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THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA
Adopted this Order on May 10, 1994 , by the following vote:
AYES: SUPERVISORS SMITH. BISHOP, DESAULNIER, TORLAKSON AND POWERS:
NOES: NONE
ABS ENT: NONE
ABSTAIN: NONE
SUBJECT: In the matter of approving )
Settlement Stipulation in )
Williams v. Contra Costa )
County, Superior Court )
action No. C93-01922 )
Upon the recommendation of the County Counsel and the Social
Service Director, IT IS BY THE BOARD ORDERED that the Settlement
Stipulation between counsel for the plaintiffs and County Counsel on
behalf of the defendants dated April 29 , 1994 , in Leroy Williams et
al. , v. Contra Costa County, et al. , Superior Court action No. C93-
01922, is approved.
1 hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of
an action taken and entered on the minutes of the
Board of Supervisors on the date shown.
ATTESTED: `__3L4 a. 1 -C) , I q�j /
PHIL BATCHELC ,Clerk 6f the Board
Of Supervisors and County Administrator
By l a Q .e�, ) Deputv
Orig. Dept: County Counsel
cc: County Administrator
Social Service Director
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19
COUNTY COUNSEL'S OFFICE
CONTRA COSTA COUNTY
MARTINE4 CALIFORNIA
Date: May 2, 1994
To: . Phil Batchelor, County Administrator
From: Victor J. Westman, County Counsel
By: Arthur W. Walenta, Assistant County Counsel
Re: Williams v. County
Enclosed is the stipulated settlement in the Williams case, and
a proposed Board of Supervisors ' order approving it.
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cc: Perfecto Villarreal, Social Service Director
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1 Ralph Murphy, #104140
Philip J. Bertenthal, #108762
2 Contra Costa Legal Services
Foundation
3 1017 Macdonald Avenue,
P.O. Box 2289
4 Richmond CA 94802
Telephone: (510) 233-9954
5
Tom Weathered, #115207
6 202 Louisburg
San Francisco CA 94112
7 Telephone (415) 333-9714
8 Robert Newman, #86534
Western Center on Law and
9 Poverty
3701 Wilshire Blvd., Ste. 208
10 Los Angeles CA 90010
Telephone: (213) 487-7211
11
Attorneys for Plaintiffs
12
Arthur W. Walenta, SB 31482
13 Assistant County Counsel
Victor J. Westman, SB 34044
14 County Counsel
Contra Costa County
15 County Administration Bldg.
651 Pine Street, 9th Flr.
16 Martinez CA 94553
Telephone: (510) 646-2070
17
Attorneys for Defendants
18
SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA
19
COUNTY OF CONTRA COSTA
20
21 LEROY WILLIAMS, et al. , ) CASE NO. : C93-01922
22 Plaintiffs, ) SETTLEMENT STIPULATION
23 V. )
24 CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, et al. , )
25 Defendants. )
26
27 In full and final settlement of the above-entitled action,
28 plaintiffs and defendants, by their respective counsel of record,
1 stipulate as follows:
2 1. The terms of this stipulation are subject to approval by
3 the Board of Supervisors of Contra Costa County, and shall be
4 incorporated into a proposed judgment which may be signed and file
5 by the court after notice to the class and hearing and approval by
6 the court.
7 I. Terms previously agreed to in the . Interim Stipulation
8 2'. In applying the provisions for aid discontinuance or
9 sanction under Welfare and Institutions Code Section 17001.5, the
10 Contra Costa County ("The County") Department of Social Services
11 ("The Department") shall be responsible for showing that a failure
12 or refusal to comply with General Assistance ("GA") program
13 requirements occurred.
14 3. The GA recipient who alleges that he or she has good
15 cause for his or her failure or refusal to comply with program
16 requirements shall be responsible for showing that good cause
17 exists.
18 4. The Board of Supervisors' ("The Board") GA standards and
19 the Department Manual shall not contain provisions regarding burden
20 of proof on sanction issues.
21 5. The Department Manual shall provide that there is no
22 presumption that failure to follow program requirements is willful
23 or non-willful.
24 6. Neither the Board GA standards nor the Department Manual
25 shall contain the presumptions stated in Evidence Code §664 and
26 §665.
27 7. The Department shall have no obligation to determine
28 willfulness or lack of good cause before sending warning notices,
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1 failure to comply notices, or notices of proposed action.
2 8. The Department Manual shall provide that non-willfulness
3 is good cause for a failure or refusal to comply with a program
4 requirement, subject to rebuttal by the Department.
5 9. The Department Manual shall provide that, twice only,
6 negligence shall be good cause, and that thereafter negligence
7 shall be subject to evaluation.
8 10. The Department Manual shall provide that a failure or
9 refusal to comply with a program requirement which occurs on
to account of an individual's disability shall be for good cause.
11 11. The following procedure shall be followed by the
12 Department when determining whether to give notice of a proposed
13 sanction or discontinuance for failure to comply with a GA program
14 requirement:
15 a) The first failure or refusal to comply with a program
16 requirement shall result in a warning notice in lieu of a sanction.
