BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1712|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1712
Author: Beall (D)
Amended: 8/24/12 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE HUMAN SERVICES COMMITTEE : 5-0, 6/26/12
AYES: Liu, Emmerson, Berryhill, Wright, Yee
NO VOTE RECORDED: Hancock, Strickland
SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE : 4-0, 7/3/12
AYES: Evans, Blakeslee, Corbett, Leno
NO VOTE RECORDED: Harman
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 6-1, 8/16/12
AYES: Kehoe, Walters, Alquist, Lieu, Price, Steinberg
NOES: Dutton
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 76-0, 5/30/12 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Minors and nonminor dependents: out-of-home
placement
SOURCE : California Alliance of Child and family
Services
County Welfare Directors Association of
California
DIGEST : This bill enacts numerous technical, clarifying,
and federal conformity changes to the California Fostering
Connections to Success Act of 2010.
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Senate Floor Amendments of 8/24/12 delete the urgency
clause from the bill, correct an incorrect subdivision
reference and delete Health and Safety Code Section 1502
from the bill, which was addressed in a budget trailer
bill. Additionally, the amendments resolve chaptering
conflicts with SB 1065 (DeLeon), SB 1521 (Liu), AB 1707
(Ammiano), AB 1909 (Ammiano), AB 2060(Bonilla), AB 2209
(Hueso), AB 2292 (Nielsen) and also incorporate existing
law pursuant to SB 1013 (Senate Budget & Fiscal Review
Committee), Chapter 35, Statutes of 2012, and SB 1425
(Negrete-McLeod), Chapter 189, Statutes of 2012, both of
which took immediate effect.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1. Establishes the California Fostering Connections to
Success Act (AB 12), which corresponds with the federal
Fostering Connections to Success Act that optionally
permitted states to receive federal financial
participation for nonminor dependents of the juvenile
court who satisfy certain conditions.
2. Defines "nonminor dependent" as a current or former
foster youth who is between the ages of 18 and 21, is in
foster care under responsibility of the county welfare
department, county probation department, or Indian
Tribe, and is participating in a transitional
independent living plan.
3. Limits eligibility for extended foster care under
Kin-GAP to placements made with a relative, as defined,
and excludes non-relative extended family placements
from eligibility for extended foster care under Kin-GAP.
4. Provides for the voluntary continuation or reentry into
foster care for nonminor dependents who meet general
AFDC foster care requirements and when the nonminor
youth has signed a voluntary mutual agreement and meets
one or more of the following requirements:
A. The nonminor is completing a high school
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education or a program leading to an equivalent
credential;
B. The nonminor is enrolled in postsecondary 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 at least 80 hours per
month;
E. The nonminor is incapable of doing any of
these activities due to a medical condition and the
incapacity is supported by regularly updated
information in the case plan of the nonminor
dependent.
1. Phases in the effective date of eligibility for
nonminor dependents as follows:
A. Effective January 1, 2012 includes youth who
turned 18 years of age while under an order of foster
care placement by the juvenile court and are younger
than 19;
B. Effective January 1, 2013 incudes includes
youth who turned 18 years of age while under an order
of foster care placement by the juvenile court and
are younger than 20 years of age;
C. Effective January 1, 2014 includes youth who
turned 18 years of age while under an order of foster
care placement by the juvenile court and are younger
than 21 years of age.
1. Defines "mutual agreement" as a written voluntary
agreement of consent for continued placement and care in
a supervised setting between a minor or a nonminor
dependent and the placing agency, that documents a
nonminor's willingness to remain in supervised
out-of-home placement and documents the social worker's
or probation officer's agreement to work together to
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facilitate implementation of the mutually developed
supervised placement agreement and transitional
independent living case plan.
2. Defines a "nonrelative extended family member" as any
adult caregiver who has an established familial or
mentoring relationship with the child as verified by the
county welfare department through interviews with the
child's community.
3. Provides for the licensure by the Department of Social
Services of community care facilities participating in
transitional housing placement programs for foster youth
age 16-18 years of age who are participating in an
independent living program.
