BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY
Senator Loni Hancock, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: AB 1207 Hearing Date: June 23, 2015
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|Author: |Lopez |
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|Version: |June 10, 2015 |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes |
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|Consultant:|AA |
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Subject: Mandated Child Abuse Reporting: Child Day Care
Personnel: Training
HISTORY
Source: Child Care Law Center
Prior Legislation: AB 1432 (Gatto), Chapter 797, Statutes of
2014
Support: American Federation of State, County and Municipal
Employees; California Child Care Health Program;
California State Council of Service Employees (SEIU);
California State PTA; Child Care Law Center; Family
Child Care Alameda County Network; Family Child Care
Association of San Francisco; Health Officers
Association of California; Knowledge Universe; Los
Angeles County Child Death review Team; National
Association of Social Workers, California Chapter;
Public Counsel; The Wolf Pack Family Child Care; two
individuals
Opposition:None Known
Assembly Floor Vote: 77 - 0
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PURPOSE
The purpose of this bill is to require that 1) child care
licensee applicants take training in the duties of mandated
reporters under the child abuse reporting laws as a condition of
licensure; 2) child care administrators or employees of a
licensed child day care facility take training in the duties of
mandated reporters during the first six weeks of employment; and
3) the Office of Child Abuse Prevention and the Community Care
Licensing Division within the Department of Social Services
provide training for child abuse and neglect detection and
reporting to providers, administrators, and employees of
licensed child day care facilities, as specified.
Current law establishes the Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting
Act ("CANRA"), which generally is intended to protect children
from abuse and neglect. (Penal Code § 11164.)
Current law requires mandated reporters to make reports of
suspected child abuse or neglect, as specified. (Penal Code §
11165.9.)
Current law enumerates 44 categories of mandatory child abuse
reporters. (Penal Code § 11165.7.)
Current law provides that "(e)mployers are strongly encouraged
to provide their employees who are mandated reporters with
training in the duties imposed by this article. This training
shall include training in child abuse and neglect identification
and training in child abuse and neglect reporting. Whether or
not employers provide their employees with training in child
abuse and neglect identification and reporting, the employers
shall provide their employees who are mandated reporters with
the statement required pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section
11166.5." (Penal Code § 11165.7(c).)
Current law provides that except as specified, "volunteers of
public or private organizations whose duties require direct
contact with and supervision of children are not mandated
reporters but are encouraged to obtain training in the
identification and reporting of child abuse and neglect and are
further encouraged to report known or suspected instances of
child abuse or neglect. . . . " (Penal Code § 11165.7(b).)
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Current law provides that except as specified, "employers are
strongly encouraged to provide their employees who are mandated
reporters with training in the duties imposed by this article.
This training shall include training in child abuse and neglect
identification and training in child abuse and neglect
reporting. . . . " (Penal Code § 11165.7(c).)
Current law requires school districts, county offices of
education, state special schools and diagnostic centers operated
by the State Department of Education, and charter schools to
"annually train their employees and persons working on their
behalf specified in subdivision (a) in the duties of mandated
reporters under the child abuse reporting laws. The training
shall include, but not necessarily be limited to, training in
child abuse and neglect identification and child abuse and
neglect reporting." (Penal Code § 11165.7(d).)
Current law states that "(p)ublic and private organizations are
encouraged to provide their volunteers whose duties require
direct contact with and supervision of children with training in
the identification and reporting of child abuse and neglect."
(Penal Code § 11165.7(f).)
This bill would require a child care licensee applicant to "take
training in the duties of mandated reporters under the child
abuse reporting laws as a condition of licensure, and a child
care administrator or an employee of a licensed child day care
facility shall take training in the duties of mandated reporters
during the first six weeks when he or she is employed by the
facility," pursuant to the provisions described below.
This bill additionally would require a child care licensee
applicant to "take the training regularly, as defined by the
regulations adopted pursuant to (the section added by this
bill). The training shall include, but not necessarily be
limited to, training in child abuse and neglect identification
and child abuse and neglect reporting."
Current law generally authorizes at least one director or
teacher at each day care center, and each family day care home
licensee who provides care, to have specified health and safety
training in identifying and reporting signs and symptoms of
child abuse. (Health and Safety Code § 1596.866(a)(3).)
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This bill would delete this provision.
This bill would require the Office of Child Abuse Prevention
("OCAP") and the Community Care Licensing Division within the
department, in consultation, shall do all of the following:
(1)Develop and disseminate information to all providers,
administrators, and employees of licensed child day care
facilities regarding detecting and reporting child abuse and
neglect.
(2) Provide statewide instruction on the responsibilities of a
mandated reporter who is a provider, administrator, or
employee of a licensed child day care facility, as specified.
