CHAPTER 2.1. Public Social Services for Deaf Persons [10620. - 10629.]

Cal. Welfare and Institutions Code - WIC 2.1.
in effect

Cal. Welfare and Institutions Code - WIC § 10620. Section 10620.

The Legislature finds that over 1.5 million persons in California are deaf or are significantly hard of hearing. Basic governmental services are not routinely adapted to meet the communication needs of deaf and hard-of-hearing persons and, therefore, the services they receive may be less than those provided to other persons because of the overwhelming communication problems which exist between service agencies and deaf and hard-of-hearing persons.

Cal. Welfare and Institutions Code - WIC § 10621. Section 10621.

Public social services for the deaf and hard of hearing shall include, but not be limited to, the following services: (a) Complete communication services through interpreter services by a professional interpreter for the deaf possessing the comprehensive skills certification of the national Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf or the equivalent, teletypewriter relay, and, when necessary, training in communication skills. (b) Advocacy to ensure deaf and hard-of-hearing persons receive equal access to public and private services. (c) Job development and job placement. (d) Information and referral. (e) Counseling, including peer counseling. (f) Independent living skills instruction. (g) Community education about deafness and being hard of hearing.

Cal. Welfare and Institutions Code - WIC § 10622. Section 10622.

Public social services for the deaf and hard of hearing shall be available in at least three regions throughout the state so that deaf and hard-of-hearing persons are able to secure public social services within a reasonable commuting distance. Deaf and hard-of-hearing persons, residing in urban, suburban, and rural areas, shall be served.

Cal. Welfare and Institutions Code - WIC § 10623. Section 10623.

Public agencies or private nonprofit corporations or a combination thereof in a region may provide the public social services listed in Section 10621 directly or through agreements with other public agencies or private nonprofit corporations.

Cal. Welfare and Institutions Code - WIC § 10624. Section 10624.

(a) The department, with the advice of persons knowledgeable about the provision of public social services to deaf and hard-of-hearing persons, shall establish the criteria for funding public social services for the deaf and hard of hearing. (b) The criteria shall include, but shall not be limited to, demonstrated need for services, ability to provide services in a deaf or hard-of-hearing person’s preferred mode of communication, ability to secure community support, including written endorsements of local officials and organizations, including organizations of and for the deaf and hard of hearing, and funding from one or more public or private sources. Special consideration shall be given to the extent to which deaf and hard-of-hearing persons are included in the agency’s staff and in the case of a private nonprofit corporation on the board of directors.

Cal. Welfare and Institutions Code - WIC § 10625. Section 10625.

The department shall do all of the following: (a) Determine the number and location of regions of the state providing public social services. (b) Coordinate the provision of services with the Department of Rehabilitation. (c) Establish uniform accounting procedures and contracts or grant agreements for use with regard to this chapter. (d) Promulgate requests for proposals or applications and conduct bidders’ conferences, if applicable. (e) Establish by regulation the definitions of deafness and significantly hard of hearing. (f) Conduct a management or fiscal audit of any contract or grant whenever it is necessary for proper supervision of a contract or grant.

Cal. Welfare and Institutions Code - WIC § 10626. Section 10626.

(a) The department shall contract with, or award grants to, public agencies or private nonprofit corporations for purposes of this chapter. Those contracts or grants shall be competitively bid pursuant to a request for proposals or applications, either statewide or by specific region or regions. Each contract or grant shall have a term not to exceed five years. Before the end of each contract or grant term, the department shall conduct a timely competitive request for proposals or applications that allows sufficient time for execution of a subsequent contract or grant to avoid a lapse in services. (b) Notwithstanding any other law, contracts necessary pursuant to this section shall be exempt from the personal services contracting requirements of Article 4 (commencing with Section 19130) of Chapter 5 of Part 2 of Division 5 of Title 2 of the Government Code. (c) A private nonprofit corporation shall submit a complete financial statement for its most recent fiscal year as prepared by a certified public accountant prior to a renewal or new award of a contract or grant.

Cal. Welfare and Institutions Code - WIC § 10626.5. Section 10626.5.

(a) A public agency or nonprofit corporation, or a combination thereof, providing the public social services listed in Section 10621, may charge a fee to all public and private agencies when providing public social services to those agencies. The charge shall be based on a standard schedule of fees established and maintained by the service provider. The amount charged shall equal the sum of all costs, direct and indirect, for providing the public social services listed in Section 10621. This fee shall be referred to as program income. (b) The purpose of program income shall be for either (1) expanding, or (2) continuing the provision of public social services as listed in Section 10621, irrespective of the state fiscal year in which the program income was earned or collected. In the event of cancellation or nonrenewal of a contract or grant, all program income not expended shall be remitted to the department. (c) Except as otherwise provided by law, all program income received shall be accounted for to the State Department of Social Services at the close of each fiscal year, or more frequently if required by the State Department of Social Services, or the Department of Finance, in such form as prescribed. It is the intent of the Legislature to allow prior collected funds currently in the possession of the service providers to be expended on the provision of the public social services as listed in Section 10621.
Source: CA Legislative Counsel Bulk DataURL: https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zipFetched: 6/27/2026

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