5970.5. This part shall be implemented as follows, with technical assistance and continuous quality improvement, pursuant to Section 5983:
(a) A first cohort of counties, which shall include the Counties of Glenn, Orange, Riverside, San Diego, Stanislaus, and Tuolumne, and the City and County of San Francisco, shall begin no later than October 1, 2023, unless the county is provided additional time pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (c).
(b) A second cohort of counties, representing the remaining population of the state, shall begin no later than December 1, 2024, unless the county is provided additional time pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (c).
(c) (1) The department shall issue guidelines under which counties can apply for, and be provided, additional time to implement this part. The guidelines shall not be subject to the Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code).
(2) The department shall approve implementation delay for the first or second cohort if the county experiences a state or local emergency and the delay of the provision of the CARE process is necessary as a result of the emergency.
(3) The department shall only grant extensions once and no later than December 1, 2025.
(d) This part shall become operative only upon the department, in consultation with county stakeholders, developing a CARE Act allocation to provide state financial assistance to counties to implement the care process in this act.
(Added by Stats. 2022, Ch. 319, Sec. 7. (SB 1338) Effective January 1, 2023.)