BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



          SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                             Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair
                            2015 - 2016  Regular  Session

          AB 403 (Mark Stone) - Public social services:  foster care  
          placement:  funding
          
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          |Version: July 16, 2015          |Policy Vote: HUMAN S. 5 - 0     |
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          |Urgency: No                     |Mandate: Yes                    |
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          |Hearing Date: August 17, 2015   |Consultant: Jolie Onodera       |
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          This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File. 

          

          Bill  
          Summary:  AB 403 states the intent of the Legislature to improve  
          California's child welfare system and its outcomes through the  
          use of comprehensive initial child assessments, increasing the  
          use of home-based family care and the provision of services and  
          supports to home-based family care providers, reducing the use  
          of congregate care placement settings, and creating faster paths  
          to permanency to reduce the duration of a child's involvement in  
          the child welfare and juvenile justice systems. 
          This bill, among its numerous provisions, establishes the  
          framework for the commencement of the development of the reforms  
          to the existing foster care placement system and payment  
          structures through the codification of a number of  
          recommendations included in the Department of Social Services'  
          report, California's Child Welfare Continuum of Care Reform  
          (CCR). 


          Fiscal Impact:







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            Local child welfare and probation agencies  :  Major initial  
            investments in the tens of millions of dollars (General Fund*)  
            annually over a number of years to local agencies for  
            increased costs for activities including but not limited to  
            comprehensive initial child assessments, recruitment,  
            retention, and support services (including staffing, training,  
            specialized care, and child care) for home-based family care  
            providers, increased services costs for higher rates for  
            wraparound services, foster family agencies (FFAs), and  
            short-term residential treatment centers (STRTCs), potential  
            impacts of the formalized role of child and family teams,  
            performance and outcome measurement and data collection, and  
            accelerated statewide implementation of the Resource Family  
            Approval (RFA) process.  
            2015 Budget Act  :  Includes initial funding to support  
            recommendations in the CCR report consisting of $20.3 million  
            ($17.2 million General Fund) to increase foster parent and  
            relative caregiver recruitment, retention, and training  
            efforts, and $7.3 million ($4.3 million General Fund) to fund  
            a 15 percent increase in FFA social worker rates.  
            DSS licensing, oversight, and administration  :  Significant  
            one-time and ongoing costs (General Fund) for the development  
            of revised rate structures, multiple sets of regulations for  
            new and revised licensing categories and RFA due process  
            procedures, development and implementation of a system of  
            governmental monitoring and oversight, the development of  
            revised training curricula, and automation system changes. The  
            magnitude and duration of these costs will be dependent on the  
            complexity and structure of the processes developed, which are  
            undetermined at this time. 
            DHCS administration  :  Significant one-time costs (General  
            Fund) to promulgate regulations regarding program standards,  
            oversight, enforcement, and due process for the mental health  
            certification of STRTCs and FFAs that provide intensive or  
            therapeutic treatment services, and to collaborate with DSS on  
            a monitoring and oversight program. 
            EPSDT/specialty mental health services  :  Major costs  
            potentially in the millions to tens of millions of dollars  
            (Federal Funds/Local Revenue Fund 2011(Behavioral Health  
            Subaccount)) annually for increased services and  
            administration for both new and existing cases to the extent  
            the bill's reforms result in more appropriate placements and  
            assessments of need for children entitled to these services.  
            Pursuant to 2011 Realignment, responsibility for specialty  








