Amended in Senate June 16, 2016

Amended in Assembly May 27, 2016

Amended in Assembly April 25, 2016

Amended in Assembly April 6, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 2036

Introduced by Assembly Member Lopez

(Coauthor: Assembly Member Cristina Garcia)

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: background check service providers: begin delete consumer education. end delete begin insert enforcement. end insert

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 begin delete 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. end delete begin insert providing online information about nonlicensed potential child care providers to include a specified statement regarding the trustline registry on its Internet Web site in California. The bill would also require an online child care job posting service providing online information about licensed potential child care providers to include a specified statement regarding a parent’s right to specified complaint information on its Internet Web site. If an online child care job posting service provides access to a background check, the bill would require the service to include, on its Internet Web site, a written description of the background check provided by the background check service provider. end insert The bill would make a background check service provider responsible for providing the online child care job posting service 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, among other things, education 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)  begin insert (1) end insert begin insert   end insert An online child care job posting service

begin delete posting information on an Internet Web site in California shall
include a description of, or link to, the following statements: end delete begin insert that
provides online information about potential child care providers
who are not required to be licensed in California shall include the
following statement, which must be accessible no more than one
click away from the providers’ profile: end insert

begin delete

(1) Trustline

end delete
begin insert end insert

begin insert “Trustline end insert 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
telephone number is begin delete 1-800-822-8490. end delete begin insert 1-800-822-8490.” end insert

begin insert end insert

(2)  begin delete Nonexempt family child care homes and child care centers
are required to be licensed by the State of California. Pursuant end delete begin insert An
online child care job posting service that provides online
information in California about potential child care providers who
are required to be licensed in California shall include the following
statement on its Internet Web site in California, which shall be
accessible no more than one click away from the providers’ profile: end insert

begin insert end insert

begin insert “Pursuant end insert to begin delete Oliver’s Law, end delete begin insert Section 1596.859 of the Health and
Safety Code, end insert parents have the right to receive information regarding
any substantiated or inconclusive complaint about begin delete any end delete begin insert licensed end insert
child care begin delete provider. end delete begin insert providers. end insert That information is public and can
be acquired by visiting the begin delete State end delete begin insert California end insert Department of Social
Services’ Internet Web site at begin delete “www.ccld.ca.gov.” end delete

begin insert “www.ccld.ca.gov. end insert begin insert ” end insert begin insert ” end insert

begin insert end insert

(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 begin delete it by the background check service provider. end delete begin insert it, as
described in subdivision (c). end insert

(c) Background check service providers that begin delete offer end delete begin insert provide end insert
background checks begin delete through the Internet Web sites in California
of end delete begin insert for end insert 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 begin delete offered by the background
check service provider end delete begin insert conducted end insert 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, screenshots, 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 online child care job posting service or
background check service provider 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.