Amended in Assembly January 6, 2014

Amended in Assembly March 21, 2013

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 883

Introduced by Assembly Member Cooley

February 22, 2013

An act to add begin insert and repeal end insert Article 7 (commencing with Section 18974) begin delete to end delete begin insert of end insert Chapter 11 of Part 6 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to child sexual abuse, and making an appropriation therefor.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 883, as amended, Cooley. Child sexual abuse: prevention begin delete and intervention programs. end delete begin insert pilot program. end insert

Existing law authorizes the Office of Child Abuse Prevention to fund, through allocations provided to local counties, child abuse and neglect prevention and intervention programs. begin insert Existing law creates the State Children’s Trust Fund in the State Treasury and requires money in the fund to be allocated to the State Department of Social Services for the purpose of funding child abuse and neglect prevention and intervention programs. end insert

This bill would begin delete establishes end delete begin insert establish end insert the Child Sexual Abuse Prevention Program begin delete to create end delete begin insert as end insert a pilot program in begin delete each participating county end delete begin insert no more than 3 counties, as determined by the State Department of Social Services, end insert to provide child sexual abuse prevention and intervention services begin delete or fully fund agencies and private end delete begin insert through public, private, end insert or nonprofit programs that provide those services. The bill would annually appropriate begin insert $50,000 end insert from the General Fund begin delete $70,000 end delete to each county that conducts a pilot program, thereby making an appropriation. The bill would provide that begin delete public and private end delete begin insert public, private, and nonprofit end insert agencies shall be eligible for this funding if specified evidence is provided and would encourage counties to give priority for funding to existing programs that have demonstrated effectiveness in begin insert youth homelessness, human trafficking, child abuse, or end insert child sexual abuse or prevention. begin insert The bill would require each participating county to compile and collect data on the efficacy of the pilot program and to annually report to the State Department of Social Services, the Assembly Committee on Human Services, and the Senate Committee on Human Services specified information, including statistics on the increase or decrease of reports of child sexual abuse within the county. end insert The bill would also make related findings and declarations. begin insert These provisions would be repealed on January 1, 2017. end insert

Vote: ²⁄₃. Appropriation: yes. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:

(a) Children are a precious resource in the state and country.

(b) Victims of child abuse begin insert , child sexual abuse, end insert and neglect are
at higher risk for alcoholism, drug abuse, depression, eating
disorders, obesity, suicide, and other chronic adult health problems.

(c) Child abuse and neglect costs the United States at least begin delete $97.5 end delete
begin insert $124 end insert billion per begin delete year. end delete begin insert year according to the federal Centers for
Disease Control. end insert

(d) Preventative services and training can significantly reduce
the incidences of child abuse, stabilize families, and contribute to
a reduction in crime.

(e) While child sexual abuse programs that address increased
reporting after-the-fact are critical to the child victims, it should
be the goal of all Californians to promote adult and community
responsibility to prevent child sexual abuse.

SEC. 2.  

Article 7 (commencing with Section 18974) is added
to Chapter 11 of Part 6 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions
Code, to read:

 

Article 7.  Child Sexual Abuse Prevention and Intervention
Programs

 

18974.  

(a) The Child Sexual Abuse Prevention Program is
hereby established as a pilot program in begin delete each participating county end delete
begin insert no more than three counties end insert to provide child sexual abuse
prevention and intervention services begin delete or fully fund agencies and
private end delete begin insert through public, private, end insert or nonprofit programs that provide
child sexual abuse prevention and intervention services .

(b) The sum of begin delete seventy end delete begin insert fifty end insert thousand dollars begin delete ($70,000) end delete
begin insert ($50,000) end insert is hereby appropriated annually from the General Fund
to each county that conducts a pilot program under begin delete the provisions
of end delete this article to prevent and reduce child sexual abuse.

begin insert

(c) The State Department of Social Services shall determine the
counties that will participate in the Child Sexual Abuse Prevention
Program based on the agency’s determination that the counties
have significant incidences of any of the following: homeless youth,
child abuse, child sexual abuse, sexually exploited minors, minors
involved in prostitution, or human trafficking.

end insert begin delete

(c)

end delete

begin insert (d) end insert  Each begin insert participating end insert county is encouraged to efficiently use
these funds by giving priority to programs currently serving the
needs of begin delete children at risk of sexual abuse that end delete begin insert at-risk children that
meet the criteria in Section 18974.1 and that end insert have demonstrated
effectiveness in begin insert youth homelessness, human trafficking, child
abuse, or end insert child sexual abuse prevention or intervention. begin insert The funds
appropriated under this section shall not supplant or replace any
existing funding for programs currently serving the needs of at-risk
children, but may only supplement the expansion of existing
programs or the collaboration of separate existing programs within
the county, or fund newly created programs within the county if
no current programs exist to serve the needs of children at risk of
sexual abuse. end insert

begin delete

18974.1.  

Public and private agencies shall be eligible for
funding provided that evidence is submitted as part of the
application for funding to demonstrate broad-based community
support. The evidence shall further demonstrate that the proposed
services are not duplicated in the community, are based on needs
of children at risk, and are supported by a local public agency,
including, but not limited to, one of the following:

(a) The county welfare department.

