BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 212
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Date of Hearing: April 5, 2011
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES
Jim Beall Jr., Chair
AB 212 (Beall) - As Amended: March 29, 2011
SUBJECT : California Fostering Connections to Success Act
SUMMARY : Makes various technical and clarifying changes to the
California Fostering Connections to Success Act of 2010.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Exempts parents from referral by the county child welfare
department to the local child support agency for the payment
of child support on behalf of an adult, nonminor dependent in
foster care.
2)Makes technical changes to replace the phrase "period of trial
departure" with "period of trial independence" as defined in
law.
3)Clarifies that the juvenile court shall order a hearing
following a petition to resume dependency provided the
following criteria apply to the nonminor:
a) He or she was previously under the juvenile court
jurisdiction and was granted a trial independence which has
not expired;
b) He or she intends to satisfy at least one of the
required work, education, or medical condition-related
criteria enumerated under 3 of existing law, below; and,
c) He or she wants assistance with either maintaining or
securing appropriate housing or is in need of immediate
placement and agrees to supervised placement pursuant to
the mutual agreement.
4)Clarifies that rules of court required to be adopted by the
Judicial Council shall accommodate the option for a nonminor
dependent to appear in court telephonically in any proceeding
in which the nonminor dependent is a party and he or she opts
for a telephonic appearance.
5)Adds the following documents and services to the existing list
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of information, services and documents that must be provided
to a nonminor dependent prior to the termination of the
court's jurisdiction:
a) An Advance Health Care Directive, pursuant to federal
law;
b) The Judicial Council form required for a nonminor youth
to petition to resume dependency jurisdiction and reenter
care and, if requested, assistance in filing the petition;
and,
c) The nonminor's written 90-day transition plan.
6)Conforms delinquency statutes related to the termination of
parental rights to include the required guardianship study
found in parallel dependency statutes.
7)Distinguishes between the case plan update and mutual
agreement terms required for a nonminor dependent under the
supervision of the child welfare agency and a nonminor Kinship
Guardianship Assistance Payment (Kin-GAP) or Adoption
Assistance Program (AAP) recipient.
8)Restores, after January 1, 2012, the ability for an otherwise
eligible youth placed with a relative guardian prior to age
16, to continue receiving Kinship Guardian Assistance Payment
(Kin-GAP) program assistance after age 18, until the youth
reaches age 19, provided the youth is reasonably likely to
receive their high school diploma or equivalent degree before
age 19.
EXISTING LAW
1)Establishes the California Fostering Connections to Success
Act of 2010 which, among other provisions:
a) Provides for the extension of transitional foster care
to eligible youth up to age 19 in 2012, age 20 in 2013, and
upon appropriation by the Legislature, age 21 in 2014 as a
voluntary program for youth who meet specified work and
education participation criteria; and,
b) Requires changes to the Kin-GAP program in order to
allow for federal financial participation in the program.
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2)Defines a "nonminor dependent" as, on or after January 1,
2012, a current or former foster child between the ages of 18
and 21 who is in foster care under the responsibility of the
county welfare department, county probation department, or
Indian Tribe and is participating in a transitional
independent living plan. WIC 11400.
3)Provides that a nonminor ages 18-21 shall continue to receive
foster care assistance under certain conditions, including
that the nonminor is otherwise eligible for AFDC-FC benefits,
has signed a mutual agreement, and when one or more of the
following conditions exist:
a) The nonminor is working toward their high school
education or an equivalent credential.
b) The nonminor is enrolled in a postsecondary institution
or vocational education program.
c) The nonminor is participating in a program or activity
designed to promote, or remove barriers to employment.
d) The nonminor is employed for at least 80 hours per
month.
e) The nonminor is incapable of doing any of the activities
described in (a) through (d) above, due to a medical
condition, and that incapability is supported by regularly
updated information in the case plan of the nonminor.
4)Defines, on or after January 2, 2012, a "period of trial
independence," as a period of no more than six months, unless
authorized by the juvenile court, during which the court may
terminate and subsequently resume jurisdiction and Title IV-E
foster care benefits to an otherwise eligible nonminor
dependent. WIC 11400, Section 1356.21 of Title 45 of the Code
of Federal Regulations.
5)Requires, in certain circumstances, parents of foster children
to make child support payments upon referral by the county
child welfare department to the local child support agency.
Family Code (FAM) Section 17552.
6)Provides for an exception to be made when the referral to the
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local child support agency would compromise the stability of
the child's permanent placement plan with a relative caregiver
receiving Kin-GAP. FAM 17552.
7)Requires the Judicial Council to adopt court rules by January
1, 2012 in order to allow a nonminor dependent to appear
telephonically in juvenile court proceedings related to a
petition to reenter foster care following a trial period of
independence. WIC 388.
