BILL ANALYSIS
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair
654 (Leno)
Hearing Date: 04/27/2009 Amended: As introduced
Consultant: Jacqueline Wong-HernandezPolicy Vote: Human
Services 4-1
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BILL SUMMARY: SB 654 extends eligibility for independent living
skills education services to former foster youth placed with
non-related legal guardians.
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Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 Fund
GF cost pressure from $300 $300
$300 General
increased eligibility
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STAFF COMMENTS: This bill meets the criteria for referral to the
Suspense File.
The Independent Living Program (ILP) is a county-administered
resource for youth in foster care, intended to give them skills
for living independently upon aging out of the foster care
system. While services vary by county, ILP programs typically
teach youth skills ranging from writing checks to applying for
jobs and college. They also provide youth with information about
education, training, housing, and other services that are
available in their community.
Eligibility is extended to youth who were or are in foster care
at any time from their 16th to their 19th birthday, or youth who
were or are between the ages of 16 and 18 years of age and
participating in the Kinship Guardianship Assistance Payment
Program (Kin-GAP). Youth are eligible for ILP services up to the
day before their 21st birthday. Until about 3 years ago,
eligibility was also extended to youth who met the age
requirements and were placed with a non-relative legal guardian.
Since then, DSS has made them ineligibile, and this bill would
seek to reinstate their eligibility.
Because the ILP's funding is grant-based, rather than per-child
based, it is a relatively stable amount (about $35 million for
2008-09 in state and federal funds) that will not increase
because of increased eligibility for services. The likely result
is diminished service for all eligible youth.
If the funding were to increase proportionally to account for
the new eligible youth, DSS has estimated it would likely cost
approximately $1.2 million. Because this estimate fails to take
into account both the rate of participation for eligible youth
(about 50%) and the counties' sunk costs incurred for programs
and staff by offering services at all (many of these services
are classes and training offered through programs at schools and
community centers), the CWDA estimate of $300,000 is far more
reasonable.
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SB 654 (Leno)
Some counties and children's attorneys suggest that some
non-related foster parents are reluctant to assume guardianship
of their older foster children because that would make them
ineligible for ILP services, and that others have asked to have
guardianship rescinded in order to maintain the youths' ILP
eligibility. Therefore, to the extent that this bill causes some
foster parents to assume legal guardianship, it would save
approximately $3500 per year, per child, in child welfare
services and court room costs. If even 86 children statewide are
remaining in foster care, with its accompanying court and social
worker costs, simply to receive ILP services, their exit from
foster care would save the state the $300,000 cost of the
increased eligibility.