New Version of AB 649 Passes Assembly 53-9; Heads to Senate - Previous Version of Bill Gutted

SACRAMENTO  - The Assembly this afternoon, passed by a bi-partisan vote of 53-9  the once controversial AB 649 by Assemblywoman Patricia Wiggins (D-Santa Rosa), which was gutted and replaced with only intent language that calls for the state to maintain level of funding, including any new additional federal dollars, for services for children and adults with developmental disabilities.  The bill heads to the State Senate, where it will likely be referred to the Senate Health and Human Services Committee.  Currently the bill contains only intent language and no provisions. See below for details (and for a full report on the status of other bills see California Disability Community Action Network Capitol Report #21-2004)

The bill received the report of  several Republicans, including Assemblyman Keith Richman (R-Northridge) and Assemblywoman Patricia Bates (R-Laguna Niguel).

The bill was heard in the Assembly Human Services Committee last week, with an audience of several hundreds of people with developmental disabilities, family members, workers in support of the new version of the bill.  The chair of the committee, Assemblywoman Lois Wolk, supported the new version of the bill, but indicated she would call the bill back into her committee if it changed substantially. There is no chance that the previous versions of the bill can be amended back into AB 649 successfully, given how the measure passed out of the Assembly Human Services Committee.

*AB 649  (ASSEMBLYWOMAN WIGGINS)  DEVELOPMENTAL SERVICES: MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT
STATUS 1/26/04: Passed Assembly 53-9.
NEXT STEPS: Heads to the Senate, and then to the Senate Health and Human Services Committee.
VOTE RECORD REPORT/ASSEMBLY FLOOR:
Assemblymembers Voting YES  (Total 53,  7 Republicans and 46 Democrats):  Bates (R), Berg (D), Bermundez (D), Calderon (D), Canciamilla (D), Chan (D), Chavez (D), Chu (D), Cohn (D), Corbett (D), Correa (D), Diaz (D), Dutra (D), Dymally (D), Firebaugh (D), Frommer (D), Garcia (R), Goldberg (D), Hancock (D), Harman (R), Horton, J. (D), Jackson (D), Koretz (D), La Suer (R) , Laird (D), Leno (D), Levine (D), Lieber (D), Liu (D), Longville (D), Lowenthal (D), Matthews (D), Maze (R), Montanez (D), Mullin (D), Nakano (D), Negrete McLeod (D), Nunez (D), Oropeza (D), Parra (D), Pavely (D), Reyes (D), Richman (R), Ridley-Thomas (D), Salinas (D), Simitian (D), Steinberg (D), Vargas (D), Wesson - Assembly Speaker (D), Wiggins (D), Wolk (D), Wyland (R), and Yee (D)
Assemblymembers Voting NO (Total 9, all Republicans): Benoit (R), Bogh (R), Campbell (R), Cogdill (R), Haynes (R), Keene (R), La Malfa (R), Leslie (R), Samuelian (R)
Assemblymembers NOT VOTING (Total 18, 16 Republicans and 2 Democrats):  Aghazarian (R), Cox (R), Daucher (R), Dutton (R), Horton, S (R), Houston (R), Kehoe (D), Maddox (R), Maldonado (R), McCarthy (R), Mountjoy (R), Nakanishi (R), Nation (D), Pacheco (R), Plescia (R), Runner (R), Spitzer (R), Strickland (R)
WHAT THIS BILL WOULD DO (Amended 1/7/04 - major changes, gutting previous versions of bill): States only intent, contingent on if sufficient funds are available that, at minimum, the amount of state funds appropriated to the Department of Developmental Services for allocation to regional centers for the provision of services and supports in the community to persons with developmental disabilities be maintained at its current level and that state funds be supplemented, and not be supplanted, by increases in federal money received by the state to provide services and supports to persons with developmental disabilities. [note: ALL other provisions in prior version of the bill were deleted by this amendment]
WHO THIS BILL IMPACTS: People with developmental disabilities, families, community organizations
BACKGROUND: This bill, formerly proposing "workforce service centers" has been totally gutted, and replaced with amendments that only state legislative intent. The bill contains no provisions that make any changes in any law and as it stands is essentially a resolution. The bill faces an uphill battle for passage in the Senate.
 

CONTRIBUTIONS NEEDED TO CONTINUE ADVOCACY EFFORT
Until grant funding is finalized, contributions from people and organizations is urgently needed to keep the advocacy efforts going for the next two months. Please make check or money order  to:  California Disability Community Action Network/Marty Omoto (or abbreviate CDCAN/Marty Omoto). CDCAN is not yet a non-profit organization (work on this will have this happen in within January)
Send contributions to: California Disability Community Action Network,  1225 8th Street Suite #480, Sacramento, CA  95814. Thanks - and we will get through this!

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THIS ACTION ALERT
* This is a NON-PARTISAN online news report  of the non-partisan California Disability Community Action Network, a 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 reports (formerly the CA UCP Capitol Reports) are for all of them.  This report goes to thousands of people with developmental and other disabilities, their families, community providers and organizations, direct care and other workers and advocates across California. In addition it also goes to news organizations, state and local government officials and staff.
* 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. 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!
Marty Omoto, director/organizer
California Disability Community Action Network
1225 8th Street Suite 480 Sacramento, CA 95814   VOICE PHONE: 916/446-0013
FAX number: 916/446-0026        email: martyomoto@rcip.com