BILL ANALYSIS
AB 408
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 408 (Steinberg)
As Amended September 9, 2003
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |78-0 |(May 29, 2003) |SENATE: |40-0 |(September 10, |
| | | | | |2003) |
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Original Committee Reference: JUD.
SUMMARY : Makes changes in dependency law to help achieve permanency
for older foster youth. Specifically, this bill , among other
things:
1)Requires the court, if a minor 10 years of age or older who is
the subject of a juvenile court hearing is not present at that
hearing, to determine whether the minor was properly notified
of his or her right to attend the hearing.
2)Requires, at various points in the dependency process, with
regard to children over 10 years of age who are placed in
group homes, that the social study, evaluation, or
supplemental report used by the court shall include a
discussion of whether the child has relationships with
individuals other than the child's siblings that are important
to the child. Requires the social worker to ask a child who
is 10 years old or older who is placed in a group home to
identify any such individuals, consistent with the child's
best interest, and permits the social worker to ask a child
younger than 10 as appropriate. Requires the social worker to
make efforts to identify other individuals who are important
to the child. Creates new requirements for efforts to be made
to maintain such relationships, and for the court to review
information on such efforts at various points in the
dependency process.
3)Provides that every child adjudged to be a dependent child of
the juvenile court shall be entitled to participate in
age-appropriate extracurricular, enrichment and social
activities and that no state or local regulation or policy may
prevent or create barriers to participation in those
activities. Provides that each state and local entity shall
ensure that private agencies that provide foster care services
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to dependent children have policies consistent with this right
to participate, and that the agencies promote the ability of
dependent children to participate in activities. Provides
that caregivers shall use a "prudent parent" standard in
determining whether to give permission for a child residing in
foster care to participate in such activities.
4)Requires, in a proceeding to terminate parental rights or
establish a legal guardianship as to a dependent child, the
court, if the child is 10 years of age or older and is not
present at the hearing, to determine if the minor was properly
notified of his or her right to attend and to inquire as to
the reason why the child is not present.
5)Requires that in the court's review regarding a child in
long-term foster care, that if compelling reasons exist for
finding that return to the home of a parent, placement for
adoption, or appointment of a legal guardian are not in the
best interest of the child, the court shall consider whether
the child should be placed in another planned permanent living
arrangement.
6)Requires training for county child protective services social
workers in the importance to children in out of home
placements of maintaining relationships with individuals
important to them and methods for identifying such individuals
and maintaining those relationships.
7)Adds a statement of legislative intent that the state shall
encourage approaches to child protection that ensure that no
child leaves foster care without a life-long connection to a
committed adult.
The Senate amendments bar local regulations and policies from
creating barriers to the participation of dependent children in
age-appropriate extracurricular, enrichment and social
activities. They further require state and local agencies to
ensure that private agencies providing foster care services to
dependent children have policies consistent with the section
permitting dependent children to participate in age-appropriate
activities, and require the agencies to promote and protect the
ability of dependent children to participate in age-appropriate
extracurricular, enrichment and social activities. They limit
the new requirements as to inquiry into the child's
relationships with individuals who are important to the child to
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apply when a child is placed in a group home, rather than with a
non-relative. Finally, they add double-jointing amendments to
prevent the chaptering out of changes made in AB 579, AB 1151,
AB 490 and SB 591, should those bills be enacted.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill made various changes
intended to help achieve permanency for older foster youth,
including putting in place requirements that efforts be made to
identify relationships that are important to the child and to
maintain those relationships. The bill created a new section of
law specifying that dependent children are entitled to
participate in age appropriate extracurricular and social
activities, but did not specify the responsibility of state and
local entities to ensure that private agencies providing foster
care services have policies consistent with the new section, or
the requirement that such agencies promote and protect the
ability of dependent children to participate in such activities.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
analysis, unknown state-reimbursable court and county social
services costs, likely under $150,000 annually to identify and
integrate significant relationships into case plans for certain
children.
COMMENTS : This bill is intended to further the goal of
achieving permanency for older children in foster care, and
reducing reliance on long term foster care for these children.
The bill makes several changes to achieve its goals. First, it
declares legislative intent that no child be emancipated from
the foster care system without a connection to a committed and
caring adult. Second, this bill strengthens the right of any
child 10 years of age or older to be notified of and present at
his or her own dependency hearings.
At a number of crucial points in the dependency process, this
bill requires social workers to make efforts to identify persons
important to the child, whether family or non-family, and to
include in reports to the court information on their efforts to
identify such persons and the actions taken to maintain those
relationships. The author states that these provisions are
central to the main goal of this bill: ensuring that children
in foster care do not leave foster care without having a
relationship with a caring adult. In addition, the author
points out, asking about such relationships may result in
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finding a potential permanent placement for the child.
Finally, this bill establishes a "prudent parent" standard for
foster caregivers in order to allow foster kids to engage in
age-appropriate activities such as overnight visits with friends
without a criminal background check of the friends' parents
being required.
Analysis Prepared by : Kathy Sher / JUD. / (916) 319-2334
FN: 0004105