BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 1089
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CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 1089 (Ian Calderon)
As Amended August 4, 2014
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |72-0 |(May 24, 2013) |SENATE: |34-0 |(August 19, |
| | | | | |2014) |
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Original Committee Reference: HUM. S.
SUMMARY : Establishes procedures for the transfer of a regional
center consumer who also is placed in foster care from one
regional center's catchment area to another. Specifically, this
bill :
1)Makes the following legislative findings and declarations:
a) Children in foster care are at increased risk for
serious developmental delays and disabilities as a result
of abuse, neglect, and prenatal exposure to drugs.
b) Timely and consistent provision of quality remediation
and therapeutic services for children with developmental
delays and disabilities, such as those provided by
California's regional centers, have been shown to greatly
improve outcomes for these children. Unfortunately,
children in foster care are at increased risk for a
disruption in services due to frequent placement changes.
These disruptions cause dramatic setbacks in a child's
development and well-being.
c) It is imperative that children in foster care experience
minimal interruptions in developmental services. If
circumstances do not allow for advance planning during the
transfer from one regional center's catchment area to
another's, it is critical to facilitate continuity of
services with a minimum of interruption.
d) Therefore, regional centers shall put a high priority on
minimizing delays in providing developmental services to
children in the foster care system.
1)Establishes requirements and procedures related to the
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transfer of a consumer from one regional center to another if
the consumer has an order for foster care placement, is
awaiting foster care placement, or is placed in out-of-home
care through voluntary placement, as specified, including the
following:
a) Requires a social worker or county probation officer to
immediately send a notice of relocation to the consumer's
regional center of origin. Requires the regional center of
origin to, upon receipt of the notice of relocation,
immediately send a notice of transfer, and records needed
for the planning process, as specified, to the regional
center to which the child is transferring.
b) Requires the receiving regional center to provide the
regional center of origin with information regarding
appropriate vendors and services within 14 days of the
notice of transfer and sets forth other procedures to be
completed prior to the transfer of case management for the
consumer, as specified.
c) Requires the regional center of origin, in advance of an
individual program plan (IPP) or Individualized Family
Services Plan (IFSP) meeting, to make every reasonable
effort to initiate services, as provided for in the
consumer's current IPP or IFSP, as soon as possible
following the notice of transfer to a new catchment area,
but no later than 30 days from the date of notice of
transfer. Requires the regional center to report to the
court of jurisdiction, as specified, the county social
worker or probation officer, as applicable, and the
developmental services decisionmaker or educational rights
holder, as applicable, all services that are being provided
to the consumer, and the process to secure any additional
services that have been identified in the consumer's IPP or
IFSP but not yet initiated.
d) Additionally requires that if all services identified in
the consumer's IPP or IFSP have not been initiated within
30 days, the regional center shall report in writing to the
court, county social worker, probation officer, as
applicable, and the developmental services decisionmaker or
educational rights holder, as applicable, at 30-day
intervals until all services are initiated.
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The Senate amendments :
1)Delete provisions related to the transfer of children between
local education agencies who are receiving developmental
services and are also dependents.
2)Delete the requirement to provide consumers and specified
representatives access to a consumer's regional center records
for purposes of securing eligibility for a public benefits
program.
3)Establish new requirements for the regional center of origin
and the regional center to which a consumer receiving foster
care services is transferring to ensure continuity of services
for the consumer.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Establishes the Lanterman Act, under which the Department of
Developmental Services (DDS) is authorized to contract with
private non-profit regional centers to provide case management
services and arrange for, or purchase, services that meet the
needs of individuals with developmental disabilities, as
defined. (Welfare and Institutions Code (WIC) Section 4500 et
seq.)
2)Establishes the Early Intervention program, based on federal
statute, for infants and toddlers with a developmental delay,
as specified, and defines the responsibilities of DDS and the
California Department of Education (CDE) to care for these
children. (Government Code Section 95014)
1)Establishes a system of 21 nonprofit regional centers
throughout the state to identify needs and coordinate services
for eligible individuals with developmental disabilities and
requires DDS to contract with regional centers to provide case
management services and arrange for or purchase services that
meet the needs of individuals with developmental disabilities,
as defined. (WIC Section 4620 et seq.)
2)Requires the development of an IPP for each regional center
consumer, which specifies services to be provided to the
consumer, based on his or her individualized needs
determination and preferences, and defines that planning
process as the vehicle to ensure that services and supports
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are customized to meet the needs of consumers who are served
by regional centers. (WIC Section 4512)
3)Requires the IPP planning processes to include:
a) A statement of the individual's goals and objectives, a
schedule of the type and nature of services to be provided
and other information and considerations, as specified;
b) Review and modification, as necessary, by the regional
center's planning team no less frequently than every three
years; and
c) Statewide training and review of the IPP plan creation,
as specified. (WIC Section 4646.5)
1)Provides that a consumer who is or has been determined to be
eligible for services by a regional center shall also be
considered eligible by any other regional center if he or she
has moved to another location within the state. (WIC Section
4643.5 (a))
2)Requires the level and types of services and supports
specified in a consumer's IPP to be authorized and secured, if
available, pending the development of a new IPP, whenever a
consumer transfers from one regional center catchment area to
another. Requires a regional center in a catchment area to
which a consumer has transferred to convene a meeting to
develop a new IPP within 30 days if the services and supports
in the consumer's existing IPP are not available, and prior to
approval of a new IPP, requires the regional center to provide
alternative services and supports to the consumer that best
meet his or her IPP objectives in the least restrictive
setting. (WIC Section 4643.5 (c))
3)Establishes that a child shall be within the jurisdiction of
the juvenile court, in foster care, when the child has
suffered, or is of substantial risk of suffering, serious
physical harm or illness as a result of the following:
a) A failure or inability of the parent or guardian to
adequately supervise or protect the minor;
b) A failure or inability of the parent or guardian to
adequately supervise or protect the minor from the conduct
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of a custodian with whom the child has been left;
c) A willful or negligent failure of the parent or guardian
to provide the minor with adequate food, clothing, shelter,
or medical treatment; or
d) The inability of the parent or guardian to provide
regular care for the minor due to the parent's or
guardian's mental illness, developmental disability or
substance abuse. (WIC Section 300 (b))
1)Establishes that, in all cases in which a minor is adjudged a
dependent child of the court as specified, the court may limit
parental control over a foster child and requires the court to
clearly and specifically set forth those limitations. Provides
that such limitations may not exceed those necessary to
protect the child. (WIC Section 361)
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations Committee
this bill will likely result in increased administrative costs
to the regional centers up to $200,000 per year for increased
coordination between regional centers and with vendors (General
Fund and federal funds); minor additional costs for services
provided to foster youth (General Fund and federal funds); and
minor administrative costs for county welfare agencies to
provide notifications to regional centers when a foster child
will move between catchment areas (local funds or General Fund).
