Amended in Assembly April 22, 2014

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 2001

Introduced by Assembly Member Ammiano

February 20, 2014

An act to begin delete amend Section 300 of end delete begin insert add and repeal Section 18265 of end insert the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to juveniles.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2001, as amended, Ammiano. Homeless youth: begin delete dependency proceedings. end delete begin insert support services pilot program. end insert

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Existing law provides for a system of child welfare services administered by each county, with oversight by the State Department of Social Services. Existing law creates the Aid to Families with Dependent Children-Foster Care program, under which a combination of state, county, and federal funds, including funds provided under Title IV-E of the federal Social Security Act, are used to provide reimbursement to families and facilities providing foster care to eligible children. Existing law establishes the Child Welfare Waiver Demonstration Project, which authorizes the State Department of Social Services to conduct a specified foster care demonstration project in up to 20 counties, to allow flexible use of federal and state foster care funds, as specified, based on the terms and conditions of the federal Title IV-E waiver.

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Existing law establishes homeless youth emergency service pilot projects in the Counties of Los Angeles, Santa Clara, and San Diego, and the City and County of San Francisco. Existing law declares that the purpose of these projects is to examine the condition of homeless youth in major urban areas of this state, and to develop a profile of homeless youth in terms of background and available services, in order to locate these youth, to provide for their emergency survival needs, and to assist them in reunification with their parents or in finding a suitable home.

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This bill would authorize one or more counties that participate in the Child Welfare Waiver Demonstration Project to establish a pilot program, with the approval of the State Department of Social Services, to develop and implement alternative child welfare services to meet the individual needs of homeless youth in order to reduce homelessness among children, and would require each pilot program to conclude no later than July 1, 2019. The bill would authorize each participating county to use Title IV-E funds and state foster care funds to provide long-term intensive support services to meet the needs of homeless youth, including, among other things, temporary placement in a licensed homeless youth shelter or other age appropriate placement for 45 days with an extension of 15 days per approval of the county child welfare agency.

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This bill would require the county child welfare agency, upon temporary placement of a homeless youth into a homeless youth shelter, to provide case management services, to identify appropriate long-term housing placement opportunities and wraparound services for the youth, including placement in a certified transitional housing plus program, and to make a recommendation as to whether the youth should continue to receive long-term intensive support services through the pilot program or whether a petition should be filed to adjudicate the youth to be a dependent child of the court.

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This bill would require the State Department of Social Services to, among other things, conduct an evaluation of the pilot program to determine the effectiveness of the program, and would require the department to submit to the Legislature, no later than January 1, 2019, the results of its evaluation of the program, together with its recommendation as to whether the program should be continued.

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Existing law provides that a child may come within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court and become a dependent child of the court in certain cases, including when the child is abused, a parent or guardian fails to adequately supervise or protect the child, as specified, or a parent or guardian fails to provide the child with adequate food, clothing, shelter, or medical treatment.

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This bill would additionally provide that a child comes within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court when he or she is chronically homeless and the parent or guardian is unwilling or unable to assist the child. By expanding the jurisdiction of the juvenile court to include these children, the bill would impose new duties on county child welfare service employees, thereby creating a state-mandated local program.

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Existing law creates the Aid to Families with Dependent Children-Foster Care program, under which a combination of state, county, and federal funds, including funds provided under Title IV-E of the federal Social Security Act, are used to provide reimbursement to families and facilities providing foster care to eligible children.

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This bill would declare the intent of the Legislature to provide a path for homeless youth to receive independent living skills services from homeless youth shelters and group homes that specialize in providing services to homeless children and youth, and to secure federal funding for the provision of these services under Title IV-E of the federal Social Security Act.

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The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

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This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.

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Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program:  begin delete yes end delete begin insert no end insert .

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

It is the intent of the Legislature to provide a path
for homeless youth to receive independent living skill begin insert and homeless end insert
services from homeless youth shelters and begin delete group homes that
specialize in providing services to homeless children and youth,
and to secure federal funding for the provision of these services
under Title IV-E of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 671
et seq.). end delete begin insert end insert begin insert child welfare service agencies under the Title IV-E of the
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 671 et seq.) Child Welfare
Waiver Demonstration Project by establishing a pilot program
for the purpose of developing and implementing alternative child
welfare services that are directed towards the individual needs of
homeless youth in order to reduce homelessness among children. end insert

begin insert

begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 18265 is added to the end insert begin insert Welfare and Institutions
Code end insert begin insert , end insert immediately following Section 18260 begin insert , to read: end insert

begin insert

begin insert 18265. end insert   

(a) (1) For the purpose of developing targeted and
specialized services for youth who are homeless, on or after July
1, 2015, one or more counties that participate in the federal Title
IV-E Child Welfare Waiver Demonstration Project pursuant to
Section 18260 may establish a pilot program, with the approval
of the department, to develop and implement alternative child
welfare services to meet the individual needs of homeless youth in
order to reduce homelessness among children.

(2) Each pilot program established under subdivision (a) shall
conclude no later than July 1, 2019.

(b) Each pilot program established under this section may
include, but is not limited to, methods for the identification of
homeless youth for purposes of temporary placement into a
licensed homeless youth shelter pursuant to Section 1502.35 of
the Health and Safety Code, or other appropriate placement as
directed by the county’s child welfare services agency.

(1) It is the intent of the Legislature that local law enforcement
agencies work with county and local child protective services
agencies to identify the appropriate placement, including placement
in a homeless youth shelter, for youth who come to the attention
of law enforcement because they are homeless.

(2) Upon the placement or voluntary entry of a homeless youth
into a homeless youth shelter, the shelter shall notify child welfare
services if it is determined by, and upon the recommendation of,
the shelter that the youth may be eligible to receive long-term
intensive support services under the pilot program.

(c) A youth identified as homeless is eligible for participation
in the pilot program if he or she meets all of the following criteria:

(1) The youth is 14 years of age or older and has been homeless
for at least 21 consecutive days.

(2) The county child welfare agency determines, upon
consultation with a local homeless youth shelter, if available, that
long-term intensive support services are needed for the youth.

(3) The county child welfare agency finds that there is a
reasonable presumption that the youth is a person described in
Section 300, but determines, upon consultation with a local
homeless youth shelter, if available, that the youth would be best
served by the receipt of long-term intensive support services
through the pilot program.

(d) To the extent permitted by federal law, and based on the
terms and conditions of the federal Title IV-E waiver, each pilot
program established pursuant to this section may use Title IV-E
and state foster care funds to provide long-term intensive support
services to meet the needs of homeless youth, which shall include
each of the following:

(1) Guidance to local law enforcement on when and how to
refer homeless youth to a local homeless youth shelter or child
protective services agency.

(2) (A) The temporary placement of a homeless youth in a
homeless youth shelter or other age appropriate placement for up
to 45 days with an extension of 15 days per the approval of a
county child welfare agency. Title IV-E funding shall not be used
to fund the first 21 days the homeless youth is in a homeless youth
shelter.

(B) If a youth is temporarily placed in a homeless youth shelter
through the pilot program, the county child welfare agency shall
provide justification for the placement, including whether there
are no other appropriate residential placements available.

(3) Notwithstanding subdivision (c) of Section 18250,
wraparound services, as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 18251
and as described in subdivision (b) of Section 18250.

(e) Upon temporary placement into a homeless youth shelter
pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (d), the county child
welfare agency shall do all of the following:

(1) Provide case management services, in coordination with
local homeless youth shelters, which shall include permanent and
stable housing, independent living skills as necessary, workforce
training opportunities, health and mental health services, and
educational opportunities, such as enrollment in the youth’s school
district of residence as determined by the location of the youth’s
placement.

(2) No later than the 30th day of placement, identify appropriate
long-term housing placement opportunities and wraparound
services for the youth, including, but not limited to, placement in
a certified transitional housing plus program, placement with
identified parents or relatives, as appropriate, foster family homes,
or group homes with expertise in serving homeless or runaway
children.

(3) Make a recommendation as to whether the youth should
continue to receive long-term intensive support services under the
pilot program or whether a petition should be filed to adjudicate
the youth to be a dependent child of the court pursuant to Section
360. If a determination is made that a petition should be filed, it
shall be filed immediately and consistent with the requirements of
subdivision (h).

(f) The department, in consultation with the California Welfare
Directors Association and child welfare and homeless youth
advocates, shall develop, no later than March 31, 2015, the
following standards and criteria for the pilot program:

(1) To the extent permitted by federal law, and based on the
terms and conditions of the federal Title IV-E waiver, each of the
following:

(A) The parameters on how the Title IV-E funding may be used.

(B) How long the Title IV-E funding may be provided, as
determined by outcome goals for the youth.

(2) The requirements on casework for the youth.

(3) Processes on how placements or related services may be
identified for the youth, including whether family reunification
should be pursued or whether the youth should be placed into the
home of a relative or nonrelated extended family member, foster
family home, or group home with experience in serving homeless
or runaway children.

(4) The criteria by which a homeless youth is assessed pursuant
to subdivision (c).

(g) Notwithstanding the Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter
3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of
Title 2 of the Government Code), the department may implement
this section through an all-county letter or similar instructions
from the director.

(h) (1) Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the
ability of a child protective services agency case worker or the
county child welfare agency to file a petition with the juvenile
court to declare a youth to be a dependent child of the court
pursuant to Section 325 if the youth is a person described by
Section 300.

(2) If it is determined that a petition should be filed to declare
the youth to be a dependent child of the court, the county child
welfare agency shall consult with a local homeless youth shelter
or other entity with expertise in providing services to homeless
youth in developing the petition. The county child welfare agency
shall comply with federal and state privacy protections in the
consultation and development of the petition. The petition shall
include, but not be limited to, all of the following considerations:

(A) The reasons why the youth is homeless.

(B) Whether the youth received long-term intensive support
services through the pilot program.

(C) When applicable, a description of the long-term intensive
support services received through the pilot program.

(D) Recommendations as to whether those long-term intensive
support services should be continued or modified.

(E) Whether additional placement considerations should be
made that will meet the needs of the youth.

(i) The department shall conduct an evaluation of the pilot
program established pursuant to this section to determine the
effectiveness of the program in developing and implementing
alternative child welfare services for homeless youth. The
department, no later than January 1, 2019, shall submit to the
Legislature the results of its evaluation of the pilot program,
together with its recommendation as to whether the program should
be continued or, to the extent permitted by federal law, made
permanent. A report submitted to the Legislature pursuant to this
subdivision shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795
of the Government Code.

(j) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2020,
and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
is enacted before January 1, 2020, deletes or extends that date.

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SEC. 2.  

Section 300 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
amended to read:

300.  

Any child who comes within any of the following
descriptions is within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court which
may adjudge that person to be a dependent child of the court:

(a) The child has suffered, or there is a substantial risk that the
child will suffer, serious physical harm inflicted nonaccidentally
upon the child by the child’s parent or guardian. For the purposes
of this subdivision, a court may find there is a substantial risk of
serious future injury based on the manner in which a less serious
injury was inflicted, a history of repeated inflictions of injuries on
the child or the child’s siblings, or a combination of these and other
actions by the parent or guardian which indicate the child is at risk
of serious physical harm. For purposes of this subdivision, “serious
physical harm” does not include reasonable and age-appropriate
spanking to the buttocks where there is no evidence of serious
physical injury.

(b) The child has suffered, or there is a substantial risk that the
child will suffer, serious physical harm or illness, as a result of the
failure or inability of his or her parent or guardian to adequately
supervise or protect the child, or the willful or negligent failure of
the child’s parent or guardian to adequately supervise or protect
the child from the conduct of the custodian with whom the child
has been left, or by the willful or negligent failure of the parent or
guardian to provide the child with adequate food, clothing, shelter,
or medical treatment, or by the inability of the parent or guardian
to provide regular care for the child due to the parent’s or
guardian’s mental illness, developmental disability, or substance
abuse. No child shall be found to be a person described by this
subdivision solely due to the lack of an emergency shelter for the
family. Whenever it is alleged that a child comes within the
jurisdiction of the court on the basis of the parent’s or guardian’s
willful failure to provide adequate medical treatment or specific
decision to provide spiritual treatment through prayer, the court
shall give deference to the parent’s or guardian’s medical treatment,
nontreatment, or spiritual treatment through prayer alone in
accordance with the tenets and practices of a recognized church
or religious denomination, by an accredited practitioner thereof,
and shall not assume jurisdiction unless necessary to protect the
child from suffering serious physical harm or illness. In making
its determination, the court shall consider (1) the nature of the
treatment proposed by the parent or guardian, (2) the risks to the
child posed by the course of treatment or nontreatment proposed
by the parent or guardian, (3) the risk, if any, of the course of
treatment being proposed by the petitioning agency, and (4) the
likely success of the courses of treatment or nontreatment proposed
by the parent or guardian and agency. The child shall continue to
be a dependent child pursuant to this subdivision only so long as
is necessary to protect the child from risk of suffering serious
physical harm or illness.

