BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE HUMAN
SERVICES COMMITTEE
Senator Carol Liu, Chair
BILL NO: SB 597
S
AUTHOR: Liu
B
VERSION: March 31, 2009
HEARING DATE: April 14, 2009
5
FISCAL: To Judiciary and Appropriations
9
7
CONSULTANT:
Hailey
SUBJECT
Child welfare services: foster care services and adoption
assistance
SUMMARY
Makes changes in state law relative to child welfare
services to conform to Public Law 110-351, the Fostering
Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of
2008.
ABSTRACT
Current law :
1. Establishes the Aid to Families with Dependent
Children-Foster Care program (AFDC-FC), under which
counties provide payments to foster care providers on
behalf of qualified children in foster care.
2. Requires counties to pay foster care providers a per
child per month rate in return for the care of supervision
of a child in the AFDC-FC program and defines the term
"care and supervision" for the purpose of these payments.
3. Requires a case plan for each child in foster care and
Continued---
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prescribes the components of the case plan, which include a
summary of the health and education information or records
of the child.
4. Establishes a child welfare council, which is
co-chaired by the secretary of the Health and Human
Services Agency and the chief justice of the state Supreme
Court.
5. Establishes the adoption assistance program, which,
among other requirements, requires DSS and licensed
adoption agencies to provide designated information to
prospective adoptive families.
6. Requires DSS to award a grant for a statewide child
welfare training program for child welfare personnel, to
provide funding for foster parent training programs in
community colleges, and to provide a basic foster parent
training program.
This bill :
1. Expands the definition of "care and supervision," for
use in determining payments to foster care providers, to
include travel costs for educational purposes.
2. Requires DSS to develop a plan for the ongoing
oversight and coordination of health care services for a
child in foster care, and to do so in consultation with
pediatricians, health care experts, experts in and
recipients of child welfare services, and with the advice
of the state's child welfare council.
3. Requires DSS and licensed adoptive agencies to provide
information regarding the federal adoption tax credit to
any individual adopting or considering adopting a child in
foster care.
4. Requires DSS to apply for a federal matching grant,
called a family connection grant, for the purpose of
helping children who are in foster care or at risk of
entering foster care to reconnect with family members.
5. Requires DSS to seek all available federal funds for
child welfare training programs for foster parents, for
child welfare professionals, and for those offered in
community colleges.
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6. Requires, to the extent supported by federal funds,
that these training programs include Kin-GAP caregiver and
child welfare agencies.
FISCAL IMPACT
Unknown.
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION
In 2008, Congress passed and the President signed the
Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions
Act of 2008 (Public Law 110-351). The bill has many
provisions, and SB 597 provides conformity of state law to
several of those provisions in order for California's
children and families to benefit from the opportunities in
the federal bill.
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures,
the new law increases federal funds available to states for
adoption incentives, a new subsidized guardianship program,
and the new state option to assist children up to age 21 in
either foster care, adoption or subsidized guardianship
assistance. PL 110-351 also gradually de-links eligibility
for adoption assistance from the old AFDC income
eligibility criteria.
This bill, SB 597, provides conformity of state law in five
areas of the federal legislation:
Allowing for payments to foster care providers for
costs of travel for the child for educational
purposes.
Requiring that a foster child's case plan include
ongoing oversight and coordination of the child's
health plan.
Requiring DSS and licensed adoption agencies to
provide information about the federal adoption tax
credit to any person considering the adoption of a
foster child.
Requiring DSS to apply for a new federal family
connection grant.
Requiring DSS to seek all available federal funds
for the state's various foster-care training programs
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- for foster parents and for child-welfare
professionals.
Health Oversight and Coordination Plan
Under this provision of the federal law and of SB 597, DSS
will develop a plan, in consultation with pediatricians and
other experts, for the oversight and coordination of health
care services for foster care youth. The plan must also
include consideration of mental health and dental health
needs. The plan shall include an outline of:
a schedule for initial and follow-up health
screenings
how health needs identified through screenings will
be treated
how medical information for children will be
updated and shared (may include electronic records)
steps to ensure continuity of health care
the oversight of prescription medication
how the state consults with physicians and other
professionals in assessing the health and wellbeing of
children in foster care.
This plan will not reduce or limit the responsibility of
the state agency responsible for the child's care.
Family Connection Grants
According to the National Conference on State Legislatures,
the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services may make
matching grants to state, local, or tribal child welfare
agencies, and private non-profit organizations that have
experience working with foster children in kinship care
arrangements. These grants will be used for helping
children who are in, or at risk of entering, foster care
reconnect with family members. These grants shall establish
a kinship navigator program that:
Is coordinated with state or local agencies and
planned and operated in consultation with kinship
caregivers (and organizations representing them),
youth raised by kinship caregivers, relevant
government agencies, and relevant community based or
faith based organizations,
Establishes toll-free information and referral
systems that link kinship caregivers, kinship support
group facilitators and kinship service providers to
eligibility and enrollment information, relevant
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training, relevant legal assistance, and each other,
Provides outreach to kinship care families
including a website, guides or materials
Promotes partnerships between public and private
agencies including schools, community based or faith
based organizations, and relevant government agencies,
May establish a kinship care ombudsman with
authority to intervene and help kinship caregivers
access services, and
May support any other activities designed to assist
kinship caregivers in obtaining benefits and services.
Also, these state programs can undertake:
Intensive family-finding efforts that utilize
search technology to find biological family members
for children in the child welfare system and works to
reestablish relationships and explore ways to find
permanent family placement for the children, and
Family group decision-making meetings for children
in the child welfare system that enable families to
make decisions and develop plans that nurture children
address domestic violence issues, or provide
residential family treatment programs that enable
parents and their children to live in a safe
environment for six months and provide substance abuse
treatment services, children's early intervention
services, family counseling, medical, and mental
health services, nursery and pre-school, and other
services designed to provide comprehensive treatment.
If the application is approved, the grantee shall receive:
75 percent of the total expenditures for the 1st or
2nd year of the grant period
50 percent of the total expenditures for the 3rd
year of the grant period
$15 million is appropriated for these grants for each
fiscal year from 2009 to 2013.
Training to Child Welfare Agencies, Guardians, and Court
Personnel
Each state that has a plan approved is entitled to a
payment of 75 percent of expenditures (including travel and
per diem expenses) for the short-term training of current
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or prospective foster or adoptive parents.
Relative guardians, court personnel and child welfare
agency staff are added to this provision as well. This
feature of the federal legislation will be phased into
effect beginning at 55 percent of expenditures in FY 2009,
and adding five percent each year until it reaches the 75
percent level for FY 2013 onward.
Related legislation
AB 12 (Beall) proposes to extend foster care benefits to
qualifying young adults who are between the ages of 18 and
21 years of age. AB 938 (Committee on the Judiciary)
focuses on federal requirements for notifying kin of
children in foster care, and it addresses adoption issues
raised by the new federal law.
POSITIONS
Support: Academy of California Adoption Lawyers
American Federation of State, County and
Municipal Employees
Junior Leagues of California
State Bar of California, Family Law Section
Oppose: None received
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