BILL NUMBER: SB 580 INTRODUCED BILL TEXT INTRODUCED BY Senator Leno FEBRUARY 22, 2013 An act to amend Section 13964 of, and to add Section 13963.1 to, the Government Code, relating to grants for trauma centers. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SB 580, as introduced, Leno. Crime victims: trauma center grants. The California Victim Compensation and Government Claims Board administers a program to assist state residents to obtain compensation for their pecuniary losses suffered as a direct result of criminal acts. Payment is made under these provisions from the Restitution Fund, which is continuously appropriated to the board for these purposes. This bill would authorize the board, as specified, to administer a program to award, upon appropriation by the Legislature, up to $2 million in grants, annually, to trauma centers, as defined. Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 13963.1 is added to the Government Code, to read: 13963.1. (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following: (1) Without treatment, approximately 50 percent of people who survive a traumatic, violent injury experience lasting or extended psychological or social difficulties. Untreated psychological trauma often has severe economic consequences, including overuse of costly medical services, loss of income, failure to return to gainful employment, loss of medical insurance, and loss of stable housing. (2) Victims of crime should receive timely and effective mental health treatment. (3) The board shall administer a program to evaluate applications and award grants to trauma recovery centers. (b) The board shall only award a grant to a trauma center that meets both of the following criteria: (1) The trauma center demonstrates that it serves as a community resource by providing services, including, but not limited to, making presentations and providing training to law enforcement, community-based agencies, and other health care providers on the identification and effects of violent crime. (2) Any other related criteria required by the board. (c) Upon appropriation by the Legislature, the board may award grants totaling up to two million dollars ($2,000,000) per year. All grants shall be funded only from the Restitution Fund. (d) The board may award a grant providing funding for up to a maximum period of three years. Any portion of a grant that a trauma center does not use within the specified grant period shall revert to the Restitution Fund. The board may award consecutive grants to a trauma center to prevent a lapse in funding. The board shall not award a trauma center more than one grant for any period of time. (e) (1) The board shall not receive, evaluate, or approve applications for trauma recovery center grants in a fiscal year unless the Restitution Fund is projected to have a year-end fund reserve equal to, or greater than, the equivalent of 25 percent of total budgeted expenditures for the fund, as projected in the January budget proposed by the Governor pursuant to Section 12 of Article IV of the California Constitution. (2) Grants awarded to trauma recovery centers shall not result in a year-end balance to the Restitution Fund of less than 25 percent of total budgeted expenditures for the fund, as projected in the January budget proposed by the Governor pursuant to Section 12 of Article IV of the California Constitution. (f) The board, when considering grant applications, shall give preference to a trauma center that conducts outreach to, and serves, both of the following: (1) Crime victims who typically are unable to access traditional services, including, but not limited to, victims who are homeless, chronically mentally ill, of diverse ethnicity, members of immigrant and refugee groups, disabled, or who have severe trauma-related symptoms or complex psychological issues. (2) Victims of a wide range of crimes, including, but not limited to, victims of sexual assault, domestic violence, physical assault, shooting, stabbing, and vehicular assault, and family members of homicide victims. (g) The trauma center sites shall be selected by the board through a well-defined selection process that takes into account the rate of crime and geographic distribution to serve the greatest number of victims. (h) A trauma center that is awarded a grant shall do both of the following: (1) Report to the board annually on how grant funds were spent, how many clients were served (counting an individual client who receives multiple services only once), units of service, staff productivity, treatment outcomes, and patient flow throughout both the clinical and evaluation components of service. (2) In compliance with federal statutes and rules governing federal matching funds for victims' services, each center shall submit any forms and data requested by the board to allow the board to receive the 60 percent federal matching funds for eligible victim services and allowable expenses. (i) For purposes of this section, a "trauma center" provides, including, but not limited to, all of the following resources, treatment, and recovery services to crime victims: (1) Mental health services. (2) Assertive community-based outreach and clinical case management. (3) Coordination of care among medical and mental health care providers, law enforcement agencies, and other social services. (4) Services to family members and loved ones of homicide victims. (5) A multidisciplinary staff of clinicians that includes psychiatrists, psychologists, and social workers. SEC. 2. Section 13964 of the Government Code is amended to read: 13964. (a) Claims under this chapter shall be paid from the Restitution Fund. (b) Notwithstanding Section 13340, except for funds to support trauma center grants pursuant to Section 13963.1, the proceeds in the Restitution Fund are hereby continuously appropriated to the board, without regard to fiscal years, for the purposes of this chapter. However, the funds appropriated pursuant to this section for administrative costs of the board shall be subject to annual review through the State Budget process. (c) A sum not to exceed 15 percent of the amount appropriated annually to pay claims pursuant to this chapter may be withdrawn from the Restitution Fund, to be used as a revolving fund by the board for the payment of emergency awards pursuant to Section 13961.