BILL ANALYSIS
AB 12
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 14, 2009
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES
Jim Beall, Chair
AB 12 (Beall, Bass) - As Amended: April 13, 2009
SUBJECT : California Fostering Connections to Success Act
SUMMARY : Opts California in to new federal laws that allow for
federal financial participation in kinship-guardianship
assistance payments, beginning January 1, 2010, and transitional
foster care services for eligible youth between the ages of 18
and 21 years old, beginning October 1, 2010. Specifically, this
bill :
1)Requires the Department of Social Services (department) to
exercise its option under federal law to enter into kinship
guardianship assistance agreements with relative guardians of
children who exit foster care. In order to create a federally
funded Kin-GAP program, makes conforming changes which
include, but are not limited to, the following additions or
revisions to existing statutes governing California's
Kinship-Guardianship Assistance Payment Program (Kin-GAP)
program:
a) Eligibility criteria, including but not limited to, that
the child is a sibling of an eligible child or that the
child:
i) Has been removed from home pursuant to a voluntary
placement agreement, or adjudicated as a dependent or
ward of the juvenile court, and returning home would be
contrary to the child's welfare;
ii) Has been eligible for foster care maintenance
payments while residing in the relative caregiver's home
for at least 6 months; and
iii) Demonstrates a strong attachment to the relative,
who has a strong, permanent commitment to caring for the
child.
b) A requirement that the department negotiate and enter
into a written assistance agreement with the relative
guardian, which applies regardless of the guardian's state
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of residence and specifies, among other information:
i) The amount of aid, which shall be based on specified
criteria and shall not exceed the rate paid for children
in a foster family home; and
ii) Additional services and assistance for which the
child and guardian are eligible and a procedure for
applying for additional services, as needed.
c) A requirement that the state pays the total cost of
nonrecurring expenses of obtaining legal guardianship of
the child, not to exceed $2,000.
2)Establishes the intent of the Legislature to ensure that
eligible children for whom Kin-GAP benefits were previously
paid under California's Kin-GAP program shall receive
federally funded Kin-GAP benefits instead. Deems these
children eligible under applicable federal law and requires
the child welfare or probation department or tribe, during
calendar year 2010, to meet with the relative guardian and
child and enter into the above-described negotiated agreement
at the time of the child's annual Kin-GAP eligibility
redetermination.
3)Requires the department to negotiate with the federal
Department of Health and Human Services on behalf of the
counties participating in the Child Welfare Demonstration
Capped Allocation Project to ensure that those counties
receive reimbursement for the above- described kinship
guardianship agreements outside of the provisions of their
current waiver.
4)Establishes a state-funded Kin-GAP program to continue to
provide benefits on behalf of children who are not eligible
for the federally funded Kin-GAP program described above.
Makes many, but not all, of the same changes, additions or
revisions to existing statutes governing California's Kin-GAP
program in order to create this state-funded Kin-GAP.
5)Specifies that Kin-GAP payments shall continue after the
filing of a petition pursuant to WIC 388 to change, modify or
set aside a court order unless and until the juvenile court
orders the child removed from the home, terminates
guardianship or grants other requested relief.
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6)Establishes the intent of the Legislature to exercise the
option afforded states under the federal Fostering Connections
to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008 (Fostering
Connections Act) to receive federal financial participation
for current or former dependent children or wards of the
juvenile court who receive support up to 21 years of age.
7)Effective October 1, 2010, defines "nonminor dependents" as
current or former dependents or wards of the juvenile court
who are between 18 and 21 years of age, are in foster care,
and are participating in a transitional independent living
case plan (TILP) pursuant to the federal Fostering Connections
Act. Allows for the payment of aid, following specified
procedures and due process requirements, on behalf of an
otherwise eligible nonminor dependent who also meets at least
one of the following 5 conditions:
a) The nonminor is completing secondary education or an
equivalent credential;
b) Is enrolled in a postsecondary or vocational education
institution;
c) Is participating in a program designed to promote, or
remove barriers to, employment;
d) Is employed for at least 80 hours per month; and
e) Is incapable of doing one of the above due to a medical
condition, and that incapability is supported by regularly
updated case plan information.
