BACKGROUND
In the early 1990’s, the State of California’s legislature passed legislation authorizing counties to establish public authorities for the purpose of administering the delivery of In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS). In July 1999, the California State legislature enacted AB 1682 requiring all counties to establish an “employer of record” for IHSS by January 2003. The public authority was seen as the means to ensure and to increase consumer involvement in IHSS policy development. The Kings County Board of Supervisors established an IHSS Advisory Council in October 2000. The Advisory Council recommended the establishment of a public authority. On July 25, 2002, the Kings County Board of Supervisors adopted Ordinance No. 613 establishing the Kings IHSS Public Authority.
The primary role for the public authority is to act as the “employer of record” for the IHSS caregivers. This allows a mechanism for organization and collective bargaining for the first time. The United Domestic Workers of America Union was elected in September 2002 as the recognized employee organization. In addition, the PA is seen as a means to improve the quality of IHSS by providing caregiver screening, registry services, referral services, and caregiver and consumer training.
The statewide IHSS program is designed to provide domestic and personal care services to eligible low-income elderly, blind, disabled individuals to remain safely in their own homes as an alternative to out-of-home care. More than half (59 percent) are disabled, 39 percent are elderly, and two (2) percent are blind individuals.
The role of the IHSS employer is a shared responsibility. A social worker from the Human Services Agency uses state IHSS guidelines to determine how many hours can be authorized to complete domestic and personal care tasks. Personal care refers to the Activities of Daily Living (ADL): eating, bathing, grooming, dressing, and toileting. Domestic tasks include: housecleaning, grocery shopping, and other chore services. The public authority assists the IHSS consumer in finding a provider. The IHSS consumer is the person who chooses, hires, fires, supervises, and signs the timesheets for the caregiver. The caregivers’ timesheets are submitted to the State Department of Human Services for processing. The data is then transferred to the State of California Controller’s office. The State Controller issues payroll checks twice a month and is responsible for mandated withholdings. |