OCAP would be required to "provide the instruction using its
free online General Training Module and Child Care
Professionals Training Module of the Child Abuse Mandated
Reporter Training-California project provided on the State
Department of Social Services Internet Web site or as
otherwise specified by the department. This instruction
content shall include, but is not necessarily limited to, all
of the following:
a)Information on the identification of child abuse and neglect,
including behavioral signs or
abuse and neglect.
b)When to call for emergency medical attention to prevent
further injury or death.
c) Reporting requirements for child abuse and neglect,
including guidelines on how to make a suspected child abuse
report when suspected abuse or neglect takes place outside
a child day care facility, or within a child day care
facility, and to which enforcement agency or agencies a
report is required to be made.
d) Information that failure to report an incident of known
or reasonably suspected child abuse or neglect, as required
by Section 11166 of the Penal Code, is a misdemeanor
punishable by up to six months confinement in a county
jail, or by a fine of one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by
both that imprisonment and fine.
e) Information on protective factors that may help prevent
abuse, including dangers of shaking a child, safe sleep
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practices, psychological effects of repeated exposure to
domestic violence, safe and age-appropriate forms of
discipline, how to promote a child's social and emotional
health, and how to support positive parent-child
relationships.
f) Information on recognizing risk factors that may lead to
abuse, such as stress and social isolation, and available
resources to which a family may be referred to help prevent
child abuse and neglect.
g) Information on childhood stages of development in order
to help distinguish whether a child's behavior or physical
symptoms are within range for his or her age and ability,
or are signs of abuse or neglect.
h) Best practices on how a provider, administrator, or
employee of a licensed child day care facility might
communicate with a family before and after making a
suspected child abuse report."
(3) Translate information and instruction materials described
in this subdivision into non- English languages spoken by a
substantial number of child care providers, administrators,
and employees of licensed child day care facilities, as
specified.
This bill would require that, "on or before March 30, 2017, a
person who, on January 1, 2017, is a provider, administrator, or
employee of a licensed child day care facility shall complete
mandated reporter training pursuant to this subdivision, and
shall complete renewal mandated reporter training every three
years following the date on which he or she completed the
initial mandated reporter training."
This bill would require that, on "and after January 1, 2017, a
person who applies for a license to be a provider of a child day
care facility shall complete mandatory reporter training
pursuant to this subdivision as a precondition to licensure and
shall complete renewal mandatory reporter training every three
years following the date on which he or she completed the
initial mandatory reporter training."
This bill would require that, on "and after January 1, 2017, a
person who becomes an administrator or employee of a licensed
child day care facility shall complete mandatory reporter
training pursuant to this subdivision within the first 90 days
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that he or she is employed at the facility and shall complete
renewal mandatory reporter training every three years following
the date on which he or she completed the initial mandatory
reporter training."
This bill would require that a "provider of a licensed child day
care facility shall obtain proof from an administrator or
employee of the facility that the person has completed mandatory
reporter training in compliance with this subdivision."
This bill would require that training pursuant to this provision
shall include information that failure to report an incident of
known or reasonably suspected child abuse or neglect, as
required by Section 11166 of the Penal Code, is a misdemeanor
punishable by up to six months confinement in a county jail, or
by a fine of . . . $1,000, or by both that imprisonment and
fine.
This bill would require a person taking training pursuant to
this provision to complete the training using the online
training module provided by OCAP.
This bill would require a provider, administrator, or employee
of a licensed child day care facility who does not use the
online training module provided by OCAP to report to, and obtain
approval from, OCAP regarding the training that person shall use
in lieu of the online training module.
This bill would require that current proof of completion for
each child care provider, administrator, and employee of a
licensed child day care facility, be submitted to the Department
of Social Services ("DSS") upon inspection of the child day care
facility, when proof of other required training is submitted to
DSS, or upon request by DSS.
This bill would require DSS to issue a notice of deficiency at
the time of a site visit to a provider of a licensed child day
care facility who is not in compliance with this section. The
provider would be required, at the time the notice is issued, to
develop a plan of correction to correct the deficiency within 90
days of receiving the notice. DSS would be authorized to revoke
the facility's license if the facility fails to correct the
deficiency within the 90-day period, as specified.
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This bill would provide that a provider, administrator, or
employee of a licensed child care facility would be exempt from
the detecting and reporting child abuse training if he or she
has limited English proficiency and training is not made
available in his or her primary language.
This bill would require DSS to adopt regulations to implement
this section.
This bill would provide that these provisions would become
operative on January 1, 2017.
RECEIVERSHIP/OVERCROWDING CRISIS AGGRAVATION
For the past eight years, this Committee has scrutinized
legislation referred to its jurisdiction for any potential
impact on prison overcrowding. Mindful of the United States
Supreme Court ruling and federal court orders relating to the
state's ability to provide a constitutional level of health care
to its inmate population and the related issue of prison
overcrowding, this Committee has applied its "ROCA" policy as a
content-neutral, provisional measure necessary to ensure that
the Legislature does not erode progress in reducing prison
overcrowding.
On February 10, 2014, the federal court ordered California to
reduce its in-state adult institution population to 137.5% of
design capacity by February 28, 2016, as follows:
143% of design bed capacity by June 30, 2014;
141.5% of design bed capacity by February 28, 2015; and,
137.5% of design bed capacity by February 28, 2016.
