2009 California Welfare and Institutions Code - Section 19460-19471 :: Article 2. Transportation And Assistive Technology Loan Guarantees

19460.  (a) There is in the State Treasury a permanent revolving
fund to be known as the Rehabilitation Revolving Loan Guarantee Fund,
and to be administered by the department. The money deposited in the
fund, including, but not limited to, money in any previously
established account within the fund, is hereby appropriated, without
regard to fiscal years, for the purposes of this article. The fund
shall be used to guarantee loans made by eligible lenders to eligible
persons for the purchase of vans, automobiles, and other special
equipment to facilitate transportation of individuals with
disabilities, and to assist private employers and employees, and
other persons regardless of age, with disabilities to purchase
assistive technology in order to live more independently or to engage
in employment, including, but not limited to, supported employment
as defined and determined by the department.
   (b) Nothing in this section shall be construed to abrogate the
requirement that employers comply with reasonable accommodations and
related responsibilities pursuant to federal and state laws. Nothing
in this section shall be construed to prevent a loan guarantee for
individuals with disabilities who have previously received vocational
rehabilitation services and who wish to obtain a loan to purchase
newly developed assistive technology or to replace worn or obsolete
assistive technology.
   (c) In determining eligibility for a loan guarantee from this
account, the department shall make any loan guarantee contingent upon
a determination that the person or the family of a child reasonably
can be expected to repay the loan based on the person's or family's
expected income or other resources.
   (d) To the extent possible, loans made pursuant to this chapter
shall provide for a security interest to be given the lending
institution in the vehicle or assistive technology for which the loan
is made.

19461.  As used in this article, the following definitions apply:
   (a) "Department" means the Department of Rehabilitation.
   (b) "Eligible persons" means any of the following, provided that
household income does not exceed the level prescribed for
moderate-income families by the Department of Housing and Community
Development pursuant to Section 50093 of the Health and Safety Code:
   (1) Parents of a child with a disability who has been certified by
a physician or the department as having a disability, who is living
in the home, and who requires a modified vehicle for mobility.
   (2) A person with a disability who has been certified by a
physician or the department as having a disability, and who requires
a modified vehicle for mobility.
   (3) Parents of a child with a disability who has been certified by
a physician or the department as having a disability, who is living
in the home, and who requires assistive technology, including
evaluation and training in the use of an assistive technology device,
which is necessary for independent living.
   (4) A person with a disability who has been certified by a
physician or the department as having a disability, and who requires
assistive technology, including evaluation and training in the use of
an assistive technology device, which is necessary for independent
living.
   (c) "Eligible lender" means a financial institution organized,
chartered, or holding a license or authorization certificate under a
law of this state or the United States to make loans or extend credit
and subject to supervision by an official or agency of this state or
the United States.
   (d) "Assistive technology" means any item, piece of equipment, or
product system, whether acquired commercially, modified, or
customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve functional
capabilities of individuals with disabilities, and any service that
directly assists an individual with a disability in the selection,
acquisition, or use of the item, equipment, or product system.

19462.  The department shall serve as a state loan guarantee agency
to guarantee loans and to administer a guaranteed loan program
established pursuant to this article. The department shall guarantee
any loan made pursuant to this article at 100 percent of the total
amount of principal and interest of the loan in default. The
department shall establish the ratio of reserve funds to loans
outstanding. The effective interest rate to the borrower shall be a
percent per annum, which is less than the fair market interest rate
at the time the loan guarantee request is considered by the
department, and which is based upon the ability of the borrower to
pay, as determined by the department. When an application for a loan
guarantee is approved by the department, the differential interest
between the percent per annum approved by the department and the rate
charged by the participating lender shall be prepaid by the
department to the participating lender out of the Rehabilitation
Revolving Loan Guarantee Fund. If the borrower defaults on any loan
guaranteed by this program, the participating lender shall reimburse
the department for any interest not accrued, after deduction for any
unavoidable loss suffered by the lender.

19463.  State guaranteed loans made pursuant to this article shall
be made without regard to race, religion, creed, or sex.

19464.  The total amount of all outstanding debts, obligations, and
liabilities which may be incurred or created under this article is
limited to the amount contained in the Rehabilitation Revolving Loan
Guarantee Fund, and the state shall not be liable beyond the amount
contained in such fund for such debts, obligations, and liabilities.

19465.  In the event that the amount of loans applied for under this
article exceeds the amount of the loans that may be guaranteed
pursuant to this article, the department may establish a system of
priorities for the approval of loans.

19466.  The State Treasurer shall invest, pursuant to statute, any
surplus money in the Rehabilitation Revolving Loan Guarantee Fund.
The interest or other accretions as a result of the investment of
such money shall accrue to the fund.

19467.  The funds in the Rehabilitation Revolving Loan Guarantee
Fund shall be paid out by the State Treasurer on warrants drawn by
the Controller and requisitioned by the department in carrying out
the purposes of this article.

19468.  The department shall encourage private eligible lenders to
participate in the guaranteed loan program established by this
article, and shall develop and distribute in cooperation with private
eligible lenders consumer information for prospective borrowers.

19469.  No loan in excess of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) shall
be made to any eligible person pursuant to this article.

19470.  The department shall adopt regulations not inconsistent with
this article that, among other things, shall establish criteria for
determining eligibility for loans in the guarantee program that
ensure that the applicants have the ability to repay the loans

19471.  (a)  The department may apply for a federal grant award
through the federal alternative financing program established
pursuant to subparagraph (D) of paragraph (2) of subsection (b) of
Section 3003 of Title 29 of the United States Code and may use funds
in the Rehabilitation Revolving Loan Guarantee Fund, established
pursuant to Section 19460, as the match for these federal grant
funds. The department may comply with applicable federal grant
requirements, including, to the extent required, contracting with a
community-based, nonprofit organization that has individuals with
disabilities involved in the organization decisionmaking at all
organizational levels, to administer the alternative financing
program.
   (b) The department may do all of the following:
   (1) Select a community-based organization with which to contract
based upon consideration of criteria, including, but not limited to,
the organization's sound fiscal condition and internal controls.
   (2) Monitor and audit performance by the organization under the
contract to minimize the risk of loss to the loan guarantee program
of loan defaults.
   (3) Terminate the contract in the event the department determines
that the organization has not complied with the contract terms or has
not prudently administered the loan guarantee funds.
   (c) Moneys received from a federal alternative financing grant
shall be deposited in the Rehabilitation Revolving Loan Guarantee
Fund established pursuant to Section 19460, and the federal funds and
state matching funds shall be administered by the department and, as
set forth in subdivision (a), by a community-based organization
through a contract with the department, for the purpose of providing
loan guarantees consistent with this article and applicable federal
grant requirements.
   (d) To the extent that state funds in the Rehabilitation Revolving
Loan Guarantee Fund are not used to fund the alternative financing
program, the department shall administer any remaining money in the
fund consistent with the provisions of this article, and may enter
into contracts with any public or private entity for the provision of
services relating to the administration of the loan guarantee
program.
   (e) No more than 10 percent of the fund, excluding funds held in
reserve pursuant to Section 19462, per fiscal year, may be used for
costs of administration of the loan guarantee program, including
administrative costs incurred by the department and any contractor.