BILL NUMBER: AB 2161 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 19, 2006
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 27, 2006
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Hancock
FEBRUARY 21, 2006
An act to add Sections 16519 and 16519.5 to the Welfare and
Institutions Code, relating to public social services, and making an
appropriation therefor.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2161, as amended, Hancock Child welfare services: resource
family pilot program.
Existing law requires the placement of dependent children by the
juvenile court according to specified procedures. Existing law
requires the state, through the State Department of Social Services
and county welfare departments, to establish and support a system of
statewide child welfare, which includes services related to foster
care placement of dependent children and adoption. Existing law
provides for the licensure of foster care providers, and the approval
of adoptive parents.
This bill would require the State Department of Social Services,
in consultation with county welfare agencies, to implement a pilot
program to establish a unified resource family approval process to
replace the existing multiple processes for licensing foster family
homes, approving relatives and nonrelated extended family members as
foster care providers, and approving adoptive families, as provided
in the bill. The bill would define a resource family for its purposes
as an individual or couple that a participating county has approved
to care for a related or unrelated child who is under the
jurisdiction of the juvenile court or otherwise in the care of a
county child welfare agency.
This bill would require the department to, prior to implementing
the pilot program, promulgate standards for home approval and
permanency assessment for placing children in a resource family.
This bill would require the pilot program to be conducted in up to
5 counties that volunteer to participate. It would authorize the
pilot program to continue through the 2009-10 fiscal year, or for 3
full fiscal years following the receipt of funding for the program,
whichever is later.
Existing law establishes the Aid to Families with Dependent
Children-Foster Care (AFDC-FC) program, under which counties provide
payments to foster care providers on behalf of qualified children in
foster care. The program is funded by a combination of federal,
state, and county funds, with moneys from the General Fund being
continuously appropriated to pay for the state's share of AFDC-FC
costs. Existing law requires that a child be in one of 7 designated
placements in order to be eligible for AFDC-FC.
This bill also would require a child placed in a resource family
home that meets specified standards to be eligible for AFDC-FC. By
expanding eligibility standards for AFDC-FC benefits, this bill would
make an appropriation. The bill would provide that a resource family
be paid a specified AFDC-FC rate, and would apply existing sharing
ratios for state financial participation.
This bill would make its implementation contingent upon the
continued availability of federal funds for costs associated with the
placement of children with resource families as provided in the
bill.
The bill would also set forth specified responsibilities for the
department and counties participating in the pilot program for
implementing and enforcing standards provided in the bill.
Vote: 2/3. Appropriation: yes. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 16519 is added to the Welfare and Institutions
Code, to read:
16519. The Legislature finds and declares the following:
(a) Safety, permanency, and well-being are crucial for the more
than 82,000 California children in foster care, and are paramount to
achieving both federal and state child welfare system improvement
goals. Foster children need safe homes with permanent connections to
family or other caring adults. The current licensing and approval
system, which screens families to care for foster children, fails to
support these outcomes.
(b) Children in foster care live in a variety of out-of-home care
settings: licensed foster family homes, approved relative and
nonrelated extended family member homes, foster family agencies, and
group homes. All of these placement types, considered facilities
under current law, are required to meet the respective health and
safety standards in order to be licensed or approved. This has
produced administrative inefficiencies and confusion among
stakeholders, and has contributed to difficulty in recruiting
suitable foster family homes for children in out-of-home care.
Increasing the number of available suitable homes will improve the
likelihood that the best home will be initially identified to meet a
child's particular needs.
(c) Child safety and well-being are not achieved solely by
ensuring that the home the child is placed in is free from physical
hazards and that adults living in the home do not have disqualifying
criminal convictions or past reports of child abuse. Child safety and
well-being are also dependent upon consideration of the resource
family's psychosocial history that includes physical health, mental
health, alcohol and substance abuse, family violence or abuse, and
experience caring for children.
(d) Research shows that children in out-of-home care placed with
relatives and nonrelated extended family members are more stable,
more likely to be placed with siblings, and more likely to stay
connected to their community and extended family. California
statutory and regulatory provisions should maximize the likelihood
that a child will initially be placed in the care of a safe relative
or nonrelated extended family member who is willing to provide
permanent care if reunification cannot be achieved.
