BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 1067 Page 1 CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS AB 1067 (Gipson) As Amended August 17, 2016 Majority vote -------------------------------------------------------------------- |ASSEMBLY: |78-0 |(January 27, |SENATE: |38-0 |(August 22, | | | |2016) | | |2016) | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | -------------------------------------------------------------------- Original Committee Reference: HUM. S. SUMMARY: Requires the Department of Social Services (DSS) to convene a working group to develop standardized information about the rights of all minors and nonminors in foster care, and expands requirements regarding the distribution of information regarding these rights, as specified. The Senate amendments: 1)Require the working group to develop a recommendation as to whether or not to require the signature of a foster child verifying that he or she has received and understands his or her rights. 2)Add the bureau at the Department of Justice whose mission is to protect the rights of children to the list of required AB 1067 Page 2 working group participants. 3)Expand current-law requirements regarding informing foster children of their rights to do the following: a) Require the child's social worker or probation officer to provide information on the rights to the child's care provider and the child and family team, if applicable; b) Require the child's social worker or probation officer to provide a written copy of the rights to the child as part of the explanation; c) Require information on the rights to be provided at each placement change; and d) Require the social worker or probation officer to document in the case plan that he or she has informed the child of, and has provided the child with a written copy of, his or her rights. 4)Make technical amendments. 5)Make chaptering amendments. EXISTING LAW: 1)States that the purpose of foster care law is to provide maximum safety and protection for children who are being physically, sexually or emotionally abused, neglected, or exploited and to ensure the safety, protection, and physical and emotional well-being of children at risk of such harm. (Welfare and Institutions Code Section (WIC) 300.2) AB 1067 Page 3 2)Declares the intent of the Legislature to, whenever possible: preserve and strengthen a child's family ties, reunify a foster child with his or her relatives, or when family reunification is not possible or likely, to develop a permanent alternative. Further states the intent of the Legislature to reaffirm its commitment to children who are in out-of-home placement to live in the least restrictive, most family-like setting and as close to the child's family as possible, as specified. (WIC 16000) 3)Enumerates rights of minors and nonminors in foster care, including but not limited to the right to: live in a safe, healthy, and comfortable home where he or she is treated with respect; be free from physical, sexual, emotional, or other abuse, or corporal punishment; receive adequate and healthy food, adequate clothing, and, for youth in group homes, an allowance; receive medical, dental, vision, and mental health services; be involved in the development of his or her own case plan and plan for permanent placement; and review his or her own case plan and plan for permanent placement, if he or she is 12 years of age or older and in a permanent placement, and receive information about his or her out-of-home placement and case plan, including being told of changes to the plan. (WIC 16001.9) FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Senate Appropriations Committee, this bill was placed on the second reading file pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8. COMMENTS: Child Welfare Services: The purpose of California's Child Welfare Services (CWS) system is to protect children from abuse and neglect and provide for their health and safety. When children are identified as being at risk of abuse, neglect or abandonment, county juvenile courts hold legal dependency AB 1067 Page 4 jurisdiction; these children are served by the CWS system through the appointment of a social worker. Through this juvenile dependency system, there are multiple opportunities for the custody of the child, or his or her placement outside of the home, to be evaluated, reviewed and determined by the judicial system, in consultation with the child's social worker, to help provide the best possible services to the child. The CWS system seeks to help children who have been removed from their homes reunify with their parents or guardians, whenever appropriate. However, the court may determine that an alternate permanent placement is more fitting; the court must give preference to potential placements in this order: relatives, nonrelative extended family members, or family foster homes. Placement in group homes or other intensive treatment placement settings are considered only in more challenging situations where a child may need stabilization services in order to transition to a less restrictive placement, such as with a relative or foster caregiver. There are currently close to 63,000 children and youth in California's CWS system. Foster Youth Bill of Rights: AB 899 (Liu), Chapter 683, Statutes of 2001, adopted California's Foster Youth Bill of Rights. Two previous bills - AB 2923 (Bates) of 1994 and SB 1974 (Watson) of 1996 - had sought to codify the rights of children in foster care but were vetoed by then-Governor Pete Wilson. Proponents of AB 899 acknowledged that regulations at the time contained a number of rights of foster children, but they argued that the lists of these rights tended to vary and were not conveyed consistently to foster youth. Staff of the Office of the State Foster Care Ombudsperson (Office) also acknowledged at the time that most of the rights contained in AB 899 were consistent with those provided by the Office to youth, but the Office still struggled with uniformly conveying this information; the Office also pointed to the lack of a clear process of accountability when youth were not provided with this information. AB 1067 Page 5 AB 899, in making the Foster Youth Bill of Rights law, consolidated and codified the rights of children into one place in statute. It also required: social workers and probation officers to periodically inform children of these rights in an age-appropriate manner, the Office to develop, in consultation with stakeholders, and disseminate information on these rights, and any facility licensed to provide foster care for six or more children to post a listing of these rights. Additional rights have been added to the Foster Youth Bill of Rights over time, most recently with SB 731 (Leno), Chapter 805, Statutes of 2015, which added the right of foster youth to be placed in out-of-home care according to their gender identity, regardless of the gender or sex listed in their court or child welfare records. The current list of rights for all minors and nonminors in foster care includes 27 enumerated rights, such as the right to: live in a safe, healthy, and comfortable home where he or she is treated with respect; be free from physical, sexual, emotional, or other abuse, or corporal punishment; receive adequate and healthy food, adequate clothing, and, for youth in group homes, an allowance; and receive medical, dental, vision, and mental health services. Need for this bill: According to the author, "Current law (Welfare and Institutions Code Section 16001.9) establishes a list of certain rights of foster children but provides no provision for how or when these rights should be updated. This bill will ensure that foster youth are aware of their rights and are actively involved in updating them." The need to keep foster youth informed of the most up-to-date version of their rights has been recognized, and some attempts have been made to address this need, over time. For example, in ACR 58 (Parra), Resolution Chapter 150, Statutes of 2006, the Legislature urged DSS and other specified entities to develop practices that assist foster youth in understanding their rights and the resources available to support them in foster care and as they transition out of foster care. The Senate floor analysis for this resolution, dated August 17, 2005, stated that: AB 1067 Page 6 ACR 58 was developed during this year's lobby day for the California Youth Connection when the foster youth expressed their frustration with the lack of publicity and enforcement of the rights that the Legislature enacted in recent legislation. The author argues that if foster youth are not aware of some of their rights or do not understand them well, the youth are less likely to take advantage of the protection, resources, and support the state offers. The various governmental entities, advocates, and stakeholders who work with foster youth therefore have a responsibility to assist foster youth in understanding their rights and the resources available to support them. PRIOR LEGISLATION: AB 899 (Liu), Chapter 683, Statutes of 2001, adopted California's Foster Youth Bill of Rights. SB 1974 (Watson) of 1996, among other things, would have required youth placed in foster care to be provided an orientation that included an explanation of the child's rights. It was vetoed by the Governor. AB 2923 (Bates) of 1994, would have adopted a Group Home Bill of Rights. It was vetoed by the Governor. Analysis Prepared by: Daphne Hunt / HUM. S. / (916) 319-2089 FN: 0004555 AB 1067 Page 7