BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 985
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Date of Hearing: April 30, 2013
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES
Mark Stone, Chair
AB 985 (Cooley) - As Amended: April 4, 2013
SUBJECT : Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC);
Kinship Guardianship Assistance Payment Program (Kin-GAP) and
the Adoption Assistance Program (AAP)
SUMMARY : Extends state Kin-GAP and AAP benefits from age 18 to
age 21 for former nonminor dependents who were placed with
relative guardians or who were adopted prior to the age of 16,
respectively. Specifically, this bill :
1)Authorizes state Kin-GAP benefits for a nonminor up to the age
of 21 whose state or federally funded Kin-GAP payments began
prior to the age of 16.
2)Authorizes state AAP benefits for a nonminor up to the age of
21 whose state AAP payments began prior to the age of 16.
3)Makes necessary changes to existing law to align with the
provision of Kin-GAP and AAP benefits for nonminors over the
age 18 but under 21 who began receiving state or federal
Kin-GAP or state AAP benefits prior to age 16.
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 21 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.
2)Defines a "nonminor dependent" as 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.
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3)Allows a juvenile court to adjudge a child or nonminor a ward
or dependent of the court for specified reasons, including but
not limited to if the child or nonminor has been neglected or
abused or has committed a crime, as specified.
4)Establishes a process for the identification and placement of
a ward, dependent, or nonminor of the court with a parent,
relative, extended relative or other form of guardianship.
5)Provides that a nonminors ages 18 to 21 shall continue to
receive foster care assistance under certain conditions,
including that the nonminor is otherwise eligible for Aid to
Families with Dependent Children-Foster Care (AFDC-FC)
benefits, has signed a mutual agreement, and when one or more
of the following conditions exist:
a) The nonminor is working toward his or her 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; or
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.
6)Makes Legislative findings and declarations that the
continuation of the state-funded Kin-GAP Program is necessary
to ensure that wards and dependent children of the juvenile
court whose placement in the home of an approved relative that
is funded under the California Work Opportunity and
Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program are equally eligible
for the benefits derived from legal permanency with the
related guardian and that the state can maximize improvements
to federal permanency outcome measures by exiting nonfederally
eligible youth to the state's subsidized kinship guardianship
program.
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7)Defines a nonrelative extended family member (NREFM) as any
adult caregiver who has an established familial or mentoring
relationship with a child, and requires a county welfare
department to verify the existence of this relationship, as
specified.
8)Establishes the Kin-GAP program for the provision of
guardianship assistance benefits on behalf of children to
grandparents or other relatives who have cared for dependent
children as approved relative caregivers and who have
committed to care for the children on a permanent basis.
9)Excludes foster youth who reach permanency through placement
with a relative guardian prior to age 16 from receiving state
Kin-GAP benefits when they turn 18 or when they graduate from
high school or turn 19 years old, whichever is later.
10)States the intent of the Legislature in establishing AAP
benefits for individuals to become adoptive parents to enable
them to meet the needs of their adopted children and provide
foster youth with the stability and security of permanent
homes, and in so doing, achieve a reduction in the number
children in the state's child welfare system.
11)Establishes the AAP to recruit, retain and maintain healthy
and successful adoptions of youth in the child welfare system
by providing supportive benefits on behalf of the adopted
child to the adoptive parents.
12)Excludes foster youth who reach permanency through adoption
with a relative guardian prior to age 16 from receiving state
AAP benefits when they turn 18.
13)Under federal law, requires states to develop a transition
plan with foster youth that addresses specified outcome areas
90 days prior to emancipation and includes 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. (P.L 110-148, P.L. 110-351)
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
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Kinship Guardianship Assistance Payment (Kin-GAP) Program
The Kin-GAP program was established by SB 1901 (McPherson),
Chapter 1055, Statutes of 1998, to provide children exiting
dependency into permanency with a relative legal guardian. It
was expanded by AB 1808 (Assembly Budget Committee) Chapter 75,
Statutes of 2006 to include probation youth who were existing
delinquency. The intent of the Kin-GAP program is to help
improve permanency opportunities for foster youth by providing
integral support benefits to help enable the foster youth's
relatives to open their home to the youth.
