An act to amend Section 12201 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to public social services, and making an appropriation therefor.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.
Section 12201 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read:
12201.
(a) Except as provided in subdivision (d) or (g), the payment schedules set forth in Section 12200 shall be adjusted annually to reflect any increases or decreases in the cost of living. Except as provided in subdivision (e) or (f), these adjustments shall become effective January 1 of each year. The cost-of-living adjustment shall be based on the changes in the California Necessities Index, which as used in this section shall be the weighted average of changes for food, clothing, fuel, utilities, rent, and transportation for low-income consumers. The computation of annual adjustments in the California Necessities Index shall be made in accordance with the following steps:
(1) The base period expenditure amounts for each expenditure category within the California Necessities Index used to compute the annual grant adjustment are:
Food ........................
$ 3,027
Clothing (apparel and upkeep) ........................
406
Fuel and other utilities ........................
529
Rent, residential ........................
4,883
Transportation ........................
1,757
Total ........................
$10,602
(2) Based on the appropriate components of the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, as published by the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, the percentage change shall be determined for the 12-month period that ends 12 months prior to the January in which the cost-of-living adjustment will take effect, for each expenditure category specified in paragraph (1) within the following geographical areas: Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, San Francisco-Oakland, San Diego, and, to the extent statistically valid information is available from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, additional geographical areas within the state that include not less than 80 percent of recipients of aid under this chapter.
(3) Calculate a weighted percentage change for each of the expenditure categories specified in paragraph (1) using the applicable weighting factors for each area used by the Department of Industrial Relations to calculate the California Consumer Price Index (CCPI).
(4) Calculate a category adjustment factor for each expenditure category in paragraph (1) by (1) adding 100 to the applicable weighted percentage change as determined in paragraph (2) and (2) dividing the sum by 100.
(5) Determine the expenditure amounts for the current year by multiplying each expenditure amount determined for the prior year by the applicable category adjustment factor determined in paragraph (4).
(6) Determine the overall adjustment factor by dividing (1) the sum of the expenditure amounts as determined in paragraph (4) for the current year by (2) the sum of the expenditure amounts as determined in paragraph (4) for the prior year.
(b) The overall adjustment factor determined by the preceding computational steps shall be multiplied by the payment schedules established pursuant to Section 12200 as are in effect during the month of December preceding the calendar year in which the adjustments are to occur, and the product rounded to the nearest dollar. The resultant amounts shall constitute the new schedules for the categories given under subdivisions (a), (b), (c), (d), (e), (f), and (g) of Section 12200, and shall be filed with the Secretary of State. The amount as set forth in subdivision (h) of Section 12200 shall be adjusted annually pursuant to this section in the event that the secretary agrees to administer payment under that subdivision. The payment schedule for subdivision (i) of Section 12200 shall be computed as specified, based on the new payment schedules for subdivisions (a), (b), (c), and (d) of Section 12200.
(c) The department shall adjust any amounts of aid under this chapter to ensure that the minimum level required by the Social Security Act in order to maintain eligibility for funds under Title XIX of that act is met.
(d) (1) No adjustment shall be made under this section for the 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010 calendar years to reflect any change in the cost of living. Elimination of the cost-of-living adjustment pursuant to this paragraph shall satisfy the requirements of Section 12201.05, and no further reduction shall be made pursuant to that section.
(2) Any cost-of-living adjustment granted under this section for any calendar year shall not include adjustments for any calendar year in which the cost-of-living adjustment was suspended pursuant to paragraph (1).
(e) For the 2003 calendar year, the adjustment required by this section shall become effective June 1, 2003.
(f) For the 2005 calendar year, the adjustment required by this section shall become effective April 1, 2005.
(g) (1) For the 2011 calendar year to the 2017 calendar year, inclusive, no adjustment shall be made under this section unless otherwise specified by statute.
(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the pass along of federal benefits provided for in Section 12201.05 shall be effective on January 1 of each calendar year.

Summary: Existing law provides for the State Supplementary Program for the Aged, Blind and Disabled (SSP), which requires the State Department of Social Services to contract with the United States Secretary of Health and Human Services to make payments to SSP recipients to supplement Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments made available pursuant to the federal Social Security Act.
Under existing law, benefit payments under SSP are calculated by establishing the maximum level of nonexempt income and federal SSI and state SSP benefits for each category of eligible recipient. The state SSP payment is the amount required, when added to the nonexempt income and SSI benefits available to the recipient, to provide the maximum benefit payment. Existing law prohibits, for each calendar year, commencing with the 2011 calendar year, any cost-of-living adjustment from being made to the maximum benefit payment unless otherwise specified by statute, except for the pass along of any cost-of-living increase in the federal SSI benefits. Existing law continuously appropriates funds for the implementation of SSP.
This bill would reinstate the cost-of-living adjustment beginning January 1 of the 2018 calendar year.
By reinstating the cost-of-living adjustment, this bill would make an appropriation.