BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SCR 82|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
|327-4478 | |
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SCR 82
Author: McGuire (D)
Introduced:7/13/15
Vote: 21
SUBJECT: California Runaway and Homeless Youth Month
SOURCE: California Coalition for Youth
DIGEST: This resolution proclaims the month of November 2015 as
California Runaway and Homeless Youth Month.
ANALYSIS: This resolution makes the following legislative
findings:
1)Runaway and homeless youth are young people between 12 and 24
years of age who have the least access to essential
opportunities and supports.
2)Runaway and homeless youth flee conflict, abuse, neglect, or,
increasingly, poverty in their homes. They have become
disconnected from educational systems and the workforce, and
do not have the skills and financial resources to live on
their own. The factors impacting youth homelessness are
complex and differ from those impacting other homeless
populations.
3)Runaway and homeless youth who live on the street are victims
of physical abuse, sexual exploitation, and crime in untold
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numbers. An estimated 300,000 youth are either victims, or at
risk of becoming victims, of the commercial sexual
exploitation of children each year, of which 60% of these
victimized children are homeless.
4)These youths are on the street because they feel there are no
other options open to them.
5)Youths who "age out" of the foster care system are at an
increased risk of homelessness, and represent an estimated 20%
of the 20,000 youth who leave foster care and are currently
homeless.
6)Providing safe, stable, and permanent housing for runaway and
homeless youth is a family, community, state, and national
priority.
7)The future well-being of our state depends on the value we
place on our youth, and, in particular, on our actions to
provide the most vulnerable young people in the state with
opportunities to acquire the knowledge, skills, and abilities
they need to find and maintain stable housing and develop into
healthy and productive adults.
8)The number of effective programs providing services and
support to runaway and homeless youth in California is a
fraction of what is needed to fully address the needs of these
young people as only 20 out of California's 58 counties have
programs for runaway and homeless youth.
This resolution (1) recognizes the need for individuals,
schools, communities, businesses, local governments, and the
state to take action on behalf of runaway and homeless youth in
California, and (2) designates the month of November 2015 as
California Runaway and Homeless Youth Month.
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Prior Legislation
SCR 128 (Liu, Resolution Chapter 137, Statutes of 2014)
designated the month of November 2014 as California Runaway and
Homeless Youth Month and recognized the need for individuals,
schools, communities, businesses, local governments, and the
state to take action on behalf of runaway and homeless youth in
California.
SCR 29 (Liu, Resolution Chapter 79, Statutes of 2013) designated
the month of November 2013 as California Runaway and Homeless
Youth Month.
SCR 55 (Liu, Resolution Chapter 12, Statutes of 2012) designated
the month of November 2012 as California Runaway and Homeless
Youth Month.
SB 123 (Liu, 2011) would have enacted the California Runaway,
Homeless, and Exploited Youth Act, and would have required,
subject to the availability of adequate resources, the
California Emergency Management Agency to develop, in
collaboration with the Senate Office of Research and various
interested parties, a statewide plan for runaway, homeless, and
exploited youth, as specified. The bill died in the Senate
Appropriations Committee.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:NoLocal: No
SUPPORT: (Verified8/4/15)
California Coalition for Youth (source)
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OPPOSITION: (Verified8/4/15)
None received
Prepared by: Karen Chow / SFA / (916) 651-1520
8/13/15 13:50:15
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