CA DISABILITY COMMUNITY ACTION NETWORK
CAPITOL NEWS REPORT - ISSUE #149-2004
AUGUST 26, 2004 - Early Thursday morning
Linking people to disability rights and unified action
Website IS BACK UP! New location:  www.cdcan.us    Toll-free info Lines Up
Note: Virus Alert - Beware of Attachments! There is NEVER any attachment to CDCAN Reports.

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
* AB 2100 Passes Assembly 77-0; Heads To Governor
* Action on IHSS, Special Ed & Other Bills
* AB 1629 To Be Heard in Assembly Health Committee Thursday 8/26

SACRAMENTO   -  With only two full days left of the 2004 legislative session, both houses took final action on several bills that will have impact on people with developmental and other disabilities and seniors.  Those bills include legislation calling for affordable housing for some of the residents of Agnews Developmental Center near San Jose, bills impacting In-Home Supportive Services, special education, the California Senior Legislature and Commission on Aging, access and disability rights measures.

Both houses are scheduled to adjourn for the year sometime late on Friday, August 27, four days ahead of the original August 31 adjournment date.  Both houses are adjourning earlier, in large part to permit Republican members to attend the 2004 Republican National Convention that opens in New York City on August 30. The Governor has until September 30 to veto or approve all bills passed by the Legislature and sent to him (he can also allow a bill to become law without his signature).

AB 1629 by Assemblymember Dario Frommer (D-Los Angeles) that calls for implementation of a skilled nursing facility quality assurance fee and rate reimbursement changes passed out of the Senate on 8/25 and will be heard in a brief committee hearing by the Assembly Health Committee on Thursday (August 26) "off the Assembly Floor", upon the call of the committee chair, Assemblymember Rebecca Cohn.  The legislation, sponsored by an alliance of nursing home providers, nursing home worker union and some senior groups (Gray Panthers and Older Women's League), has raised some controversy and strong opposition from several disability and senior advocacy organizations including AARP, California Foundation for Independent Living, Protection and Advocacy, California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform, and Californians for Disability Rights.  Several other bills, including another measure that would allows relatives of a skilled nursing facility  resident who receives Medi-Cal to pay for non covered services, are also scheduled to be heard the brief Assembly Health Committee hearing.  The location of the hearing will be announced during the Thursday Assembly Floor session  (call the Assembly Health Committee office for information at 916/319-2097).

A full CDCAN Capitol News Report will report final actions on all bills impacting people with disabilities and seniors on Monday. That information will also be posted on the CDCAN website at www.cdcan.us (note the new location).  This report is a brief summary of some of the bills that have had action on Wednesday or earlier this week:

COMMUNITY-BASED SERVICES - REGIONAL CENTERS
* AB 649 - Intent of Legislature To Ensure Sufficient Funding For Developmental Services
Author: Assemblymember Wiggins (D-Santa Rosa)
Last Amended: 7/19/04
Status 8/24/04: Assembly approves amendments made in Senate 61-18 (all Republicans - Assemblymembers Aghazarian,  Benoit, Bogh, Campbell, Cogdill, Daucher, Dutton, Haynes, Keene, La Malfa, Leslie, McCarthy (Assembly Republican Leader), Mountjoy, Nakanishi, Plescia, Runner, Samuelian and Wyland).  Heads next to Governor for approval.

* AB 2100 - Affordable Housing Plan For Some Agnews Developmental Center Residents
Author: Assemblymember Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento)
Last Amended: 8/23/04
Status 8/25/04: Assembly approves amendments made in Senate 77-0 (Garcia, Koretz and LaMalfa not voting). Heads next to Governor for approval. [note: see CDCAN Capitol News Reports earlier this week for details on this bill]

COMMUNITY-BASED SERVICES - IN-HOME SUPPORTIVE SERVICES (IHSS)
* AB 1470 - IHSS/Direct Deposit For IHSS Workers
Author: Assemblymember Ridley-Thomas (D-Los Angeles)
Last amended: 8/16/04
Status 8/25/04: Assembly approves amendments made in Senate 58-3 [Republican Assemblymembers Haynes, La Malfa and La Suer opposing].  Heads next to Governor for approval.

* AB 2531 - IHSS Worker - Mandated Reporter/Child Abuse & Neglect Reporting Act
Author: Assemblymember Bates (R-Laguna Niguel)
Last Amended: 8/19/04
What This Bill Does: Makes any In-Home Supportive Services worker who provides services to a minor,  a mandated reporter for the purpose of the "Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act" (CANRA). Exempts any IHSS worker of a child from the reporting requirement if he or she has not received the required training. This bill tied to passage of SB 1313 (Kuehl)
Status 8/25/04: Assembly approves amendments made in Senate 74-0. Heads next to Governor for approval.

