BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 217|
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CONSENT
Bill No: AB 217
Author: Maienschein (R)
Introduced:2/2/15
Vote: 21
SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE: 7-0, 6/9/15
AYES: Jackson, Moorlach, Anderson, Hertzberg, Leno, Monning,
Wieckowski
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 3/23/15 (Consent) - See last page for
vote
SUBJECT: Juvenile law: hearings
SOURCE: Children's Advocacy Institute - University of San
Diego School of Law
DIGEST: This bill requires the court to inform a minor, if the
minor is present at the juvenile hearing, of his or her right to
address the court and participate in the hearing.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1)Requires that a child 10 years of age and older receive notice
of his or her dependency hearings, including the initial
petition hearing, jurisdictional hearings, and review
hearings. (Welf. & Inst. Code Secs. 290.1-295.)
AB 217
Page 2
2)Allows a minor who is the subject of a dependency hearing, and
who is entitled to notice of the hearing, to be present at the
hearing. (Welf. & Inst. Code Sec. 349.)
3)Provides that a minor present at a hearing has the right to
address the court, to participate in the hearing, and to be
represented by counsel of his or her choice. (Welf. & Inst.
Code Sec. 349.)
4)Requires the court to determine if a minor, who is 10 years of
age or older and not present at a hearing, was properly
notified of his or her right to attend the hearing, and allows
a court to continue the hearing if the minor was not properly
notified or wished to be present at the hearing, unless the
court determines that it is not in the best interest of the
child to do so. (Welf. & Inst. Code Sec. 349.)
This bill additionally requires the court to inform a minor at a
hearing that he or she has the right to address the court and
participate in the hearing.
Background
The importance of allowing a dependent child to participate in
court hearings has been recognized in California since 2003,
when the Legislature enacted AB 408 (Steinberg, Chapter 813,
Statutes of 2003) which afforded a minor the right to address
the court and otherwise participate in a dependency hearing. In
2006, Congress also recognized the importance of input from
children in court proceedings in the Child and Family Services
Improvement Act which required "procedural safeguards to be put
in place to assure that in any permanency hearing with respect
to a child, the court consults, in an age-appropriate manner,
the child regarding the proposed permanency or transition plan.
(42 U.S.C. Sec. 675(5)(C).)
This bill additionally requires the court to inform a child
during a dependency proceeding that he or she has a right to
address the court and participate in the hearing.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:NoLocal: No
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Page 3
SUPPORT: (Verified6/11/15)
Children's Advocacy Institute - University of San Diego School
of Law (source)
Advokids
Children Now
County Welfare Directors Association of California
Crittenton Services for Children and Families
Executive Committee of the Family Law Section of the State Bar
Juvenile Court Judges of California
Laborers' International Union of North America locals 777 & 792
OPPOSITION: (Verified6/11/15)
None received
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: According to the author:
Juvenile Dependency hearings are critical to determining the
path of a child's future. Existing law as defined by Section
349 of the Welfare and Institutions Code already provides
children with the right to talk during these hearings.
Oftentimes the child's input would be critical and swing a
decision in one way or another, but the child is fearful to
speak up because they have understandably not been exposed
to legal proceedings, or understand their right to speak up.
This bill simply adds one sentence to Section 349 requiring
the court to inform a minor of his or her pre-existing right
to address the court if so desired. This fix allows a child
to make his or her voice and desires heard, and empower that
child to possibly influence a decision that will affect that
child for life.
AB 217
Page 4
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 3/23/15
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Bloom,
Bonilla, Bonta, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Campos, Chang, Chau,
Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly,
Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines, Gallagher, Cristina
Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez,
Gordon, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Roger Hernández, Holden, Irwin,
Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low,
Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin,
Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Olsen, Patterson, Perea,
Quirk, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago,
Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Waldron, Weber,
Wilk, Williams, Wood, Atkins
NO VOTE RECORDED: Brough, Gray
Prepared by:Nichole Rapier / JUD. / (916) 651-4113
6/12/15 9:22:45
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