The Kin-GAP Program offers a subsidy on behalf of children that
is 100% of the basic foster care rate, based upon age. Movement
to Kin-GAP is not automatic. The court, with a recommendation
from the county social worker or probation officer, has
discretion regarding whether termination of court involvement is
in the child's best interest. Relative caregiver's
participation in Kin-GAP is strictly voluntary, and not mandated
by any regulations or statutes. Each family's situation is
unique, therefore the decision regarding a child's permanent
plan must be mutual between the county, the relative, and child
where age appropriate, in order to ensure that the chosen
alternative will be successful.
Adoption Assistance Program
California's AAP was created to reduce the number of children in
foster care and help to provide stable, secure adoptive homes
for eligible children. The amount of AAP support is based on
the child's needs and family's circumstances, with eligibility
periodically reassessed. Payments continue until the child
reaches age 18, unless a mental or physical disability creates
eligibility until the age of 21. For children who are federally
eligible, the costs of AAP benefits are shared among the federal
government, state, and relevant county. For children who are
not federally eligible, the costs are shared by the state and
county only.
Recognizing that adoptive parents often experience financial
difficulty meeting the special needs of children who formerly
were placed in California's foster care system, the State
Legislature created the AAP to mitigate that financial
difficulty in order to provide children in foster care the
security and stability of a permanent home through adoption.
Children may receive a federally funded subsidy under Title IV-E
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or a state funded subsidy per state guidelines.
To apply for the AAP, adoptive families must submit a completed
Request for Adoption Assistance (AAP 1) form which is provided
by their licensed adoption agency. The responsible public
agency will determine the child's special needs eligibility for
participation in the program. If the child is deemed eligible,
the responsible public agency will negotiate a signed adoption
assistance agreement, or a deferred adoption assistance
agreement will be executed with the adoptive parents, prior to
finalization of the adoption. A reassessment of the child's
needs and family's circumstances is conducted every two years.
The amount of financial assistance is based upon the special
needs of the child and circumstances of the family.
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 into 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 guardianship assistance program for the first
time; and,
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 workers 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.
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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 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 his or her caseworker to prepare and
participate in the transitional independent living case plan;
and have his or her 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;
4)Is employed for at least 80 hours per month; or
5)Is incapable of doing any of the activities described above
due to a medical condition.
Foster care benefits eligibility gap for Kin-GAP and AAP
Under the state's Fostering Connections to Success Act, it
brought Kin-GAP and AAP benefit eligibility into alignment with
federal eligibility expansions. However, over the past three
years, several policy changes intended to expand eligibility for
Kin-GAP and AAP benefits have created varying levels of
eligibility as follows:
Relative Guardian
Foster youth who entered into a Kin-GAP or AAP permanency
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arrangement with a relative guardian prior to age 16 have
their benefits terminated at age 18.
A developmentally disabled foster youth or foster youth with
mental health needs who entered into a Kin-GAP or AAP
permanency arrangement with a relative at any age can continue
to receive those benefits until age 21.
However, if the foster youth entered into a Kin-GAP or AAP
arrangement after 16, their benefits can continue until age 21
if the youth meets one of the following requirements:
1. Attending/completing high school or an equivalency
program;
2. Enrolling in post-secondary or vocational school;
3. Participating in a program or activity that promotes or
removes barriers to employment.
4. Employed at least 80 hours per month; or
5. The child/youth is incapable of participating in one
through four above, due to a documented physical or mental
condition.
NREFM
In 2012 the state adopted AB 1712 (Beall) Chapter 846,
Statutes of 2012, which modified how Kin-GAP benefits are
provided to foster youth who entered into a Kin-GAP or
permanency arrangement with a NREFM.
In cases where foster youth enter prior to age 16, their
federal Kin-GAP benefits terminate at age 18. However, at age
18 these youth transition into the AFDC-FC benefits program,
thus, in essence, continuing the benefits that help to make
the child's permanency a success.
