BILL ANALYSIS �
SENATE HUMAN
SERVICES COMMITTEE
Senator Jim Beall, Chair
BILL NO: AB 2668
A
AUTHOR: Quirk-Silva
B
VERSION: May 7, 2014
HEARING DATE: June 24, 2014
2
FISCAL: Yes
6
6
CONSULTANT: Sara Rogers
8
SUBJECT
Foster care: nonminor dependent parents
SUMMARY
This bill would authorize the development of a "parenting
support plan" between a non-minor dependent who resides in
a supervised independent living placement and an identified
responsible adult who has agreed to act as a mentor under
the oversight of the county welfare department.
Additionally, this bill provides that following approval of
the plan, the non-minor dependent would receive an
additional $200 payment per month.
ABSTRACT
Existing Law:
1)Establishes the California Fostering Connections to
Success Act, which corresponds with the federal Fostering
Connections to Success Act that provided an option for
states to receive federal financial participation for
Continued---
STAFF ANALYSIS OF ASSEMBLY BILL 2668 (Quirk-Silva)
PageB
nonminor dependents of the juvenile court who satisfy
certain conditions. (AB 12, Beall &Bass, 2010)
2)Defines "nonminor dependent" as a current or former
foster youth who is between the ages of 18 and 21, is in
foster care under responsibility of the county welfare
department, county probation department, or Indian Tribe,
and is participating in a transitional independent living
plan. (WIC 11400 (v))
3)Provides for the voluntary continuation or reentry into
foster care for nonminor dependents or delinquents who
meet general AFDC-Foster Care (AFDC-FC) requirements if
the nonminor youth has signed a voluntary mutual
agreement and meets one or more of the following
requirements:
The nonminor is completing a high school
education or a program leading to an equivalent
credential;
The nonminor is enrolled in a postsecondary or
vocational education program;
The nonminor is participating in a program or
activity designed to promote, or remove barriers to,
employment;
The nonminor is employed at least 80 hours per
month;
The nonminor is incapable of doing any of these
activities due to a medical condition and the
incapacity is supported by regularly updated
information in the case plan of the nonminor
dependent. (WIC 11403 (b))
1)Provides for the development of a shared responsibility
plan when the child of a teen parent is not subject to
the jurisdiction of the dependency court but is in the
full or partial physical custody of the teen parent.
States that the plan shall be developed between the teen
parent, caregiver, and a representative of the county
child welfare agency or probation department, and in the
case of a certified home, a representative of the agency
providing direct and immediate supervision to the
caregiver. (WIC 16501.25(b) (1))
STAFF ANALYSIS OF ASSEMBLY BILL 2668 (Quirk-Silva)
PageC
2)Defines teen parent to include a nonminor dependent
parent who is living in a whole family foster home and is
eligible for AFDC-FC or Kin-GAP payments. (WIC 16501.25
(a))
3)Provides that the plan shall outline, with as much
specificity as is practicable, the duties, rights, and
responsibilities of both the teen parent and the
caregiver with regard to the child, and identify
supportive services to be offered to the teen parent by
the caregiver or, in the case of a certified home, the
agency providing direct and immediate supervision to the
caregiver, or both. (WIC 16501.25(b) 3))
4)Provides that upon the caregiver's submission of the plan
to the county child welfare agency or probation
department, the foster care payment shall be increased by
$200 per month. (WIC 11465 (d) (3))
This bill:
1.Establishes a similar shared responsibility plan for
nonminor dependent parents who are residing in a
supervised independent living placement (SILP) to be
submitted to the county child welfare agency.
2.Provides that the parenting support plan shall be
developed between the nonminor dependent parent, an
identified responsible adult, and a representative of the
county child welfare agency.
3.Provides that the plan shall be designed to preserve and
strengthen the nonminor dependent parent family unit to
assist the nonminor dependent parent in meeting specified
goals and in maintaining a safe, stable and permanent
home for the child. Additionally, provides that the plan
shall in no way limit the nonminor dependent parent's
STAFF ANALYSIS OF ASSEMBLY BILL 2668 (Quirk-Silva)
PageD
legal right to make decisions regarding the care, custody
and control of the child.
4.Provides that the plan shall be written to identify
additional support and to assist the nonminor dependent
parent in providing the best care to the child; requires
that the plan outline the ways in which the identified
responsible adult will assist the nonminor dependent
parent with the child and identify supportive services to
be offered to the nonminor dependent parent by the
identified responsible adult.
5.Requires that a person who wishes to become an identified
responsible adult to a nonminor dependent parent must be
at least 21 years of age and undergo a state-level
criminal records check conducted through the California
Law Enforcement Telecommunications System (CLETS).
6.Requires that within 10 calendar days, the social worker
shall ensure that a fingerprint clearance check of the
potential identified responsible adult is initiated
through the Department of Justice, as specified.
7.Requires that the social worker shall also request that
the Department of Justice conduct a check of the
potential identified responsible adult within the Child
Abuse Central Index.
