Coronavirus Relief: Executive Order Helps With CSU Admissions, Child Support, Background Checks
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — Governor Gavin Newsom issued a wide-sweeping executive order Thursday night in an effort to help Californians during the coronavirus crisis.
The order is set to help medical professionals applying to jobs, students applying to state colleges, child support recipients, and truck drivers, among others.
One item the order focused on was employment background checks. Governor Newsom ordered the Department of Justice to develop procedures for name-based background checks so there's no delay in processing job applications for critical sectors including health care workers.
Newsom also eased the path to college for some young Californians. Under the order, the California State University system can now waive hearing requirements to make adjustments to admissions criteria for students applying for the Fall 2021 term. Previously, any adjustments to admissions would require public hearings and took at least six months to go into effect.
For child support recipients, the order allows federal stimulus checks to go toward directly to parents' back-owed child support payments instead of to the state. Usually, tax refunds are first applied to support owed to the state.
The order also provides some relief for truck drivers who are keeping the supply chain alive but are left without many places to eat along their routes. Newsom called for commercially-licensed food trucks to operate in roadside rest areas for 60 days to provide those essential workers a place to eat.
Caltrans will be in charge of developing this rest-stop food truck system and issuing permits.