In February of this year the administration reported that as "of
February 11, 2015, 112,993 inmates were housed in the State's 34
adult institutions, which amounts to 136.6% of design bed
capacity, and 8,828 inmates were housed in out-of-state
facilities. This current population is now below the
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court-ordered reduction to 137.5% of design bed capacity."(
Defendants' February 2015 Status Report In Response To February
10, 2014 Order, 2:90-cv-00520 KJM DAD PC, 3-Judge Court, Coleman
v. Brown, Plata v. Brown (fn. omitted).
While significant gains have been made in reducing the prison
population, the state now must stabilize these advances and
demonstrate to the federal court that California has in place
the "durable solution" to prison overcrowding "consistently
demanded" by the court. (Opinion Re: Order Granting in Part and
Denying in Part Defendants' Request For Extension of December
31, 2013 Deadline, NO. 2:90-cv-0520 LKK DAD (PC), 3-Judge Court,
Coleman v. Brown, Plata v. Brown (2-10-14). The Committee's
consideration of bills that may impact the prison population
therefore will be informed by the following questions:
Whether a proposal erodes a measure which has contributed
to reducing the prison population;
Whether a proposal addresses a major area of public safety
or criminal activity for which there is no other
reasonable, appropriate remedy;
Whether a proposal addresses a crime which is directly
dangerous to the physical safety of others for which there
is no other reasonably appropriate sanction;
Whether a proposal corrects a constitutional problem or
legislative drafting error; and
Whether a proposal proposes penalties which are
proportionate, and cannot be achieved through any other
reasonably appropriate remedy.
COMMENTS
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1.Stated Need for This Bill
The author states in part:
. . . California law does not require that child care
providers receive any training in recognizing signs of
child maltreatment or in how to navigate the
complicated reporting system despite their status as
"mandated reporters" - professionals who are legally
obligated to report suspected abuse or neglect to CPS
agencies. The California Penal Code only requires
mandated reporters to "sign a statement" attesting to
their knowledge of and willingness to comply with the
reporting obligation. Pursuant to this law,
California Community Care Licensing Division of the
California Department of Social Services (Licensing)
issues a form to child care licensee applicants
entitled "Statement Acknowledging Requirement to
Report Child Abuse." The one-and-a-half page form
generally informs child care providers that they are
mandated reporters, briefly describes what, when, and
where to report, and explains that reporters are
immune from civil or criminal liability and their
identity is confidential. The form also explains the
criminal and civil penalties for failure to report.
The only information that accompanies the form is in
Licensing's orientation training for family child care
home licensees and child care center directors. This
training touches on the mandatory reporting
requirement and lists several agencies to which
reports should be directed (law enforcement, CPS or
Child Abuse Hotline, and/or Licensing). Trainees are
informed that they must sign and keep a copy of the
signed Licensing form on file. The orientation
training is only required to be taken by child care
licensees and child care center directors - child care
staff are not required to take the training. Without
instruction or guidance on how to recognize the signs
of child abuse and neglect, how to support a child,
and work with a family during or after a report, or
the process of how to make a report, mandated
reporters in child care facilities can be unaware of
what being a mandated reporter entails.
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Many child care providers express confusion about
their legal reporting obligations. Child care
providers who were surveyed statewide described some
of the barriers that prevent them from reporting: 50%
did not know how to make a CPS report, 65% expressed
discomfort because of their close relationship with
the families they serve, 36% feared being accused of
the abuse, and 45% feared losing future business.
Moreover, a large majority of child care
providers-83%-say that they would find training on
these issues useful, and 78% feel that it should be
required.
Proper CPS intervention following a CPS report is a
key deterrent to recurring child abuse and neglect. A
required comprehensive training in recognizing and
reporting child abuse and neglect will offer child
care providers tools for supporting families,
including those who present risk factors for child
maltreatment, possibly preventing child abuse before
it occurs. It will also empower child care providers
to become proactive reporters when they recognize
signs of abuse and neglect, helping eradicate child
abuse, and in turn dramatically reduce costs to the
state for medical and mental health services used by
victims of child abuse and neglect. Moreover,
training will decrease the number of unsubstantiated
reports, sparing agencies from spending limited
resources on investigating unfounded allegations or
reports containing insufficient information.
AB 1432 offers a model for similar requirements in the
child care setting. Additionally, a free online
training for child care providers in English and
Spanish already exists on the California Department of
Social Services website. . . .
2.What This Bill Would Do
As explained above, this bill would impose specified
training requirements for child care providers concerning
detecting and reporting child abuse or neglect, and would
require state entities to provide training, and impose
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license-related consequences for the violation of the
bill's requirements, as specified.
Current law defines "mandated reporter" under CANRA with an
extensive list of employee classifications (such as
teachers, doctors, firefighters, counselors, etc.) and
individuals, such as foster parents. The list includes a
licensee, administrator, or employee of a licensed
community care or child day care facility, or a Head Start
program teacher.
Current law also strongly encourages employers to provide
their employees who are mandated reporters with training in
the duties imposed by CANRA.
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