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            mental health and EPSDT services rests with the counties. 
            Long-term impact  :  Unknown, potentially significant future  
            cost savings to the child welfare and juvenile justice systems  
            to the extent the reforms result in better-informed and  
            appropriate initial placements provided with targeted  
            services, coupled with greater use of family-based care and  
            declining use and duration of congregate care placements and  
            costs, resulting in shorter and/or fewer stays in the child  
            welfare and juvenile justice systems. This overall savings is  
            predicated on numerous interdependent factors including but  
            not limited to the availability of adequate capacity and  
            quality of placement options for youth, the successful  
            provision of services to meet the individual needs of each  
            child, an effective system of monitoring and local interagency  
            coordination to ensure identified services are being provided  
            and transitions to home-based family care are made timely, the  
            rates developed for STRTCs/FFAs and the number of GH  
            placements from each RCL level transitioned to the  
            restructured rates, successful efforts to maximize federal  
            financial participation, the ability of families to meet the  
            specialized needs of this population, and performance measures  
            and standards developed including data collection to enable  
            analysis and accountability. 
            Proposition 30*  :  Provides that to the extent this legislation  
            has an overall effect of increasing the costs already borne by  
            a local agency for programs or levels of service mandated by  
            2011 Realignment, it shall apply to local agencies only to the  
            extent that the state provides annual funding for the cost  
            increase. Recognizing the wide variation between counties in  
            geographic size, population of impacted children, and the  
            level and costs of services and supports currently being  
            provided, as well as the varying impacts and timing of this  
            measure on local agencies within each county (including child  
            welfare, county probation, county mental health), the point at  
            which each local agency's overall costs may decrease will  
            likewise vary. At this time, the methodology including  
            baseline assumptions for calculating this "overall effect"  
            pursuant to Proposition 30 is unclear.     
            Annual THP-Plus FC COLA  :  To the extent the specified  
            provision in this bill is determined to codify existing law  
            with regard to the rate structure established by the workgroup  
            pursuant to WIC §§ 11402(b) and 11403.3(a)(1)(B), no new state  
            costs.    









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          Background:  In response to the legislative mandate pursuant to SB 1013  
          (Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review) Chapter 35/2012, which  
          required the Department of Social Services (DSS) to establish a  
          stakeholder workgroup to develop recommended revisions to the  
          current rate-setting system, services, and programs serving  
          children and families in the continuum of eligible foster care  
          placement settings including, at a minimum, all programs  
          provided by foster family agencies and group homes, the DSS led  
          a multi-year effort and produced the report, California's Child  
          Welfare Continuum of Care Reform (January 2015), which outlines  
          a comprehensive approach to improving the experiences and  
          outcomes of children and youth in foster care. 

          The report envisions a new model of care based on the premise  
          that children are best served by living in their communities in  
          a setting of home-based family care coupled with the provision  
          of appropriate supports and services. With the intent of  
          eliminating the practice of long-term placements into congregate  
          (group home) care in favor of utilizing placements into  
          congregate care that are time-limited in duration and focused on  
          specific treatment goals, the new model of care supports  
          subsequently transitioning children into home-based family care  
          while ensuring appropriate levels of services and supports are  
          maintained.  

          The report recommendations include but are not limited to more  
          comprehensive assessments of children and families to enable  
          informed and appropriate initial placement decisions, emphasis  
          on home-based family care placements of children, the importance  
          of appropriate support of those placements with available  
          services, revised goals for congregate care placements, input  
          from a child and family team with regard to placement decisions  
          and assessment of needs, and greater transparency and  
          accountability for child outcomes. As indicated in the report  
          and notably relevant to this fiscal analysis: 

              Several of the recommendations in this report will  
              need short-term upfront investments as changes to the  
              placement system are phased in. In the longer term,  
              these recommendations are expected to become  
              cost-neutral by creating placement cost savings and  
              will permit strategic leveraging of federal Title IV-E  
              and Title XIX funding to further improve child  








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              outcomes. It is worth noting that California is one of  
              twelve states in which the state is responsible for  
              policy, regulation and outcome monitoring, with  
              counties responsible for operation of the program  
              itself. California also is unique in its current  
              financial relationship: The 2011 realignment of child  
              welfare services transferred all of the non-federal  
              placement costs and corresponding revenue to the  
              counties. This realignment also provides that new  
              administrative requirements, regulations, or enacted  
              legislation after September 30, 2012, that has an  
              overall effect of increasing the costs already borne  
              by county child welfare or juvenile probation  
              programs, applies to local agencies only to the extent  
              that the State provides annual funding for the cost  
              increase. 

