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<ns0:ActionText>INTRODUCED</ns0:ActionText>
<ns0:ActionDate>2025-02-14</ns0:ActionDate>
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<ns0:SessionYear>2025</ns0:SessionYear>
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<ns0:AuthorText authorType="LEAD_AUTHOR">Introduced by Assembly Members Lee and Schultz</ns0:AuthorText>
<ns0:AuthorText authorType="PRINCIPAL_COAUTHOR_ORIGINATING">(Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Celeste Rodriguez)</ns0:AuthorText>
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<ns0:Legislator>
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<ns0:House>ASSEMBLY</ns0:House>
<ns0:Name>Lee</ns0:Name>
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<ns0:Contribution>LEAD_AUTHOR</ns0:Contribution>
<ns0:House>ASSEMBLY</ns0:House>
<ns0:Name>Schultz</ns0:Name>
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<ns0:Legislator>
<ns0:Contribution>PRINCIPAL_COAUTHOR</ns0:Contribution>
<ns0:House>ASSEMBLY</ns0:House>
<ns0:Name>Celeste Rodriguez</ns0:Name>
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<ns0:Title>An act to add Chapter 15.9 (commencing with Section 18996.9) to Part 6 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to public social services. </ns0:Title>
<ns0:RelatingClause>public social services</ns0:RelatingClause>
<ns0:GeneralSubject>
<ns0:Subject>The California Guaranteed Income Statewide Feasibility Study Act.</ns0:Subject>
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<html:p>Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services, subject to an appropriation for this purpose in the annual Budget Act, to administer the California Guaranteed Income Pilot Program to provide grants to eligible entities for the purpose of administering pilot programs and projects that provide a guaranteed income to participants. Existing law requires the department to prioritize funding for pilot programs and projects that serve California residents who age out of the extended foster care program and pregnant individuals. Existing law requires the department, in consultation with relevant stakeholders, to determine the methodology for, and manner of, distributing those grants, subject to certain requirements. Existing law requires the department to review and evaluate the pilot programs and projects funded pursuant to these provisions, provide a report to the Legislature
regarding that review and evaluation, and post a copy of the report on its internet website.</html:p>
<html:p>This bill, the California Guaranteed Income Research and Expansion Act, would require the State Department of Social Services to contract with one or more entities, subject to specified requirements, to develop and provide comprehensive recommendations on how to design, fund, and implement a permanent, statewide Guaranteed Income Program. The bill would require the contractor, among other things, to examine the benefits and challenges of scaling up permanent guaranteed income programs to reach a larger proportion of California’s socially and economically vulnerable populations, focusing on regions with a high cost of living and insights from best practices and lessons learned from the California Guaranteed Income Pilot Program. The bill would require specified state departments to disclose necessary data to the State Department of Social Services and require the contractor
to convene a steering committee composed of various stakeholders, as provided. The bill would require the department to, on or before January 1, 2028, publish on its internet website and provide a report to the Governor and the Legislature on the feasibility and benefits of expanding the California Guaranteed Income Pilot Program statewide based on the outcomes of the act.</html:p>
<html:p>This bill would authorize the State Department of Social Services to implement, interpret, or make specific the act without taking any regulatory action, as specified, and accept and, subject to an appropriation, expend funds to administer and implement the act.</html:p>
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<ns0:Preamble>The people of the State of California do enact as follows:</ns0:Preamble>
<ns0:BillSection id="id_668C40EB-101C-42EA-85A5-5B3D41E4812A">
<ns0:Num>SECTION 1.</ns0:Num>
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Chapter 15.9 (commencing with Section 18996.9) is added to Part 6 of Division 9 of the
<ns0:DocName>Welfare and Institutions Code</ns0:DocName>
, to read:
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<ns0:LawHeading id="id_34B13F09-6AD9-4D1E-9948-AB339FC9FA4D" type="CHAPTER">
<ns0:Num>15.9.</ns0:Num>
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<ns0:LawHeadingText>The Guaranteed Income Research and Expansion Act</ns0:LawHeadingText>
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<ns0:LawSection id="id_94ADB8EC-CB94-492F-B2C3-EB9EA6A51C8F">
<ns0:Num>18996.9.</ns0:Num>
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<ns0:Content>
<html:p>This chapter shall be known, and may be cited, as the Guaranteed Income Research and Expansion Act.</html:p>
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<ns0:LawSection id="id_546D6CC1-631E-4BFD-A25B-3A49362150A7">
<ns0:Num>18996.91.</ns0:Num>
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<html:p>
(a)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The State Department of Social Services shall contract with one or more qualified entities to implement the Guaranteed Income Research and Expansion Act. The contracted entities shall develop and provide comprehensive recommendations to design, fund, and implement a permanent, statewide Guaranteed Income Program that achieves all of the following overarching objectives:
</html:p>
<html:p>
(1)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Identify sustainable funding mechanisms to ensure the program's long-term viability and sustainability.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(2)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Make recommendations on needed administrative infrastructure and program design, including, but not limited to, all of the following:
</html:p>
<html:p>
(A)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