8.Requires CDSS to convene a working group no later than
February 1, 2015 that includes representatives of the
County Welfare Directors Association and child welfare
advocates to develop an all-county letter specifying the
minimum criteria a person must meet in order to serve as
an identified responsible adult to a nonminor dependent
parent.
FISCAL IMPACT
An Assembly Appropriations analysis states there are
STAFF ANALYSIS OF ASSEMBLY BILL 2668 (Quirk-Silva)
PageE
ongoing costs likely in the range of $60,000 to $75,000
($40,000 to $55,000 GF) , depending on caseload, to provide
a $200 monthly supplement to parenting foster youth aged 18
to 20. CDSS reports there are currently 25 cases in a
supervised independent living plan. Social worker time and
background checks for the responsible adult are included in
the figures.
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION
According to the author, young parents in the foster care
system face both the challenges of being in foster care as
well as the challenges of being a young, usually single,
parent. The author states that studies of both groups have
found that they will experience higher than average rates
of poverty and unemployment and low educational attainment.
The author cites one 2013 study, published by the Conrad N.
Hilton Foundation, which found that the rates of abuse and
neglect among children born to teens with a history of
maltreatment are 2 to 3 times higher than the rates of
children whose teen mothers had no child welfare
involvement. The author states this underscores the need to
provide young parents in foster care with adequate support
and services to overcome the challenges they face, and to
preserve and strengthen the family unit.
Additionally, the author states that a new placement option
available to nonminor dependents remaining in extended
foster care, known as a Supervised Independent Living
Placement (SILP), enables nonminor dependents to live
without a caregiver in an apartment, rented room, dorm
room, etc. The author states that, while SILP's provide
youth with the independence and autonomy to properly
prepare for life after foster care, an unintended
shortcoming is the lack of support for custodial parenting
non-minor dependents.
The author states that, unlike most young parents, foster
youth who become parents at an early age typically cannot
turn to their own parents for emotional support, or for
daily or even occasional assistance most young parents
receive from their families. Consequently, these young
parents are often completely on their own as they struggle
STAFF ANALYSIS OF ASSEMBLY BILL 2668 (Quirk-Silva)
PageF
to balance work, school, and parenting responsibilities.
Not surprisingly this stress, lack of resources, and simple
lack of experience makes these young parents vulnerable and
high risk for poor outcomes.
California Fostering Connections to Success Act of 2010
The California Fostering Connections to Success Act of 2010
AB 12 (Beall and Bass) Chapter 559, Statutes of 2010)
established a statutory framework for foster youth who
reach the age of emancipation and who meet certain
requirements to voluntarily remain in foster care placement
up to age 21. This legislation corresponds with the federal
Fostering Connections Act of 2008 (Public Law 110-351),
which provided states with the option to receive federal
financial participation under kinship-guardianship benefits
and/or foster care for eligible nonminor dependents and
delinquents. Since the passage of AB 12, the Legislature
has annually adopted cleanup measures including AB 212
(Beall, 2011), AB 1712 (Beall, 2012), AB 787 (Stone, 2013)
to clarify and correctly implement the Act.
To participate in extended foster care, a youth must
fulfill one of the following requirements: Be completing
high school or an equivalent program (i.e. GED); be
enrolled in college, community college or a vocational
education program; be participating in a program designed
to remove barriers to employment; be employed at least 80
hours a month; or be unable to do one of the above
requirements because of a medical condition.
Pregnant and Parenting Foster Youth
Studies indicate that foster youth are particularly
vulnerable to becoming parents at an early age. One study
of foster youth in Chicago indicated that school
performance among these foster youth was poor and that the
majority of youth included in the study exited care without
a GED or diploma. The same study found that children of
foster youth may be especially vulnerable to abuse and
neglect - 22 percent of mothers had been investigated for
abuse and neglect and 11 percent had a child in foster
STAFF ANALYSIS OF ASSEMBLY BILL 2668 (Quirk-Silva)
PageG
care.<1>
The study additionally stated that interviewees suggested
they would benefit from greater use of peer and adult
mentoring and that interviewees observed that when pregnant
and parenting foster youth receive ongoing support from an
adult caregiver, they tend to participate in services.
Research shows that teen mothers who stay in school are
equally as likely to graduate as teenage girls with no
children; however those who drop out before or shortly
after childbirth are only half as likely to return to
school and graduate as are childless youth who dropout. The
same study also indicated that preschool children of teen
mothers tend to show some delay of cognitive development as
well as more behavior problems and more aggressive behavior
than children of older mothers, while adolescent children
of teen mothers experience high rates of grade failure,
delinquency, and early sexual activity. (Constantine, N.,
and Nevarez, C.)<2>
Also, the study estimated that the annual net costs to
California taxpayers related to births to teen mothers was
$870 million, and annual net societal costs to the state
was $3.6 billion.<3>
Criminal Record Clearances for Community Care Facilities
Federal Law pursuant to the Adam Walsh Act (P.L. 109-248)
as well as California statute requires background checks to
be performed by CDSS of all applicants, licensees,
non-client adult residents, volunteers under certain
-------------------------
<1>
http://www.chapinhall.org/sites/default/files/Pregnant_Foste
r_Youth_final_081109.pdf
<2> http://teenbirths.phi.org
<3> Ibid.