8)As of October 1, 2010, changes eligibility for adoption
assistance program (AAP) and Kin-GAP assistance to also
include otherwise eligible youth between the ages of 18 and 21
for whom an adoption assistance agreement was entered into or
Kin-GAP aid began after the age of 16 and who meet one of the
above-described 5 conditions.
9)Requires the county welfare or probation department, or tribe,
to notify all foster youth, including those receiving Kin-GAP
and AAP, who attain 16 years of age and are under their
jurisdiction of the existence of the aid described above.
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10)Declares that the juvenile court has within its
"jurisdiction" any nonminor dependent. Authorizes the court
to terminate "dependency or delinquency jurisdiction" over the
nonminor between the ages of 18 and 21. Allows a nonminor
under the age of 21 to petition for the court to resume its
dependency jurisdiction and requires a court hearing on such a
petition. Further requires that the court resume dependency
jurisdiction and order a new TILP within 60 days if it finds
that the nonminor is eligible for dependency jurisdiction.
11)Authorizes the placement of nonminor dependents in
"supervised independent living" (SIL) settings. Defines a SIL
setting as a supervised setting specified in a nonminor
dependent's TILP, pursuant to federal law. Exempts SIL
settings from licensure under the Community Care Facilities
Act. Establishes the rate paid on behalf of youth in SIL
settings as equivalent to the per child, per month rates paid
to foster family homes.
12)Requires the court, at the last review hearing before a
foster child turns 18, to ensure that the child's TILP
includes a plan for the child to meet one of the criteria for
eligibility as a nonminor dependent and that the child has
been informed of the right to seek termination of dependency
jurisdiction at any time after reaching the age of majority
and before the age of 21. Requires the child welfare or
probation department to report to the court, at the hearing
closest to and before a dependent child's 18th birthday and
each review hearing thereafter whether specified information,
documents and services have been provided.
13)Requires that case plans for nonminor dependents be developed
with, and signed by, the nonminor and include specified
information.
14)Requires that the status of a nonminor dependent be reviewed
periodically. Establishes the frequency of review as
determined by the court, but at least every 6 months, until
dependency jurisdiction is terminated. Specifies that courts
shall not order hearings to terminate parental rights of a
nonminor dependent's parent(s). Requires the court to hold a
specified hearing before terminating dependency jurisdiction
for a nonminor dependent.
15)Adds nonminor dependents to existing categories of youth who
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may retain specified cash resources and remain eligible to
receive specified social services and to those who may receive
CalWORKs while in the approved home of a relative foster
caregiver.
16)Specifies that nothing in the above provisions gives legal
custody of a person who has attained the age of 18 to a county
welfare or probation department or otherwise abrogates rights
that a person who has reached the age of 18 has under state
law. Unless otherwise specified, declares that the rights of
a dependent child and responsibilities of specified
departments and other entities toward them also apply to
nonminor dependents.
17)Requires the department, by specified dates, to revise or
adopt specified regulations to implement the above provisions.
In some instances, directs the department to prepare for this
implementation by releasing instructions to apply for set
periods prior to the adoption of regulations. Authorizes
implementation of regulatory changes via emergency
regulations.
18)Makes other related changes.
EXISTING STATE LAW :
1)Establishes a system of child welfare services, including
foster care, for children who have been or are at risk of
being abused or neglected.
2)Establishes the Kin-GAP program to enhance family preservation
and stability by recognizing that many dependent children are
in long-term, stable placements with relatives that allow for
their dependency cases to be dismissed. Sets the rate paid on
behalf of a child in a placement supported by Kin-GAP as
equivalent to the rate paid to foster family homes. Welfare
and Institutions Code Section (WIC) 11360; 11364.
3)Authorizes the juvenile court to retain jurisdiction over a
child who has been adjudicated a dependent because of abuse or
neglect until the ward or dependent child attains the age of
21 years. WIC 303.
4)Specifies that Aid to Families with Dependent Children-Foster
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Care (AFDC-FC) benefits and Kin-GAP assistance shall be paid
on behalf of a child in foster care or a guardianship under
the age of 18 who meets additional eligibility criteria. WIC
11363; 11401. Exempts from this age-based requirement foster
children and children in guardianships between the ages of 18
and 19 who are pursuing specified education-related goals.
