CalWORKS.

Plain English Breakdown

The official source does not provide specific details on how much funding will be needed or provided by the state.

CalWORKS Program Changes

This bill changes CalWORKs eligibility criteria by removing work hour requirements and federal AFDC program criteria.

What This Bill Does

• Removes the requirement that parents must have worked less than 100 hours in the past four weeks to be eligible for CalWORKs aid.
• Eliminates the need for families to meet specific federal Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) program requirements when applying for CalWORKs assistance.
• Expands eligibility for CalWORKs by disregarding work hours, as long as the family meets income limits and other criteria.

Who It Names or Affects

• Families with children under 18 who need financial assistance.
• Local counties that provide CalWORKs benefits.
• State government, which must fund any increased costs from expanding the program.

Terms To Know

CalWORKs

A California program providing cash assistance and other benefits to low-income families with children under 18 years old.

TANF

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, a federal block grant program that allocates funds to states for temporary financial aid to needy families.

Limits and Unknowns

• The bill does not specify how much additional funding will be needed or provided by the state.
• It is unclear what the exact impact on local agencies and school districts will be in terms of increased costs.
• The extent of reimbursement from the state to local agencies for mandated costs remains unspecified.

Official Summary Text

AB 1755, as introduced, Sharp-Collins.
CalWORKS.
Existing federal law, the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, replaced the federal Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) program with the federal Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) block grant program. Existing federal law provides for allocation of federal funds through the federal TANF block grant program to eligible states. Existing law establishes the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program, under which, through a combination of state and county funds and federal funds received through the TANF program, each county provides cash assistance and other benefits to qualified low-income families.
Existing law requires aid to be granted to a family with a related child under 18 years of age who has been deprived of parental support or care due to the
unemployment, continued absence, death, incapacity, or incarceration of a parent. Existing law considers a child to be deprived of parental support or care due to unemployment of the child’s parent or parents when the child’s parent or parents have worked less than 100 hours in the preceding 4 weeks and meets specified requirements related to the federal AFDC program.
This bill would, for purposes of determining a child’s deprivation of parental support or care, delete the requirements that the parent or parents work less than 100 hours in the preceding 4 weeks and meet the federal AFDC program requirements. The bill would instead disregard the number of hours that the child’s parent or parents work, provided the family does not exceed the applicable gross or net income limits and is otherwise eligible for assistance. To the extent that the bill would expand eligibility for the CalWORKs program, thereby imposing a higher level of service on counties, the bill would
impose a state-mandated local program.
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, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Current Bill Text

Download Bill PDF