              This reform effort is focused on improving outcomes  
              and requires significant changes to current  
              out-of-home care placements and supports. This reform  
              effort will improve the assessment process and alter  
              the roles of various placement settings and their  
              service arrays, and occurs in the context of other  
              system changes that serve to increase access to  
              existing federally-entitled services. While this  
              reform effort will change how and where services are  
              provided, it does so without creating new services.

          This bill seeks to commence the establishment of the framework,  
          including the development of revised funding structures and  
          components necessary to implement the model of care as outlined  
          in the report recommendations, towards realization of the  
          overarching goal of a reduced reliance on congregate care as a  
          long-term placement setting and increased capacity of home-based  
          family care to better address the individual needs of all  
          children and caregivers, with the goal of the achievement of  
          safety, permanency, and well-being.


          Proposed Law:  
           This bill includes overarching legislative intent language to  
          improve California's child welfare system and its outcomes, with  
          an expectation that the short-term funding provided by the state  
          to local agencies to implement the bill's provisions will reduce  








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          overall costs to local agencies and allow local savings to be  
          reinvested in child welfare services. This bill also states the  
          intent of the Legislature to maintain children's safety,  
          well-being, and healthy development when they are removed from  
          their own families by placing them with relatives or someone  
          familiar, whenever possible or appropriate, or with other  
          caregiving families, and to achieve this intent, the Legislature  
          recognizes numerous factors, as specified. In summary, this bill  
          provides for the following:    
           Group Home (GH) and Residential Care Reforms
                  Creates a new licensure category of "short-term  
               residential treatment centers" (STRTCs), defined to mean a  
               residential facility licensed by DSS and operated by a  
               public agency or private organization that provides  
               short-term, specialized, and intensive  treatment,  
               including core services, as defined, and 24-hour care and  
               supervision to children, as specified.
                 Effective January 1, 2017, sunsets existing law  
               authorizing a GH to accept children assessed as seriously  
               emotionally disturbed (SED). Provides for a conditional  
               one-year extension to individual GHs to accept SED  
               placements.
                 Requires DSS to license STRTCs commencing January 1,  
               2017, and authorizes DSS to license STRTCs prior to January  
               1, 2017. As a condition of licensure, requires STRTCs to  
               meet the following criteria:
                  o         Have national accreditation from an entity  
                    identified by the DSS, as specified. Provides DSS the  
                    authority to extend provisional licenses for STRTCs  
                    for up to two years, if it determines this additional  
                    time is required to secure accreditation.
                  o         Obtain and have in good standing a mental  
                    health certification. 
                 Requires STRTCs to have a written plan of operation, as  
               specified by DSS, and requires a county licensed to operate  
               an STRTC to describe its conflict-of-interest mitigation  
               plan in its plan of operation.
                 Effective January 1, 2017, authorizes STRTCs to accept  
               for placement a child who meets all of the following  
               criteria:
                  o         A child who does not require inpatient care in  
                    a licensed health facility.
                  o         A child who has been assessed as requiring the  
                    level of services provided in order to maintain the  








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                    safety of the child or others due to behaviors that  
                    render the child or those around the child unsafe, and  
                    who meets at least one of the following conditions:
                       §              A child who has been assessed as  
                         meeting the medical necessity criteria for  
                         specialty mental health services under the  
                         Medi-Cal Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis,  
                         and Treatment (EPSDT) program.
                       §              A child assessed as SED.
                       §              A child who has been assessed as  
                         requiring the level of services provided in order  
                         to meet his or her behavioral or therapeutic  
                         needs, which in appropriate circumstances may  
                         include the following children:
                                               A commercially or sexually  
                              exploited child.
                                               A private voluntary  
                              placement, as specified.
                                               A juvenile sex offender.
                                               A child who is affiliated  
                              with or impacted by a gang.
                 Requires providers to ensure that AFDC-FC funded  
               children accepted for placement have been approved for  
               placement by an interagency placement committee (IPC), as  
               specified.
                 Effective January 1, 2017, sunsets the existing GH rate  
               classification system, but provides that DSS may grant an  
               exception on a case-by-case basis for a GH to extend its  
               rate through December 31, 2017, both for child welfare and  
               probation youth, and potentially beyond that date, with  
               six-month reviews, to meet the needs of probation youth, as  
               specified. Provides for an interim GH rate classification  
               process until January 1, 2018, for those GHs provided an  
               extension.
                 Commencing January 1, 2017, requires DSS to commence  
               development of a new payment structure for STRTC program  
               placements claiming Title IV-E funding that includes  
               consideration of the following factors: core services,  
               specialized and intensive treatment supports, staff  
               training, health and safety requirements, accreditation,  
               mental health certification, and maximization of federal  
               financial participation.
                 Prohibits DSS from establishing a rate for an STRTC or  
               FFA that provides intensive and therapeutic treatment  