WIC 11403.
5)Establishes AAP with the intent to reduce the number of
children in foster care and provide stable, secure homes for
children who meet specified eligibility requirements. WIC
16115.5; 16120. Specifies that the amount of adoption
assistance benefit, if any, shall be negotiated based on the
needs of the child and circumstances of the family and
included in an adoption assistance agreement. WIC 16119
(d)(1); WIC 16120.05. Specifies as criteria for receipt of
AAP benefits that the child is under the age of 18, or is
under the age of 21, and has a handicap that warrants the
continuation of assistance. WIC 16120.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
1)Summary: In October, 2008, President Bush signed one of the
most significant pieces of child welfare legislation in some
time. Along with multiple new requirements for states, the
federal Fostering Connections Act offered states the
opportunity to opt-in to new federal funding streams if they
choose to provide kinship-guardianship benefits to relative
guardians and/or foster care to 18 to 21-year-old youth in
conformity with federal law. AB 12, the California Fostering
Connections Act, would enable the state to exercise both of
these options. With regard to kinship-guardianship benefits,
this bill would allow California to draw down federal funds
for what has been a state-funded program for a decade.
2)Kinship-Guardianship in California and New Federal Law :
California's Kinship-Guardianship (Kin-GAP) program was
created by SB 1901 (McPherson), Chapter 1055, Statutes of
1998. The program's goal is to enhance stability for foster
children by supporting their long-term placements with
relatives who become their legal guardians. Although the
juvenile court retains some form of jurisdiction over
children served by Kin-GAP, the children no longer receive
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foster care services and supports. In 2007-8, the Kin-GAP
program assisted 14,000 former foster children living with
relative guardians.
For conformity with federal requirements, key differences
between California's existing Kin-GAP program and the new
federally supported kinship-guardianship program created by
this bill would include:
a) A new requirement that county agencies negotiate a
kinship guardianship agreement with prospective relative
guardians, rather than simply set the benefit payment
rate at the level offered to foster families without
offering additional services (except in some locations
where kinship support services may be available). The
negotiated benefit rate is, however, capped at the rate
the family would have received as a foster family home.
b) A new requirement that the negotiated agreements apply
regardless of the guardian's state of residence. Under
current law, Kin-GAP benefits do not extend across state
borders.
c) A new requirement that the state pay nonrecurring
costs of obtaining guardianship, up to $2,000. It is not
yet clear how this requirement will apply in California,
however, as juvenile courts do not charge fees to
establish guardianships.
d) The expansion of eligibility for Kin-GAP benefits to
include children who have lived with relatives for at
least 6 months (rather than the current 12), and under
specified circumstances, siblings who would otherwise not
qualify.
To meet the new requirements for California's existing
caseload of children receiving Kin-GAP benefits, AB 12 deems
these children eligible under specified federal law and
requires the child welfare agency to negotiate a new,
conforming kinship guardianship agreement with their
relative guardians.
3)Continuance of State-funded Kin-GAP : Some number of
children who exit foster care to enter into relative
guardianship will not qualify under other eligibility
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criteria (based on the income of the family from whom they
were originally removed) for new federal funding. According
to the department, this number could be as low as less than
1%. AB 12 would ensure that guardians of these children
continue to receive Kin-GAP benefits. The above changes to
create the new federally-funded Kin-GAP program would also
apply to state-funded Kin-GAP beneficiaries, with some
exceptions (i.e. no reimbursement for costs of obtaining
guardianship and benefits would not extend to guardians
outside California or to siblings who are not otherwise
eligible).
4)Transitional Services Provisions of New Federal Law and AB 12 :
The federal Fostering Connections Act will also make federal
matching funds available as of October 1, 2010 for states that
opt to provide specified foster care services, adoption
assistance and/or kinship guardianship assistance benefits
until eligible youth reach up to the age of 21. Juvenile
courts in California currently have authority to retain
jurisdiction over and order foster care services for an
individual who reached the age of majority while in foster
care but is under the age of 21. However, under existing
state law both federal and state foster care funds are
available only until youth are 18 or 19 years old. As a
result, the vast majority of California's foster youth who are
in care when they reach the age of majority (approximately
4,000 to 5,000 each year) currently "emancipate" from the
system at the age of 18 or 19.