(e) Families living in the same neighborhood as a family from
which a child has been removed are often best suited to provide for
the immediate placement needs of that child.
(f) Families who provide care to children in out-of-home placement
are a valuable resource to the people of this state and to the
children for whom they provide care.
SEC. 2. Section 16519.5 is added to the Welfare and Institutions
Code, to read:
16519.5. (a) The State Department of Social Services, in
consultation with county child welfare agencies, foster parent
associations, and other interested community parties, shall implement
a pilot program to establish a unified, family friendly, and
child-centered resource family approval process to replace the
existing multiple processes for licensing foster family homes,
approving relatives and nonrelated extended family members as foster
care providers, and approving adoptive families.
(b) Up to five counties shall be selected to participate on a
voluntary basis in the pilot program, according to criteria developed
by the department in consultation with the County Welfare Directors
Association. In selecting the pilot counties, the department
shall promote diversity among the participating counties in terms of
size and geographic location.
(c) (1) For the purposes of this section, "resource family" means
an individual or couple that a participating county has
approved to determines to have successfully met both
the approval standards and the permanency assessment criteria adopted
pursuant to subdivision (d) necessary for providing care for a
related or unrelated child who is under the jurisdiction of the
juvenile court, or otherwise in the care of a county child welfare
agency. A resource family shall demonstrate all of the following:
(A) An understanding of the safety, permanence, and well-being
needs of children who have been victims of child abuse and neglect,
and the capacity and willingness to meet those needs, including the
need for protection, and the willingness to make use of support
resources offered by the agency, or a support structure in place, or
both.
(B) An understanding of children's needs and development,
effective parenting skills or knowledge about parenting, and the
capacity to act as a prudent parent in routine decisionmaking.
(C) An understanding of his or her role as a resource family and
the capacity to work cooperatively with the agency in implementing
the child's case plan.
(D) The financial ability within the household to ensure the
stability and financial security of the family.
(2) Subsequent to approval, meeting the
criteria set forth in subdivision (a) and designation as a resource
family, a resource family shall be considered eligible to
provide foster care for related and unrelated children in out-of-home
placement, shall be considered approved as an adoptive
family for adoption or guardianship , and shall
not have to undergo any additional approval or licensure as long as
the family lives in a county participating in the pilot program.
(3) Resource family assessment and approval means that the
applicant meets the standard for home approval, and has successfully
completed a permanency assessment. This approval is in lieu of the
existing foster care license, relative or nonrelated extended family
member approval, and the adoption home study approval.
(4) Approval of a resource family does not guarantee an initial or
continued placement of a child with a resource family.
(d) Prior to implementation of this pilot program, the department
shall adopt standards pertaining to home approval and permanency
assessment of a resource family.
(1) Resource family home approval standards shall include, but not
be limited to, all of the following:
(A) (i) Criminal records clearance of all adults residing in the
home, pursuant to Section 8712 of the Family Code, utilizing
the California Law Enforcement Telecommunications System (CLETS),
a check of the Child Abuse Central Index (CACI), a check of
the Child Welfare Services Case Management System (CWS/CMS), and
receipt of LiveScan, unless an exemption is granted.
(ii) Consideration of any prior allegations of child abuse or
neglect against either the applicant or any other adult residing in
the home. An approval may not be granted to applicants whose criminal
record indicates a conviction for any of the offenses specified in
clause (i) of subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (g) of
Section 1522 of the Health and Safety Code.
(iii) Exemptions from the criminal records clearance requirements
set forth in this section may be granted by the director using the
exemption criteria currently used for foster care licensing as
specified in subdivision (g) of Section 1522 of the Health and Safety
Code.
(B) Buildings and grounds, outdoor activity space, and storage
requirements set forth in Sections 89387, 89387.1, and 89387.2 of
Title 22 of the California Code of Regulations.