State and local department and agency collaboration and necessary data sharing to reach Californians with low incomes.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(B)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Determining the duration of the program.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(C)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Setting appropriate payment amounts.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(D)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Identifying key target populations.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(3)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Identify pathways to ensure the program does not threaten eligibility for other social safety net programs, thereby maintaining comprehensive support for participating individuals and families.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(b)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The contractor chosen by the department pursuant to subdivision (a) shall do all of the following:
</html:p>
<html:p>
(1)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Determine the administrative capacity, infrastructure, and
data-sharing requirements, across state and local departments and agencies, that will be necessary to execute a sustainable statewide guaranteed income program, prioritizing populations in greatest need with the goal of scaling the program to reach all low-income Californians.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(2)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Examine the benefits and challenges of scaling up a statewide, permanent guaranteed income program to reach a larger proportion of California’s socially and economically vulnerable populations with a focus on both of the following:
</html:p>
<html:p>
(A)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Regions with a high cost of living.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(B)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Insights from best practices and lessons learned from the California Guaranteed Income Pilot Program established pursuant to Chapter 16 (commencing with Section 18997).
</html:p>
<html:p>
(3)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Explore progressive,
innovative, and equitable funding mechanisms, partnerships, and sustainable revenue sources to support permanent guaranteed income programs’ expansion and long-term viability, emphasizing wealth distribution.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(4)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Recommend a data-driven approach to identify priority populations, considering the intersections of social, gender, economic, and racial disparities in California, ensuring that the program targets those most in need. Priority populations include, but are not limited to, all of the following:
</html:p>
<html:p>
(A)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Single heads of household.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(B)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Survivors of intimate partner violence.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(C)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Undocumented immigrants.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(D)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Seniors experiencing poverty.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(E)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
CalWORKs recipients.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(F)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Formerly incarcerated individuals.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(G)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Transition-age foster youth.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(H)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
LGBTQ+ individuals.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(5)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Identify local, state, and federal resources, benefits, and services that seek to prevent and end poverty in California and how to preserve access to those benefits and maintain federal contributions for them under a statewide guaranteed income program, considering how eligibility, income thresholds, and benefits calculations are structured.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(6)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Identify necessary data-sharing partnerships among groups and individuals including, but not limited to, local government agencies, participants in the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development’s
assisted housing, federal agencies, nonprofit, private, and community-based entities working to implement guaranteed income pilot programs, and state agencies and departments, including, but not limited to, the Franchise Tax Board, the Treasurer’s office, the State Department of Social Services, the County Welfare Directors Association of California, the State Department of Health Care Services, the State Department of Public Health, the Interagency Council on Homelessness, the Employment Development Department, and other statewide institutions that deliver services to low-income Californians.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(7)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Identify the need and potential for local, state, and federal entities to coordinate existing funding and applications for competitive funding. Any action taken shall not restructure or change existing allocations or allocation formula.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(8)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Present policy and procedural recommendations
to legislators and other governmental entities to introduce a permanent statewide guaranteed income program.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(c)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Notwithstanding any other state law, each of the following state departments shall disclose necessary data to the department to the extent permitted by federal law, for the purposes of this chapter:
</html:p>
<html:p>
(1)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The State Department of Health Care Services.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(2)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The State Department of Public Health.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(3)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The Employment Development Department.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(4)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The Interagency Council on Homelessness.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(5)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The Franchise Tax Board.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(d)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