8)Defines a "mutual agreement" as an agreement of consent for
placement in a supervised setting between a minor or nonminor
dependent and the placing agency that, in the case of a
nonminor dependent, documents the continued need for
supervised out-of-home placement and the agreement between the
nonminor and the social worker or probation officer to work
together to facilitate implementation of the mutually
developed supervised placement agreement and transitional
living plan. WIC 11403.
9)Federal law, requires states to develop a transition plan with
foster youth, addressing specified outcome areas 90 days prior
to emancipation, and to include information about the
importance of designating someone to make health care
treatment decisions on behalf of the child in addition to the
option of a health care power of attorney, health care proxy,
or similar document. Public Law (P.L.) 110-148, P.L. 110-351
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
California Fostering Connections to Success Act of 2010: AB 12
(Beall & Bass) Chapter 559, Statutes of 2010, was a landmark
piece of child welfare legislation in California opting the
state in to two provisions of the federal Fostering Connections
to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008 (Fostering
Connections Act) (P.L. 110-351). Specifically, the California
Fostering Connections to Success Act:
1) Re-enacted California's existing state and county-funded
Kin-GAP program to align it with new federal requirements
and allow the state to bring federal financial
participation into our kinship guardian assistance program
for the first time; and,
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2) Provides transitional foster care support to qualifying
foster youth ages 18 to 21, phased-in over three years,
beginning in 2012.
The goal of AB 12 is to assist foster youth, or "nonminor
dependents" as they are referred to in statute, in their
transition to adulthood by providing them with the opportunity
to create a case plan alongside their case worker tailored to
their individual needs, which charts the course towards
independence through incremental levels of responsibility. It
is a voluntary program grounded in evidence of how the option of
continued support to age 21 can counter the dismal outcomes
faced by youth who are forced to leave the foster care system at
age 18, including high rates of homelessness, incarceration,
reliance on public assistance, teen pregnancy, and low rates of
high school and postsecondary graduation. In essence, AB 12
seeks to mirror the type of continued guidance and assistance
most young adults receive from their parents and families in
their late teens and early twenties. Following this paradigm,
AB 12 provides nonminors with the option to petition to reenter
care if they opt out of extended care and want to return before
age 21, provided they meet the eligibility criteria set forth in
federal and state law.
In order to be eligible to continue foster care benefits up to
age 21, a nonminor dependent youth must: continue under the
jurisdiction of the juvenile court; sign a mutual agreement
which commits both the nonminor and the placing agency to
certain responsibilities; reside in an approved, supervised
placement; work alongside their caseworker to prepare and
participate in their transitional independent living case plan;
and have their status reviewed every six months. In addition,
pursuant to the federal Fostering Connections Act, a youth must
meet one of five work or education-related eligibility criteria:
1) Is completing secondary education or a program leading
to an equivalent credential.
2) Is enrolled in an institution which provides
postsecondary or vocational education.
3) Is participating in a program or activity designed to
promote, or remove barriers to employment.
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4) Is employed for at least 80 hours per month.
5) Is incapable of doing any of the activities described
above due to a medical condition.
AB 12 will require DSS to amend its existing Title IV-E State
Plan to extend benefits to nonminor dependents up to age 21.
The extension will apply to all Title IV-E eligible populations,
including otherwise eligible dependents and delinquents in
foster care as well as youth in the new federally and state
funded Kin-GAP, and Adoption Assistance Program (AAP); however,
youth must have entered the Kin-GAP or AAP programs at age 16 or
older in order to be eligible for extended benefits. DSS
estimates an average of nine cases per year will enter the
Kin-GAP program at age 16 or older.
Pursuant to federal law, AB 12 also authorizes a youth with a
disability in a Kin-GAP placement to receive extended benefits
to age 21 regardless of the age of entry into Kin-GAP effective
January 1, 2011, as is currently authorized in AAP for children
with disabilities.
The implementation of extended benefits under AB 12, which was
delayed until January 1, 2012 and gradually phased in over the
course of three years, was intended to provide the courts and
DSS with sufficient time to develop the rules of court,
instructions to counties, and regulations needed to implement AB
12, with input from stakeholders.
Need for this bill: According to the author, as AB 12 has been
reviewed and assessed for implementation by various stakeholders
following enactment, requests for needed clarifying and
technical changes have emerged.
For example, AB 12 inadvertently removed a provision existing
long before the passage of AB 12 and commonly referred to as the
"high school completion rule" for those youth placed in Kin-GAP
placements before the age of 16. The federal Foster Connections
Act restricts transitional foster care eligibility to those
children placed with relative guardians after age 16. AB 12
included this exclusion, but did not continue the high school
completion rule for those children placed with relative
guardians prior to age 16 as previously provided under state
law. This bill corrects this omission by restoring the high
school completion rule for this narrow group of youth.
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In addition, technical changes are required to consistently
refer to the reentry provisions of AB 12 as a "trial
independence," rather than a "trial period of departure."