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               unless the provider submits a recommendation from the host  
               county or primary placing county that the program is needed  
               and that the provider is willing and capable of operating  
               the program at the level sought.
                 Commencing January 1, 2017, provides that the rate paid  
               for a dependent infant living with a dependent teenage  
               parent receiving AFDC-FC benefits in an STRTC shall equal  
               the infant supplement rate for STRTCs established by DSS. 
                 Requires DSS to develop and establish an administrator  
               certification training program for STRTCs, as specified,  
               and establish a process no later than January 1, 2017, for  
               convening a peer review panel for review of plans of  
               operation for STRTCs.

           Foster Family Agency (FFA) Reforms
                  Removes the requirement for DSS to develop licensing  
               regulations differentiating between FFAs that provide  
               treatment of children in foster families and those that  
               provided nontreatment services.
                 Expands the definition of FFA to include a public  
               agency, and requires a county licensed to operate an FFA to  
               include a conflict-of-interest mitigation plan in its plan  
               of operation.
                 Establishes new requirements for FFAs, including the  
               maintenance of a written plan of operation as required by  
               DSS. Additionally:
                  o         On and after January 1, 2017, requires FFAs to  
                    have national accreditation from an entity identified  
                    by the DSS, as specified.
                  o         Authorizes DSS to issue a provisional license  
                    to an FFA for up to two years and may extend the term  
                    of the provisional license in order for the FFA to  
                    secure accreditation.
                  o         On and after January 1, 2017, requires an  
                    FFA's plan of operation to demonstrate its ability to  
                    support the differing needs of children and their  
                    families and include a program statement that contains  
                    a description of its core services and supports,  
                    treatment practices that will be used, description of  
                    services to be provided to meet treatment needs of  
                    children assessed.
                  o         Requires FFAs that provide treatment services  
                    to maintain in good standing the appropriate mental  
                    health certification issued by the DHCS.








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                 Sunsets existing provisions of law on the rate setting  
               system for FFAs on January 1, 2017, and on that same date  
               requires DSS to commence development of a new payment  
               structure for the Title IV-E funded FFA placement option  
               for FFAs that provide nontreatment, treatment, intensive  
               treatment, and therapeutic foster care programs based on a  
               list of enumerated factors. Provides for an interim rate  
               structure until January 1, 2018.
                 Provides that DSS may grant an exception on a  
               case-by-case basis for an FFA to extend its rate through  
               December 31, 2017, both for child welfare and probation  
               youth, as specified, and establishes an interim rate system  
               for FFAs through January 1, 2018, for those FFAs granted an  
               extension. 
                 Authorizes FFAs that provide treatment services to  
               accept for placement children who do not require inpatient  
               care in a licensed health facility and who meet at least  
               one of the following conditions:
                  o          A child who has been assessed as meeting the  
                    medical necessity criteria for specialty mental health  
                    services under the Medi-Cal EPSDT program.
                  o         A child assessed as SED.
                  o         A child who has been assessed as requiring the  
                    level of services provided in order to meet his or her  
                    behavioral or therapeutic needs.
                 Effective January 1, 2017, requires FFAs to approve  
               resource families in lieu of certifying foster homes.

