BILL NUMBER: AB 1171 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 12, 2013
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 18, 2013
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 24, 2013
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 7, 2013
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Levine
FEBRUARY 22, 2013
An act to add and repeal Section 16521.6 of the Welfare and
Institutions Code, relating to child welfare services.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1171, as amended, Levine. Child welfare services: electronic
records.
Existing law requires a foster care provider, in consultation with
the county case manager, to be responsible for ensuring that a
foster youth or nonminor dependent is provided with appropriate
referrals to health services when the foster youth either reaches 18
years of age or the nonminor dependent exits foster care, and to the
extent county and state resources are provided.
This bill would require, authorize,
no later than July 1, 2014, that the State Department of
Social Services a county to develop and
implement and oversee a voluntary
3-county pilot program to provide a foster youth, 16 years
of age or older, or a nonminor dependent, as defined, upon his or her
request, or upon his or her transition
emancipation from , or termination of, dependency or
probation, the opportunity to create his or her own singular online
electronic record of necessary information and documents, including,
but not limited to, medical or health records, a copy of his or her
certified birth certificate, and a copy of his or her social security
card, to assist him or her in the transition to adulthood. The bill
would authorize the department, pilot program
to be developed and implemented only if there are 3 or more
participating counties and would authorize the participating
counties, in order to reduce costs, to use existing online
electronic systems for purposes of the pilot program. The bill would
require the online electronic record to allow the foster youth or
nonminor dependent to view, download, upload, and transmit the
information and documents. The bill would require a social worker or
other representative of the county welfare department, or a probation
officer or other representative of the probation department, as
appropriate, or another authorized representative as designated by
the county or the court to assist the foster youth or nonminor
dependent with establishing the electronic record and obtaining the
information and electronic copies of the documents.
This bill would require the department, in coordination
with the 3 participating counties, in consultation
with the State Department of Social Services, to submit a
report to the Assembly and Senate Human Services Committees no later
than December 1, 2016, evaluating the pilot program and providing
recommendations as to whether it should be extended, expanded, or
made permanent.
The bill's provisions would be implemented only if the Director of
Finance makes a written determination that there are sufficient
funds available from sources other than the General Fund for this
purpose. The bill's provisions would become inoperative on January 1,
2018, and would be repealed as of January 1, 2019.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 16521.6 is added to the Welfare and
Institutions Code, to read:
16521.6. (a) No later than July 1, 2014, the department
shall a county may develop and implement
and oversee a voluntary three-county
pilot program for a period of three years to provide a foster youth,
who is 16 years of age or older, or a nonminor dependent, as defined
in subdivision (v) of Section 11400, upon his or her request, or upon
his or her transition emancipation
from , or termination of, dependency or probation, the
opportunity to create his or her own singular online electronic
record containing necessary information and documents for purposes of
assisting the foster youth or nonminor dependent in creating,
maintaining, managing, and having access to that information and
those documents and to assist in his or her transition to adulthood.
The department shall determine which counties are authorized to
participate in the pilot program to ensure that those counties
represent the socioeconomic and geographic diversity of the state.
The pilot program may be developed and implemented only if there are
three or more counties participating in the pilot program. In
order to reduce costs, the participating counties, in
consultation with the department
department, may use existing online electronic systems for
purposes of the pilot program.
(b) The online electronic record shall allow the foster youth or
nonminor dependent to view, download, upload, and transmit, as
appropriate, necessary information and documents.
(c) A social worker or other representative of the county welfare
department, or a probation officer or other representative of the
probation department, as appropriate, or another authorized
representative as designated by the county or the court shall assist
the foster youth or nonminor dependent with establishing the
electronic record and obtaining information and electronic copies of
his or her documents for the purposes of this pilot program, and
training the foster youth or nonminor dependent
in the use, maintenance, and protection of the record.
(d) Documents and information included in the online electronic
record shall include, but are not limited to, all of the following:
(1) Medical or health records, including up-to-date health records
that include, but are not limited to, diagnoses, allergies, test
results, immunizations, and medications as permitted by the Health
Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (Public Law
104-191).
(2) Copy of his or her certified birth certificate.
(3) Copy of his or her social security card.
(4) Letter proving the foster youth or nonminor dependent was a
ward or dependent of the court.
(5) Special immigrant juvenile status, if applicable.
(6) Educational records, as permitted by state pupil privacy laws
and the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (20
U.S.C. Sec. 1232g), which shall include a copy of his or her
official high school transcript and high school diploma or high
school equivalency certificate, if applicable.
(7) Copy of his or her driver's license, as described in Section
12500 of the Vehicle Code, or identification card, as described in
Section 13000 of the Vehicle Code.
(8) Background and contact information of siblings and other
family members, as appropriate, and as permitted by court order
pursuant to federal and state law.
(9) Application to seal juvenile court records.
(10) Copy of his or her transitional independent living case plan,
if applicable.
(11) Any additional records as determined necessary by the
participating counties, in consultation with the director.
(e) Access to the electronic record shall be limited to the foster
youth or nonminor dependent and any individual whom he or she
authorizes to access the record.
(f) Any necessary efforts to provide for the security of the
electronic record, including online security protocols, shall be
taken to protect the privacy of the foster youth or nonminor
dependent as determined by the participating counties, in
consultation with the director.
(g) The department, in consultation with the Office of Systems
Integration, the California Child Welfare Council, and other
appropriate state agencies, shall seek guidance on interagency
protocols, technical specifications, and information in order to
assist the counties as they establish electronic records.
(g)
(h) (1) The participating counties, in
consultation with the department, in coordination with
the three participating counties, shall submit a report to
the Assembly and Senate Human Services Committees no later than
December 1, 2016, evaluating the pilot program and providing
recommendations as to whether it should be extended, expanded, or
made permanent.
(2) The requirement for submitting a report imposed under this
subdivision is inoperative on January 1, 2018, pursuant to Section
10231.5 of the Government Code.
(h)
(i) This section shall be implemented only if the
Director of Finance makes a written determination that there are
sufficient funds available from sources other than the General Fund
for this purpose.
(i)
(j) This section shall become inoperative on January 1,
2018, and, as of January 1, 2019, is repealed, unless a later
enacted statute, that becomes operative on or before January 1, 2019,
deletes or extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is
repealed.