COMMENTS : This bill establishes procedures for the provision of
regional center services to children in foster care who transfer
from one regional center catchment area to another. The author
seeks to ensure timely access to needed interventions and
services for vulnerable foster youth who move from one placement
to another.
Developmental services: The Lanterman Act guides the provision
of services and supports for Californians with developmental
disabilities. Each individual under the Lanterman Act,
typically referred to as a "consumer," is legally entitled to
treatment and habilitation services and supports in the least
restrictive environment. Lanterman Act services are designed to
enable all consumers to live more independent and productive
lives in the community.
Direct responsibility for implementation of the Lanterman Act
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service system is shared by the DDS and 21 regional centers,
which are private nonprofit entities, established pursuant to
the Lanterman Act, that contract with DDS to carry out many of
the state's responsibilities under the Lanterman Act. The
principal roles of regional centers include intake and
assessment, individualized program plan development, case
management, and securing services through generic agencies or
purchasing services provided by vendors. Regional centers also
share primary responsibility with local education agencies for
provision of early intervention services under the California
Early Intervention Services Act.
The 21 regional centers throughout the state serve over 260,000
consumers who receive services such as residential placements,
supported living services, respite care, transportation, day
treatment programs, work support programs, and various social
and therapeutic activities. Approximately 1,300 consumers
reside at one of California's four Developmental Centers - and
one state-operated, specialized community facility - which
provide 24-hour habilitation and medical and social treatment
services.
Services provided to people with developmental disabilities are
determined through an individual planning process. Under this
process, planning teams - which include, among others, the
consumer, his or her parent(s) or other legally authorized
representative, and one or more regional center representatives
- jointly prepare an IPP based on the consumer's needs and
choices. For infants and toddlers under three years of age, the
plan generated is an individualized family service plan (IFSP),
which similarly dictates the services to be provided to a child
to meet his or her developmental and early intervention needs.
The Lanterman Act requires that the IPP promote community
integration and maximize opportunities for each consumer to
develop relationships, be part of community life, increase
control over his or her life, and acquire increasingly positive
roles in the community. The IPP must give the highest
preference to those services and supports that allow minors to
live with their families and adults to live as independently as
possible in the community.
Transfers of regional center consumers: Current law requires a
regional center that receives a consumer from another catchment
area to authorize and pay for the same supports and services or
supports and services that are comparable to those that the
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consumer was receiving under his or her IPP through the previous
regional center, if they are available. This occurs while a new
IPP meeting is pending, which is required to occur within 30
days if the services and supports provided for in the consumer's
IPP do not exist in the new catchment area. Statute also
requires the regional center to provide alternative services and
supports to meet the consumer's needs pending the development of
a new IPP. This same process is also referenced in DDS
regulations (California Code of Regulations Title 17, Div. 2,
Section 52111), with respect to the provision of services in an
IFSP for babies and toddlers 0-3 years old.
Need for the bill: According to DSS data from 2011, there were
1,650 children in foster care who received regional center
services, also referred to as "dual agency" children. Because
these children and youth are more likely to move than children
who are not in foster care, and are more likely to move without
warning, supporters of the bill contend that having a seamless
process for transfer of the case file and continuity of services
is especially important.
Although current law and regulations outline the duties of the
receiving regional center when a consumer transfers to ensure
continuity of services to the extent possible, there are not any
timelines provided in current law mandating a specific timeframe
for the transfer of the case file or the actual initiation of
services for that consumer. According to sponsors of the bill,
this lack of specificity results in some foster youth waiting
for services for up to six or nine months, if not longer. They
additionally contend that this delay can be particularly
detrimental for very young children whose services may mitigate
further developmental delay, as well as older foster youth for
whom continuity of services, especially if they are receiving
behavioral intervention services, can play a major role in
whether their new placement is successful.
To provide for a more standardized process and avoid delays in
service delivery, this bill sets forth more detailed
requirements surrounding the transfer of a foster child
receiving regional center services, including the requirement
that the consumer's regional center of origin authorizes and
secures services in the consumer's new catchment area until the
receiving regional center can complete an IPP meeting and take
over the case file for the consumer.
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Analysis Prepared by : Myesha Jackson / HUM. S. / (916)
319-2089
FN: 0005087