17 This warning notice shall advise of the failure to comply and stat
18 that:
19 i) Future failures to comply without good cause shall
20 be subject to sanction.
21 ii) The Department shall clear the warning notice if
22 the recipient contacts the responsible staff person within ten days
23 and shows good cause. Not more than twice, the Department shall
24 clear a warning notice if the recipient arranges for a new
25 opportunity to comply with the program requirement and complies
26 with the program requirement.
27 iii) If the warning notice is cleared, the recipient
28 shall be entitled to another warning notice in lieu of sanction for
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1 the next failure to comply.
2 b) Once a recipient has an uncleared warning notice, furthe
3 failures to comply will be subject to sanction, but before a notice
4 of proposed action may be sent, a failure to comply notice will be
5 given, offering the recipient the opportunity within ten days to
6 contact the responsible staff person and clear the noncompliance b
7 showing good cause.
8 c) If one year has elapsed since the end of the last period
9 of discontinuance or ineligibility, without the initiation of
10 procedures for a failure to comply with a program requirement which
it result in sanctions, the process for imposing sanctions shall begin
12 again as stated in subparagraph (a) above.
13 12. On the date that is the earlier of March 1, 1995 or the
14 day the Department has made its proposed automation plan fully
15 operational, the Department shall disregard any previous failures
16 or sanctions for all GA recipients, and begin the procedure stated
17 in (11) (a) above.
18 II. Notices and information concerning sanctions
19 13. The warning notice, the failure to comply notice, the
20 notice of action discontinuing aid or imposing a sanction because
21 of a failure to comply with program requirements, and any
22 informational documents on GA program requirements routinely
23 provided to recipients shall be created or modified to comply with
24 the judgment. Notices shall clearly advise GA recipients of their
25 rights.
26 III. Persons with Disabilities
27 14. For purposes of this stipulation and the judgment,
28 "disability" shall mean those disabilities covered by the Americans
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1 with Disabilities Act ("ADA") . In order to identify GA applicants
2 and recipients with disabilities, the Department shall take the
3 following actions. When information received or behavior observed
4 by Social Service Department staff indicates a possible mental
5 disability, the GA applicant or recipient shall be referred with
6 reasonable promptness for a competent evaluation concerning such
7 disability; but staff will have no duty to observe behavior for
8 disability. The County will study the feasibility of administering
9 to all GA applicants a recognized mental disability screening
10 device and will implement such screening if it can be carried out
11 in conjunction with the SASSI screening test without substantial
12 additional cost. If the results of the test indicate a possible
13 mental disability, the individual shall be referred for a competent
14 evaluation concerning such disability. The evaluation shall
15 include a form, to be reviewed by plaintiffs' counsel prior to
16 being put into use, evaluating the individual's abilities to
17 fulfill the following recipient's responsibilities:
18 a) Ability to understand requirement that recipient appear
19 at scheduled places and times for program activities;
20 b) Ability to use available public transportation to reach
21 places for program activities;
22 c) Ability to participate in simple work assignments under
23 direction;
24 d) Ability to explain failure to comply with a program
25 requirement;
26 e) Ability to keep appointments at scheduled places and
27 times for program activities;
28 f) Ability to obtain information and mail or submit to the
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1 Department forms such as the monthly reporting form and forms
2 requesting eligibility information and other required documents.
3 The evaluation results shall be made a part of the
4 individual's record, and the record shall be flagged and program
5 requirements shall be modified or waived, in whole or in part, as
6 necessary, to make a reasonable accommodation for the individual's
7 disability when a mental disability sufficient to affect the
8 application of general assistance program requirements is found.
9 All recipients who have been referred by the Social Services
10 Department for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) coverage and
11 whose claim is, in major part, based on a mental disability shall
12 be considered mentally disabled to the extent required for a
13 flagged case record. As soon as the Department has the capacity t
14 do so, and in no event latter than March 1, 1995, recipients with
15 flagged records shall also have their computer file coded to show a
16 mental disability.
17 15. When a general assistant applicant or recipient is found
18 to be physically disabled, the disability status shall be made a
19 part of the person's record, and the record shall be flagged and
20 program requirements shall be modified or waived, in whole or in
21 part, as necessary, to make a reasonable accommodation for the
22 individual's disability when a physical disability sufficient to
23 affect the application of general assistance program requirements
24 is found. As soon as the Department has the capacity to do so, an
25 in no event latter than March 1, 1995, recipients with flagged
I
i
26 records shall also have their computer file coded to show a
27 disability.
28 16. Flagged mental or physical disabilities shall be
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1
1 considered whenever disabled persons fail or refuse to follow
i
2 general assistance program requirements. Prior to 'the issuance of
3 one of the notices listed in paragraph "11", a flagged case record
4 shall be reviewed. If it appears from the case record that a
5 failure or refusal likely occurred on account of the disability,
6 the recipient shall not be sanctioned. A copy of all notices of
7 actions sent to individuals with case records flagged for mental
8 disabilities discontinuing aid or imposing a sanction for program
9 requirements shall be sent at the same time to Contra Costa Legal
10 Services Foundation. The sending of the notice to Contra Costa
11 Legal Services Foundation shall not be construed as a) providing
12 constructive notice to the individual or b) imposing a
13 responsibility by that organization to represent the individual or
14 take any action on the individual's behalf.
