BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                  AB 1979
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   March 21, 2006

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES
                                 Noreen Evans, Chair
                  AB 1979 (Bass) - As Introduced:  February 9, 2006
           
          SUBJECT  :  Community care facilities; criminal background checks;  
          fees.

           SUMMARY  :  Prohibits the Department of Justice (DOJ) from  
          charging fees for processing of criminal background checks to  
          nonprofit organizations providing mentoring services to foster  
          children.

           EXISTING LAW  :

          1)Provides for the licensure and regulation of community care  
            facilities by the State Department of Social Services (DSS).

          2)Requires that before issuing a license to a person to operate  
            a community care facility, DSS secure a criminal record from  
            DOJ to determine the criminal record of any person who  
            provides client assistance or who volunteers and has contact  
            with clients. 

          3)Requires any person whose criminal record is required to be  
            secured to submit a set of fingerprints to DOJ for the purpose  
            of conducting the background check.

          4)Permits DOJ to charge a fee to organizations required to  
            submit fingerprints to cover the cost of processing the  
            background check.

           FISCAL EFFECT  :  Unknown; costs of the background check would be  
          borne by DOJ rather than the non-profit organization. 

           COMMENTS  :  According to the author, the fee for the background  
          check imposed upon non-profit organizations providing mentoring  
          services "is a financial burden on the potential mentor or  
          non-profit organization."

          Current law exempts volunteers in adult day care and adult day  
          support centers facilities from the background check requirement  
          if they meet certain requirements:  they must be supervised by  
          an employee with a criminal record clearance or exemption,  








                                                                  AB 1979
                                                                  Page  2

          clients must never be left alone with the volunteer, and the  
          volunteer does not provide client assistance with dressing,  
          bathing or personal hygiene.

          According to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, there  
          are 61 state licensed community care centers providing mentoring  
          services in L.A. County, utilizing approximately 500 mentors per  
          year.  The fee for each background check is $140, about $20 of  
          which is charged by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and $18  
          of which is the Child Abuse Index fee.  The remainder is charged  
          by the Department of Justice.

          This bill does not exempt mentoring volunteers from the  
          background check requirement, but prevents imposition of the fee  
          upon the non-profit organization providing the services.

           REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION  :   

           Support 
          
          Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department

           Opposition 
           
          None on file.
           
          Analysis Prepared by  :    Casey McKeever / HUM. S. / (916)  
          319-2089