(C) In addition to the foregoing requirements, the resource family
home approval standards shall also require the following:
(i) That the applicant demonstrate an understanding about the
rights of children in care and his or her responsibility to safeguard
those rights.
(ii) That the total number of children residing in the home of a
resource family shall be no more than the total number of children
the resource family can properly care for, regardless of status, and
shall not exceed six children, unless exceptional circumstances that
are documented in the foster child's case file exist to permit a
resource family to care for more children, including but not limited
to, the need to place siblings together.
(D) The results of a caregiver risk assessment are consistent with
the factors listed in subparagraphs (A) to (C), inclusive
(D), inclusive, of paragraph (1) of subdivision (c)
. A caregiver risk assessment shall include, but not be limited
to, physical and mental health, alcohol and other substance use and
abuse, and family and domestic violence.
(2) The resource family permanency assessment standards shall
include, but not be limited to, all of the following:
(A) The applicant shall complete caregiver training, a
psychosocial evaluation, and any other activities that relate to a
resource family's ability to achieve permanency with the child.
(B) The permanency assessment shall be completed within 90 days of
the child's placement in the approved home, unless good cause exists
based on the unique circumstances of the family.
(A) The applicant shall complete caregiver training.
(B) The applicant shall complete a psychological evaluation.
(C) The applicant shall complete any other activities that relate
to a resource family's ability to achieve permanency with the child.
(3) (A)
(e) (1) A child may be
placed with a resource family that has received home approval prior
to completion of a permanency assessment only if a compelling reason
for the placement exists based on the needs of the child.
(2) The permanency assessment shall be completed within 90 days of
the child's placement in the approved home, unless good cause exists
based upon the needs of the child.
(B)
(3) If additional time is needed to complete the
permanency assessment, the county shall document the extenuating
circumstances for the delay and generate a timeframe for the
completion of the permanency assessment.
(C)
(4) The county shall report to the department on a
quarterly basis the number of families with a child in an
approved home whose permanency assessment goes beyond 90 days
and summarize the reasons for these delays.
(4)
(5) A child may be placed with a relative , as
defi ned in Section 319, or nonrelated extended
family member , as defined in Section 362.7, prior to home
approval and completion of the permanency assessment only on an
emergency basis if all of the following requirements are met:
(A) (i) Criminal records clearance of all adults residing in the
home, pursuant to Section 8712 of the Family Code, utilizing the
California Law Enforcement Telecommunications System (CLETS), a check
of the Child Abuse Central Index (CACI), a check of the Child
Welfare Services Case Management System (CWS/CMS), unless an
exemption is granted pursuant to subdivision (g) of Section 1522 of
the Health and Safety Code.
(ii) Within 10 judicial days following the criminal records check
conducted through CLETS, the social worker shall ensure that a
fingerprint clearance check of the relative, and any other person
whose criminal record was obtained pursuant to this subdivision, is
initiated through the Department of Justice to ensure the accuracy of
the criminal records check conducted, and shall review the results
of any criminal records check conducted pursuant to this subdivision
to assess the safety of the home.
(iii) The Department of Justice shall forward fingerprint requests
for federal level criminal history information to the Federal Bureau
of Investigation pursuant to this section.
(A) Consideration of the results of a criminal records check
conducted pursuant to Section 16504.5 of the relative or nonrelative
extended family member and of every other adult in the home.
(B) Consideration of the results of the Child Abuse Central Index
(CACI) consistent with Section 1522.1 of the Health and Safety Code
of the relative or nonrelative extended family member, and of every
other adult in the home.
(B)
(C) The home and grounds are free of conditions that
pose undue risk to the health and safety of the child.
(C)
(D) For any placement made pursuant to this paragraph,
the county shall initiate the home approval process no later than
five business days after the placement, which shall include a
face-to-face interview with the resource family applicant and child.
(D)
(E) For any placement made pursuant to this paragraph,
AFDC-FC funding shall not be available until the home has been
approved.
(F) Any child placed under this section shall be afforded all the
rights set forth in Section 16001.9.
(e)
(f) The State Department of Social Services shall be
responsible for all of the following:
(1) Selecting pilot counties, based on criteria established by the
department in consultation with the County Welfare Directors
Association.