           Probation Youth
                  Commencing January 1, 2016, requires county probation  
               departments to do the following:
                  o         Work with GH providers to develop STRTCs that  
                    meet the needs of probation-supervised youth in foster  
                    care.
                  o         Work with FFAs to develop strategies to  
                    recruit, retain, and support specialized foster homes  
                    for probation youth.
                  o         Work with DSS on strategies to identify,  
                    engage, and support relative caregivers.
                                                                     o         Work with DSS to define probation youth  
                    outcome measures to be collected and analyzed to  
                    assess implementation of this act. 
                 Commencing January 1, 2018, requires DSS in consultation  
               with the Chief Probation Officers of California, to assess  








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               the capacity and quality of placement options for probation  
               youth in foster care, as specified.
                 Requires DSS to provide an interim report to the  
               Legislature no later than January 10, 2019, and a final  
               report no later than January 10, 2021, to include specified  
               data and whether there is a continued need for probation  
               placement in GHs.

           Child and Family Team (CFT) Activities 
                  Defines a CFT as a supportive team that informs the  
               process of placement and services to children and youth in  
               foster care or who are at risk of foster care placement.  
               Provides that a CFT is comprised of the child or youth, the  
               child's family, the caregiver, the placing agency  
               caseworker, a county mental health representative, and a  
               representative of the child's or youth's tribe or Indian  
               custodian, as applicable, and may include other persons as  
               specified and appropriate.
                 Requires the case plan to be developed in collaboration  
               with the CFT. Requires the placing agency to consider the  
               recommendations of the CFT and document the rationale for  
               any inconsistencies between the case plan and the CFT  
               recommendations.
                 After January 1, 2017, requires a CFT meeting to be  
               convened by the county placing agency for the purpose of  
               identifying the supports and services needed to achieve  
               permanency and enable the child or youth to be placed in  
               the least restrictive, most family-like setting.
           
          Resource Family Approval (RFA) Process
                  Mandates statewide implementation of the RFA process no  
               later than January 1, 2017. Under existing law,  
               implementation by all counties is authorized effective July  
               1, 2017, but statewide implementation is not required until  
               July 1, 2019.
                 Revises RFA standards and requirements to include  
               successfully meeting a home environment assessment and  
               permanency assessment standards. 
                 Commencing January 1, 2016, authorizes DSS to establish  
               participation conditions, and select and authorize FFAs  
               that voluntarily submit implementation plans and revised  
               plans of operation in accordance with requirements  
               established by DSS to approve resource families in lieu of  
               certifying foster homes. Authorizes DSS to adjust the FFA  








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               AFDC-FC rate for implementation of these activities.
                 Effective January 1, 2017, requires FFAs to approve  
               resource families in lieu of certifying foster homes. No  
               later than July 1, 2017, requires FFAs to provide a  
               detailed description of the RFA process to all certified  
               family homes and notification that in order to care for a  
               foster child, RFA is required by December 31, 2019.  
               Provides that a certified family home with an approved  
               adoptive home study completed prior to January 1, 2018,  
               shall be deemed to be an approved resource family. 
                 No later than July 1, 2017, requires counties to provide  
               a detailed description of the RFA process to all licensed  
               foster family homes (FFHs), approved relatives and  
               nonrelative extended family members (NREFMs), and that in  
               order to care for a foster child, RFA is required by  
               December 31, 2019. Provides that a licensed FFH, an  
               approved relative, or NREFM with an approved adoptive home  
               study completed prior to January 1, 2018, shall be deemed  
               to be an approved resource family.
                 Requires counties to provide supportive services to all  
               certified family homes with a child in placement to assist  
               with the resource family transition and to minimize  
               placement disruptions.
                 Authorizes counties to provide supportive services to  
               all licensed FFHs, relatives, and NREFMs with a child in  
               placement to assist with the resource family transition and  
               to minimize placement disruptions.
                 Requires DSS to implement due process procedures  
               including providing a statewide fair hearing process for  
               denials, rescissions, or exclusion actions.
                 Requires counties to ensure resource families have the  
               necessary caregiver training, including a minimum of 12  
               hours of pre-approval training and a minimum of 8 hours  
               annually thereafter.
                 Specifies that resource families shall not be subject to  
               civil penalties imposed pursuant to the Community Care  
               Facilities Act.
                 Provides that personal identifying information of  
               resource families shall not be disclosed by any state or  
               local agency pursuant to the California Public Records Act,  
               except as specified.
          