(1)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
On or before
January 1, 2028, the State Department of Social Services shall publish on its internet website and provide a report to the Governor and the Legislature on the feasibility and benefits of expanding the California Guaranteed Income Pilot Program statewide based on the outcomes of the Guaranteed Income Research and Expansion Act.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(2)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
(A)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The requirement for submitting a report imposed under paragraph (1) is inoperative on January 1, 2029, pursuant to Section 10231.5 of the Government Code.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(B)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
A report to be submitted pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(e)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
(1)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The contractor chosen by the department pursuant to subdivision (a) shall convene a steering committee composed of the
following stakeholders:
</html:p>
<html:p>
(A)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Three organizations that operate or have operated a local or state-funded guaranteed income pilot program. One person shall be from the northern region, one person shall be from the central region, and one person shall be from the southern region of California.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(B)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Nine participants in a current or concluded, California-based guaranteed income program who live in California. At least one person shall have participated in a locally or state-operated guaranteed income program and be from the northern region of California, at least one person shall have participated in a locally or state-operated guaranteed income program and be from the central region of California, and at least one person shall have participated in a locally or state-operated guaranteed income program and be from the southern region of California.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(C)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
One researcher with knowledge and expertise in social determinants of health who convenes administrators of guaranteed income programs in California and nationally.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(2)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The contractor chosen by the department pursuant to subdivision (a) shall select two community-based institutions to facilitate the steering committee. One shall be an independent, community-based administrator of a guaranteed income pilot program with experience with one state-funded guaranteed income program and a minimum of two additional local guaranteed income programs, focusing on the priority populations described in paragraph (4) of subdivision (b), and one shall be an antipoverty and advocacy coalition that advocates for statewide wealth and income redistribution and economic racial justice.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(3)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The two facilitating organizations selected
pursuant to paragraph (2) shall provide guidance on an equitable process to select steering committee members and assemble the steering committee by July 1, 2026. The steering committee shall meet quarterly, at minimum, until the conclusion of the term of the contract entered into pursuant to subdivision (a).
</html:p>
<html:p>
(f)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
The contractor chosen by the department pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be limited to academic research institutions based in California with expertise in poverty, such as developing proposals related to poverty that are specific to California and proposals related to basic income. To the extent possible, the contractor shall provide equitable compensation for participants in local guaranteed income pilot programs participating in subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (e).
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<ns0:LawSection id="id_A932FE2D-B13A-4412-82EB-67FBE9BB1D4C">
<ns0:Num>18996.92.</ns0:Num>
<ns0:LawSectionVersion id="id_255B8A84-D046-4D49-AD8F-86FAA2CC28E8">
<ns0:Content>
<html:p>
(a)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Notwithstanding any other law, contracts awarded pursuant to this chapter are exempt from the personal services contracting requirements of Article 4 (commencing with Section 19130) of Chapter 5 of Part 2 of Division 5 of Title 2 of the Government Code, the Public Contract Code, and the State Contracting Manual.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(b)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Notwithstanding any other law, contracts awarded pursuant to this chapter are not subject to the approval of the Department of General Services or the Department of Technology.
</html:p>
<html:p>
(c)
<html:span class="EnSpace"/>
Notwithstanding the rulemaking provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code)
or any other law, the department may implement, interpret, or make specific this chapter without taking any regulatory action.
</html:p>
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</ns0:LawSection>
<ns0:LawSection id="id_29C16920-C2A8-42B3-B6F2-32D7375E5A3B">
<ns0:Num>18996.93.</ns0:Num>
<ns0:LawSectionVersion id="id_3C1F1856-341F-406F-A7B8-6DE556A7B971">
<ns0:Content>
<html:p>Notwithstanding any other law, the department may accept and, subject to an appropriation for this purpose, expend funds from any public or private source to administer this chapter.</html:p>
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<ns0:LawSection id="id_AEE45327-5F4F-45E9-A1F0-C1B68623C4D3">
<ns0:Num>18996.94.</ns0:Num>
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<html:p>Implementation of this chapter shall be subject to an appropriation by the Legislature.</html:p>
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