Community Care Expansion Program.

A new Community Care Expansion Program is established under the State Department of Social Services, authorizing grants for acquisition, construction, or rehabilitation of property to operate residential adult and senior care facilities, or to provide capitalized operating subsidy reserves to existing licensed facilities to prevent closures.

The entire amendment to Government Code Section 11019.81 (Government-to-Government Consultation Act) was removed. This would have required state agencies to consult with tribes within 60 days of a tribal request, removed references to nonfederally recognized tribes, and established training requirements for state officials on government-to-government consultation.

The bill's stated purpose shifted from covering both state-tribal consultation and the Tribal Housing Grant Program Trust Fund to covering the Community Care Expansion Program and the Tribal Housing Grant Program Trust Fund. The Government Code reference was replaced with a Welfare and Institutions Code reference.

Qualified grantees include counties, tribes, or jointly applying counties and tribes. A 'qualified resident' is defined as an SSI/SSP or CAPI applicant or recipient who needs the care provided by the facility, excluding those receiving services through a regional center.

Counties and tribes receiving funds must provide matching funds or real property, but tribes are exempt from providing real property if federal restrictions limit tribal property ownership. An 8 percent set-aside is created for a competitive program targeting small counties with populations under 200,000.

If a grant is awarded to a tribe, the department must administer the contract and award process directly with the tribal applicant, include its existing tribal liaison throughout the grant process, and ensure contracts align with federal HUD tribal housing grant agreements.

Projects receiving funds are deemed consistent with local plans and treated as ministerial actions (no discretionary permits required). Contracts are exempt from multiple state procurement and contracting requirements. The state is granted immunity from liability for program implementation. The department may implement the chapter through all-county letters instead of formal rulemaking.

The bill was reformatted from a traditional legislative document layout (with line numbers, page headers like '96' and 'SB 1322 -2-') into a web page format that includes navigation elements (home, accessibility, FAQ, feedback, sitemap, login), a quick search box, and links to related resources such as votes, history, bill analysis, and status.

Added a new section creating the Tribal Housing Grant Program Trust Fund in the State Treasury, funded by dedicated appropriations plus 10 percent of moneys appropriated for the Multifamily Housing Program, Infill Infrastructure Grant Program of 2019, Veterans Housing and Homeless Prevention Act of 2014, and Joe Serna Jr. Farmworker Housing Grant Program.

Added allocation rules: 95 percent of fund deposits go on an entitlement basis to governing bodies of California-based federally recognized Indian reservations or rancherias via a formula determined by the department; 5 percent is available for technical assistance to eligible tribes and tribally designated housing entities.

Added requirements that tribal governments annually submit a plan detailing fund use and an annual report tracking expenditures, and that recipients may not spend more than 20 percent of their allocation on administrative costs without department approval.

Changed the Government-to-Government Consultation Act from encouraging consultation to requiring it: 'the Legislature encourages the state and its agencies to consult' was changed to 'the state and its agencies shall consult' within 60 days of a tribal request.

Added a requirement that for grant applications due after January 1, 2028, the department must streamline and align the grant application process with federal tribal grant application requirements.

Added a requirement that the department include a designated tribal liaison in discussions with tribes throughout the grant process to ensure tribal sovereignty is honored.

Removed references to nonfederally recognized tribes from the definition of 'tribal implications' and from the consultation language in subdivision (c), narrowing the scope of covered entities to California tribes and federally recognized tribes only.

Expanded the bill's scope from amending only Government Code 11019.81 (state government) to also amending Health and Safety Code 50651.1 (housing), adding a new policy area to the legislation.