CalWORKs.

Patel’s measure would reshape CalWORKs by tying reunification planning more closely to welfare-to-work requirements and by letting a parent continue to receive aid during a child’s out-of-home placement without mandating that all children be removed or that the parent’s needs be included in the grant at removal, with the changes becoming operative only when the state’s automated welfare system is ready or on a later defined date.

A core element is adjusting eligibility timing and immunization rules. The proposal maintains that a parent may be treated as living with the child for a defined period of absence, but it removes the need for every child to be removed or for the parent’s needs to be included in the grant at the moment of removal. It also exempt families participating in reunification plans from certain immunization requirements and acknowledges expanded county responsibilities, rendering the changes a state-mandated local program. Implementation would be guided initially by department-issued instructions via broad guidance before formal regulations are adopted, and a phased, SAWS-driven timetable governs when these changes take effect.

For welfare-to-work planning in reunification contexts, the bill allows two paths to satisfy the CalWORKs welfare-to-work requirement: (A) a case plan under existing reunification provisions that includes cash aid or childcare services, or (B) a jointly developed child welfare services and CalWORKs welfare-to-work plan. The plan must describe the program components, participant rights and duties, exemptions, consequences of non-participation, criteria for completion, and the necessary services and supports, including those referenced in related provisions. The county must provide a brief evaluation window after plan completion or amendments in which participants may request changes, and plans must be written in clear, accessible language. The framework is operative on a SAWS readiness date or a later date and remains in effect only until the following January 1, unless extended.

Implementation and fiscal mechanics emphasize a cautious, transitional approach. There is no new general fund appropriation specified for these changes, but the bill contemplates potential reimbursement to local agencies if the state mandates new costs, under established statutes. The California Statewide Automated Welfare System’s readiness to support automation is a gating condition for timing, and counties will revise the state TANF plan to reflect the reorganized reunification and welfare-to-work structure. Acknowledging administrative realities, transitional guidance would be issued before formal regulations, and the bill underscores potential county-level costs and the corresponding reimbursement framework if mandated by the state.