BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                  SB 945
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   June 30, 2010

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                Felipe Fuentes, Chair

                      SB 945 (Liu) - As Amended:  June 24, 2010 

          Policy Committee:                              Human  
          ServicesVote:5 - 0 

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program:  
          Yes    Reimbursable:              Yes

           SUMMARY  

          This bill requires probation and parole officers to provide  
          specific information to a ward of the court whenever the  
          juvenile court terminates jurisdiction. Specifically, this bill:  


          1)Requires the probation officer or parole officer to supply the  
            emancipating youth with a written notice stating that the  
            person is a former foster child and is eligible for the  
            services and benefits that are available to a former foster  
            child through public and private programs, including the  
            independent living program (ILP). 

          2)Requires the probation officer or parole officer to provide  
            the youth with information regarding the availability of  
            services and requires them to provide assistance to enable the  
            person to apply for and gain acceptance into federal and state  
            programs that provide ILP services and any other benefits they  
            may be eligible for, such as education, housing, and financial  
            assistance.

           FISCAL EFFECT  

          Minimal reimbursable local costs, likely less than $50,000, for  
          the workload associated with probation officers providing wards  
          the required information and assistance. 

           COMMENTS  

           1)Rationale  . This bill is intended to help ensure that  
            emancipating foster youth are provided with the information  








                                                                  SB 945
                                                                  Page  2

            they need to access services once they leave foster care or  
            emancipate from juvenile delinquency court status. The author  
            argues that, "Young people who are wards of the court (housed  
            in juvenile court or treatment facilities) do not reside in  
            homes reserved specifically for foster youth and therefore are  
            not able to prove their status as a foster youth.  Although  
            probation officers who oversee wards for the court are  
            expected to advise and assist their wards with access to  
            transitional living services, there is no clear process for  
            the probation officers to follow to assist this population."

           2)Dual Status Youth  . Dual status youth are foster youth who have  
            been under the jurisdiction of both the dependency courts to  
            the juvenile delinquency court system.  The "dual status"  
            designation for foster youth is not common in California.  To  
            date, nine counties (Colusa, Inyo, Modoc, Placer, Riverside,  
            San Joaquin, Siskiyou, Sonoma and Stanislaus) have developed  
            protocols to assign dual status designations to foster youth  
            with concurrent ward and dependent status.  The majority of  
            foster youth who fall under both are adjudged either  
            dependents or wards, based on a recommendation made to the  
            juvenile court by the county probation and child welfare  
            services departments.  

            This bill would specifically address that population of youth  
            adjudged wards who were at some point dependents of the  
            juvenile court.  Given the existing processes for determining  
            their status, wards likely are not aware that they are  
            considered former foster youth and entitled under current law  
            to a variety of public and private services and supports.

           3)Related Legislation  . In 2009, AB 921 (Jones), a similar bill,  
            was vetoed by the governor.  In his veto message, he noted  
            that given the state's economic situation and the social  
            services reductions being implemented, "it is not prudent to  
            expand requirements imposed on state and local government  
            programs."

           Analysis Prepared by  :    Julie Salley-Gray / APPR. / (916)  
          319-2081