BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    




                   Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
                           Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair

                                           597 (Liu)
          
          Hearing Date:  05/28/2009           Amended: 05/12/2009
          Consultant:  Jacqueline Wong-HernandezPolicy Vote: Human  
          Services 3-2
          _________________________________________________________________ 
          ____
          BILL SUMMARY: SB 597 makes changes in state law relative to  
          child welfare services to conform to Public Law 110-3511, to  
          take advantage of potential additional federal funding available  
          through that law, and to clarify the application of federal law  
          in the state. This bill: 

          1) Expands the definition of "care and supervision," for use in  
          determining payments to    foster care providers, to comply with  
          new federal law.
           
          2)  Requires DSS to develop a plan for the ongoing oversight and  
          coordination of health care services for a child in foster care,  
          and to do so in consultation with pediatricians, health care  
          experts, experts in and recipients of child welfare services,  
          and with the advice of the state's child welfare council.

          3)  Requires DSS and licensed adoptive agencies to provide  
          information regarding the federal adoption tax credit to any  
          individual adopting or considering adopting a child in  
          foster care.

          4)  Requires, to the extent supported by federal grant funds,  
          that training programs include Kin-GAP caregiver and child  
          welfare agencies.   
          _________________________________________________________________ 
          ____
                            Fiscal Impact (in thousands)

           Major Provisions         2009-10      2010-11       2011-12     Fund
           Additional DSS workload         Minor and absorbable              
                               General      
          _________________________________________________________________ 
          ____

          STAFF COMMENTS: SUSPENSE FILE
          










          Additional workload to DSS should be minor and absorbable. DSS  
          already complies with most of the requirements of this bill, and  
          the remaining provisions allow DSS sufficient flexibility to  
          implement within existing resources.