BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                    AB 1838


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          Date of Hearing:  March 29, 2016


                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES


                                Susan Bonilla, Chair


          AB 1838  
          (Ting) - As Amended March 16, 2016


          SUBJECT:  Foster care:  infant supplement


          SUMMARY:  Increases the infant supplement paid for the care and  
          supervision of the children of foster youth, provides for  
          receipt of the infant supplement for the six months preceding  
          birth, and directs the Department of Social Services (DSS) to  
          adopt regulations establishing new infant supplement rates for  
          specified placements.


          Specifically, this bill:  


          1)Requires that the infant supplement to be equal to the basic  
            foster family home rate, as specified, and to be paid for the  
            care and supervision of each child living with his or her  
            dependent or nonminor dependent parent when the caretaker  
            receives Aid to Families with Dependent Children-Foster Care  
            (AFDC-FC), Kinship Guardianship Assistance Payment (Kin-GAP),  
            or Approved Relative Caregiver (ARC) benefits on behalf of the  
            parent. 


          2)Requires the infant supplement paid to a nonminor dependent  
            parent residing in a supervised independent living placement,  








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            as specified, to be equal to the basic foster family home  
            rate.


          3)Deletes provisions specifying current infant supplement rates  
            and adjustments.


          4)Requires the DSS, by July 1, 2017, to adopt regulations  
            establishing new infant supplement rates for children living  
            with their parents in a group home placement, short-term  
            residential treatment center, or in Transitional Housing  
            Placement-Plus Foster Care.


          5)Requires the infant supplement to be paid to a pregnant minor  
            or nonminor dependent for the month in which the birth is  
            anticipated and for the six months immediately prior, provided  
            the pregnancy is verified.  Further specifies that such  
            payments shall be for the purposes of meeting the specialized  
            needs of the pregnant minors or nonminor dependents and to  
            properly prepare for the needs of the infant.  

          6)Makes conforming technical amendments.





          EXISTING LAW:  


          1)Permits the juvenile court to adjudge a child a dependent of  
            the court for specified reasons, including, but not limited  
            to, if a child has suffered or is at substantial risk of  
            suffering serious physical harm, emotional damage, or sexual  
            abuse, as specified.  (WIC 300)










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          2)States that the purpose of foster care law is to provide  
            maximum safety and protection for children who are currently  
            being physically, sexually, or emotionally abused, neglected,  
            or exploited, and to ensure the safety, protection, and  
            physical and emotional well-being of children who are at risk  
            of harm.  (WIC 300.2)


          3)Declares the intent of the Legislature to, whenever possible,  
            preserve and strengthen a child's family ties and, when a  
            child must be removed from the physical custody of his or her  
            parents, to give preferential consideration to placement with  
            relatives.  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 family setting and as close to  
            the child's family as possible, as specified.  Further states  
            the intent of the Legislature that all children live with a  
            committed, permanent, nurturing family and states that  
            services and supports should be tailored to meet the specific  
            needs of the individual child and family being served, as  
            specified.  (WIC 16000)


          4)Requires out-of-home placement of a child in foster care to be  
            based upon selection of a safe setting that is the least  
            restrictive family setting that promotes normal childhood  
            experiences and the most appropriate setting that meets the  
            child's individual needs, as specified.  Further requires the  
            selection of placement to consider, in order of priority,  
            placement with:  relatives, nonrelated extended family  
            members, and tribal members; foster family homes, resource  
            families, and nontreatment certified homes of foster family  
            agencies; followed by treatment and intensive treatment  
            certified homes of foster family agencies or multidimensional  
            treatment foster care homes or therapeutic foster care homes;  
            group care placements in the order of short-term residential  
            treatment centers, group homes, community treatment  
            facilities, and out-of-state residential treatment, as  
            specified.  (WIC 16501.1(d)(1))








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          5)Defines "nonminor dependent" as a current or former foster  
            youth who is between18 and 21 years old, in foster care under  
            the responsibility of the county welfare department, county  
            probation department, or Indian Tribe, and participating in a  
            transitional independent living plan, as specified.  (WIC  
            11400 (v))


          6)Establishes Aid to Families with Dependent Children-Foster  
            Care (AFDC-FC) as aid provided on behalf of needy children in  
            foster care, and specifies eligibility requirements.  (WIC  
            11400 and 11402)





          7)Establishes the federally subsidized and non-federally  
            subsidized Kinship Guardianship Assistance Payment (Kin-GAP)  
            Programs to provide age to eligible dependent children and  
            nonminors who have been residing for at least six consecutive  
            months in the approved home of a relative guardian.  (WIC  
            11360 et seq.)

          8)Defines "kinship guardian" to mean a person who has been  
            appointed legal guardian of a dependent child or ward of the  
            juvenile court and is a relative of the child.  (WIC 11362)





          9)Establishes the Approved Relative Caregiver (ARC) program as  
            an optional program for counties for the purpose of making the  
            amount paid to approved relative caregivers to care for  
            non-federally-eligible children equal to the amount paid on  
            behalf of children who are eligible.  (WIC 11461.3)








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          10)Defines "Transitional Housing Program-Plus Foster Care"  
            (THP+FC) to mean transitional housing program serving nonminor  
            dependents between the ages of 18 and 21.  (WIC 16522.1  
            (a)(2))



          11)Defines "whole family foster home" to mean a new or existing  
            home that provides foster care for a minor or nonminor  
            dependent parent and his or her child, and is specifically  
            recruited and trained to assist the parenting foster youth in  
            the development of the skills necessary to provide a safe,  
            stable, and permanent home for his or her child, as specified.  
             (WIC 11400)



          12)Requires the AFDC-FC or Kin-GAP rate paid to a provider on  
            behalf of a youth who has a child living with him or her to  
            include an amount for care and supervision of that youth's  
            child.  (WIC 11465(a)) 


           


          FISCAL EFFECT:  Unknown.