Non-related guardian
Foster youth who enter into a guardianship permanency
arrangement with a non-related person who is also not a NREFM,
regardless of the age at which they entered into the
arrangement may continue to receive foster care benefits until
age 21.
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Although multiple policy developments over the past three years
have helped to expand eligibility for Kin-GAP to age 21 for
certain populations, it can serve as a disincentive for kinship
guardians or prospective adoptive parents who want to open their
home to a foster youth, but cannot afford to without assistance.
For example, a prospective kinship guardian who wants to become
the guardian of a 14-year old niece faces losing Kin-GAP
benefits when the niece turns 18. Whereas, if the guardian
waits two years when the foster youth turns 16, they can then be
assured that Kin-GAP benefits will continue up until the niece
turns 21. Waiting those additional two years can have a
detrimental effect on both the prospective guardian's family and
the foster youth; delaying permanency can limit the
social-emotional connection between the guardian and the foster
youth, or create other barriers to making permanency a success.
The varying eligibility standards for Kin-GAP and AAP have also
served to create confusion as to which foster youth are eligible
or not eligible.
Need for the bill
The author, in stating the need for the bill, writes:
Kinship care and adoption are critical components of the
child welfare system. Placements with caring, supportive
relatives can mitigate trauma, promote better outcomes for
youth, and provide children and youth with connections to
permanency. While federal law requires states to provide
preference to relative caregivers when finding a home for
children in foster care, relative guardians and adoptive
parents in California currently receive less support for
children than non-relative guardians. These policies
create disincentives to permanence for the very individuals
most likely to help a youth achieve a safe, stable and
permanent home. California's laws should ensure that those
looking to adopt or take guardianship over their kin
receive the same level of support as non-relative
guardians.
Writing in support of the bill as the sponsor, the Alliance for
Children's Rights states:
Non-relatives who take guardianship over a foster youth are
eligible to receive AFDC-FC benefits until the youth turns
21, regardless of how old the youth was when the
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guardianship was established. By comparison, relatives who
receive Kin-GAP and adoptive parents who receive AAP
benefits are limited in their ability to receive assistance
until the youth turns 21. For Kin-GAP recipients to access
these benefits, the payments must begin when the youth is
16 years or older or the youth has to have a mental or
physical disability. For AAP, the adoption agreement must
be signed when the youth is 16 or older or the youth must
have a mental or physical disability. The practical result
is that relatives and prospective adoptive parents are
dissuaded from taking guardianship or adopting youth until
that young person turns 16, delaying permanence for these
vulnerable young people.
AB 985 will allow relative caregivers and prospective
adoptive parents to receive Kin-GAP or AAP benefits until
the youth turns 21, regardless of the age of the youth when
the guardianship or adoption was established. This will
create equity with the way we treat nonrelatives and remove
disincentives to permanency.
POLICY COMMENT
If the committee chooses to pass this measure, it should
encourage the author to address
whether this measure ensures that youth who reached permanency
through federal AAP prior to age 16 will transition over to
state AAP when they turn 18. The author may wish to add language
that specifically provides for a clear transition of this
adoption population from federal to state AAP.
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REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
Alliance for Children's Rights - Sponsor
Advokids
Alameda CASA
Alameda County Foster Youth Alliance
American Federation of State county and Municipal Employees
(AFSCME), AFL-CIO
Bellows Consulting
California Alliance of Child and family Services
California CASA Association
California Federation of Teachers
Caregivers of Kern County
CASA of Mariposa County
Children Now
East Bay Children's Law Offices (EBCLO)
Edgewood Center for Children
Grandparents As Parents Inc.
John Burton Foundation
Lake County Tribal Health Consortium, Inc.
National Association of Social Workers, California Chapter
(NASW-CA)
National Center for Youth Law (NCYL)
Olive Crest
Plumas CASA
Public Counsel
San Francisco CASA
Seneca Family of Agencies
The Child Abuse Prevention Center (CAP-Center)
The Kinship Center
Woodland Community College's Foster & Kinship Care Education
Program
4 Individuals
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Chris Reefe / HUM. S. / (916) 319-2089
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