          Other Provisions
                  Requires DSS to provide available funding to counties  








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               for the purpose of recruiting, retaining, and supporting  
               foster parents, relative caregivers, and resource families  
               based on DSS approval of plans submitted by each county  
               that requests funding for staffing, exceptional child needs  
               not covered by the caregiver-specific rate, child care,  
               intensive relative finding, engagement, and navigation  
               efforts, and emerging technological or other  
               non-traditional approaches to outreach to potential foster  
               homes, resource families, and relatives.
                 Requires DSS to develop a system of governmental  
               monitoring and oversight of STRTCs and FFAs to be carried  
               out in coordination with DHCS. Oversight responsibilities  
               must include, but not be limited to, ensuring conformity  
               with federal and state law, including program, fiscal, and  
               health and safety reviews.
                 Requires DHCS to promulgate regulations for oversight,  
               enforcement, and due process for the mental health  
               certification of STRTCs and FFAs that provide treatment  
               services.
                 Effective January 1, 2017, sunsets the existing rate for  
               wraparound services and establishes a new rate of $8,573,  
               based on a revised methodology, as specified. Commencing  
               January 1, 2018, and annually thereafter, provides for a  
               cost-of-living increase (COLA) to be applied to the  
               wraparound services rate, subject to the availability of  
               county funds, equal to the CNI, as specified.
                 Sunsets existing provisions of law outlining foster  
               parent training requirements on January 1, 2017, and  
               replaces with an annual training requirement of 8 hours, as  
               specified.
                 No later than January 1, 2017, requires DSS to consult  
               with stakeholders to develop regulations or identify policy  
               changes necessary to allow for the sharing of information  
               with caregivers regarding a child's educational, medical,  
               dental, and mental health history and current needs.
                 Authorizes DSS to license temporary shelter care  
               facilities on or after January 1, 2016, only to counties  
               operating a licensed GH as of January 1, 2016, and limits  
               placement duration to no more than 10 calendar days, as  
               specified. Requires DSS to provide a report to the  
               Legislature by January 1, 2021, on the use of temporary  
               shelter care and whether there is a continued need for the  
               licensing and operation of these facilities.
                 On and after January 1, 2017, provides that facilities  








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               with licensed capacity of 184 that were in operation prior  
               to January 1, 2015, that offer placements for the purpose  
               of attending an onsite high school may continue to operate  
               under an appropriate licensing category subject to  
               submittal of a transition plan to DSS. 
                 Codifies legislative intent to provide an annual COLA  
               equal to the CNI, as specified, on THP-Plus Foster Care  
               Program payments.

          Related Legislation:  AB 1299 (Ridley-Thomas) 2015 would shift  
          responsibility for the provision of medically necessary mental  
          health services for foster youth placed out-of-county, from the  
          county of original jurisdiction to the foster youth's county of  
          residence, in order to increase access to mental health services  
          for youth. This bill is scheduled to be heard today by this  
          Committee.


          SB 238 (Mitchell), SB 253 (Monning), SB 319 (Beall), and SB 484  
          (Beall) 2015, are four bills proposing a set of reforms aimed at  
          curbing excessive and inappropriate authorization and  
          administration of psychotropic medications to foster youth.  
          These bills are pending hearing in the Assembly Appropriations  
          Committee.

          Prior Legislation:  AB 93 (Committee on Budget) Chapter 10/2015,  
          the Budget Act of 2015, and SB 79 (Committee on Budget and  
          Fiscal Review) Chapter 20/2015, the Human Services budget  
          trailer bill, provided the authority and initial funding to  
          support foster parent recruitment, retention, and support,  
          budget bill language specifying how the recruitment, retention,  
          and support funds are to be spent, and funds to increase FFA  
          social worker rates.


