11523. (Amended by Stats. 2020, Ch. 11, Sec. 67.)

(b) The State Department of Social Services shall establish, by July 1, 2019, the California CalWORKs Outcomes and Accountability Review (Cal-OAR) to facilitate a local accountability system that fosters continuous quality improvement in county CalWORKs programs and in the collection and dissemination by the department of best practices in service delivery. The Cal-OAR shall cover CalWORKs services provided to current and former recipients, including those who are in sanction or exempt status or who are unengaged, and shall include the programmatic elements that each county offers as part of its CalWORKs service array as well as any local program components, and shall consist of performance indicators, a county CalWORKs self-assessment process, and a county CalWORKs system improvement plan. For purposes of this section, “CalWORKs services” shall include welfare-to-work, family stabilization, housing support, and post-employment job retention services.

(c) (1) (A) By October 1, 2017, the department shall convene a workgroup comprised of representatives from county human services agencies, legislative staff, interested welfare advocacy and research organizations, current and former CalWORKs recipients, organizations that represent county human services agencies and county boards of supervisors, representatives of community colleges, tribal organizations, and the workforce investment system, and any other state entities that the department deems necessary. The workgroup members shall also include individuals with expertise related to domestic violence, substance abuse, and mental health. The workgroup shall establish a workplan by which the Cal-OAR shall be conducted, pursuant to the provisions described in this section, including a process for qualitative peer reviews of counties’ CalWORKs services. The workgroup shall discuss potential costs for state and county participation.

(B) The department shall report annually to the Subcommittee on Health and Human Services of the Senate Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review and the Subcommittee on Health and Human Services of the Assembly Committee on Budget during the budget process with an update on the schedule for development of and future changes to the Cal-OAR.

(2) At a minimum, in establishing the work plan, the workgroup shall consider existing CalWORKs performance indicators being measured, additional, alternative, or additional and alternative process and outcome indicators to be measured, development of uniform elements of the county CalWORKs self-assessment and the county CalWORKs system improvement plans, timelines for implementation, recommendations for reducing the existing CalWORKS services data reporting burden in light of new requirements established by the act that added this section and the resulting Cal-OAR, recommendations for financial incentives to counties for achievement on performance measures, and an analysis of the county and state workload associated with implementation of the requirements of this section.

(d) The Cal-OAR shall consist of the following three components: performance indicators, a county CalWORKs self-assessment, and a county CalWORKs system improvement plan.

(1) (A) The Cal-OAR performance indicators shall be consistent with programmatic goals for the CalWORKs program, and shall include both process and outcome measures. These measures shall be established in order to provide baseline and ongoing information about how the state and counties are performing over time and to inform and guide each county human services agency’s CalWORKs self-assessment and CalWORKs system improvement plan.

(ii) Outcome measures shall include measures of employment, educational attainment, program exits, and program reentries, and may include other indicators of family and child well-being as determined by the department, in consultation with the workgroup.

(B) Performance indicator data available in existing county data systems shall be collected by counties and provided to the department, and performance indicator data available in existing state department data systems shall be collected by the department and provided to the counties. These data shall be reported in a manner and on a schedule to be determined by the department, in consultation with the workgroup, but no less frequently than semiannually.

(C) (i) During the first five-year Cal-OAR cycle, performance indicator data, as reported by each county, shall be used to establish both county and statewide baselines for each of the process measures. After the first review cycle, the department shall, in consultation with the workgroup, establish standard target thresholds for each of the process measures established by the workgroup.

(ii) The department, in consultation with the workgroup, shall develop a process for resolving any disputes regarding the establishment of standard process thresholds pursuant to clause (i).

(D) For subsequent reviews, and based upon availability of additional data from enhancements to the Statewide Automated Welfare System or through interagency data-sharing agreements, the workgroup shall convene, as necessary, to consider whether to establish additional performance indicators that support the programmatic goals for the CalWORKs program. Any additional performance indicators established shall also be subject to the process described in subparagraph (C) and include consideration of when data on the additional performance indicators would be available for reporting, if not already available.

(E) If, during subsequent reviews, there is sufficient reason to establish statewide performance standards for one or more outcome measures, the department may, in consultation with the workgroup, establish those standards for each of the agreed-upon outcome measures. In making a determination as to whether there is sufficient reason to establish performance standards for any outcome measure, the department shall consider whether all counties could reasonably be expected to meet those standards given local variability in employment opportunities, availability of services, demographics, educational opportunities, and funding, among other things.