* AB 3056 - IHSS
Author: Assemblymember Vargas (D-Chula Vista)
Last amended: 8/23/04
What This Bill Does: Provides that the IHSS advisory committee in those counties that seek to terminate a mode of IHSS delivery,  to advise the county board of supervisors, instead of the county's employer of record, of its findings on the impact on IHSS recipients on or before the 60th day of a period of 90 days prior to the termination of that delivery of any mode of IHSS service.
Status 8/25/04: Assembly approves amendments made in Senate 49-19. Heads next to Governor for approval.

SENIORS
* AB 1994 - California Senior Legislature & Commission on Aging (Statutory separation of both entities)
Author: Assemblymember Patti Berg (D-Eureka)
Last Amended: 8/19/04
Status 8/25/04: Assembly approves amendments made in Senate 76-1 (Assemblymember Ray Haynes opposing). Heads next to Governor for approval.

SPECIAL EDUCATION & STATE SPECIAL SCHOOLS
* AB 662 - Creation of Advisory Task Force for the Education of Visually Impaired Pupils (within Department of Education)
Author: Assemblymember Dutra (D-Fremont)
Last Amended: 8/17/04
Status 8/25/04: Assembly approves amendments made in Senate 68-0.  Heads next to Governor for approval.

* AB 2015 - Special Education - Foster Children & IEP Team
Author: Assemblymember Judy Chu (D-Monterey Park)
What the Bill Does:  Requires a child with exceptional needs who is over the age of 13 years and who has been removed from their home, to be included in their Individualized Education Plan (IEP) team if a surrogate parent has been appointed to represent the individual's interest.  The child may decline to be included.
Last Amended: 8/23/04
Status 8/25/04: Assembly approves amendments made in Senate 46-21  . Heads next to Governor for approval.

HEALTH
* AB 2248 - Parkinson's Disease Registry
Author: Assemblymember Frommer  (D-Los Angeles)
Last Amended:  7/12/04
Status 8/25/04: Assembly approves amendments made in Senate 58-14. Heads next to Governor for approval

NON-PROFIT COMMUNITY-BASED ORGANIZATIONS
* AB 2832 - Increase State Minimum Wage
Author: Assemblymember Lieber (D-Saratoga)
Last Amended: 8/17/04
What This Bill Does: Would increase the State  minimum wage to $7.25 as of January 1, 2005,  and $7.75 as of January 1, 2006.
Status 8/25/04: Assembly approves amendments made in Senate 46-33.  Heads next to Governor for approval

* SB 1262 -  Accountability of Charitable Organizations/Fundraising Over $2 million
Author: Sen. Sher (D-Palo Alto)
Last Amended:  8/23/04
Status 8/25/04: Passes Assembly with amendments 41-25. Returns to Senate for agreement in amendments made in Assembly.
 

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT CA DISABILITY COMMUNITY ACTION NETWORK
URGENT - CONTRIBUTIONS NEEDED TO CONTINUE EFFORT
Please help continue the effort! Many many, thanks again,  to the friends, people with disabilities and their families, community organizations and others who have sent in generous and needed contributions and donations.  Contributions from people and organizations is  very urgently needed to keep the advocacy efforts going for the next several months, as we work to establish non-profit status, which we can focus after the budget is signed.  Apologies to anyone who have not yet received a thank you - email, letters, calls have been overwhelming!
Please make check or money order  to:  California Disability Community Action Network  (or abbreviate CDCAN).  A method to contribute by credit card (through Paypal) is NOW set up on our website, at www.cdcan.org.   CDCAN is not yet a non-profit organization but will be soon.  Send contributions to: California Disability Community Action Network,  1225 8th Street Suite #480, Sacramento, CA  95814.  A method to contribute by credit card (through Paypal) is NOW set up on our website, at www.cdcan.us   [NOTE the NEW website address!)
* Who Is CDCAN?
The California Disability Community Action Network is a non-partisan link to thousands of Californians with developmental and other disabilities, their families, community organizations and providers, direct care and other workers, and other advocates. These action alerts and news reports is for all of them. In addition it also goes to news organizations, state and local government officials and staff.
* How To Receive CDCAN Capitol News Reports and Alerts
If you would like to get on this distribution (and conversely, get off of it) please send an email with that  request to:  martyomoto@rcip.com  OR sign up via the NEW CDCAN website at www.cdcan.us  - the site at the NEW location is UP! Sharing information is part of our organizing effort. Please feel free to forward or copy  this (attribution is nice). We're all in this together!
* How To Contact CDCAN
Marty Omoto, director/organizer  -  California Disability Community Action Network   WEBSITE:  www.cdcan.us  [new address]
1225 8th Street Suite 480 Sacramento, CA 95814   VOICE PHONE: 916/446-0013
FAX number: 916/446-0026        email: martyomoto@rcip.com 
INFO HOTLINE TOLL FREE NUMBER: 1-877-260-0267 (cannot leave messages) SAME INFO HOTLINE FOR SACRAMENTO AREA:  486-4652