4. Excludes from licensure any supervised independent
living setting for nonminor dependents and "Transitional
Housing Placement Plus Foster Care" (THP-Plus FC)
settings for nonminor dependents, as specified.
5. Provides for the certification by counties of
transitional housing placement programs serving
emancipated foster youth who are between ages 18-21, and
for the certification by counties of THP-Plus FC
providers serving nonminor dependents.
This bill revises and expands the California Fostering
Connections to Success Act of 2010, as follows:
1. Expands the definition of "relative" for purposes of
both the federal- and age extended state-funded Kin-GAP
programs to include guardians who are non-related
extended family members, tribal kin, or current
caregivers of foster children, as specified.
2. Provides for the provision of various services and
eligibility to be extended to nonminor dependents
including the court-appointed special advocate (CASA)
program, continuation of family reunification (FR)
services subject to specified conditions, the option of
adult adoption or tribal customary adoption, and by
extension, Adoption Assistance Program (AAP) benefits,
the payment of nonrecurring expenses for AAP placement,
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the availability of Private Adoption Agency
Reimbursement Program (PAARP) funds to assist in the
completion of adoptions, and the provision of permanent
placement services, to be defined as supportive
transition services, for nonminor dependents.
3. Expands the duties of foster care public health nurses
(PHNs) to include assisting nonminor dependents in
accessing health and mental health care, coordinating
the delivery of services, and advocating for the care
that meets the needs of the nonminor dependent.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: Yes Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
Increased federal funding of approximately $1 million in
2012-13, assuming an October 1, 2012, effective date,
increasing to over $12.5 million by 2016-17 due to the
expanded definition of "relative", thereby increasing
eligibility for the federal Kin-GAP program. A higher
level of county cost savings (Local Revenue Fund
2011(LRF)) is assumed, as nonrelated legal guardianships
would have otherwise been supported by realigned Foster
Care funding for assistance and administrative costs at
greater cost. Additionally, counties will realize
ongoing significant county child welfare services (CWS)
administrative cost savings for case management services
potentially in the millions of dollars (LRF) for cases
transferred to both federal Kin-GAP and the extended
benefit program for nonrelated legal guardianships for
nonminors.
Increased local costs (LRF) for the extension and
expansion of services to nonminor dependents, including
FR and supportive transition services, AAP benefits,
nonrecurring adoption expenses, PAARP payments for
nonminor dependents, and expanded duties on PHNs.
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/27/12)
California Alliance of Child and family Services
(co-source)
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County Welfare Directors Association of California
(co-source)
AFSCME (prior version)
Aspiranet
California Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
California Coalition for Youth
California State Association of Counties
County of San Bernardino
Family Law Section of the State Bar
Judicial Council of California
Junior Leagues of California State Public Affairs Committee
National Association of Social Workers
Regional Council of Rural Counties
Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The author 's office states that
this bill is a technical clean-up bill to AB 12 and AB 212
and that despite two years of work by nine sponsoring
organizations and two authors, technical and clarifying
changes are necessary in order to implement it correctly.
The author's office further states that this bill reflects
a continued collaboration between the nine sponsor
organizations.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 76-0, 5/30/12
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Beall,
Bill Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bonilla, Bradford,
Brownley, Buchanan, Butler, Charles Calderon, Campos,
Carter, Cedillo, Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Davis, Dickinson,
Eng, Feuer, Fong, Fuentes, Furutani, Beth Gaines,
Galgiani, Garrick, Gatto, Gordon, Gorell, Grove, Hagman,
Halderman, Hall, Harkey, Hayashi, Roger Hernández, Hill,
Huber, Hueso, Huffman, Jeffries, Jones, Lara, Logue,
Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mansoor, Mendoza, Miller, Mitchell,
Monning, Morrell, Nestande, Nielsen, Norby, Olsen, Pan,
Perea, V. Manuel Pérez, Portantino, Silva, Skinner,
Smyth, Solorio, Swanson, Torres, Wagner, Wieckowski,
Williams, Yamada, John A. Pérez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Donnelly, Fletcher, Knight, Valadao
CTW:dmd 8/27/12 Senate Floor Analyses
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SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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