15 IV. Implementation of Sanction Policies
16 17. Within 90 days after the filing of the judgment the
17 County shall submit to the Defendants' counsel for review drafts of
18 Board orders, Manual Change Letters and other documents
19 implementing the judgment. Prior approval of the documents by
20 plaintiffs shall not be required. However, plaintiffs may move to
21 enforce the judgment if they believe the documents do not comply
22 with the judgment.
23 18. With regard to failure to follow program requirements,
24 "Willful" shall be defined to mean a purpose or willingness to
25 commit the act or make the omission in question, and does not
26 require an intent to violate program requirements. "Nonwillful"
27 shall be defined to mean an accidental or involuntary violation of
28 a program requirement or an intentional act not reasonably
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1 foreseeable to result in violation of a requirement. Conduct which
2 meets the definition of "non-willful" shall not be considered to b
3 "willful".
4 19. The Department shall consider the ten days to establish
5 good cause or request an opportunity to comply to begin on the date
6 of the notice or the date the notice's envelope is postmarked,
7 whichever is later. If the tenth day falls on a non-business day,
8 the individual shall have through the next business day to
9 establish good cause or request an opportunity to comply. A timely
10 request to establish good cause or to receive an opportunity to
11 comply may be made by telephone message to a responsible staff
12 person's voice mail or to any person receiving the worker's
13 telephone calls. In requesting an opportunity to comply, the
14 recipient must only request the opportunity within the ten days an
15 comply at the earliest available opportunity.
16 20. A recipient's attempt to establish good cause shall be
'17 recorded in the case record. Up to ten days before the first
18 appeal hearing date, a recipient may request a good cause
19 determination from the responsible staff person if such
20 determination has not already been made.
21 21. The general assistance standards and Social Services
22 Department Manual provisions shall provide that aid discontinuance
23 or sanctions may be imposed where an individual fails or refuses
24 without good cause to comply with a program requirement.
25 22. The provisions of the judgment shall be implemented by
26 the Department no later than September 1, 1994. By October 1, 1994
27 the Department shall provide to its staff training on the changes
28 in policies set forth in the judgment.
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1 23. For the effective period of the judgment, the County
2 shall continue to collect the data it currently collects for its
3 Case Data System concerning GA discontinuances and rescinds and the
4 data it collects for the CAOGA. . .XLS reports. In addition, as soon
5 as the County has implemented the appropriate codes and no latter
6 than July 1, 1995, the County shall collect on a monthly basis the
7 number of persons referred as a result of mental disability
8 screening for a mental disability evaluation, the number of cases
9 coded as physically or mentally disabled and the number of
10 sanctions imposed on mentally disabled and non-mentally disabled
11 persons each month and prepare a quarterly report on this data.
12 Copies of all of these reports shall be provided to Contra Costa
13 Legal Services Foundation on a quarterly basis.
14 24. The County shall notify Contra Costa Legal Services
15 Foundation and provide copies of any changes in policies or
16 documents concerning GA sanctions at least seven days prior to the
17 issuance of those policies or documents, or action by the Board of
18 Supervisors.
19 V. Effect of the Judgment
20 25. Nothing in this stipulation or the judgment shall
21 prevent the County's GA sanction policies from being modified
22 consistently with this stipulation or the judgment or from being
23 modified in accordance with new or amended statutes.
24 26. The provisions of the judgment shall only be effective
25 for six years after the filing of the judgment; thereafter, the
26 terms of this stipulation and the judgment shall not foreclose
27 claims concerning the scope or requirements of the Welfare and
28 Institutions Code or the Americans With Disabilities Act. The
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1 court shall retain jurisdiction during that time to enforce the
2 terms of the judgment.
3 VI. Attorneys fees and costs
4 27. The plaintiffs reserve the right to apply to the court
5 for attorneys fees and costs.
6 VII. Notice to the class, hearing and approval of Judgment
7 by the court
8 28. Within thirty days of the signing of this stipulation
9 the Defendants shall submit to plaintiffs' counsel a proposed order
10 providing for notice to the class and a hearing on the settlement.
it If the parties can agree on the terms of the order, the order shall
12 be submitted to the court within forty days of the signing of this
13 stipulation. If the parties cannot agree, each party shall submit
14 its own proposed order to the court within forty days of the
15 signing of this stipulation. The necessity and manner of post-
16 judgment notice to the class shall be reserved for determination b
17 the court, if the parties cannot agree.
18
19 Dated: April 29, 1994
Ralph 'Murphy
20 Attorney for 4aint-iffs
21
22 Dated: April 29, 1994
Arthur W. Walenta
23 Assistant County Couns
Attorney for Defendan s
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