →

3rd Reading

Passed 27 Yea · 10 Nay · 2 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 221002
Democratic 5000
Total 271002
% of votes cast 69%26%0%5%
How each member voted (39)
Member Party Vote
Anderson — Yea
Hill — Yea
Nielsen — Nay
Roth — Yea
Wieckowski — Yea
Fuller — Nay
Cannella — Yea
Dodd — Yea
Galgiani — Yea
Glazer — Yea
Allen — Yea
Atkins — Yea
Hernandez — Yea
Portantino — Yea
Hertzberg — Yea
Mitchell — Yea
Hueso — Yea
Lara — Not Voting
De León — Not Voting
Bates — Nay
Beall — Yea
Bradford — Yea
Leyva — Yea
Monning — Yea
Moorlach — Nay
Morrell — Nay
Newman — Yea
Pan — Yea
Skinner — Yea
Vidak — Nay
Wilk — Nay
Beth Gaines — Nay
Bill Berryhill — Nay
Mark Stone — Nay
Jackson, Corey A. Democratic Yea
McGuire, Mike Democratic Yea
Nguyen, Stephanie Democratic Yea
Stern, Henry I. Democratic Yea
Wiener, Scott D. Democratic Yea

Official roll call →

Do pass as amended

Passed 5 Yea · 2 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 4200
Democratic 1000
Total 5200
% of votes cast 71%29%0%0%
How each member voted (7)
Member Party Vote
Bates — Nay
Hill — Yea
Lara — Yea
Nielsen — Nay
Beall — Yea
Bradford — Yea
Wiener, Scott D. Democratic Yea

Official roll call →

Placed on suspense file

Passed 7 Yea · 0 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 6000
Democratic 1000
Total 7000
% of votes cast 100%0%0%0%
How each member voted (7)
Member Party Vote
Bates — Yea
Beall — Yea
Bradford — Yea
Hill — Yea
Nielsen — Yea
Lara — Yea
Wiener, Scott D. Democratic Yea

Official roll call →

Subjects

public-safety labor health-insurance
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Frequently asked questions

What does SB 926 do?
Existing law provides for the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program, under which each county provides cash assistance and other benefits to qualified low-income families and individuals. Existing law generally requires a recipient of CalWORKs benefits to participate in welfare-to-work activities as a condition of eligibility for aid. Existing law prohibits sanctions from being applied for a failure or refusal to comply with program requirements if, among other reasons, the employment, offer of employment, activity, or other training for employment discriminates on specified bases or involves conditions that are in violation of applicable health and safety standards, or the employment or offer of employment exceeds the daily or weekly hours of work customary to the occupation. This bill would additionally prohibit sanctions from being applied for a failure or refusal to comply with program requirements if the recipient provides documentation that the anticipated hours would be so unpredictable for that specific recipient that they would not allow the recipient to anticipate compliance with program requirements related to the job, or if the recipient provides documentation that the scheduled hours exhibit a pattern of unpredictability for that specific recipient so that he or she cannot anticipate compliance with program requirements related to the job. The bill would also prohibit sanctions from being applied if the recipient self-certifies that the employment or offer of employment fails to comply with the Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act of 2014, that his or her rights under the New Parent Leave Act, the Wage Theft Prevention Act of 2011, or the Domestic Worker Bill of Rights were violated, or that he or she experienced sexual harassment or other abusive conduct at the workplace. The bill would require the county human services agency, when an applicant or recipient reports refusing any offer of employment, reducing hours, voluntarily quitting any employment, or being discharged from any employment, to provide the applicant or recipient with information regarding workplace rights generally, as specified, and would require the State Department of Social Services to convene stakeholders to develop instructions for county human services agencies on how to best inform applicants and recipients of aid of those rights and remedies, and how to document self-certification, as specified. By increasing the duties of local officials, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. Existing federal law provides for the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) , known in California as CalFresh, under which supplemental nutrition assistance benefits allocated to the state by the federal government are distributed to eligible individuals by each county. Existing federal law, as a condition of eligibility for CalFresh, requires a household member who is not exempt to comply with specified work requirements, including the requirement that a member does not voluntarily and without good cause quit a job of 30 or more hours a week or reduce work effort less than 30 hours a week. Existing federal law defines "good cause" to include, among other things, circumstances beyond a member's control, resigning from a job that is unsuitable, and discrimination by an employer based on age, race, sex, color, handicap, religious beliefs, national origin, or political beliefs. This bill would, to the extent permitted by federal law, regulation, or waiver thereof, require that good cause exists for purposes of the above-mentioned work requirement if an applicant for, or recipient of, CalFresh benefits has voluntarily quit a job or reduced work hours based on at least one of the above-mentioned reasons for which welfare-to-work sanctions for a recipient of CalWORKs benefits shall not be applied, or because the scheduled work hours were so unpredictable that they did not allow the applicant or recipient to anticipate the amount of monthly income from the job. When the applicant or recipient reports refusing any offer of employment, reducing hours, voluntarily quitting any employment, or being discharged from any employment, the bill would require the county human services agency to provide the applicant or recipient with information regarding workplace rights generally, as specified. By increasing the duties of local officials, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would authorize the State Department of Social Services to implement these provisions through an all-county letter or similar instruction from the Director of Social Services, until regulations are adopted on or before October 1, 2020. The bill would require the all-county letter, or similar instruction, or regulation to provide, among other things, that an applicant or recipient of CalFresh or CalWORKs is authorized to self-certify under penalty of perjury that specified reasons qualify for a good cause exemption or a relief from sanction. By expanding the crime of perjury, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. Existing law continuously appropriates moneys from the General Fund to defray a portion of county costs under the CalWORKs program. This bill would provide that the continuous appropriation would not be made for purposes of implementing the bill. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
Who sponsors SB 926?
SB 926 is sponsored by Skinner.
What is the current status of SB 926?
This bill died with 2017-2018 Regular Session. It reached “To Executive” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.
Where can I track SB 926?
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