AB 12 would opt California in to federal financial
participation for this extension of eligibility for children
in foster care, as well as those who are supported by adoption
assistance or kinship guardianship benefits, until the age of
21. Qualifying youth (called "non-minor dependents" in this
bill) would include those who were dependents or wards in
foster care when they reached the age of 18. They would also
include former foster youth who were adopted after reaching
age 16 and eligible for AAP or who entered into a relative's
guardianship after age 16. To be eligible, these 18 to
21-year-old youth must also meet one of five additional
criteria. The youth must be: (1) completing high school or a
program leading to an equivalent credential; (2) enrolled in
an institution which provides post-secondary or vocational
education; (3) participating in a program or activity designed
to promote, or remove barriers, to employment; (4) employed
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for at least 80 hours per month; or (5) be incapable of doing
any of the above due to a medical condition.
5)Another State's Experience and Youth Options Under AB 12:
Under AB 12, transitional foster care supports and services
would be available at the option of eligible 18 to
21-year-olds. The state of Illinois has supported foster
youth until the age of 21 for approximately 20 years (with
state funds). According to the author of this bill, in
Illinois, 81% of youth elect to continue to receive support
when they turn 18 years old, a figure which decreases to 69%
at age 19 and 54% by the age of 20.
Under this bill, the court would terminate its dependency
jurisdiction if an eligible youth elected to leave foster care
before the age of 21. However, as long as that youth
continued to meet the other eligibility criteria, he or she
would be able to opt back in to receive foster care supports
before the age of 21. Under AB 12, youth who elect to receive
support after age 18 may continue to live in the same
placement they lived in as minors, which can include foster
family homes, kinship placements, group homes and the
Transitional Housing Placement Program (THPP). Alternatively,
youth may remain in foster care, but live in a different
foster care placement. This bill also enacts a new placement
type for nonminor dependents, created by the federal Fostering
Connections Act and called a Supervised Independent Living
setting.
6) Outcomes for Youth Emancipating From the Foster Care System :
Multiple studies document the overwhelming challenges that
former foster youth face when they emancipate from foster
care. Some of the most frequently-cited are a series of
reports from the University of Chicago's Chapin Hall based on
the "Midwest Study of the Adult Functioning of Former Foster
Youth," (available at
http://www.chapinhall.org/article_abstract.aspx?ar=1355 ; last
visited April 12, 2009). These reports document that youth
who "age out" of foster care are more than twice as likely not
to have a high school diploma and are less likely to attend
college, less likely to be employed, more likely to rely on
government assistance, more likely to have children and more
likely to be arrested. The reports from the Midwest Study
also compare outcomes for youth who remained in foster care
past age 18 (mostly in Illinois) with those of youth who were
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required to exit at age 18 (in Iowa and Wisconsin). The
reports document that youth who continued to receive the
support of foster care past age 18 fared far better than those
who "aged out" at 18. Specifically, youth who received
support after age 18 were twice as likely to be enrolled in a
school or training program and three times as likely to be
enrolled in college. They were earning more income and were
less likely to have been arrested or incarcerated or to have
become pregnant.
7)Other comments and related legislation : According to the
author of AB 12, the federal Fostering Connections Act
"provides California with an unprecedented opportunity to
access federal funding to improve the lives of our state's
most vulnerable youth...The [bill's provisions] represent both
fiscally and socially responsible improvements to California's
foster care system. As a result, California would utilize
federal funds to meet costs currently borne by the state and
counties, and realize proven savings from declines in
unemployment, homelessness, teen pregnancy, public assistance,
and the other costly outcomes for young adults who 'age out'
of foster care." These changes would also implement critical
recommendations of the California Judicial Council's Blue
Ribbon Commission on Children in Foster Care.
Several bills introduced this session include provisions to
implement various requirements of the federal Fostering
Connections Act. AB 270 (De La Torre) also seeks to
strengthen existing laws about the documents, information and
services that the child welfare agency must provide to youth
prior to their emancipation from foster care.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Alliance of Child and Family Services (Co-sponsor)
California Youth Connection (Co-sponsor)
Children's Law Center of Los Angeles (CLCLA) (Co-sponsor)
County Welfare Directors Association of CA (CWDA) (Co-sponsor)
John Burton Foundation (Co-sponsor)
Judicial Council of CA (Co-sponsor)
Service Employees International Union (Co-sponsor)
Youth Law Center (Co-sponsor)
3rd Street Youth Center & Clinic
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Adolescent Health Working Group
Alameda County Court Appointed Special Advocate Program
Alameda County Foster Youth Alliance
Alameda County Juvenile Justice/Delinquency Prevention
Commission
Alameda County Office of Education, Foster Youth Services
Program
All Saints Church Foster Care Project
Alternative Family Services
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees
(AFSCME)
Arriba Juntos
Aspiranet
Association of Community Human Service Agencies
Bay Area Youth Centers
Be A Mentor, Inc.
Berhe Group Homes, Inc.
Beyond Emancipation
Bienvenidos Children's Center
C.H.A.I.N. Reaction Inc.
CA Coalition for Youth
California State Association of Counties (CSAC)
California State PTA
California Teacher's Association
Catholic Charities of East Bay
Chairs Youth Center
Child Advocates of Silicon Valley
Chinatown Child Development Center
City and County of San Francisco
CME Society of San Jose State University
Communities in Harmony Advocating for Learning and Kids (CHALK)
Concept 7 Family Support and Treatment Center
Contra Costa County Children & Family Services
Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA)
County of Santa Barbara
Covenant House California
Crossroads Treatment Center
D & R Training Point, Inc.
David and Margaret Youth & Family Services
Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund. (DREDF)
Drug Policy Alliance Network
Equality California
Ettie Lee Youth & Family Services
Every Child Foundation
Families Uniting Families
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Family Care Network
Family Law Section, State Bar of California
First Place for Youth
Five Acres - The Boys' & Girls' Aid Society of Los Angeles
Foothill College, Financial Aid Outreach staff
Fresno County Economic Opportunities Commission
Greenhouse Family Services
Hathaway-Sycamores Child and Family Services
Heather Martinez Zona (Court Appointed Special Advocate)
Honoring Emancipated Youth
Interagency Children's Policy Council of Alameda County
JUMA Ventures
Junior League of Napa-Sonoma Board of Directors
Kids in Common
Larkin Street Youth Services
Lavender Youth Recreation and Information Center (LYRIC)
Legal Aid Association of California
Legal Advocates for Children & Youth
Legal Services for Children
Lincoln Child Center
Maryvale
Matchbridge
Modoc County Department of Social Services
Modoc County Office of Education
Ohlone Community College District
Olive Crest
Paradise Oaks Youth Services
Peacock Acres Inc.
Penny Lane Centers
Pivotal Point
Placer County Foster Youth Services
Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California (PPAC)
Plumas County Independent Living Skills Program
Plumas Court Appointed Special Advocates
Professor Mary Kobane, Santa Ana College
Rebekah Children's Services
Redwood Children's Services, Inc.
Remi Vista Inc, Youth & Family Services
Riverside County Office of Education, Foster Youth Services
Rosemary Children's Services
Roundhouse Council, Indian Education & Family Resource Center
Sacramento Children's Home
San Francisco State University's Guardian Scholars Program
San Francisco Youth Commission
San Jose State University, Connect Motivate Educate Society
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Santa Ana College
Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors
Silicon Valley Children's Fund
Sonoma County Human Services, Family, Youth and Children's
Division
STARS Community Services - San Leandro
Sunny Hills Services
The Teen Project
The Village Family Services
Time for Kids, Inc
TLC Child and Family Services
United Friends of the Children
VOICES ILP
West Coast Children's Clinic
Westside Children's Center
Youth for Change
Youth Justice Institute
YWCA Santa Monica
17 Individuals
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Jennifer Troia / HUM. S. / (916)
319-2089