          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 jurisdiction and  
          children are served by the CWS system through the appointment of  








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          a social worker.  Through this 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 and outcomes for the child.  The CWS system seeks to  
          help children who have been removed from their homes reunify  
          with their parents or guardians, whenever appropriate, or unite  
          them with other individuals they consider to be family. 


          Parenting foster youth and nonminor dependents:  While  
          comprehensive data on the size of the state's population of  
          pregnant and parenting foster youth and nonminor dependents is  
          currently lacking, evidence of higher pregnancy and parenting  
          rates for foster youth exists.  For example, recent research  
          connecting Child Protective Services (CPS) data with birth  
          records in California was able to link approximately 1.5 million  
          California birth records (from 2000 to 2010) to 1 million CPS  
          records.  Using this linked data, researchers found that, of  
          girls in foster care at the age of 17, more than one-quarter of  
          them had given birth at least once during their teens.  Of girls  
          in foster care who had given birth at least once before the age  
          of 18, over one-third had more than one birth in their teens.   
          These findings were corroborated by a much smaller, more  
          in-depth study that interviewed over 700 17-year-old foster  
          youth and former foster youth in California.  This study found  
          that just over one-fourth of respondents had ever been pregnant;  
          30% of whom had been pregnant more than one time.


          Teen pregnancy and parenthood have been found to be correlated  
          with a number of social and economic consequences.  Teen mothers  
          are less likely to finish high school, more likely to live in  
          poverty, and can face poorer health conditions than slightly  
          older mothers.  The children of teenage parents are then also  
          more likely to live in poverty.  They are also more likely to  
          come into contact with the child welfare system.  Importantly,  
          teen pregnancy may not distinctly cause each of these outcomes,  








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          but instead leads to compounding and interrelated impacts, with  
          diminished educational attainment contributing to decreased  
          earnings and higher poverty levels, and other negative outcomes  
          stemming from living in poverty.  Moreover, the children of teen  
          parents may not necessarily be more susceptible to abuse and  
          neglect, but may instead have increased exposure to the child  
          welfare system because teenagers may more often have their  
          parenting questioned and because young parents may need greater  
          support in raising their children.


          Infant supplement:  SB 510 (Seymour), Chapter 1066, Statutes of  
          1988, implemented federal requirements contained in the Omnibus  
          Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987 stipulating that county  
          welfare departments provide supplemental payments for the care  
          of a child of a minor parent who lives with that parent in a  
          foster placement.  At the time, the supplemental amount - or  
          "infant supplement" - was $326 per month per child; the amount  
          paid for a child living with a minor parent in a group home was  
          $708 per month per child.  Today, 27 years later, these amounts  
          are $411 and $890, respectively.  The infant supplement is  
          typically paid to the caregiver of the parenting dependent  
          foster youth; however, nonminor dependents living in a  
          Supervised Independent Living Program (SILP) receive the  
          supplement directly.


          Need for this bill:  This bill seeks to increase the infant  
          supplement from $411 to the basic foster family home rate of  
          $688 per month for children under the age of five in order to  
          better help meet the child's needs.  It also permits a pregnant  
          foster youth to begin receiving the supplement six months before  
          the due date with the goal of encouraging youth to disclose  
          their pregnancy and thereby be able to obtain timely referrals  
          to prenatal care, the Women, Infant and Children (WIC) nutrition  
          program, and other services and supports.  Lastly, this bill  
          directs DSS to establish a new infant supplement rate for group  
          homes, short-term residential treatment centers, and THP+FC  
          providers.








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          According to the author, "The number of pregnant and parenting  
          dependents has increased significantly with the expansion of  
          foster care to 21 in 2012, raising new questions about how  
          California should address this small, but highly vulnerable  
          population.  [This bill] lends critical support to pregnant and  
          parenting foster youth by expanding the existing infant  
          supplement provided to parenting foster youth.  This bill allows  
          pregnant foster youth to receive the infant supplement six  
          months prior to their due date to ensure better access to  
          prenatal care, increases the supplement to match the existing  
          basic stipend for foster youth caregivers, and establishes an  
          infant supplement for group homes and other providers caring for  
          youth parents."



          REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:




          Support


          Advokids


          Alameda County CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) 


          American Academy of Pediatrics 


          Aspiranet 


          Bay Area Youth Center 








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          Beyond Emancipation 


          California Alliance of Child and Family Services


          California CASA Association


          Casa de Amparo 


          Children Now


          Children's Laws Center of CA ("CLC") - sponsor


          Covenant Community Services 


          David and Margaret Youth and Family Servicers 


          Families NOW


          Fred Finch Youth Center


          National Association of Social Workers, CA Chapter (NASW-CA)


          New Alternatives, Inc.


          Public Counsel








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          St. Anne's 


          Youth Law Center


          1 Individual





          Opposition





          None on file.




          Analysis Prepared by:Daphne Hunt / HUM. S. / (916) 319-2089