18996.91.
(a) The State Department of Social Services shall contract with one or more entities for the provision of a Guaranteed Income Statewide Feasibility Study. The study shall provide recommendations on the feasibility of a statewide Guaranteed Income Program and seek to achieve, at minimum all of the following objectives:(1) Determine what administrative capacity, infrastructure, and data sharing across state and local agencies will be necessary to execute a statewide guaranteed income program that first seeks to include priority populations with the ultimate goal of reaching all low-income Californians.
(2) Examine the feasibility, benefits, and challenges of scaling up permanent guaranteed income programs to reach a larger proportion of California’s socially and economically vulnerable populations, focusing on regions with a high cost of living, and informed by best practices and lessons learned from the Guaranteed Income Pilot Program established pursuant
to Chapter 16 (commencing with Section 18997).
(3) Explore progressive, innovative, and equitable funding mechanisms, partnerships, and sustainable revenue sources that can support the expansion and long-term viability of permanent guaranteed income programs and ultimately redistribute wealth.
(4) Explore a data-driven approach to identify priority populations, taking into consideration the intersections of social, gender, economic, and racial disparities in California to ensure that the guaranteed income program targets those most in need and most affected by these disparities.
Notwithstanding any other state law, each of the following state departments shall disclose necessary data to the department to the extent permitted by federal law, for the purposes of this paragraph.
(A) The State Department of Health Care Services.
(B) The State Department of Public Health.
(C) The Employment Development Department.
(D) The Interagency Council on Homelessness.
(E) The Franchise Tax Board.
(5) Identify local, state, and federal resources, benefits, and services that seek to prevent and end poverty in California.
(6) Identify necessary data-sharing
partnerships among groups and individuals including, but not limited to, local government agencies, participants in the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development’s assisted housing, federal agencies, nonprofit, private, and community-based entities working to implement guaranteed income pilot programs, and state agencies and departments, including, but not limited to, the Franchise Tax Board, the Treasurer’s office, the State Department of Social Services, the State Department of Health Care Services, the State Department of Public Health, the Interagency Council on Homelessness, the Employment Development Department,
and other
statewide institutions that deliver services to low-income Californians.
(7) Identify the need and potential for local, state, and federal entities to coordinate existing funding and applications for competitive funding. Any action taken shall not restructure or change any existing allocations or allocation formula.
(8) Present policy
and procedural recommendations to legislators and other governmental entities to introduce a permanent statewide guaranteed income program.
(b) On or before July 1, 2027, the State Department of Social Services shall publish on its internet website and provide a report to the Governor and the Legislature on the feasibility and benefits of expanding the Guaranteed Income Program statewide based on the outcomes of the Guaranteed Income Statewide Feasibility Study.
(c) (1) The requirement for submitting a report imposed under subdivision (b) is inoperative on January 1, 2029, pursuant to Section 10231.5 of the Government Code.
(2) A report to be submitted pursuant to subdivision (b) shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
(d) The Guaranteed Income Statewide Feasibility Study shall include a steering committee
composed of the following stakeholders:
(1) Three persons who operate or have operated a local or state-funded guaranteed income pilot program. One person shall be from the northern region, one person shall be from the central region, and one person shall be from the southern region of California.
(2) Five participants in a local guaranteed income pilot program who live in California. At least one person shall be from the northern region, at least one shall be from the central region, and at least one person shall be from the southern region of California.
(3) Two representatives of antipoverty and advocacy coalitions that advocate for statewide wealth and income redistribution and economic racial justice.
(4) One researcher with knowledge and expertise
in community collaborative guaranteed income research.
(e) The contractor chosen by the department pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be limited to the research institutions based in California that are supported by the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, and, to the extent possible, and the contractor shall provide equitable compensation for participants in local guaranteed income pilot programs participating in paragraph (3) of subdivision (d).