BILL NUMBER: AB 1979	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN SENATE  JUNE 21, 2006
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  APRIL 27, 2006
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  APRIL 17, 2006

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Bass

                        FEBRUARY 9, 2006

   An act to add Section 1522.06 to the Health and Safety Code,
relating to community care facilities.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 1979, as amended, Bass  Community care facilities: criminal
record information: fees.
   Existing law, the California Community Care Facilities Act,
provides for the licensure and regulation of community care
facilities by the State Department of Social Services. A violation of
these provisions is a crime.
   Existing law requires that, before issuing any of specified
documents allowing for the operation or management of a community
care facility, the department or other approving authority secure
from an appropriate law enforcement agency a criminal record with
respect to the applicant and specified employees and volunteers who
will have contact with children. Existing law requires the submission
of the fingerprints of an applicant or other person who is not
otherwise exempted from fingerprinting to the Department of Justice
for the purpose of providing criminal record information, and
requires the Department of Justice to provide notice of the criminal
record information within 14 days of receiving the fingerprints.
Existing law allows the Department of Justice to charge a fee
sufficient to cover the cost of providing these services. These
requirements also apply to  perspective  
prospective  employees and volunteers subsequent to the
commencement of operation by the facility.
   This bill would  , commencing July 1, 2007, 
specify that candidates for mentoring foster children shall 
comply with the   be subject to a  criminal
background investigation  requirements  prior to
having unsupervised contact with the children. This bill would
prohibit the Department of Justice  and the department
  and the State Department of Health Services  from
charging a fee for  the cost of these   a state
level criminal offender record information search and  criminal
background  investigations   investigation
 .
   By imposing additional requirements upon community care facility
programs, this bill would create a crime, thus imposing 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 1522.06 is added to the Health and Safety Code,
to read:
   1522.06.  (a) Individuals who are volunteer candidates for
mentoring children in foster care settings, as defined by the
department  ,  shall be subject to  the 
 a  criminal background investigation  provisions of
Section 1522, and shall comply with those provisions  prior
to having unsupervised contact with the children.  The criminal
background check shall be   initiated and conducted pursuant
to either Sections 1522 and 1522.1 or Section 1596.03, as
applicable. Sections 1522 and 1522.1 may be utilized by a county
social services agency in cooperation with, or as a component of, a
licensed foster family agency.  
   (b) Neither the Department of Justice nor the department shall
charge a fee for the cost of a criminal background investigation for
any person to whom subdivision (a) applies.  
   (c) This section shall become operative on July 1, 2007. 

   (b) (1) The Department of Justice shall not charge a processing
fee with respect to any individual to whom subdivision (a) applies
for a state level criminal offender record information search
pursuant to Section 1522.  
   (2) The State Department of Social Services shall not charge a fee
for the cost of a criminal background investigation under Section
1522 with respect to any individual who whom subdivision (a) applies.

  SEC. 2.  No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the
Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the
meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.