Amended in Assembly April 6, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 2036

Introduced by Assembly Member Lopez

February 16, 2016

An act to add Chapter 2.3 (commencing with Section 18890) to Division 8 of the Business and Professions Code, relating to business.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2036, as amended, Lopez. Online child care job posting services: begin delete consumer education: end delete background check service providers: consumer education.

Existing law prohibits a person, firm, partnership, association, or corporation from operating, establishing, managing, conducting, or maintaining a child day care facility without a current valid license.

Existing law requires the Community Care Licensing Division of the State Department of Social Services to regulate child care licensees. Existing law requires the department to establish a registry of child care providers who are not required to be licensed, but who have undergone criminal background checks. These license-exempt providers are known as registered trustline child care providers. Existing law also requires a licensed child day care facility to make available to the public licensing reports and other licensing documents that pertain to a facility visit or a substantiated complaint investigation, among other licensing issues.

Existing law establishes in the State Treasury the Child Health and Safety Fund. Existing law authorizes the department to allocate these funds, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for purposes that include, among other things, technical assistance, orientation, training, and education of child day care facility providers.

This bill would require an online child care job posting service posting information on an Internet Web site in California to include, among other things, a statement about the trustline registry and, if the service provides access to a background check, a written description of the background check provided to it by the background check service provider. The bill would make a background check service provider responsible for providing the online child care job posting begin delete sevice end delete begin insert service end insert with certain information. The bill would make the Attorney General responsible for the enforcement of these provisions, as specified. The bill would impose a fine of $1,000 per violation for a 2nd or subsequent violation of these requirements, after written notice and an opportunity for a hearing. The bill would require fines to be deposited in the Child Health and Safety Fund and would authorize these fines to be available, upon appropriation, for begin insert , end insert among other things, begin delete education, end delete begin insert education end insert and training of child day care facility providers. The bill would also authorize an individual damaged by willful violation of these provisions to bring a civil cause of action for damages, as provided.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Chapter 2.3 (commencing with Section 18890)
is added to Division 8 of the Business and Professions Code, to
read:

 

Chapter  2.3. Online Child Care Job Posting Services

 

18890.  

For the purposes of this chapter, the following
definitions apply:

(a) “Online child care job posting service” means any person
or business that provides or offers to provide child care providers.

(b) “Background check service provider” means any person or
business that provides or offers to provide background check
services.

18890.2.  

(a) An online child care job posting service posting
information on an Internet Web site in California shall include a
description of, or link to, the following statements:

(1) Trustline is California’s official background check for
license-exempt child care providers (i.e. babysitters and nannies)
and the only authorized screening program in California with
access to fingerprint records at the California Department of Justice
and the Federal Bureau of Investigation and access to the California
Child Abuse Central Index. The trustline registry toll-free number
is 1-800-822-8490.

(2) Nonexempt family child care homes and child care centers
are required to be licensed by the State of California. Pursuant to
Oliver’s Law, parents have the right to receive information
regarding any substantiated or inconclusive complaint about any
child care provider. That information is public and can be acquired
by begin delete calling a local licensing office through end delete begin insert visiting end insert the begin delete California end delete
begin insert State end insert Department of Social begin delete Services by calling ____ or by visiting end delete
begin insert Services’ Internet Website at end insert “www.ccld.ca.gov.”

(b) If the online child care job listing service provides access
to a background check for the child care providers listed on its
Internet Web site, it shall provide, by means of a one-click link on
each California child care provider profile for which background
checks are offered, the written description of the background check
provided to it by the background check service provider.

(c) Background check service providers that offer background
checks through the Internet Web sites in California of online child
care job posting services in California shall provide to the online
child care job posting services a written description of the
background checks offered by the background check service
provider that includes at a minimum:

(1) A detailed description of what is included in the background
check.

(2) A chart that lists each county in California and the databases
that are checked for each county, including the following
information for each database, as applicable:

(A) The source of the data, the name of the database used, and
a brief description of the data included in the database.

(B) The date range of the oldest data and the most recent data
included.

(C) How often the information is updated.

(D) How the databases are checked (by name, social security
number, fingerprints, etc.).

(E) A list of the counties for which no data is available.

18890.4.  

(a) Upon a complaint received by the Attorney
General, the Attorney General shall review the online child care
job posting service or background check service provider named
in the complaint. If the Attorney General determines that an online
child care job posting service or background check service provider
is in violation of this chapter or any rules or regulations adopted
under this chapter pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act
(Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of
Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code), a notice of violation
shall be served upon the online child care job posting service or
background check service provider. Each notice of violation shall
be in writing and shall specify the nature of the violation and the
statute, rule, or regulation alleged to have been violated, describe
the opportunity for a fair hearing pursuant to regulations adopted
by the Attorney General consistent with the requirements described
in subdivision (b), and specify the potential fine that may be
imposed for a second or third violation pursuant to subdivision
(c).

(b) In the first case of alleged noncompliance, the Attorney
General shall provide written notice of the violation to the online
child care job posting service or background check service
provider. The online child care job posting service or background
check service provider shall have 30 calendar days to correct the
violation or request a hearing on the matter. If the online child care
job posting service or background check service provider has
evidence that the Internet Web site in question is in compliance,
the online child care job posting service or background check
service provider shall submit proof of that compliance directly to
the Attorney General. Evidence of compliance may be in the form
of printouts, Internet Web site links, begin delete screen shots, end delete begin insert screenshots, end insert or
other means determined to be acceptable to the Attorney General.
Consistent with due process, the Attorney General shall adopt
regulations to govern the notice, hearing, and the submission of
evidence for purposes of this section.

(c) For second and subsequent violations, after reasonable
written notice and time to correct the violation, and the opportunity
for a fair hearing on the matter, pursuant to regulations adopted
by the Attorney General, if the online child care job posting service
or background check service provider is found to be in violation
of this chapter, the Attorney General shall impose a fine of one
thousand dollars ($1,000) per violation.

(d) Any fines imposed and collected pursuant to this section
shall be deposited into the Child Health and Safety Fund created
in Section 18285 of the Welfare and Institutions Code. These fines
and penalties shall be available, upon appropriation by the
Legislature, for the purposes described in subdivisions (d), (e),
and (f) of Section 18285 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

18890.6.  

(a) In addition to the authority granted to the Attorney
General in Section 18890.4, an individual damaged by a willful
violation of the provisions of this chapter may bring a civil cause
of action against an owner for damages, including, but not limited
to, general damages, special damages, and punitive damages.

(b) The court in an action pursuant to this section may award
equitable relief, including, but not limited to, an injunction, costs,
and any other relief the court deems proper.

(c) The rights and remedies provided in this chapter are in
addition to any other rights and remedies provided by law.