Assembly BillChaptered/SignedMilitary and Veterans
AB 2219: Veterans.
What AB 2219 does, verified September 30, 2026
This bill aims to improve services for veterans in California. It requires county veterans service officers to be filled within 12 months and to obtain accreditation from the US Department of Veterans Affairs within 9 months. The California Department of Veterans Affairs must establish minimum training requirements for accreditation to improve public awareness and data collection. The bill also requires the department to develop a statewide work queue for appointments, claims assistance, and other services by January 1, 2028. It establishes a service capacity and performance framework to inform funding allocations for county veterans service offices and requires annual reports on the configuration, structure, and operations of each office. A standardized statewide digital survey platform will be created to collect feedback from veterans. Reimbursement for costs mandated by the state wil…
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Last action: Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 728, Statutes of 2026. (2026-09-28)Alert me
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| Sep. 28, 2026 | Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 728, Statutes of 2026. |
| Sep. 28, 2026 | Approved by the Governor. |
| Aug. 27, 2026 | Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 4 p.m. |
| Aug. 20, 2026 | In Assembly. Ordered to Engrossing and Enrolling. |
| Aug. 20, 2026 | Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 39. Noes 0.). |
Latest bill textEnrolled version, August 24, 2026 · 2,243 words
| Enrolled August 24, 2026 |
| Passed IN Senate August 20, 2026 |
| Passed IN Assembly May 21, 2026 |
| Amended IN Assembly April 08, 2026 |
| Amended IN Assembly March 16, 2026 |
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION
Assembly Bill
No. 2219
| Introduced by Assembly Member Schiavo (Coauthor: Assembly Member Jeff Gonzalez) |
February 19, 2026 |
An act to amend Sections 970, 971, and 972.1 of, and to add Section 972.15 to, the Military and Veterans Code, relating to veterans.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2219, Schiavo. Veterans.
Existing law authorizes the board of supervisors of each county to appoint a county veterans service officer to perform duties relating to the administration of benefits to veterans. Existing law authorizes the board to prescribe the qualifications of a county veterans service officer and fix the compensation of that officer. Existing law requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (department) annually to prepare a report of the activities of county veterans service officers, including information on the number of veterans and their family members who have contacted or utilized the services of the county veterans service offices and the benefits received by veterans and their dependents as a result of the efforts of the county veterans service offices.
This bill would require that a veterans service officer vacancy be filled within 12 months after the date of the vacancy and would require the appointee to obtain and maintain accreditation from the department, as specified, within 9 months after that appointment.
The bill would additionally require the department to establish minimum training requirements for accreditation that would, among other things, improve public awareness of free disability claim resources and ensure proper data collection to track system improvements. The bill would also require the department, in consultation with the California Association of County Veterans Service Officers, by no later than January 1, 2029, to develop and implement a statewide work queue, as defined, for appointments, claims assistance, and other services provided to veterans. By increasing the duties on local officials, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
Existing law requires the department to disburse funds, appropriated to the department for the purpose of supporting county veterans service officers pursuant to the annual Budget Act, on a pro rata basis to a county that complies with certain conditions.
This bill would require the department, in consultation with the California Association of County Veterans Service Officers, to develop a service capacity and performance framework to inform funding allocations for county veterans service offices. The bill would require the department to prepare and submit a report to the Legislature describing the proposed framework and its anticipated fiscal and operational impact, as specified. The bill would additionally require the department, by no later than January 1, 2029, and every 3 years thereafter, to prepare a report analyzing data regarding the configuration, structure, and operations of each county veterans service office and transmit the report, as specified, to the Legislature, the Department of Finance, the State Department of Health Care Services, and the California Veterans Board.
The bill would require the department, in consultation with the California Association of County Veterans Service Officers, to create a standardized statewide digital survey platform to collect feedback from veterans for services provided at service offices. The bill would authorize the department to review, adopt, amend, or repeal guidelines or terms, or both guidelines and terms to implement these provisions and would exempt that review, adoption, amendment, or repeal from the Administrative Procedure Act.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Section 970 of the Military and Veterans Code is amended to read:970.
(a) The board of supervisors of each county may appoint and fix the compensation of an officer to be titled “county veterans service officer.” The appointee shall be a veteran. A vacancy in the position of county veterans service officer shall be filled within 12 months after the position becomes vacant.(b) Each county may prescribe the qualifications of the county veterans service officer except that:
(1) The appointee shall obtain and maintain accreditation from the Department of Veterans Affairs within nine months after appointment.
(2) The Department of Veterans Affairs shall establish minimum training requirements to obtain and maintain accreditation through the department that, without limitation, would do all of the following:
(A) Identify and, where supported by data, address disparities in access to earned benefits based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity, or sexual orientation.
(B) Improve public awareness of free disability claim resources.
(C) Ensure proper data collection to track system improvements.
(c) It shall be the duty of a county veterans service officer to administer the aid provided for in this chapter, investigate all claims, applications, or requests for aid made pursuant to the terms of this chapter, and perform any other veteran-related services as requested by the county board of supervisors.
(d) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), two or more counties may jointly establish a single county veterans service office which shall serve all the counties that agree to the joint establishment of that office.
SEC. 2.
Section 971 of the Military and Veterans Code is amended to read:971.
(a) A county veterans service officer shall assist every veteran of any war of the United States and every qualified former member, and the dependents of every deceased veteran and every qualified former member, in presenting and pursuing a claim the veteran or the qualified former member may have against the United States and in establishing the veteran’s or qualified former member’s right to any privilege, preference, care, or compensation provided for by the laws of the United States or of this state.(b) A county veterans service officer shall present and pursue claims against the United States referred by a public agency pursuant to Section 721.
