BILL ANALYSIS Ó SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair 2015 - 2016 Regular Session AB 2000 (Campos) - Wards: termination of juvenile court jurisdiction ----------------------------------------------------------------- | | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- |--------------------------------+--------------------------------| | | | |Version: May 31, 2016 |Policy Vote: PUB. S. 6 - 0 | | | | |--------------------------------+--------------------------------| | | | |Urgency: No |Mandate: Yes | | | | |--------------------------------+--------------------------------| | | | |Hearing Date: August 1, 2016 |Consultant: Jolie Onodera | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File. Bill Summary: AB 2000 would prohibit the juvenile court from terminating jurisdiction over a ward who has attained 17 years of age until the court conducts a hearing and finds that the probation department has provided, or made reasonable efforts to provide, specified information, documents, and services to the ward. This bill would authorize a juvenile court at its discretion to make these provisions applicable to a ward under 17 years of age, as specified. Fiscal Impact: County probation departments : One-time and ongoing potentially state-reimbursable costs ranging from the hundreds of thousands to low millions of dollars (General Fund) annually for increased workload related to the mandated hearing process and the provision of the required documents, information, and services to wards. The magnitude of costs AB 2000 (Campos) Page 1 of ? would be dependent on the caseload of wards impacted, and the time required to obtain, or make reasonable efforts to obtain, all of the necessary documents and information, which could vary widely. To the extent courts elect to make the provisions applicable to all wards, regardless of age, ongoing costs to probation departments could be substantial. Courts : Potential increase in court costs for additional jurisdictional termination hearings (General Fund*), including continuances for cases in which the mandates of the bill are not met. Judicial Council : One-time minor costs (General Fund*) to develop and implement standards, as well as develop and adopt appropriate forms. *Trial Court Trust Fund Background: Existing law establishes the jurisdiction of the juvenile court, which may adjudge a minor to be a ward of the court on the basis of the minor's delinquent behavior. Under existing law, the jurisdiction of the juvenile court may continue until the ward attains 21 or 25 years of age, depending on the nature of the offense. Existing law requires the juvenile court to hold a hearing prior to terminating jurisdiction over a ward who is subject to an order of foster care, as specified. Under existing law, whenever the juvenile court terminates jurisdiction over a ward who has also been designated a dependent of the court or previously placed into foster care, the probation or parole officer is required to provide the ward with specified information and documents relating to benefits for former foster children. (Welfare and Institutions Code § 391 (e).) This bill seeks to ensure that non-dependent wards are provided with the necessary information, documents, and services upon termination of jurisdiction in the delinquency system, similar to the provisions under existing law that require such information to be provided to foster youth transitioning out of the dependency system. AB 2000 (Campos) Page 2 of ? Proposed Law: This bill would prohibit the juvenile court from terminating jurisdiction over a ward who has attained 17 years of age, and who is not subject to Section 607.3, until a hearing is conducted pursuant to this section and the court finds that the following information, documents, and services have been provided to the ward, or, in any case in which the information, document, or service is unavailable or cannot be provided, that the probation officer has made reasonable efforts to provide the following information, documents, or services to the ward: Written information concerning the ward's case, including any known information regarding the ward's Indian heritage or tribal connections, if applicable, directions on how to access the documents the ward is entitled to inspect, and the date on which the jurisdiction of the juvenile court would be terminated. Written information regarding any psychoactive or other medications that the ward is taking, including the dosage, the reason the medications were prescribed, contact information of the prescribing doctor or psychiatrist, and information regarding how to maintain the medication regimen if the ward so chooses. The following documents: o Social security card, or a photocopy thereof. o Certified copy of his or her birth certificate. o Health and education summary, if applicable. o Driver's license or identification card, as specified. o A letter prepared by the probation department that includes the ward's name and date of birth and the dates during which the ward was within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court. o If applicable, the death certificate of the parent or parents. o An advance health care directive form. Assistance with completing an application for Medi-Cal or assistance with obtaining other health insurance, unless the ward has health insurance. AB 2000 (Campos) Page 3 of ? Referrals to transitional housing, if available, or referrals to assistance with securing other housing, unless the ward has housing. Referrals for assistance with obtaining employment or other financial support. Referrals for assistance in applying for admission to college or to a vocational training program or other educational institution and in obtaining financial aid, where appropriate. If the ward has been in out-of-home placement for 90 days or longer from the date the ward entered foster care or was committed or detained for 90 days or longer, contact information in the ward's file for individuals who are important to the ward, based on the ward's best interests. Information about the sealing of juvenile records as required by subdivision (h) of Section 781, including information on the sealing provisions of Section 786 and other applicable provisions regarding the sealing of juvenile records. If the ward has applied for special immigrant juvenile status or otherwise applied for legal residency, and the application is being processed, information on the status of the application and whether an active juvenile court case is required for approval of the application. This bill provides that the ward shall not be held in physical confinement or subject to any terms or conditions of probation if a continuance of the termination hearing is required solely for the probation department to comply with the requirements of this section. If the ward has met his or her rehabilitative goal and requests immediate termination of jurisdiction, the termination shall not be delayed for the probation department to comply with this section. This bill provides that a juvenile court may, in its discretion, make the provision of information, documents, services, and referrals for service required by this section applicable to a ward under 17 years of age, if requested by the ward, and if the court finds that doing so is in the best interest of the ward. This bill provides that the ward, after having an opportunity to confer with the ward's counsel, may waive the right to receive the information, documents, services, and referrals for service specified in this section. AB 2000 (Campos) Page 4 of ? This bill requires the Judicial Council to develop and implement standards, and develop and adopt appropriate forms, necessary to implement this section. Prior Legislation: SB 945 (Liu) Chapter 631/2010 requires probation and parole officers to provide wards of the court formerly in foster care with notification regarding their eligibility for services and benefits available for former foster youth when the court terminates jurisdiction, or upon release of a ward from a non-foster care facility. Staff Comments: By imposing additional duties on county probation officers, this bill creates a state-mandated local program, potentially resulting in significant ongoing costs, potentially state-reimbursable, to probation departments to meet the mandates in this bill. This bill requires specified documents, information, and services to be provided to a ward 17 years of age or older, and potentially to all wards at court discretion, prior to delinquency jurisdiction being terminated. The workload involved in obtaining, or making reasonable efforts to obtain, the specified documents and information could be significant, and would vary based on numerous factors including but not limited to the circumstances of the ward (as some wards may already be in possession of certain documents), the coordination between probation and other local government agencies to obtain the specified documents, and the time involved for each probation officer to provide the documents and information to the ward, as well as costs for travel, document fees, and overtime. The costs could range from the high hundreds of thousands to low millions of dollars (General Fund) annually for increased workload. To the extent courts elect to make the provisions applicable to all wards, regardless of age, costs to probation departments could be substantially higher. Because the provisions of this measure prohibit a ward from being held in physical confinement or subject to any terms or conditions of probation if a continuance of the termination AB 2000 (Campos) Page 5 of ? hearing is required solely for the probation department to comply with the bill's requirements, the CDCR Division of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) should not experience any delays in the release of wards from its facilities nor incur any additional costs for supervision or incarceration. -- END --