BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 774|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 774
Author: Ashburn (R)
Amended: 5/28/09
Vote: 21
SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE : 7-0, 4/21/09
AYES: Leno, Benoit, Cedillo, Hancock, Huff, Steinberg,
Wright
SENATE HUMAN SERVICES COMMITTEE : 3-0, 4/28/09
AYES: Maldonado, Alquist, Runner
NO VOTE RECORDED: Liu, Yee
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 12-0, 5/28/09
AYES: Kehoe, Cox, Corbett, Denham, DeSaulnier, Hancock,
Leno, Oropeza, Runner, Walters, Wyland, Yee
NO VOTE RECORDED: Wolk
SUBJECT : Social workers: criminal history
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill requires counties to obtain a criminal
history before hiring or transferring a social worker who
has frequent contact with children and prohibits a county
from hiring in that position a person convicted of
specified crimes.
ANALYSIS : Existing law requires the counties, with the
assistance of the Department of Social Services, to provide
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SB 774
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child welfare services, including emergency response,
foster care placement, adoption services, and family
maintenance and reunification. Under existing law,
counties may secure from the Department of Justice a
criminal record for all county welfare department employees
who have frequent and routine contact with children, if the
employees provide services to children who are alleged
victims of abuse, neglect, or exploitation. If the
employee has been convicted of a crime, other than a minor
traffic violation, the county welfare director must
determine whether there is substantial and convincing
evidence to support a reasonable belief that the employee
is of good character. Existing law provides specified
crimes for which the employee must be suspended from duties
involving frequent and routine contact with children.
This bill requires a county, before hiring an applicant
for, or transferring a current employee to, a position with
frequent and routine contact with children, if the employee
will provide services to children who are alleged victims
of abuse, neglect, or exploitation, to secure from the
Department of Justice a criminal record to determine if the
person has ever been convicted of specified crimes. This
bill prohibits the county from employing the person under
prescribed circumstances. This bill allows the county to
require the person to pay any fees charged by the
Department of Justice for the processing of the criminal
history and an additional fee in an amount not more than
the amount sufficient to cover the costs to the county of
administering the criminal record checks.
This bill excludes a person who has obtained a certificate
of rehabilitation from being considered convicted for
purposes of the bill.
This bill also permits a county to obtain fingerprints from
specified current employees for the purpose of obtaining a
criminal record from the Department of Justice. This bill
requires the county to terminate or suspend from any duties
involving frequent and routine contact with children an
employee whose criminal record includes conviction for
specified crimes.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
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Local: Yes
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 Fund
Ongoing recordkeeping Unknown, likely minor
costsGeneral
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/29/09)
California Welfare Directors Association
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author's office,
the state bears the responsibility of reducing the ability
of unscrupulous individuals to abuse and neglect their
charges. Individuals working in child welfare services
have the authority to remove children from their home. The
judgment of social workers, says the author's office, is
vital to the protection of one of the state's most
vulnerable populations. An individual who has been
convicted of assault with a deadly weapon, felony domestic
violence, a registerable sex offense, and child abuse has
shown a serious deficiency in judgment and should not be
entrusted important duties of a social worker assigned to
child welfare services.
RJG:mw 5/29/09 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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