(c) (1) By no later than January 1, 2029, the Department of Veterans Affairs, in consultation with the California Association of County Veterans Service Officers, shall develop and implement a statewide work queue for appointments, claims assistance, and other services provided to veterans.
(2) By no later than January 1, 2029, the statewide work queue shall be operational and accessible to all county veterans service officers.
(3) The department shall coordinate with the California Association of County Veterans Service Officers in the design, data-sharing protocols, and implementation of the statewide work queue, including integration with existing data systems.
(4) Participation in the statewide work queue shall not negatively impact performance-based funding calculations.
(5) The department shall establish a separate workload unit category for services provided through the statewide work queue.
(d) For purposes of this section, the following terms shall apply:
(1) “Qualified former member” means a former member of the Armed Forces of the United States who is eligible under federal law to receive a veterans benefit from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs or any other agency of the federal government.
(2) “Statewide work queue” means an electronic workload management system under the authority of the department that distributes disability claims and appeals among county veterans services offices across the state, regardless of where the veteran lives.
(e) The department may review, adopt, amend, or repeal guidelines or terms, or both, to implement this article. Any guideline or term reviewed, adopted, amended, or repealed to implement this article is not 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).
SEC. 3.
Section 972.1 of the Military and Veterans Code is amended to read:972.1.
(a) The sum of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) is hereby appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Veterans Affairs for allocation, during the 1989–90 fiscal year, for purposes of funding the activities of county veterans service officers pursuant to this section. Funds for allocation in future years shall be as provided in the annual Budget Act.(b) (1) The department, in consultation with the California Association of County Veterans Service Officers, shall develop a service capacity and performance framework to inform funding allocations for county veterans service offices. Before implementing any substantial modification to the funding allocation methodology, the department shall prepare and submit a report to the Legislature, in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code, describing the proposed framework and its anticipated fiscal and operational impact.
(2) The service capacity and performance framework shall consider factors, including, but not limited to, each of the following:
(A) The size of the veteran population.
(B) Workload activity.
(C) Geographic access.
(D) Participation rate of veterans at that office.
(E) The value of new or increased federal benefits obtained.
(F) The organizational structure of that office.
(G) Service-related measures that indicate the experience of a veteran receiving services from an office.
(3) The framework developed by the department shall not treat participation in a statewide work queue, as described in Section 971, as a negative metric for a county veterans service office when measuring its performance.
(c) (1) The department shall, by no later than January 1, 2029, and every three years thereafter, prepare a report that analyzes the following data regarding the configuration, structure, and operations of each county veterans service office:
(A) The location of each county veterans service office, including satellite, mobile, and remote capabilities, and their hours of operation including hours for in-person and virtual appointments.
(B) The number of employees in each office, including the number whose primary duties are supporting veterans benefits claims, the number of employees in administrative roles, the number of supervisors, and the number of employees dedicated to outreach or specialized service populations.
(C) The organizational placement of the county veterans service office within the county government structure, and its reporting relationship.
(D) The primary sources of funding supporting the operations of the county veterans service office, including the county general fund support, state allocations, federal grants, and other grant-based or restricted funding streams.
(E) A description of cross-program collaboration and services provided in coordination with employment services, behavioral health services, housing and homelessness programs, justice-involved veteran programs, and other initiatives serving at-risk veteran populations.
(2) The department shall transmit a copy of the report, consistent with Section 9795 of the Government Code, to the Department of Finance, State Department of Health Care Services, California Veterans Board, and to each Member of the Legislature.
(d) Funds shall be disbursed each fiscal year on a pro rata basis to counties that have established and maintain a county veterans service office in accordance with the staffing level and workload of each county veterans service office under a formula based upon performance that shall be developed by the Department of Veterans Affairs for these purposes, and that shall allocate county funds in any fiscal year for county veterans service officers in an amount not less than the amount allocated in the 1988–89 fiscal year.
(e) The department shall annually determine the amount of new or increased monetary benefits paid to eligible veterans by the federal government attributable to the assistance of county veterans service officers. The department shall, on or before October 1 of each year, prepare and transmit its determination for the preceding fiscal year to the Department of Finance and the Legislature. The Department of Finance shall review the department’s determination in time to use the information in the annual Budget Act for the budget of the department for the next fiscal year.
(f) (1) The Legislature finds and declares that 50 percent of the amount annually budgeted for county veterans service officers is approximately eleven million dollars ($11,000,000). The Legislature further finds and declares that it is an efficient and reasonable use of state funds to increase the annual budget for county veterans service officers if it is justified by the monetary benefits to the state’s veterans attributable to the effort of these officers.
(2) It is the intent of the Legislature, after reviewing the department’s determination in subdivision (e), to consider an increase in the annual budget for county veterans service officers in an amount not to exceed five million dollars ($5,000,000), if the monetary benefits to the state’s veterans attributable to the assistance of county veteran service officers justify that increase in the budget.
SEC. 4.
Section 972.15 is added to the Military and Veterans Code, to read:972.15.
(a) The department shall, in consultation with the California Association of County Veterans Service Officers, develop a standardized statewide digital survey platform to collect feedback from veterans following appointments or services provided by county veterans service offices. The platform shall be designed to measure access, trust, service effectiveness, and overall experience while minimizing administrative burdens on counties.(b) The department shall, to the extent feasible, utilize existing reporting mechanisms and data systems to minimize administrative burden on counties.
SEC. 5.
If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.Text of AB 2219 as enrolled, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions