Existing law generally provides for the placement of foster youth in various placement settings. Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services to implement a unified, family friendly, and child-centered resource family approval process to replace the multiple processes for licensing foster family homes, certifying foster homes by licensed foster family agencies, approving relatives and nonrelative extended family members as foster care providers, and approving guardians and adoptive families.

This bill would require the department, notwithstanding any other law and on or before January 1, 2027, to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers, as specified. The bill would condition implementation of the simplified approval process upon federal financial participation and approval, as specified. The bill would authorize the department to convene with tribes and communicate with other interested individuals and organizations to develop a simplified process for relative caregivers that achieve the goals of safety, permanency, and well-being for children in out-of-home care.

This bill would require the department on or before September 30, 2026, to report to the Legislature for consideration the additional statutory changes required to fully implement separate resource family approval standards for relative caregivers. The bill would require the department, to the extent that the requested data can be tracked in the statewide child welfare information system, to track specified information on the approval process, including, among other information, (1) whether the placement of children or youth with relatives has increased, decreased, or remained the same over time, after January 1, 2023, and (2) existing barriers, if any, that affect implementation of the simplified approval process. The bill would require the department to report this information to the Legislature no later than 18 months after implementation of the simplified approval process. The bill would make these reporting and tracking provisions inoperative on June 30, 2030, and would repeal them as of January 1, 2031.

Existing law generally provides for the placement of foster youth in various placement settings. Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services to implement a unified, family friendly, and child-centered resource family approval process to replace the multiple processes for licensing foster family homes, certifying foster homes by licensed foster family agencies, approving relatives and nonrelative extended family members as foster care providers, and approving guardians and adoptive families.

This bill would require the department, notwithstanding any other law and on or before January 1, 2027, to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers, as specified. The bill would condition implementation of the simplified approval process upon federal financial participation and approval, as specified. The bill would authorize the department to convene with tribes and communicate with other interested individuals and organizations to develop a simplified process for relative caregivers that achieve the goals of safety, permanency, and well-being for children in out-of-home care.

This bill would require the department on or before September 30, 2026, to report to the Legislature for consideration the additional statutory changes required to fully implement separate resource family approval standards for relative caregivers. The bill would require the department, to the extent that the requested data can be tracked in the statewide child welfare information system, to track specified information on the approval process, including, among other information, (1) whether the placement of children or youth with relatives has increased, decreased, or remained the same over time, after January 1, 2023, and (2) existing barriers, if any, that affect implementation of the simplified approval process. The bill would require the department to report this information to the Legislature no later than 18 months after implementation of the simplified approval process. The bill would make these reporting and tracking provisions inoperative on June 30, 2030, and would repeal them as of January 1, 2031.

Existing law generally provides for the placement of foster youth in various placement settings. Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services to implement a unified, family friendly, and child-centered resource family approval process to replace the multiple processes for licensing foster family homes, certifying foster homes by licensed foster family agencies, approving relatives and nonrelative extended family members as foster care providers, and approving guardians and adoptive families.

This bill would require the department, notwithstanding any other law and on or before January 1, 2027, to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers, as specified. The bill would condition implementation of the simplified approval process upon federal financial participation and approval, as specified. The bill would authorize the department to convene with tribes and communicate with other interested individuals and organizations to develop a simplified process for relative caregivers that achieve the goals of safety, permanency, and well-being for children in out-of-home care.

This bill would require the department on or before September 30, 2026, to report to the Legislature for consideration the additional statutory changes required to fully implement separate resource family approval standards for relative caregivers. The bill would require the department, to the extent that the requested data can be tracked in the statewide child welfare information system, to track specified information on the approval process, including, among other information, (1) whether the placement of children or youth with relatives has increased, decreased, or remained the same over time, after January 1, 2023, and (2) existing barriers, if any, that affect implementation of the simplified approval process. The bill would require the department to report this information to the Legislature no later than 18 months after implementation of the simplified approval process. The bill would make these reporting and tracking provisions inoperative on June 30, 2030, and would repeal them as of January 1, 2031.

Existing law generally provides for the placement of foster youth in various placement settings. Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services to implement a unified, family friendly, and child-centered resource family approval process to replace the multiple processes for licensing foster family homes, certifying foster homes by licensed foster family agencies, approving relatives and nonrelative extended family members as foster care providers, and approving guardians and adoptive families.

This bill would require the department, notwithstanding any other law and on or before January 1, 2026, to implement 2027, to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers to become foster care providers. caregivers, as specified. The bill would condition implementation of the simplified approval process upon federal financial participation and approval, as specified. The bill would authorize the department to consult with specified stakeholders to determine the changes necessary to adopt convene with tribes and communicate with other interested individuals and organizations to develop a simplified process for relative caregivers that achieve the goals of safety, permanency, and well-being for children in out-of-home care.

This bill would require the department on or before September 30, 2026, to report to the Legislature for consideration the additional statutory changes required to fully implement separate resource family approval standards for relative caregivers. The bill would require the department, to the extent that the requested data can be tracked in the statewide child welfare information system, to track specified information on the approval process, including, among other information, (1) changes in the number of approved relatives whether the placement of children or youth with relatives has increased, decreased, or remained the same over time, after January 1, 2023, and (2) existing barriers, if any, that affect implementation of the simplified approval process. The bill would require the department to report this information to the Legislature on or before January 1, 2028. no later than 18 months after implementation of the simplified approval process. The bill would make the provisions related to tracking and reporting information these reporting and tracking provisions inoperative on June 30, 2029, 2030, and would repeal them as of January 1, 2030. 2031.

Existing law establishes the jurisdiction of the juvenile court, which may adjudge a child to be a dependent of the court under certain circumstances, including when the child 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 their parent or guardian to adequately supervise or protect the child. Existing law requires a county social worker to conduct an investigation, within 30 days of a childs removal, to identify and locate adult relatives of the child, as specified, and to provide them with a notification that the child has been removed from the custody of the childs parents, guardians, or Indian custodian, and an explanation of the various options to participate in the care and placement of the child. Existing law also requires the notice to provide information about, among other things, additional services and support that are available in out-of-home placements.

This bill would specify that the additional services and support that are available in out-of-home placements in the notice from the social worker include, but are not limited to, mental health supports, childcare, and financial assistance intended to aid in the costs of providing care. To the extent the bill imposes additional duties on counties, the bill would impose a state-mandated program.

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.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS

CSA1 Bill Id:AB 2830

Author:(Robert Rivas)

As Amended Ver:August 21, 2024

Majority vote

SUMMARY

Requires the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) to adopt a simplified approval process for relatives to become foster care providers in alignment with federal regulations, and to track and report to the Legislature specified data on implementation of the new process.

Senate Amendments

Make technical changes to language in the findings and declarations section.

COMMENTS

Background: Continuum of Care Reform (CCR). Beginning in 2015, California has enacted legislation, known as CCR, to improve placement and treatment options for youth in foster care. AB 403 (Stone), Chapter 773, Statutes of 2015, sponsored by CDSS, sought to improve outcomes for children and youth served by the CWS system by working to ensure that foster youth have their day-to-day physical, mental, and emotional needs met, that they have the opportunity to grow up in permanent and supportive homes, and have the opportunities necessary to become self-sufficient and successful adults. CCR also sought to reduce the use of congregate care as a frequently used placement option for youth, as data have demonstrated that youth placed in congregate care settings experience poorer outcomes than youth placed in family settings.

Resource Family Approval (RFA). The RFA Program, authorized by AB 340 (Hancock), Chapter 464, Statutes of 2007, and SB 1013 (Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review), Chapter 35, Statutes of 2012, implemented RFA statewide on January 1, 2017. RFA is a unified, family-friendly, and child-centered process that combines elements of foster parent licensing, relative approval, and adoption/guardianship approval processes. RFA is also a route to direct permanency for caregivers who wish to adopt or be guardians of youth in care, as the RFA process includes elements required by both the adoption and guardianship processes. The development of a unified RFA process replaced previous multiple processes for licensing foster homes, approving relatives and nonrelative extended family members as foster care providers, and approving adoptive families. A resource family considered eligible to provide foster care for related and unrelated children in out-of-home placement is considered approved for adoption or legal guardianship and does not have to undergo any additional approval or licensure processes.

Part of the RFA process includes comprehensive training requirements for both resource family applicants and individuals who have been approved as resource families. Specifically, resource family applicants must undergo 12 hours of preapproval caregiver training on a variety of topics, including an overview of the child protective and probation systems; the effects of trauma on child development; positive discipline and the importance of self-esteem; and, health issues in foster care, among others. Approved resource families are required to complete annual caregiver training on a variety of topics, including a resource family’s responsibility to act as a reasonable and prudent parent, and to provide a family setting that promotes normal childhood experiences and that serves the needs of the child. Current law also allows a county to require a resource family or resource family applicant to receive relevant specialized training for the purpose of preparing the resource family to meet the needs of a particular child in care.

Tribally Approved Homes. Pursuant to the Indian Child Welfare Act, a federally recognized Indian tribe or tribal agency is permitted to approve a home for the foster or adoptive placement of an Indian child (although it is not required to do so). These tribally approved homes are not subject to state licensing approval standards, with the exception of requirements related to criminal background checks. Tribes and tribal agencies have the independent authority to approve homes using their own socially and culturally appropriate standards and are not subject to California's RFA requirements.

Final Rule. As noted in the findings and declarations, on September 28, 2023, the federal Administration on Children, and Families (ACF) published a final rule regarding licensing and approval standards for kinship placements, permitting Title IV-E agencies to claim Title IV-E federal financial participation on behalf of a child who is placed in a relative or kinship licensed or approved foster family home, when the agency uses different licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship foster family homes and non-relative or non-kinship foster family homes. The key points of the final rule include the following:

1. Separate Licensing Standards: Title IV-E agencies are now allowed to adopt different licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship foster family homes compared to non-relative foster family homes. This flexibility aims to place fewer burdens on kinship families while ensuring safety and well-being;
2. Equal Foster Care Maintenance Payments (FCMP): During periodic reviews, Title IV-E agencies must ensure that children receive the same amount of FCMP whether placed in a licensed or approved relative, kinship, or unrelated foster family home. This requirement ensures equitable financial support for all types of foster placements; and,
3. Definition of "foster family home": The rule aligns the definition of a "foster family home" with changes made by the Family First Prevention Services Act. It limits the definition to the "home of an individual or family" and requires the foster parent to reside in the home with the child. ACF encourages all Title IV-E agencies to adopt licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship foster family homes that place as few burdens on these families as possible, consistent with ensuring the safety and well-being of children in foster care.

Specifically, ACF encourages Title IV-E agencies to strongly consider developing standards for relative and kinship foster family homes that meet only the requirements for licensing or approval standards established by the licensing authority that are reasonably in accordance with recommended standards of national organizations for foster family homes related to admission policies, safety, sanitation, protection of civil rights, and use of the reasonable and prudent parenting standards, and ensuring that the relative or kin fully meets federal requirements for criminal background checks for all foster parents.

While separate licensing standards for relatives differ from the recent reforms California has undertaken to create one, simplified process for approving caregivers, the federal guidance recognizes the importance of removing barriers to placing youth with family and others who are familiar to the youth who is already experiencing trauma by being removed from their home.

This bill would require CDSS to implement a simplified approval process for relative caregivers to become foster care providers consistent with federal regulations. As part of developing the simplified process for relatives, CDSS will consult with stakeholders that include advocates representing caregivers, advocates representing foster youth, representatives from county child welfare and probation agencies, foster family agencies, tribes, tribal organizations, and tribal consortia. Upon implementation of the simplified process, CDSS would be required to submit a report to the Legislature on whether the number of approved relatives has increased, decreased, or remained the same over time, among other data points that will help to measure the effectiveness of the new process.

Equity Implications: The provisions of this bill seek to align California's relative caregiver approval process with federal regulations that create a separate licensing and approval standard for relatives and kin who take foster youth in their home. As noted by ACF, “Separate licensing or approval standards can have an especially strong impact on underserved groups that traditionally rely more heavily on kin and family in times of need. Adopting separate licensing standards enables Title IV-E agencies to provide more support to low-income prospective relative and kin caregivers, many of whom are families of color, are from underserved rural areas, or are members of other communities in which long-term systemic factors such as poverty hamper families from making intergenerational progress.”

According to the Author

“[This bill] seeks to increase placement of foster youth with relatives and kin by requiring CDSS to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers, and by requiring CDSS to track and report to the Legislature certain data and outcomes about how the simplified approval process is working. We know that youth have better outcomes when they are placed with relatives; by increasing the number of youth placed with relatives, this bill will have positive impacts on outcomes for foster youth and will help ensure youth remain connected to their family and their community.”

Arguments in Support

According to the Alliance for Children’s Rights, “The federal Administration on Children, Youth and Families published a new rule related to Separate Licensing or Approval Standards for Relative or Kinship Foster Family Homes effective November 27, 2023, permitting Title IV-E agencies to claim title IV-E federal financial participation on behalf of a child who is placed in a relative or kinship licensed or approved foster family home when the agency uses different licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship foster family homes and nonrelative or nonkinship foster family homes. We think the new rule creates a distinct and critical opportunity for California to embrace a leadership role to remove barriers and burdens for kinship caregivers in areas such as creating more opportunities for relative and community placements, addressing placement barriers to be more reflective of culturally appropriate and/or community appropriate norms, training, and other practices and processes.”

Arguments in Opposition

No opposition on file.

FISCAL COMMENTS

According to the Senate Appropriations Committee, the CDSS indicates unknown one-time General Fund cost pressures of at least $1 million for potential automation costs for the Child Welfare Services California Automated Response and Engagement System (CARES).

VOTES:

ASM HUMAN SERVICES: 6-0-1

YES: Lee, Essayli, Calderon, Gipson, Jackson, Ortega

ABS, ABST OR NV: Mathis

ASM APPROPRIATIONS: 15-0-0

YES: Wicks, Sanchez, Arambula, Bryan, Calderon, Wendy Carrillo, Dixon, Mike Fong, Grayson, Haney, Hart, Jim Patterson, Pellerin, Ta, Villapudua

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 73-0-7

YES: Addis, Aguiar-Curry, Alanis, Alvarez, Arambula, Bains, Bauer-Kahan, Bennett, Berman, Boerner, Bonta, Bryan, Calderon, Juan Carrillo, Wendy Carrillo, Chen, Connolly, Davies, Dixon, Essayli, Flora, Mike Fong, Vince Fong, Gallagher, Garcia, Gipson, Grayson, Haney, Hart, Hoover, Irwin, Jackson, Jones-Sawyer, Kalra, Lackey, Lee, Low, Lowenthal, Maienschein, McCarty, McKinnor, Muratsuchi, Stephanie Nguyen, Ortega, Pacheco, Papan, Jim Patterson, Joe Patterson, Pellerin, Petrie-Norris, Quirk-Silva, Ramos, Rendon, Reyes, Rodriguez, Blanca Rubio, Sanchez, Santiago, Schiavo, Soria, Ta, Ting, Valencia, Villapudua, Waldron, Wallis, Ward, Weber, Wicks, Wilson, Wood, Zbur, Robert Rivas

ABS, ABST OR NV: Cervantes, Megan Dahle, Friedman, Gabriel, Holden, Mathis, Luz Rivas

SENATE FLOOR: 40-0-0

YES: Allen, Alvarado-Gil, Archuleta, Ashby, Atkins, Becker, Blakespear, Bradford, Caballero, Cortese, Dahle, Dodd, Durazo, Eggman, Glazer, Gonzalez, Grove, Hurtado, Jones, Laird, Limón, McGuire, Menjivar, Min, Newman, Nguyen, Niello, Ochoa Bogh, Padilla, Portantino, Roth, Rubio, Seyarto, Skinner, Smallwood-Cuevas, Stern, Umberg, Wahab, Wiener, Wilk

UPDATED

VERSION: August 21, 2024

CONSULTANT: Jessica Langtry / HUM. S. / (916) 319-2089 FN: 0004755

 THIRD READING  

Bill No: AB 2830

Author: Robert Rivas (D)

Amended: 8/21/24 in Senate

Vote: 21

SENATE HUMAN SERVICES COMMITTEE: 5-0, 6/17/24

AYES: Alvarado-Gil, Ochoa Bogh, Blakespear, Hurtado, Menjivar

SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 7-0, 8/15/24

AYES: Caballero, Jones, Ashby, Becker, Bradford, Seyarto, Wahab

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 73-0, 5/21/24 - See last page for vote

SUBJECT: Foster care: relative placement: approval process

SOURCE: Alliance for Children’s Rights

DIGEST:

This bill requires the California Department of Social Services (CDSS), by January 1, 2027, to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers, consistent with federal regulations, and would specify that the simplified approval process be implemented only if and to the extent that federal financial participation is available, as specified. Requires CDSS report to the Legislature by September 30, 2026.

Senate Floor Amendments of 8/21/24 make technical changes to language in the findings and declarations section of the bill in response to TA from CDSS.

ANALYSIS:

Existing law:

1. Establishes a state and local system of child welfare services, including foster care, for children who have been adjudged by the court to be at risk of abuse and neglect or have been abused or neglected, as specified. (Welfare and Institutions Code (WIC) § 202)
2. States that the purpose of foster care law is to provide maximum safety and protection for children who are currently being physically, sexually, emotionally abused, neglected, or exploited, and to ensure the safety, protection, and physical and emotional well-being of children who are at risk of harm. (WIC § 300.2)
3. Requires a county to file a petition to the court requesting a detention hearing within 48 hours of placing a child under temporary custody to determine whether a child should remain in custody and whether any specific court permissions are necessary to provide for the health and safety of the child. (WIC § 313 and 319)
4. Requires, if a child is removed, the social worker to conduct, within 30 days, an investigation in order to identify and locate all grandparents, parents of a sibling of the child, if the parent has legal custody of the sibling, adult siblings, other adult relatives of the child, including any other adult relatives suggested by the parents, and, if it is known or there is reason to know. (WIC § 309(e)(1))
5. Requires a social worker to use due diligence in investigating the names and locations of the relatives, as well as any parent and alleged parents, and requires each county welfare department to do both of the following:
   1. Create and make public a procedure by which a parent and relatives of a child who has been removed from their parents or guardians may identify themselves to the county welfare department and requires the county welfare department to provide parents and relatives with specified notices; and,
   2. Notify CDSS, on or before January 1, 2024, in an email or other correspondence, whether it has adopted one of the suggested practices for family finding and, generally, whether the practice has been implemented. Requires, if a county welfare department has not adopted one of the suggested practices for family finding, the county welfare department to provide a copy to CDSS of its existing family finding policies and practices, as reflected in memoranda, handbooks, manuals, training manuals, or any other document. (WIC § 309(e)(3))
6. Defines “family finding” to mean conducting an investigation, including, but not limited to, through a computer-based search engine, to identify relatives and kin and to connect a child or youth, who may be disconnected from their parents, with those relatives and kin in an effort to provide family support and possible placement. If it is known or there is reason to know that the child is an Indian child, as defined “family finding” also includes contacting the Indian child’s tribe to identify relatives and kin. (WIC § 309(e)(3)(B))
7. Requires preferential consideration be given to a request by a relative to have the child placed with the relative if the child has been removed from the physical custody of the child’s parent(s). (WIC § 361.3(a))
8. Requires, when placing a child in the home of a relative, an extended family member, or nonrelative extended family member (NREFM) on a temporary basis, the court to consider the recommendations of the social worker based on the assessment required by current law, including the results of a criminal records check and prior child abuse allegations, if any, before ordering that the child be placed with a relative or NREFM. (WIC § 319(h)(3))
9. Requires placement, if possible, to be made in the home of a relative, unless the placement would not be in the best interest of the child, and requires diligent efforts to be made by an agency or entity to locate an appropriate relative. Requires the court, at any permanency hearing in which the court terminates reunification services, or at any post-permanency hearing for a child not placed for adoption, to find that the agency or entity has made diligent efforts to locate an appropriate relative and that each relative whose name has been submitted as a possible caretaker, either by the relative or by other persons, has been evaluated as an appropriate placement resource. (Family Code (FAM) § 7950 (a)(1))

This bill:

1. Makes the following legislative findings and declarations:
   1. It is the goal of the child welfare system to maintain cultural and familial bonds whenever possible.
   2. The current child welfare system struggles to meet the needs of children and youth entering into and being served within the system, and expanding the number of relatives caring for children and youth is one way to ensure adequate resources to meet their needs.
   3. Children and youth in the child welfare system who are placed with relatives and extended family members generally experience better outcomes than children and youth who are placed with nonrelatives.
   4. Relative caregivers experience unique needs and circumstances, including the challenges that stem from emergency placements and the associated financial impacts of providing for a child with little to no preparation.
   5. The length of time required for a prospective caregiver to receive resource family approval can vary based on a number of factors.
   6. Relatives often serve as caregivers in the child welfare system for their family members and typically do not intend to receive placements of youth to whom they are not related.
   7. In recognition of these factors, the federal Administration on Children, Youth and Families amended Section 1355.20 of Title 45 of the Code of Federal Regulations, effective November 27, 2023, revising the definition of foster family homes to permit claiming of Title IV-E federal financial participation when the agency uses different licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship foster family homes and all nonrelative foster family homes.
   8. It is the intent of the Legislature to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers that achieves the goals of safety, permanency, and well-being for children in out-of-home care.
2. Requires CDSS by January 1, 2027 to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers consistent with the definition of foster family homes for the purposes of Title IV-E eligibility in Section 1355.20 of Title 45 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
3. Provides that the simplified approval process for relative and kinship caregivers shall be implemented only if and to the extent that federal financial participation is available and after necessary federal approval of state plan amendments has been obtained.
4. Provides that CDSS may convene government-to-government consultation with tribes and communicate with other interested individuals and organizations to develop a simplified approval process for relative and kinship caregivers that achieves the goals of safety, permanency, and well-being for children in out-of-home care. The communication may include seeking feedback from relative and kinship caregivers, foster youth, county child welfare and probation agencies, foster family agencies, tribes, tribal organizations, tribal consortia, and other interested community partners.
5. Provides that “relative” has the same meaning as defined in subdivision (m) of Section 11400, or an extended family member of an Indian child, as defined in subdivision (c) of Section 224.1, and that CDSS shall consider using a broader definition of “relative” that includes nonrelative extended family members, as defined in subdivision (n) of Section 11400.
6. Provides that upon implementation of a simplified approval process, and no later than 18 months after implementation, CDSS shall track and report to the Legislature all of the following, to the extent that the requested data can be tracked in the statewide child welfare information system:
   1. The average length of time required for an applicant who had placement prior to approval to receive resource family approval, and whether the average length of time has increased, decreased, or remained the same over time, after January 1, 2023.
   2. Whether the placement of children or youth with relatives has increased, decreased, or remained the same over time, after January 1, 2023.
   3. What barriers exist, if any that affect implementation of the simplified approval process described in Section 16519.3.
7. Provides that on or before September 30, 2026, CDSS shall report to the Legislature for consideration of the additional statutory changes required to fully implement separate resource family approval standards for relative caregivers.
8. Provides that the report shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
9. Provides that pursuant to Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, this section shall become inoperative on June 30, 2030, and, as of January 1, 2031, is repealed.

Background

According to the author, “AB 2830 seeks to increase placement of foster youth with relatives and extended family members by requiring CDSS to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers, and by requiring CDSS to track and report to the Legislature certain data and outcomes about how the simplified approval process is working. We know that youth have better outcomes when they are placed with relatives; by increasing the number of youth placed with relatives, this bill will have positive impacts on outcomes for youth in foster care and will help ensure youth remain connected to their family and their community.”

Child Welfare Services (CWS) The CWS system is an essential component of the state’s safety net. Social workers in each county who receive reports of abuse or neglect, investigate and resolve those reports. When a case is substantiated, a family is either provided with services to ensure a child’s well-being and avoid court involvement, or a child is removed and placed into foster care. In 2023, the state’s child welfare agencies received 433,571 reports of abuse or neglect. Of these, 47,845 reports contained allegations that were substantiated and 18,147 children were removed from their homes and placed into foster care via the CWS system.

Kinship Care and Family Placement Kinship care refers to care of a child by relatives. According to the Child Welfare Information Gateway, a government organization providing information and tools for improving child welfare practice, kinship care is the preferred option in most U.S. child welfare systems because it is the least restrictive, most family like placement for children. They further note that children in kinship care environments have fewer disruptions and overall better permanency outcomes than children in non-familial placements.

The Juvenile Law Center writes, “Kinship care must be sought more frequently and be a top priority for Black and Native families and other communities in the child welfare system that have been historically disenfranchised, ripped apart, and devalued throughout American history. The child welfare system must prioritize the kinship care model to ensure the care of children, promote equity among families, sustain family/familial relationships, and to protect, and preserve the culture and history of these communities.”

Relative Family Approval (RFA) Process CDSS explains^[1] the current system as “a new family-friendly and child-centered caregiver approval process that combines elements of the current foster parent licensing, relative approval, and approvals for adoption and guardianship processes and replaces those processes.” CDSS describes the RFA process as: streamlined; eliminates the duplication of existing processes; unifies approval standards for all caregivers, regardless of the child’s case plan; includes a comprehensive psychosocial assessment, home environment check, and training for all families, including relatives; prepares families to better meet the needs of vulnerable children in the foster care system; and allows seamless transition to permanency.

The original intention of the RFA process was to streamline foster parent approval and adoption approval requirements to facilitate an easy transition for caregivers from foster placement to adoption. The combination of these two processes results in a RFA process that can be lengthy and involved – with requirements such as a home health and safety assessment, background check, and health questionnaire. While California has taken steps to streamline this process to address barriers and delays, there is not currently a single more streamlined process for relatives and kin.

On September 28, 2023, the federal Administration for Children and Families published a final rule regarding licensing and approval standards for kinship placements, permitting Title IV-E agencies to claim Title IV-E federal financial participation on behalf of a child who is placed in a relative or kinship licensed or approved foster family home, when the agency uses different licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship foster family homes and non-relative or non-kinship foster family homes. Currently, California lacks such an approval process to qualify for these federal dollars. This bill would requires CDSS to adopt a simplified approval process for relative placement, consistent with federal regulations.

Related/Prior Legislation

SB 407 (Wiener, Chapter 226, Statutes of 2023) required resource families to demonstrate an ability and willingness to meet the needs of a child, regardless of the child’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression, and adds specified responsibilities to counties related to ensuring that foster youth will be placed with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning, or another diverse identity-affirming resource families.

SB 584 (Jones, Chapter 548, Statutes of 2021) expanded existing mandatory training for resource families and resource family applicants to include information on providing care and supervision to children who have been victims of child labor trafficking.

SB 354 (Skinner, Chapter 687, Statutes of 2021) adopted changes to the criminal background check process during the RFA process for relatives of children placed in the child welfare system; permitted the court to authorize placement of children with relatives in certain circumstances, regardless of the status of any criminal exemption or RFA; and, required CDSS to submit a report to the Legislature related to criminal record exemptions.

FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes Local: No

According to the Senate Appropriations Committee, the CDSS indicates unknown one-time General Fund cost pressures of at least $1 million for potential automation costs for the Child Welfare Services California Automated Response and Engagement System (CARES).

SUPPORT: (Verified 8/21/24)

Alliance for Children's Rights (source)
Aspiranet
Association of Regional Center Agencies
California Alliance of Caregivers
California Catholic Conference
Children Now
Children's Law Center of California
Steinberg Institute

NO OPPOSITION RECEIVED

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 73-0, 5/21/24

AYES: Addis, Aguiar-Curry, Alanis, Alvarez, Arambula, Bains, Bauer-Kahan, Bennett, Berman, Boerner, Bonta, Bryan, Calderon, Juan Carrillo, Wendy Carrillo, Chen, Connolly, Davies, Dixon, Essayli, Flora, Mike Fong, Vince Fong, Gallagher, Garcia, Gipson, Grayson, Haney, Hart, Hoover, Irwin, Jackson, Jones-Sawyer, Kalra, Lackey, Lee, Low, Lowenthal, Maienschein, McCarty, McKinnor, Muratsuchi, Stephanie Nguyen, Ortega, Pacheco, Papan, Jim Patterson, Joe Patterson, Pellerin, Petrie-Norris, Quirk-Silva, Ramos, Rendon, Reyes, Rodriguez, Blanca Rubio, Sanchez, Santiago, Schiavo, Soria, Ta, Ting, Valencia, Villapudua, Waldron, Wallis, Ward, Weber, Wicks, Wilson, Wood, Zbur, Robert Rivas

NO VOTE RECORDED: Cervantes, Megan Dahle, Friedman, Gabriel, Holden, Mathis, Luz Rivas

Prepared by: Heather Hopkins / HUMAN S. / (916) 651-1524

8/22/24 16:10:38

**** END ****

1. https://www.cdss.ca.gov/inforesources/resource-family-approval-program ↑

 THIRD READING  

Bill No: AB 2830

Author: Robert Rivas (D)