STAFF ANALYSIS OF ASSEMBLY BILL 2668 (Quirk-Silva)
PageH
conditions and employees of community care facilities,
including foster homes, residential care facilities for the
elderly and child care facilities and homes who have
contact with clients. The Caregiver Background Check Bureau
(CBCB) was established in 1992 to review criminal history
information as well as possible matches in the Child Abuse
Central Index (CACI) and to render decisions for state
licensed community care facilities and for the TrustLine
Registry.<4>
If a criminal record check shows that an individual has
been convicted of any crime other than a minor traffic
violation, the individual is not permitted to work or be
present in any community care facility unless they receive
a written criminal record exemption from CDSS (or the
county, if it is the licensing entity). The department also
is required to examine arrest records to determine if the
arrests are for "referable crimes" that require
investigation by the bureau; referable crimes are of such
severity that an arrest-only nonetheless warrants an
investigation by the department to ensure the safety of
residents of community care facilities.
This bill establishes a state approved mentoring
relationship with a nonminor dependent parent, and ensures
that the responsible adult received a criminal record
check.
COMMENTS
The background check provisions of this bill reference a
process used for counties to place children who have been
removed from their homes into emergency relative
placements. The CLETS system identified by this bill is a
name-check based criminal record system that is not
intended for use as a non-emergency background check
process. Staff recommends the author amend the bill to
require county social workers to conduct a fingerprint
based criminal record clearance and to base the clearance
-------------------------
<4> HSC 1522, 1568.08, 1569.17, and 1596.871
STAFF ANALYSIS OF ASSEMBLY BILL 2668 (Quirk-Silva)
PageI
criteria on the existing foster care structure established
pursuant to Health and Safety Code 1522.
Specifically, staff recommends the following amendments:
16501.27. (a) (1) For purposes of Section 16501.26, a
person who wishes to become an identified responsible adult
to a nonminor dependent parent shall meet the minimum
criteria established pursuant to Section 16501.28, be at
least 21 years of age, and undergo a state-level criminal
records check to be conducted by an appropriate government
agency through the California Law Enforcement
Telecommunications System (CLETS) pursuant to Section
16504.5. Within 10 calendar days following the criminal
records check conducted through CLETS, the social worker
shall ensure that a fingerprint clearance check of the
potential identified responsible adult is initiated through
the Department of Justice to ensure the accuracy of the
criminal records check conducted through CLETS and shall
review the results of any criminal records check to assess
the appropriateness of the person. The Department of
Justice shall forward fingerprint requests for
federal-level criminal history information to the Federal
Bureau of Investigation pursuant to this section. comply
with all of the following requirements:
(1) Meet the minimum criteria established pursuant
to Section 16501.28.
(2) Be at least 21 years of age.
(3) Undergo a criminal records check in accordance
with Section 1522 of the Health and Safety Code.
(4) Undergo a Child Abuse Central Index check
pursuant to Section 11170 of the Penal Code.
(2) (b) An identification card from a foreign consulate or
foreign passport shall be considered a valid form of
identification for purposes of conducting a criminal
records check and fingerprint clearance check under this
subdivision and under pursuant to subdivision (b). (a) .
(b) The social worker shall also request that the
Department of Justice conduct a check of the potential
identified responsible adult within the Child Abuse Central
STAFF ANALYSIS OF ASSEMBLY BILL 2668 (Quirk-Silva)
PageJ
Index pursuant to Section 11170 of the Penal Code.
(c) (1) If the results of the California and federal
criminal records check indicate that the person does not
have a criminal record, the individual may serve as an
identified responsible adult to a nonminor dependent
parent.
(2) If the results of the criminal records check indicate
that the person has a criminal record, the county may issue
a criminal records exemption. However, the county shall not
grant a criminal records exemption to a person who has been
convicted of a crime specified in Section 290 of the Penal
Code, for violating Section 245 or 273.5 of the Penal Code,
subdivision (b) of Section 273a of the Penal Code, or,
prior to January 1, 1994, paragraph (2) of Section 273a of
the Penal Code. If a person receives a criminal records
exemption pursuant to this paragraph, he or she may serve
as an identified responsible adult to a nonminor dependent
parent.
PRIOR VOTES
Assembly Floor 61 - 14
Assembly Appropriations 13 - 4
Assembly Human Services 6 - 0
POSITIONS
Support: California Alliance
Coalition for Youth
Oppose: None received.
STAFF ANALYSIS OF ASSEMBLY BILL 2668 (Quirk-Silva)
PageK
-- END --