According to the author, versions of AB 12 drafted prior to the
release of federal guidance referred to the reentry provision
included in AB 12 as a "trial period of departure." Nearing the
end of the California legislative session, however, on July 9,
2010, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services'
Administration on Children, Youth and Families' released a
Program Instruction (ACYF-CB-PI-10-11) related to the federal
Fostering Connections Act which outlined for states the
appropriate mechanisms and references for various aspects of the
federal law, including the following guidance related to reentry
provisions like the one found in AB 12:
A title IV-E agency should follow existing Federal
policy with regard to when to consider a child/youth
as remaining in foster care versus when a break has
occurred that warrants a new determination of title
IV-E eligibility with new judicial determinations or a
new voluntary placement agreement (see CWPM 8.3A.4,
8.3A.10 and 8.3C.5). A title IV-E agency is not
required to reestablish judicial determinations
related to contrary to the welfare or reasonable
efforts for a youth age 18 or older whose departure
from foster care is consistent with 45 CFR 1356.21(e)?
Similarly, if a court order authorized the youth's
trial independence Ýemphasis added] for a year after
the youth's 18th birthday, title IV-E foster care
maintenance payments may be made if the youth is
otherwise eligible when returning to foster care
during that year.
Following the release of this guidance, AB 12 was amended to
accurately reference a "period of trial independence," but not
all the references to the "trial period of departure" were
amended. This bill will simply correct those omissions for
consistency with existing state and federal laws.
Furthermore, according to the author, due to concerns stemming
from advocates and courts that courts may interpret language in
WIC 388 to require a nonminor to demonstrate that he or she
already meets one of the allowable five work or education
participation criteria set forth in federal and state law at the
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time the petition for reentry is filed, this bill has amended
this section to clarify the intent of the California Fostering
Connections to Success Act. According to the author:
"Consistent with the concept that transitional foster care
assistance is designed to prepare foster youth for adulthood by
providing additional supports for them to pursue educational and
work-related goals, a youth should not necessarily already be
enrolled in school or have a job in order to restart this
assistance, but rather be able and express their intention to
comply with the eligibility standards."
Statement by the author: According to the author:
AB 212 provides technical clean-up to AB 12. Despite
the two years of work by nine sponsor organizations
and two authors, this lengthy and significant policy
change invariably will require technical and
clarifying changes in order to be implemented
correctly. This bill reflects a continued
collaboration between the nine sponsor organizations
that worked on AB 12, along with our partners
responsible for implementation of AB 12 to ensure the
law is properly implemented.
AB 212 is intended to address issues already
identified, as well as any that may be identified
during the process of developing regulations along the
course of this year.
Support: The Judicial Council, one of the AB 12 sponsors, writes
in support of this bill:
The Judicial Council is pleased to support AB 212,
which clarifies the intent and implementation of the
California Fostering Connections to Success
Act?Specifically, AB 212: (1) clarifies the
requirements for a youth to be eligible for extended
care consistent with federal requirements; (2)
clarifies the process by which a nonminor can petition
the court for reinstatement of jurisdiction; (4)
conforms provisions relating to Kin-GAP guardianships
in the delinquency statutes to reflect federal
requirements; (5) restores a provision erroneously
deleted from law that allows youth in Kin-GAP
guardianships to receive support up to age 19 if they
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are in the process of completing high school or an
equivalency certificate; and (6) standardizes the
terminology used in statute regarding the "period of
trial independence" that is authorized for youth who
opt not to participate in extended care.
The Judicial Council supports AB 212 because it will
ensure that the council's intent in co-sponsoring AB
12 will be carried out by enacting those technical and
clarifying changes that are required to implement the
provisions contained in AB 12. AB 12 was a voluminous
and complicated bill that amended numerous sections of
the Welfare and Institutions Code regarding dependent
and delinquent youth. It also contained an
implementation delay to allow for stakeholders,
including the juvenile courts, to prepare for
implementation of the major policy change in the
legislation - extension of foster care to age 21. As
implementation efforts have begun, it has become
apparent that there is a need to clarify and correct
numerous provisions modified or added by AB 12 to
ensure that they can be implemented as intended. All
of the provisions currently in AB 212 are designed to
fulfill that objective.
DOUBLE REFERRAL . This bill has been double-referred. Should
this bill pass out of this committee, it will be referred to the
Assembly Judiciary Committee.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
Advancement Project
Aspiranet
California Alliance of Child and Family Services (co-sponsor)
California Coalition for Youth
California Communities United Institute
California Probation Parole and Correctional Association (CCPCA)
California State Association of Counties (CSAC)
County of San Bernardino
County Welfare Directors Association (CWDA) (co-sponsor)
Judicial Council
Legal Services for Prisoners with Children (LSPC)
Service Employees International Union (co-sponsor)
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Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Michelle Doty Cabrera / HUM. S. / (916)
319-2089