          SB 1013 (Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review) Chapter 35/2012,  
          among its provisions, required DSS to establish a working group  
          to develop recommended revisions to the current rate-setting  
          system, services, and programs serving children and families in  
          the continuum of foster care settings. This bill also enacted  
          the RFA program. 











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          Staff  
          Comments:  This bill establishes the general framework for  
          commencing development of the reforms described in the Continuum  
          of Care Reform report, the potential fiscal impacts of which  
          will be dependent on numerous factors including but not limited  
          to the outcomes of processes and structures required to be  
          developed pursuant to the bill's provisions but have yet to be  
          determined. 
          The absence of specificity with regard to revised rate  
          structures, program standards, and implementation details  
          notwithstanding, this bill will likely require the provision of  
          substantial funding, potentially in the tens of millions of  
          dollars annually over a number of years to local agencies to  
          successfully initiate implementation of such a comprehensive  
          reform as the bill's legislative intent language describes.  


          For example, acknowledging the critical need to expand the  
          existing capacity of family-based placements to enable the  
          successful transition of youth from existing GH and future STRTC  
          placements, the bill requires DSS to provide "available funding"  
          to counties for the purpose of recruiting, retaining, and  
          supporting foster parents, relative caregivers, and resource  
          families. While the 2015 Budget Act includes over $17 million  
          General Fund in one-time funding to support these activities,  
          significant additional investments will likely be required in  
          order to continue to build on these initial efforts. Notably,  
          the Chief Probation Officers of California have indicated only  
          46 probation youth currently reside with foster families or  
          FFAs, and approximately 2,100 probation youth are currently  
          placed in GHs. The availability and ability of home-based family  
          caregivers to meet the needs of both the probation and child  
          welfare populations will be a key component to successfully  
          reducing the use of congregate care placements and costs.  


          The overall fiscal impact of this measure over time cannot be  
          known with certainty given the multitude of interdependent  
          factors and as of yet undetermined components in the bill  
          including but not limited to the availability of adequate  
          capacity and quality of placement options for youth, the  
          successful provision of services to meet the individual needs of  
          each child, an effective system of monitoring and coordination  








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          to ensure identified services are being provided and transitions  
          to home-based family care are made timely, the rate levels  
          developed for STRTCs/FFAs and the number of GH placements from  
          each RCL level transitioned to the restructured rates,  
          successful efforts to maximize federal financial participation,  
          and the development of performance measures and standards  
          including data collection to enable analysis of outcomes and  
          accountability. 

          Adding to the complexity of determining the potential fiscal  
          impacts of this bill are the provisions of Proposition 30 and  
          2011 Realignment. Proposition 30 provides that to the extent  
          this legislation has an overall effect of increasing the costs  
          already borne by a local agency for programs or levels of  
          service mandated by 2011 Realignment, it shall apply to local  
          agencies only to the extent that the state provides annual  
          funding for the cost increase. Recognizing the wide variation  
          between counties, as well as the varying impacts and timing of  
          this measure on local agencies within each county (including  
          child welfare, county probation, county mental health), the  
          point at which each local agency's overall costs may decrease  
          will likewise vary. To facilitate the ability to measure the  
          fiscal and programmatic effects of this legislation, the  
          establishment of performance standards, outcome measures, and  
          data to be collected and analyzed would be required. It is  
          unclear how the long-term implementation of the provisions of  
          this bill will be funded, and to what extent any local agency  
          savings from reduced congregate care placement costs will be  
          measured and potentially used to offset other local agency  
          costs. At this time, the methodology including baseline  
          assumptions for calculating this "overall effect" pursuant to  
          Proposition 30 is unclear. 


          Proposed Author  
          Amendments:  The author has indicated numerous amendments are  
          forthcoming, both substantive and technical in nature. These  
          amendments were not available at the time of this analysis.


          Recommended  
          Amendments:  Staff recommends the state funding to be provided  
          to counties for the services to support the recruitment and  
          retention of home-based family care providers pursuant to WIC §  








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          16003.5 in Section 98 of the bill specify the funds are to be  
          provided subject to appropriation by the Legislature. 


                                      -- END --