BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 731
Page 1
Date of Hearing: August 26, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Jimmy Gomez, Chair
SB 731
(Leno) - As Amended August 19, 2015
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: YesReimbursable:
No
SUMMARY:
This bill requires that foster children and nonminor dependents
in out-of-home care be placed according to their gender
identity, regardless of the gender or sex listed in their court
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or child welfare records. This bill also adds the above
requirement to the Foster Care Bill of Rights, and requires the
Department of Social Services (DSS) to promulgate regulations
implementing these provisions.
FISCAL EFFECT:
1)Likely minor caseload impact statewide. To the extent county
agencies incur increased workload associated with implementing
and adhering to the specified regulations, it is unlikely
statewide costs would exceed $100,000 (GF). Under Proposition
30, these costs are not reimbursable, but the bill will apply
to local agencies only to the extent the State provides annual
funding for the cost increase.
2)One-time minor costs (GF) for the DSS to promulgate
regulations.
COMMENTS:
1)Purpose. The author states, "Children in the child welfare
system are protected by the Foster Care Bill of Rights, which
includes the right to fair and equal access to all services.
Though California law intends to protect all children from
discrimination, it does not give specific guidance to
caregivers when placing foster children who are transgender.
Child welfare workers need guidance on how to place children
based on their gender identity. This bill accomplishes this
by giving foster children the right to be placed according to
gender identity and directing Community Care Licensing to
develop regulations to implement this right. [This bill] will
ensure that caregivers provide appropriate supportive care,
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including respecting and affirming every child's gender
identity."
2)Background. There are currently approximately 63,000 children
and youth in the California's Child Welfare System (CWS). It
is difficult to get an exact estimate of the percentage of
foster youth who identify as transgender in California.
According to a 2014 report released by the Williams Institute
at the UCLA School of Law, in Los Angeles County,
approximately 5.6% of youth ages 12 through 21 in out-of-home
cares identified as transgender. Several reports suggest that
a large proportion of LGBT youth enter CWS for reasons related
to their sexual orientation or gender identity, including
rejection, neglect, or abuse by their birth families, lack of
school attendance due to harassment or bullying, among other
issues.
Existing law, the Foster Care Bill of Rights, clearly
enumerates the rights of children placed in foster care,
including but not limited to the right to live in a safe,
healthy, and comfortable home where he or she is treated with
respect; the right to not be subjected to discrimination or
harassment on the basis of actual or perceived race, ethnic
group identification, ancestry, national origin, color,
religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, mental or
physical disability, or HIV status; and the right to have
caregivers and child welfare personnel who have received
instruction on cultural competency and sensitivity relating
to, and best practices for, providing adequate care to
lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth in out-of-home
care.
3)Proposition 30. Proposition 30, passed by the voters in
November 2012, among other provisions, eliminated any
potential mandate funding liability for any new program or
higher level of service provided by counties related to
realigned programs. Although the provisions of this bill are a
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mandate on local agencies, any increased costs would not be
subject to reimbursement by the state. Rather, Proposition 30
specifies that for legislation enacted after September 30,
2012, that has an overall effect of increasing the costs
already borne by a local agency for realigned programs, which
would include child welfare services and foster care, the
provisions shall apply to local agencies only to the extent
that the state provides annual funding for the cost increase.
4)Prior Legislation.
a) AB 868 (Ammiano) Chapter 300, Statutes of 2013, required
the Judicial Council to establish training programs for
judges on the effects of gender identity and sexual
orientation in family law proceedings. This bill also
required the Judicial Council to create training standards
on cultural competency and sensitivity relating to, and
best practices for, providing adequate care to LGBT youth
for counsel in juvenile court and appointed special
advocates.
b) AB 1856 (Ammiano) Chapter 639, Statutes of 2012,
required training for administrators of a group home
facility, licensed foster parents, and relative or
nonrelative extended family member caregivers to also
include instruction on cultural competency and sensitivity
relating to, and best practices for, providing adequate
care to LGBT youth in out-of-home care.
c) AB 899 (Liu) Chapter 683, Statutes of 2001, adopted
California's Foster Youth Bill of Rights.
SB 731
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Analysis Prepared by:Jennifer Swenson / APPR. / (916)
319-2081