(2) (A) The county CalWORKs self-assessment component of the Cal-OAR, as established by the workgroup, shall require the county human services agencies to assess their performance on the established process and outcome measures that comprise the performance indicators, identify the strengths and weaknesses in their current practice and resource deployment, identify and describe how local operational decisions and systemic factors affect program outcomes, and consider areas of focus that may be included in the county CalWORKs system improvement plan, as described in paragraph (3). The county CalWORKs self-assessment process shall be designed to identify areas of best practices for replication and for system improvement at the county level, and shall guide the development of the county CalWORKs system improvement plan, as described in paragraph (3). To the extent a county identifies eligibility procedures and practices that it determines, through its self-assessment, contribute to its achievement on process and outcome measures related to CalWORKs services, the county may, at its option, incorporate eligibility-related elements into its system improvement plan.

(B) (i) The county CalWORKs self-assessment process shall be completed every five years by the county in consultation and collaboration with local stakeholders and submitted to the department.

(ii) Local stakeholders shall include county CalWORKs administrators, supervisors, and caseworkers; current and former CalWORKs recipients; and county human services agency partners. To the extent possible and relevant, local stakeholders shall also include representatives of community colleges, tribal organizations, and the local workforce board. Additional specific county human services agency partners shall be determined by the county and may include, but are not limited to, adult education providers, providers of services for survivors of domestic violence, the local housing continuum of care, county behavioral health departments, county drug and alcohol programs, community-based service providers, organizations that represent CalWORKs recipients, child care resource and referral programs, and alternative payment programs, as appropriate.

(3) (A) (i) The county CalWORKs system improvement plan shall consist of uniform elements to be developed by the workgroup. It shall, at a minimum, describe how the county will improve its CalWORKs program performance in strategic focus areas based upon information learned through the county CalWORKs self-assessment process. The county CalWORKs system improvement plan shall be approved in public session by the county’s board of supervisors or, as applicable, chief elected official, and submitted to the department.

(ii) The county CalWORKs system improvement plan shall be completed every five years by the county, approved in public session by the county’s board of supervisors or, as applicable, chief elected official, and be submitted to the department.

(B) The county CalWORKs system improvement plan shall include a peer CalWORKs services review element, the purpose of which shall be to provide additional insight and technical assistance by peer counties for each county.

(C) Strategic focus areas for the county CalWORKs system improvement plan shall be determined by the county, informed by the county CalWORKs self-assessment process, as described in paragraph (2), with targets for improvement based upon what is learned in the county CalWORKs self-assessment process.

(D) The county human services agency shall complete an annual progress report on the status of its submitted system improvement plan and shall submit these reports to the department. The department, in consultation with the workgroup, shall develop uniform elements of the progress report.

(e) (1) The department shall receive, review, and, based on its determination of the county CalWORKs system improvement plan meeting the required elements identified in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (3) of subdivision (d), certify as complete all county-submitted performance indicator data, county CalWORKs self-assessments, county CalWORKS system improvement plans, and annual progress reports, and shall identify and promote the replication of best practices in CalWORKs service delivery to achieve the established process and outcome measures.

(2) The department shall monitor, on an ongoing basis, county performance on the measures developed pursuant to subdivision (d).

(3) The department shall make data collected pursuant to this section publicly available on its internet website.

(4) The department shall, on an annual basis, submit a report to the Legislature that summarizes county performance on the established process and outcome measures during the reporting period, analyzes county performance trends over time, and makes findings and recommendations for common CalWORKs services improvements identified in the county CalWORKs self-assessments and county CalWORKs system improvement plans, including information on common statutory, regulatory, or fiscal barriers identified as inhibiting system improvements and any recommendations to overcome those barriers.

(5) (A) The department shall facilitate the provision of, and provide as appropriate, technical assistance to county human services agencies as part of the peer review that supports the county’s selected areas for improvement as described in its system improvement plan.

(B) If, in the course of its review of county CalWORKs system improvement plans and annual updates, or, in the course of its review of regularly submitted performance indicator data, the department determines that a county is consistently failing to make progress toward its strategic focus areas for improvement or is consistently failing to meet the process measure standard target thresholds established pursuant to subparagraph (C) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (d), the department shall engage the county in a process of targeted technical assistance and support to address and resolve the identified shortcomings. If, after the assistance is provided, the county continues in its failure to meet its goals or performance thresholds, the department may engage in corrective action with the county.

(f) A county shall execute and fulfill components of its CalWORKs system improvement plan that can be accomplished with existing resources.

(g) A county shall not be required to execute and fulfill any components of its CalWORKs system improvement plan that creates new county costs, unless funding for those costs are appropriated in the annual Budget Act.

(h) The implementation of the Cal-OAR continuous quality improvement components, including county self-assessments, system improvement plans, peer reviews, progress reports, and data validation shall be optional to counties during the 2020–21 fiscal year.

(i) Beginning in the 2019–20 fiscal year, and for each fiscal year thereafter, no more than two million dollars ($2,000,000) from the General Fund shall be appropriated in the annual Budget Act to counties to complete the requirements described in subdivision (c).