(2) Establishing timeframes for participating counties to submit
an implementation plan, enter into terms and conditions for
participation in the pilot program, train appropriate staff, and
accept applications from resource families.
(3) Entering into terms and conditions for participation in the
pilot by counties.
(4) Administering the pilot through the issuance of written
directives that shall have the same force and effect as regulations.
The directives shall be exempt from the rulemaking provisions of the
Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section
11340)) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code.
(5) Approving and requiring the use of a single standard for
resource family home approval and permanency assessment.
(6) Adopting and requiring the use of standardized documentation
for the home approval and permanency assessment of resource families.
(7) Requiring counties to monitor resource families including, but
not limited to, all of the following:
(A) Investigating complaints of resource families.
(B) Developing and monitoring resource family corrective action
plans to correct identified deficiencies and to rescind resource
family approval if compliance with corrective action plans is not
achieved.
(8) Ongoing oversight and monitoring of county systems and
operations including all of the following:
(A) Reviewing the county's implementation of the pilot program.
(B) Reviewing an adequate number of approved resource families in
each participating county to ensure that approval standards are being
properly applied. The review shall include case file documentation,
and may include onsite inspection of individual resource families.
The review shall occur on an annual basis, and more frequently if the
department becomes aware that a participating county is experiencing
a disproportionate number of complaints against individual resource
family homes.
(C) Reviewing county reports of serious complaints and incidents
involving approved resource families, as determined necessary by the
department. The department may conduct an independent review of the
complaint or incident and change the findings depending on the
results of its investigation.
(D) Investigating unresolved complaints against participating
counties.
(E) Requiring corrective action of counties that are not in full
compliance with the terms and conditions of the pilot program.
(9) Terminating the participation of any county that fails to make
corrective action or who otherwise violates the terms and conditions
of participation in the pilot.
(10) Preparing or having prepared within 180 days after the
conclusion of the pilot a report on the results of the pilot. The
report shall include all of the following:
(A) An analysis, utilizing available data, of state and federal
data indicators related to the length of time to permanency including
reunification, guardianship and adoption, child safety factors, and
placement stability.
(B) An analysis of resource family recruitment and retention
elements, including resource family satisfaction with approval
processes and changes regarding the population of available resource
families.
(C) An analysis of cost, utilizing available data, including
funding sources.
(D) An analysis of regulatory or statutory barriers to
implementing the pilot program on a statewide basis.
(f)
(g) Counties participating in the pilot shall be
responsible for all of the following:
(1) Submitting an implementation plan, entering into terms and
conditions for participation in the pilot, training appropriate
staff, and accepting applications from resource families within the
timeframes established by the department.
(2) Complying with the written directives pursuant to paragraph
(4) of subdivision (e).
(3) Implementing the requirements for resource family home
approval and permanency assessment and utilizing standardized
documentation established by the department.
(4) Ensuring staff have the education and experience necessary to
complete the home approval and permanency assessment competently.
(5) Approving and denying resource family applications, including
all of the following:
(A) Rescinding home approvals and resource family approvals where
appropriate, consistent with the established standard.
(B) Providing disapproved resource families requesting review of
that decision due process by conducting county grievance reviews
pursuant to the department's regulations.
(C) Notifying the department of any decisions denying a resource
family's application or rescinding the approval of a resource family.
(6) Updating resource family approval annually.
(7) Monitoring resource families through all of the following:
(A) Ensuring that social workers who identify a condition in the
home that may not meet the approval standards set forth in
subdivision (d) while in the course of a routine visit to children
placed with a resource family take appropriate action as needed.
(B) Requiring resource families to comply with corrective action
plans as necessary to correct identified deficiencies. If corrective
action is not completed as specified in the plan, the county may
rescind the resource family approval.
(C) Requiring resource families to report to the county child
welfare agency any incidents consistent with the reporting
requirements for licensed foster family homes.
(8) Investigating all complaints against a resource family and
taking action as necessary. This shall include investigating any
incidents reported about a resource family indicating that the
approval standard is not being maintained.
