BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1979
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 25, 2006
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES
Noreen Evans, Chair
AB 1979 (Bass) - As Amended: April 17, 2006
SUBJECT : Community care facilities; criminal background checks;
fees.
SUMMARY : Requires that individuals who are volunteer candidates
for mentoring children in foster care settings be subject to and
comply with provisions for criminal background investigations
prior to having unsupervised contact with 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
the Department of Justice (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 cover the cost of processing
the background check.
5)Prohibits DOJ and DSS from charging a fee for the
fingerprinting of an applicant for a license to operate or
manage a foster family home or certified family home.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown; costs of the background check would be
borne by DOJ rather than the volunteer or non-profit
organization.
COMMENTS : This bill is intended to clarify that volunteers
providing mentoring services for foster youth are subject to the
requirement for a criminal background check, but are not
required to pay fees charged by the Department of Justice to
conduct the check. As stated by the author, the fee for the
AB 1979
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background check imposed upon non-profit organizations providing
mentoring services "is a financial burden on the potential
mentor or non-profit organization."
According to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, there
are 61 state licensed community care centers providing mentoring
services in Los Angeles County, utilizing approximately 500
mentors per year. The Board of Supervisors of Los Angeles
County "has requested that the County's Inter-Agency Council on
Child Abuse and Neglect (ICAN) Task Force on Mentoring and the
Department of Children and Family Services work toward the goal
of providing a mentor for every foster child in Los Angeles
County by 2010."
There are a variety of fees charged as part of the background
check process. Those administered by DOJ include $15 for the
Child Abuse Index, $16 for Live Scan, $32 for administration,
and an optional $43 fee for a "clear all facilities" access for
use with all community care facilities. In addition, the U.S.
Federal Bureau of Investigation charges $24, a fee which the
state cannot waive.
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,
clients must never be left alone with the volunteer, and the
volunteer does not provide client assistance with dressing,
bathing or personal hygiene.
This bill expressly includes volunteers providing foster youth
mentoring services among those subject to the background check
requirement. The current version of the bill assumes that such
volunteers are exempt from state-imposed fees under Welfare &
Institutions Code 1522. However, the current exemption under
1522(d)(3), applies only to "any person or persons [who]
operate or manage a foster family home or certified family home
?" Additionally, 1522(a)(3) prohibits imposition of a fee by
DSS and DOJ for fingerprinting or obtaining a criminal record of
an applicant for a license to operate a facility providing
nonmedical board, room and care for six or fewer children, but
suspends that prohibition during the 2003-04, 2004-05 and
2005-06 fiscal years. The administration is proposing to extend
that suspension an additional two years in its 2006-07 budget
proposal.
AB 1979
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Volunteers who have contact with clients are subject to the
background check requirement under 1522(b)(1)(D), and does not
appear as if the exemptions in 1522 cover foster youth mentor
volunteers. Thus, an express exemption in the bill appears
warranted if it is to achieve the author's purpose.
Suggested amendment
Add a new subdivision (b) to 1522.06: "Neither the Department
of Justice nor the State Department of Social Services may
charge a fee for the fingerprinting of an applicant for license,
special permit or certificate of approval described in
subdivision (a)." Change existing (b) to (c).
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department
Los Angeles Count Board of Supervisors
California Peace Officers' Association
California Police Chiefs' Association
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Casey McKeever / HUM. S. / (916)
319-2089