Amended in Senate June 1, 2016

Amended in Assembly April 5, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 2813

Introduced by Assembly Member Bloom

February 19, 2016

An act to amend Section 628 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to juveniles.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2813, as amended, Bloom. Juvenile offenders: dual-status minors.

Existing law requires a probation officer, upon delivery of a minor who has been taken into temporary custody, to immediately investigate the circumstances of the minor and the facts surrounding the minor being taken into custody and to immediately release the minor to the custody of his or her parent, legal guardian, or responsible relative unless evidence before the court demonstrates that continuance in the home is contrary to the child’s welfare, and one or more specified circumstances is present, including, among others, that the minor is destitute.

This bill would delete several of those specified circumstances. The bill would also prohibit the probation officer, when deciding whether to detain a minor who is begin insert currently a dependent of the juvenile court or end insert the subject of a petition to declare him or her a dependent of the juvenile court and who has been removed from the custody of his or her parent or guardian by the juvenile court, from considering specified information, including, among others, the minor’s status as a dependent of the juvenile begin delete court. end delete begin insert court or as the subject of a petition to declare him or her a dependent of the juvenile court. end insert The bill would require a probation officer, to immediately release that minor to the custody of the child welfare services department or his or her current foster parent or other caregiver, except as specified. By increasing the duties on local child welfare services departments, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

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

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

SECTION 1.  

Section 628 of the Welfare and Institutions Code
is amended to read:

628.  

(a) (1) Upon delivery to the probation officer of a minor
who has been taken into temporary custody under the provisions
of this article, the probation officer shall immediately investigate
the circumstances of the minor and the facts surrounding his or
her being taken into custody and shall immediately release the
minor to the custody of his or her parent, legal guardian, or
responsible relative unless it can be demonstrated upon the
evidence before the court that continuance in the home is contrary
to the minor’s welfare and one or more of the following conditions
exist:

(A) Continued detention of the minor is a matter of immediate
and urgent necessity for the protection of the minor or reasonable
necessity for the protection of the person or property of another.

(B) The minor is likely to flee the jurisdiction of the court.

(C) The minor has violated an order of the juvenile court.

(2) The probation officer’s decision to detain a minor who is
begin insert currently a dependent of the juvenile court pursuant to Section
300 or end insert the subject of a petition to declare him or her a dependent
of the juvenile court pursuant to Section 300 and who has been
removed from the custody of his or her parent or guardian by the
juvenile court shall not be based on any of the following:

(A) The minor’s status as a dependent of the juvenile begin delete court. end delete

begin insert court or as the subject of a petition to declare him or her a
dependent of the juvenile court. end insert

(B) A determination that continuance in the minor’s current
placement is contrary to the minor’s welfare.

(C) The child welfare services department’s inability to provide
a placement for the minor.

(3) The probation officer shall immediately release a minor
described in paragraph (2) to the custody of the child welfare
services department or his or her current foster parent or other
caregiver unless the probation officer determines that one or more
of the conditions in paragraph (1) exist.

(4) This section does not limit a probation officer’s authority
to refer a minor to child welfare services.

(b) If the probation officer has reason to believe that the minor
is at risk of entering foster care placement as defined in paragraphs
(1) and (2) of subdivision (d) of Section 727.4, the probation officer
shall, as part of the investigation undertaken pursuant to subdivision
(a), make reasonable efforts, as described in paragraph (5) of
subdivision (d) of Section 727.4, to prevent or eliminate the need
for removal of the minor from his or her home.

(c) In any case in which there is reasonable cause for believing
that a minor who is under the care of a physician or surgeon or a
hospital, clinic, or other medical facility and cannot be immediately
moved is a person described in subdivision (d) of Section 300, the
minor shall be deemed to have been taken into temporary custody
and delivered to the probation officer for the purposes of this
chapter while he or she is at the office of the physician or surgeon
or that medical facility.

(d) (1) It is the intent of the Legislature that this subdivision
shall comply with paragraph (29) of subsection (a) of Section 671
of Title 42 of the United States Code as added by the Fostering
Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008
(Public Law 110-351). It is further the intent of the Legislature
that the identification and notification of relatives shall be made
as early as possible after the removal of a youth who is at risk of
entering foster care placement.

(2) If the minor is detained and the probation officer has reason
to believe that the minor is at risk of entering foster care placement,
as defined in paragraphs (1) and (2) of subdivision (d) of Section
727.4, then the probation officer shall conduct, within 30 days, an
investigation in order to identify and locate all grandparents, adult
siblings, and other relatives of the child, as defined in paragraph
(2) of subdivision (f) of Section 319, including any other adult
relatives suggested by the parents. The probation officer shall
provide to all adult relatives who are located, except when that
relative’s history of family or domestic violence makes notification
inappropriate, within 30 days of the date on which the child is
detained, written notification and shall also, whenever appropriate,
provide oral notification, in person or by telephone, of all the
following information:

(A) The child has been removed from the custody of his or her
parent or parents, or his or her guardians.

(B) An explanation of the various options to participate in the
care and placement of the child and support for the child’s family,
including any options that may be lost by failing to respond. The
notice shall provide information about providing care for the child,
how to become a foster family home or approved relative or
nonrelative extended family member as defined in Section 362.7,
and additional services and support that are available in
out-of-home placements. The notice shall also include information
regarding the Kin-GAP Program (Article 4.5 (commencing with
Section 11360) of Chapter 2 of Part 3 of Division 9), the
CalWORKs program for approved relative caregivers (Chapter 2
(commencing with Section 11200) of Part 3 of Division 9),
adoption and adoption assistance (Chapter 2.1 (commencing with
Section 16115) of Part 4 of Division 9), as well as other options
for contact with the child, including, but not limited to, visitation.
When oral notification is provided, the probation officer is not
required to provide detailed information about the various options
to help with the care and placement of the child.

(3) The probation officer shall use due diligence in investigating
the names and locations of the relatives pursuant to paragraph (2),
including, but not limited to, asking the child in an age-appropriate
manner about relatives important to the child, consistent with the
child’s best interest, and obtaining information regarding the
location of the child’s adult relatives.

(4) To the extent allowed by federal law as a condition of
receiving funding under Title IV-E of the federal Social Security
Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 670 et seq.), if the probation officer did not
conduct the identification and notification of relatives, as required
in paragraph (2), but the court orders foster care placement, the
probation officer shall conduct the investigation to find and notify
relatives within 30 days of the placement order. Nothing in this
section shall be construed to delay foster care placement for an
individual child.

SEC. 2.  

To the extent that this act has an overall effect of
increasing the costs already borne by a local agency for programs
or levels of service mandated by the 2011 Realignment Legislation
within the meaning of Section 36 of Article XIII of the California
Constitution, it shall apply to local agencies only to the extent that
the state provides annual funding for the cost increase. Any new
program or higher level of service provided by a local agency
pursuant to this act above the level for which funding has been
provided shall not require a subvention of funds by the state nor
otherwise be subject to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.