BILL ANALYSIS Ó SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair 2015 - 2016 Regular Session SB 1039 (Hill) - Professions and vocations ----------------------------------------------------------------- | | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- |--------------------------------+--------------------------------| | | | |Version: April 21, 2016 |Policy Vote: B., P. & E.D. 6 - | | | 2 | | | | |--------------------------------+--------------------------------| | | | |Urgency: No |Mandate: Yes | | | | |--------------------------------+--------------------------------| | | | |Hearing Date: May 23, 2016 |Consultant: Brendan McCarthy | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- This bill does not meet the criteria for referral to the Suspense File. Bill Summary: SB 1039 would increase licensing fees assessed by the Board of Registered Nursing, the Pharmacy Board, the State Contractors Licensing Board, and the Court Reporters Board. The bill would eliminate the Telephone Medical Advice Services Bureau. Fiscal Impact: One-time costs of $260,000 and ongoing costs of $250,000 per year for the Board of Registered Nursing to audit providers of continuing education (Board of Registered Nursing Fund). Increased licensing fee revenues of about $23 million per year to the Board of Registered Nursing (Board of Registered Nursing Fund). Increased licensing fee revenues of about $7 million per year SB 1039 (Hill) Page 1 of ? to the Board of Pharmacy (Pharmacy Board Contingent Fund). Increased licensing fee revenues of about $13 million per year to the Contractor's State Licensing Board (Contractors Licensing Fund). Increased licensing fee revenues of about $950,000 per year to the Court Reporters Board (Court Reporters Fund). Reduced expenditures (and license fee revenues) of about $200,000 per year from the elimination of the Telephone Medical Advice Services Bureau (Telephone Medical Advice Services Fund). One-time General Fund benefit of about $1.1 million. The Telephone Medical Advice Services Fund has a projected fund balance at the end of the budget year of about $1.1 million. According to the Government Code, any fund balance remaining upon the abolishment of the fund can be transferred to the General Fund. Upon abolishment of the Bureau, the Department of Finance should be able to abolish the fund and transfer the balance to the General Fund. Background: Under current law, a variety of boards, bureaus, and committees within the Department of Consumer Affairs license and regulate professions and vocations. Proposed Law: SB 1039 would make a variety of changes to the statutes governing various boards, bureaus, and committees within the Department of Consumer Affairs. Specific provisions of the bill would: With regard to the Dental Board of California: o Declare legislative intent to enact legislation to provide dental scholarships; o Authorize the Dental Board to accept the findings of a Board-approved accreditation body for foreign dental schools; With regard to the Board of Podiatric Medicine: o Establish the Board within the Department of Consumer Affairs, no longer within the Medical Board of California; SB 1039 (Hill) Page 2 of ? o Revise the requirements for the term of a license; With regard to the Board of Registered Nursing: o Impose additional requirements on continuing education requirements; o Require the Board of Registered Nursing to audit continuing education providers at least once every five years; o Raise specified licensing fees currently assessed by the Board and impose additional fees; With regard to the Board of Pharmacy: o Raise specified fees paid by licensees; With regard to the Telephone Medical Advice Services Bureau: o Eliminate the Bureau and repeal the requirement that businesses that provide telephone medical advice be registered with the Bureau; With regard to the Contractors State License Board: o Raise specified fees paid by licensees; o Require the Board to establish criteria for processing expedited applications; With regard to the Court Reporters Board: o Raise the renewal fee limit; With regard to the Structural Pest Control Board: o Make a number of changes to the requirements for inspection reports and agreements regulated by the Board. Staff Comments: The fee increases included in the bill respond to structural imbalances in the special funds that support the impacted boards. With regard to the Board of Registered Nursing - significant budget augmentations in recent years for enforcement of licensing requirements and cost increases associated with the new BreEze licensing system have led to a structural deficit in the Board of Registered Nursing Fund. The Board of Registered Nursing Fund is projected to be insolvent in 2018-19 without increased revenues or decreased spending. With regard to the Board of Pharmacy - the Board has increased enforcement spending by about 50% in recent years. All of the SB 1039 (Hill) Page 3 of ? Board's licensing fees are capped in statute, and most of those fees have been set at their statutory maximum. Based on current revenue and expenditure trends, the Pharmacy Board Contingent Fund is projected to be insolvent by 2017-18. With regard to the Telephone Medical Advice Services Bureau - current law requires businesses that provide telephone medical advice to register with the Bureau. The Bureau does not actively regulate registered entities and the Bureau receives a very small number of consumer complaints each year. Also, most of the activities undertaken by registered entities would be subject to licensing and regulation by other state entities, such as the Medical Board. With regard to the Contractors State Licensing Board - the board has experienced increased costs in recent years, primarily due to increased administrative costs associated with the BreEze licensing system and increased enforcement costs. (However, the Board is not currently scheduled to transition to the BreEze system.) The Contractors Licensing Fund is projected to be insolvent by 2017-18. With regard to the Court Reporters Board - increasing costs and declining numbers of licensees has led to a structural deficit. The Court Reporters Fund is projected to be insolvent by 2017-18. The only costs that may be incurred by a local agency relate to crimes and infractions. Under the California Constitution, such costs are not reimbursable by the state. -- END -- SB 1039 (Hill) Page 4 of ?