BILL NUMBER: AB 2036 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 15, 2016
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 16, 2016
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 27, 2016
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 25, 2016
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 6, 2016
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: enforcement.
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
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.
site in California . 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, site in California,
a written description of the background check provided by the
background check service provider. 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
authorize an online child care job posting service or background
check service provider to be liable for a civil penalty for failing
to comply with these requirements and would authorize the Attorney
General, a city attorney, or a county counsel to bring such an action
if certain requirements are met. 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) (1) An online child care job posting service that
provides online information about potential child care providers who
are not required to be licensed in California shall include the
following statement, statement on its
Internet Web site in Californ ia, which
must shall be accessible no more than one click
away from the providers' profile:
"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 telephone
number is 1-800-822-8490."
(2) 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:
"Pursuant to Section 1596.859 of the Health and Safety Code,
parents have the right to receive information regarding any
substantiated or inconclusive complaint about licensed child care
providers. That information is public and can be acquired by visiting
the California Department of Social Services' Internet Web site at
"www.ccld.ca.gov.""
(b) If the online child care job listing
posting service provides access to a background check for the
child care providers listed on its Internet Web site,
site in Californi a, 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, as described in
subdivision (c).
(c) Background check service providers that provide background
checks for 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 conducted 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.
18890.4. (a) An online child care job posting service or
background check service provider that fails to comply with the
requirements of this chapter may be liable for a civil penalty of one
thousand dollars ($1,000) for each offense. The Attorney General, a
city attorney, or a county counsel may bring an action to impose a
civil penalty pursuant to this section after doing both of the
following:
(1) Providing the online job posting service or background check
service provider with reasonable notice of noncompliance. The notice
shall inform the online job posting service or background check
service provider that it will be subject to a civil penalty if it
does not correct the violation within 30 days from the date the
notice is sent to the online job posting service or background check
service provider.
(2) Verifying that the violation was not corrected within the
30-day period described in paragraph (1).
(b) The civil penalty shall be deposited into the General Fund if
the action is brought by the Attorney General. If the action is
brought by a city attorney, the civil penalty shall be paid to the
treasurer of the city in which the judgment is entered. If the action
is brought by a county counsel, the civil penalty shall be paid to
the treasurer of the county in which the judgment is entered.
18890.6. (a) In addition to the authority granted to the Attorney
General General, a city attorney, or a
county counsel 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.