(A) The child's social worker shall not conduct the formal
investigation into the complaint received concerning the
approved or pending resource family a family providing
services under the standards required by subdivision (d) . To
the extent that adequate resources are available, complaints shall be
investigated by the nonapproving social worker.
a worker who did not initially perform the home approval or
permanency assessment.
(B) Upon conclusion of the complaint investigation, the final
disposition shall be reviewed and approved by a supervising staff
member.
(C) The department shall be notified of any serious incidents or
serious complaints or any incident that falls within the definition
of Section 11165.5 of the Penal Code. If those incidents or
complaints result in an investigation, the department shall also be
notified as to the status and disposition of that investigation.
(9) Performing corrective action as required by the department.
(10) Assessing county performance in related areas of the
California Child and Family Services Review, and remedying problems
identified.
(11) Submitting information and data that the department
determines is necessary to study, monitor, and prepare the report
specified in paragraph (10) of subdivision (e).
(g)
(h) (1) The Department of Justice shall deem criminal
records information requests made by counties or the department for
applicant and approved resource families as criminal records
information requests for prospective adoptive families, including
requests for subsequent arrest notification.
(2) When a resource family moves to another county, the Department
of Justice shall provide the new county of residence subsequent
arrest notification for that resource family.
(h)
(i) Approved relatives and nonrelated extended family
members, licensed foster family homes, or approved adoptive homes
that have completed the license or approval process prior to full
implementation of the pilot program shall not be considered part of
the pilot program. The otherwise applicable assessment and oversight
processes shall continue to be administered for families and
facilities not included in the pilot program.
(i)
(j) Upon completion of the pilot program, the status of
the resource family's approval shall continue in full force and
effect, and the resource family shall be deemed approved for
licensing, relative and nonrelated extended family member approval,
guardianship, and adoption purposes.
(j)
(k) The department may waive regulations that pose a
barrier to implementation and operation of this pilot program.
The waiver of any regulations waived by the department pursuant to
this section shall apply to only those counties participating
in the pilot program and only for the duration o f
the pilot program.
(k)
(l) Resource families approved under this pilot
program, who move within a participating county or who move to
another pilot program county, shall retain the status as a resource
family if the new building and grounds, outdoor activity areas, and
storage areas meet home approval standards.
(l)
(m) A resource family approved under this pilot program
and who moves to a nonparticipating pilot program county shall lose
the status as a resource family. The new county of residence shall
deem this family approved for licensing, relative and nonrelated
extended family member approval , guardianship , and
adoption purposes, if the new building and grounds, outdoor activity
areas, and storage areas meet applicable standards.
(m)
(n) Implementation of the pilot program shall be
contingent upon the continued availability of federal Social Security
Act Title IV-E (42 U.S.C. Sec. 670) funds for costs associated with
placement of children with resource families assessed and approved
under the program.
(n)
(o) Notwithstanding Section 11402, a child placed with
a resource family shall be eligible for AFDC-FC payments. A resource
family shall be paid an AFDC-FC rate pursuant to Sections 11460 and
11461. Sharing ratios for nonfederal expenditures for all costs
associated with activities related to the approval of relatives and
nonrelated extended family members shall be in accordance with
Section 10101.
(o)
(p) Neither the Department of Justice nor the State
Department of Social Services may charge any additional fee for the
criminal records clearance required pursuant to this section.
(p)
(q) Approved resource families under this pilot program
shall be exempt from all of the following:
(1) Licensure requirements set forth under the Community Care
Facilities Act, commencing with Section 1500 of the of the Health and
Safety Code and all regulations promulgated thereto.
(2) Relative and nonrelated extended family member approval
requirements set forth under Sections 309, 361.4, and 362.7, and all
regulations promulgated thereto.
(3) Adoptions approval and reporting requirements set forth under
Sections 8712 and 8715 Section 8712 of
the Family Code, and all regulations promulgated thereto.
(q)
(r) The pilot program shall be authorized to continue
through the end of the 2009-10 fiscal year, or through the end of the
third full fiscal year following the date that funds are made
available for its implementation, whichever of these dates is later.