(c) The child is suffering serious emotional damage, or is at
substantial risk of suffering serious emotional damage, evidenced
by severe anxiety, depression, withdrawal, or untoward aggressive
behavior toward self or others, as a result of the conduct of the
parent or guardian or who has no parent or guardian capable of
providing appropriate care. No child shall be found to be a person
described by this subdivision if the willful failure of the parent or
guardian to provide adequate mental health treatment is based on
a sincerely held religious belief and if a less intrusive judicial
intervention is available.

(d) The child has been sexually abused, or there is a substantial
risk that the child will be sexually abused, as defined in Section
11165.1 of the Penal Code, by his or her parent or guardian or a
member of his or her household, or the parent or guardian has
failed to adequately protect the child from sexual abuse when the
parent or guardian knew or reasonably should have known that
the child was in danger of sexual abuse.

(e) The child is under the age of five years and has suffered
severe physical abuse by a parent, or by any person known by the
parent, if the parent knew or reasonably should have known that
the person was physically abusing the child. For the purposes of
this subdivision, “severe physical abuse” means any of the
following: any single act of abuse which causes physical trauma
of sufficient severity that, if left untreated, would cause permanent
physical disfigurement, permanent physical disability, or death;
any single act of sexual abuse which causes significant bleeding,
deep bruising, or significant external or internal swelling; or more
than one act of physical abuse, each of which causes bleeding,
deep bruising, significant external or internal swelling, bone
fracture, or unconsciousness; or the willful, prolonged failure to
provide adequate food. A child may not be removed from the
physical custody of his or her parent or guardian on the basis of a
finding of severe physical abuse unless the social worker has made
an allegation of severe physical abuse pursuant to Section 332.

(f) The child’s parent or guardian caused the death of another
child through abuse or neglect.

(g) The child has been left without any provision for support;
physical custody of the child has been voluntarily surrendered
pursuant to Section 1255.7 of the Health and Safety Code and the
child has not been reclaimed within the 14-day period specified
in subdivision (e) of that section; the child’s parent has been
incarcerated or institutionalized and cannot arrange for the care of
the child; or a relative or other adult custodian with whom the child
resides or has been left is unwilling or unable to provide care or
support for the child, the whereabouts of the parent are unknown,
and reasonable efforts to locate the parent have been unsuccessful.

(h) The child has been freed for adoption by one or both parents
for 12 months by either relinquishment or termination of parental
rights or an adoption petition has not been granted.

(i) The child has been subjected to an act or acts of cruelty by
the parent or guardian or a member of his or her household, or the
parent or guardian has failed to adequately protect the child from
an act or acts of cruelty when the parent or guardian knew or
reasonably should have known that the child was in danger of
being subjected to an act or acts of cruelty.

(j) The child’s sibling has been abused or neglected, as defined
in subdivision (a), (b), (d), (e), or (i), and there is a substantial risk
that the child will be abused or neglected, as defined in those
subdivisions. The court shall consider the circumstances
surrounding the abuse or neglect of the sibling, the age and gender
of each child, the nature of the abuse or neglect of the sibling, the
mental condition of the parent or guardian, and any other factors
the court considers probative in determining whether there is a
substantial risk to the child.

(k) The child is chronically homeless and the parent or guardian
is unwilling or unable to assist the child.

It is the intent of the Legislature that nothing in this section
disrupt the family unnecessarily or intrude inappropriately into
family life, prohibit the use of reasonable methods of parental
discipline, or prescribe a particular method of parenting. Further,
nothing in this section is intended to limit the offering of voluntary
services to those families in need of assistance but who do not
come within the descriptions of this section. To the extent that
savings accrue to the state from child welfare services funding
obtained as a result of the enactment of the act that enacted this
section, those savings shall be used to promote services which
support family maintenance and family reunification plans, such
as client transportation, out-of-home respite care, parenting
training, and the provision of temporary or emergency in-home
caretakers and persons teaching and demonstrating homemaking
skills. The Legislature further declares that a physical disability,
such as blindness or deafness, is no bar to the raising of happy and
well-adjusted children and that a court’s determination pursuant
to this section shall center upon whether a parent’s disability
prevents him or her from exercising care and control. The
Legislature further declares that a child whose parent has been
adjudged a dependent child of the court pursuant to this section
shall not be considered to be at risk of abuse or neglect solely
because of the age, dependent status, or foster care status of the
parent.

As used in this section, “guardian” means the legal guardian of
the child.

SEC. 3.  

If the Commission on State Mandates determines that
this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to
local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made
pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division
4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.

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