Senior News December, 2001 Vol. 20. No.  12

 

Published by the Humboldt Senior Resource Center in Eureka, California. HSRC is a non-profit community-based organization offering services for senior citizens, multi-generational families and caregivers.

Senior Friends: Gifts of time, energy and talent are recognized

CSL: Seniors set priorities

We stand together: Local nonprofits could be inadvertant casualties of Sept. 11 horrors

Holiday spirit: Recipes bring memories, celebrate world cultures

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We stand together
Local nonprofits could be inadvertant casualties of Sept. 11 horrors
by Mary Beth Wolford

The 21st Annual Legislative Session of the California Senior Legislature (CSL) met in Sacramento Oct. 22-25.

What a difference a year makes! Senior Senator Mary Dennison and I attended the session at the State Capitol. This was my second session, and I felt much more comfortable with the proceedings.

But the Capitol has changed. Last year, we held some sessions in the Senate Chambers. This year that was not possible because the room was still being repaired from the truck assault. In addition, the rotunda was closed because of scaffolding erected there to work on the dome. Security measures were tight with examinations of purses and briefcases and Highway Patrol men and women standing guard inside.

CSL members presented fewer proposals this year than last, but their quality seemed higher. I was glad to see several proposals dealing with senior housing on our priority list. Although we were repeatedly warned not to pass any proposal that required funding from the general fund, one proposal would provide an additional $3 billion for the next fiscal year for development of new affordable housing units. CSL is sending a message!

Transportation is high on our list of needs in Humboldt and Del Norte counties, and some good proposals were recommended for alternative transportation for seniors who no longer drive. Unfortunately, none of those proposals made it to the top 10 list. But CSL's top priority legislative proposals are good ones, and we will work hard to have them become law.

Thea Gast is Senior Assembly Member of the California Senior Legislature. The CSL is a body of seniors elected through their local Area Agencies on Aging who develop a list of priorities and then seek legislative action on them. They report an average 70 percent success rate.

Top state proposals

* Assembly Proposal (AP)-7 Senior Housing Requirements - requires the Department of Housing and Community Development to recognize the construction of senior congregate housing as an expansion of the housing stock of the state.

* AP-21 Prescription Drug Discount Sunset - extends the sunset date for the discount prescription program which allows Medicare beneficiaries to obtain drugs at Medi-Cal rates.

* AP-24 Senior Housing Property Tax Freeze - encourages local agencies to build affordable, low-income housing by freezing property taxes on distressed property that is transformed into affordable, low-income housing.

* AP-26 Availability of Automated External Defibrillators - requires long-term care facilities, senior centers and bingo parlors to purchase and train personnel in the use of automated external defibrillators.

* AP-30 Dental Care for Seniors - requires the Department of Aging to conduct a study to determine if barriers to dental services exist for seniors in nursing homes or the homebound, and increases the Medi-Cal dental service reimbursement rate to 80 percent.

* AP-34 Affordable Housing Funding - provides an additional $3 billion for the next fiscal year to be used to develop new affordable housing units.

* AP-37 Commission on Aging Funding - requires matching funds for those provided by the Federal Older Americans Act for the California Commission on Aging.

* Senate Proposal (SP)-42 Increased Property Tax Exemption for Seniors - increases the homeowner's property tax exemption for seniors from $7,000 to $17,000.

* SP-52 Funding for Veterans' Home Improvements - authorizes the state to issue bonds to finance improvements to state veterans' homes.

* SP-54 Hotel Accessibility for the Disabled - requires that all motels and hotels comply with ADA accessibility guidelines and requires them to install grab bars in all tub and shower areas.

Federal Proposals

* AFP-1 Telemarketing Fraud Offenses - establishes increased criminal penalties for telemarketing fraud offenses, defines jurisdictions and cooperative efforts, and provides rewards.

* AFP-4 Retired Teachers' Social Security - eliminates the discriminatory practice of "Offset Injustice" and ensures that all Social Security contributions made by a person are available at retirement.

* AFP-5 Tax Deduction for Long-Term Care Insurance - makes long-term care insurance premiums fully deductible regardless of income, medical expenses or age of the covered individual.

* SFP-14 Dental, Vision, and Hearing Medicare Benefits - expands Medicare coverage to include routine dental, vision and hearing examinations and treatments.