(b) A public law enforcement agency.

(c) The county probation department.

(d) The county board of supervisors.

(e) The county public health department.

(f) The county mental health department.

(g) Any school district.

end delete begin delete

18974.2.  

(a) Each pilot program may

end delete

begin insert

begin insert 18974.1. end insert   

end insert begin insert

(a) The county board of supervisors of a participating
county shall allocate the pilot program funds according to the
provisions of this article. The county board of supervisors may
delegate the administration of the pilot program to the county
social services department or another similar local agency.

end insert begin insert

(b) Public, private, and nonprofit agencies shall be eligible for
funding provided that evidence is submitted as part of the
application to the county for funding to demonstrate broad-based
community support. The evidence shall further demonstrate that
the proposed services are not duplicated in the community, are
based on needs of children at risk, and are supported by a local
public agency, including, but not limited to, one of the following:

end insert begin insert

(1) The county welfare department.

end insert begin insert

(2) A public law enforcement agency.

end insert begin insert

(3) The county probation department.

end insert begin insert

(4) The county board of supervisors.

end insert begin insert

(5) The county public health department.

end insert begin insert

(6) The county mental health department.

end insert begin insert

(7) Any school district.

end insert begin insert

(c) The administering local agency shall, with oversight and
review from the county board of supervisors, compile and collect
data on the efficacy of the pilot program.

end insert begin insert

(d) Each participating county shall annually report to the State
Department of Social Services, the Assembly Committee on Human
Services, and the Senate Committee on Human Services
information including, but not limited to, all of the following:

end insert begin insert

(1) Changing public attitudes or public opinion polls showing
increased awareness of prevention techniques for child sexual
abuse.

end insert begin insert

(2) The amount of educational materials distributed to
stakeholder groups that address and promote child sexual abuse
prevention and prevention techniques.

end insert begin insert

(3) The amount of educational materials distributed to
stakeholder groups that address the connection between human
trafficking and child sexual abuse.

end insert begin insert

(4) Statistics on the increase or decrease of reports of child
sexual abuse within the county.

end insert begin insert

(5) Statistics on the increase or decrease of arrests and
convictions within the county for child sexual abuse.

end insert begin insert

(6) Identified best practices used by the pilot program which
may be replicated and used by other counties, including, but not
limited to, community outreach, data collection and analysis, and
the creation of educational materials.

end insert begin insert

(7) A complete and accurate accounting of all funds received
and spent pursuant to this section.

end insert begin insert

(8) Efforts to strengthen the capacity of schools and
youth-serving organizations pursuant to subdivision (f) and the
outcome of those efforts.

end insert

begin insert (e) end insert begin insert   end insert begin insert Each participating county shall end insert propose a multiyear plan
that identifies how to advance all of the following objectives:

(1) Fostering community coalitions and networks for preventing
and reducing begin insert youth homelessness, child abuse, end insert child sexual abuse begin insert ,
and human trafficking end insert .

(2) Strengthening individual knowledge and skills in identifying
risks and prevention techniques begin delete of end delete begin insert for youth homelessness, child
abuse, end insert child sexual abuse begin insert , or human trafficking end insert .

(3) Promoting community education.

(4) Educating providers of children services.

(5) Changing children’s organizations practices to reduce the
possibility of child sexual abuse.

begin insert

(6) Promoting greater data sharing and collaboration between
law enforcement agencies, probation departments, and child
welfare agencies to identify children in the community who are at
risk for homelessness, abuse, sexual abuse, sexual exploitation,
prostitution, or human trafficking.

end insert begin insert

(f) Each pilot program shall do all of the following to strengthen
the capacity of schools and youth-serving organizations to prevent
sexual abuse:

end insert begin insert

(1) Utilize an assessment process to identify strengths and gaps.

end insert begin insert

(2) Implement comprehensive training, screening, responding,
and reporting protocols.

end insert begin insert

(3) Develop codes of conduct to prevent inappropriate behaviors
before they escalate to reportable offenses.

end insert begin insert

(4) Modify physical spaces to reduce risk.

end insert begin insert

(5) Adopt policies matched to the organizational mission.

end insert begin delete

(b)

end delete

begin insert (g) end insert  Each pilot program may create guidelines to assess the
community’s overall understanding of child sexual abuse.

begin delete

(c)

end delete

begin insert (h) end insert  Each pilot program may create and track data to objectively
measure changes in the community condition and attitudes towards
child sexual abuse by performing certain tasks, including, but not
limited, to the following:

(1) Reviewing local sexual violence data, police reports, and
reports of child sexual abuse to measure any change in reporting.

(2) Identifying risk factors and protective factors particular to
each community.

(3) Tracking increases in preventative and treatment services
within the community for child sexual abuse.

begin delete

(d)

end delete

begin insert (i) end insert  Each pilot program may develop local prevention plans.

begin insert

(j) Each report submitted pursuant to subdivision (d) shall be
submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government
Code.

end insert

begin insert

begin insert 18974.2. end insert   

This article shall remain in effect only until January
1, 2017, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted
statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2017, deletes or extends
that date.

end insert