Amended: 6/11/24 in Senate

Vote: 21

SENATE HUMAN SERVICES COMMITTEE: 5-0, 6/17/24

AYES: Alvarado-Gil, Ochoa Bogh, Blakespear, Hurtado, Menjivar

SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 7-0, 8/15/24

AYES: Caballero, Jones, Ashby, Becker, Bradford, Seyarto, Wahab

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 73-0, 5/21/24 - See last page for vote

SUBJECT: Foster care: relative placement: approval process

SOURCE: Alliance for Children’s Rights

DIGEST:

This bill requires the California Department of Social Services (CDSS), by January 1, 2027, to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers, consistent with federal regulations, and would specify that the simplified approval process be implemented only if and to the extent that federal financial participation is available, as specified. Requires CDSS report to the Legislature by September 30, 2026.

ANALYSIS:

Existing Law:

1. Establishes a state and local system of child welfare services, including foster care, for children who have been adjudged by the court to be at risk of abuse and neglect or have been abused or neglected, as specified. (Welfare & Institutions Code (WIC) §202)
2. States that the purpose of foster care law is to provide maximum safety and protection for children who are currently being physically, sexually, emotionally abused, neglected, or exploited, and to ensure the safety, protection, and physical and emotional well-being of children who are at risk of harm. (WIC§ 300.2)
3. Requires a county to file a petition to the court requesting a detention hearing within 48 hours of placing a child under temporary custody to determine whether a child should remain in custody and whether any specific court permissions are necessary to provide for the health and safety of the child. (WIC §313 and 319)
4. Requires, if a child is removed, the social worker to conduct, within 30 days, an investigation in order to identify and locate all grandparents, parents of a sibling of the child, if the parent has legal custody of the sibling, adult siblings, other adult relatives of the child, including any other adult relatives suggested by the parents, and, if it is known or there is reason to know. (WIC§ 309(e)(1))
5. Requires a social worker to use due diligence in investigating the names and locations of the relatives, as well as any parent and alleged parents, and requires each county welfare department to do both of the following:
   1. Create and make public a procedure by which a parent and relatives of a child who has been removed from their parents or guardians may identify themselves to the county welfare department and requires the county welfare department to provide parents and relatives with specified notices; and,
   2. Notify CDSS, on or before January 1, 2024, in an email or other correspondence, whether it has adopted one of the suggested practices for family finding and, generally, whether the practice has been implemented. Requires, if a county welfare department has not adopted one of the suggested practices for family finding, the county welfare department to provide a copy to CDSS of its existing family finding policies and practices, as reflected in memoranda, handbooks, manuals, training manuals, or any other document. (WIC §309(e)(3))
6. Defines “family finding” to mean conducting an investigation, including, but not limited to, through a computer-based search engine, to identify relatives and kin and to connect a child or youth, who may be disconnected from their parents, with those relatives and kin in an effort to provide family support and possible placement. If it is known or there is reason to know that the child is an Indian child, as defined “family finding” also includes contacting the Indian child’s tribe to identify relatives and kin. (WIC§ 309(e)(3)(B))
7. Requires preferential consideration be given to a request by a relative to have the child placed with the relative if the child has been removed from the physical custody of the child’s parent(s). (WIC§ 361.3(a))
8. Requires, when placing a child in the home of a relative, an extended family member, or nonrelative extended family member (NREFM) on a temporary basis, the court to consider the recommendations of the social worker based on the assessment required by current law, including the results of a criminal records check and prior child abuse allegations, if any, before ordering that the child be placed with a relative or NREFM. (WIC§ 319(h)(3))
9. Requires placement, if possible, to be made in the home of a relative, unless the placement would not be in the best interest of the child, and requires diligent efforts to be made by an agency or entity to locate an appropriate relative. Requires the court, at any permanency hearing in which the court terminates reunification services, or at any post-permanency hearing for a child not placed for adoption, to find that the agency or entity has made diligent efforts to locate an appropriate relative and that each relative whose name has been submitted as a possible caretaker, either by the relative or by other persons, has been evaluated as an appropriate placement resource. (Family Code §7950 (a)(1))

This Bill:

1. Makes the following legislative findings and declarations:
   1. It is the goal of the child welfare system to maintain cultural and familial bonds whenever possible.
   2. The current child welfare system struggles to meet the needs of children and youth entering into and being served within the system, and expanding the number of relatives caring for children and youth is one way to ensure adequate resources to meet their needs.
   3. Children and youth in the child welfare system who are placed with relatives and extended family members generally experience better outcomes than children and youth who are placed with nonrelatives.
   4. Relative caregivers experience unique needs and circumstances, including the challenges that stem from emergency placements and the associated financial impacts of providing for a child with little to no preparation.
   5. The length of time required for a prospective caregiver to receive resource family approval can vary based on a number of factors.
   6. Relatives often serve as caregivers in the child welfare system for their family members and typically do not intend to receive placements of youth to whom they are not related.
   7. In recognition of these factors, the federal Administration on Children, Youth and Families published Separate Licensing or Approval Standards for Relative or Kinship Foster Family Homes on pages 66700 to 66709 of Volume 88 (September 28, 2023) of the Federal Register, effective November 27, 2023, revising the definition of foster family homes to permit claiming of Title IV-E federal financial participation for relative and kinship placements when the agency uses different licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship placements and all nonrelative foster family homes.
   8. It is the intent of the Legislature to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers that achieves the goals of safety, permanency, and well-being for children in out-of-home care.
2. Requires CDSS by January 1, 2027 to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers consistent with the definition of foster family homes for the purposes of Title IV-E eligibility in Section 1355.20 of Title 45 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
3. Provides that the simplified approval process for relative and kinship caregivers shall be implemented only if and to the extent that federal financial participation is available and after necessary federal approval of state plan amendments has been obtained.
4. Provides that CDSS may convene government-to-government consultation with tribes and communicate with other interested individuals and organizations to develop a simplified approval process for relative and kinship caregivers that achieves the goals of safety, permanency, and well-being for children in out-of-home care. The communication may include seeking feedback from relative and kinship caregivers, foster youth, county child welfare and probation agencies, foster family agencies, tribes, tribal organizations, tribal consortia, and other interested community partners.
5. Provides that “relative” has the same meaning as defined in subdivision (m) of Section 11400, or an extended family member of an Indian child, as defined in subdivision (c) of Section 224.1, and that CDSS shall consider using a broader definition of “relative” that includes nonrelative extended family members, as defined in subdivision (n) of Section 11400.
6. Provides that upon implementation of a simplified approval process, and no later than 18 months after implementation, CDSS shall track and report to the Legislature all of the following, to the extent that the requested data can be tracked in the statewide child welfare information system:
   1. The average length of time required for an applicant who had placement prior to approval to receive resource family approval, and whether the average length of time has increased, decreased, or remained the same over time, after January 1, 2023.
   2. Whether the placement of children or youth with relatives has increased, decreased, or remained the same over time, after January 1, 2023.
   3. What barriers exist, if any that affect implementation of the simplified approval process described in Section 16519.3.
7. Provides that on or before September 30, 2026, CDSS shall report to the Legislature for consideration of the additional statutory changes required to fully implement separate resource family approval standards for relative caregivers.
8. Provides that the report shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
9. Provides that pursuant to Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, this section shall become inoperative on June 30, 2030, and, as of January 1, 2031, is repealed.

Background

1. According to the author, “AB 2830 seeks to increase placement of foster youth with relatives and extended family members by requiring CDSS to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers, and by requiring CDSS to track and report to the Legislature certain data and outcomes about how the simplified approval process is working. We know that youth have better outcomes when they are placed with relatives; by increasing the number of youth placed with relatives, this bill will have positive impacts on outcomes for youth in foster care and will help ensure youth remain connected to their family and their community.”
2. Child Welfare Services (CWS) The CWS system is an essential component of the state’s safety net. Social workers in each county who receive reports of abuse or neglect, investigate and resolve those reports. When a case is substantiated, a family is either provided with services to ensure a child’s well-being and avoid court involvement, or a child is removed and placed into foster care. In 2023, the state’s child welfare agencies received 433,571 reports of abuse or neglect. Of these, 47,845 reports contained allegations that were substantiated and 18,147 children were removed from their homes and placed into foster care via the CWS system.
3. Kinship Care and Family Placement Kinship care refers to care of a child by relatives. According to the Child Welfare Information Gateway, a government organization providing information and tools for improving child welfare practice, kinship care is the preferred option in most U.S. child welfare systems because it is the least restrictive, most family like placement for children. They further note that children in kinship care environments have fewer disruptions and overall better permanency outcomes than children in non-familial placements.

The Juvenile Law Center writes, “Kinship care must be sought more frequently and be a top priority for Black and Native families and other communities in the child welfare system that have been historically disenfranchised, ripped apart, and devalued throughout American history. The child welfare system must prioritize the kinship care model to ensure the care of children, promote equity among families, sustain family/familial relationships, and to protect, and preserve the culture and history of these communities.”

1. Relative Family Approval (RFA) Process CDSS explains^[1] the current system as “a new family-friendly and child-centered caregiver approval process that combines elements of the current foster parent licensing, relative approval, and approvals for adoption and guardianship processes and replaces those processes.” CDSS describes the RFA process as: streamlined; eliminates the duplication of existing processes; unifies approval standards for all caregivers, regardless of the child’s case plan; includes a comprehensive psychosocial assessment, home environment check, and training for all families, including relatives; prepares families to better meet the needs of vulnerable children in the foster care system; and allows seamless transition to permanency.

The original intention of the RFA process was to streamline foster parent approval and adoption approval requirements to facilitate an easy transition for caregivers from foster placement to adoption. The combination of these two processes results in a RFA process that can be lengthy and involved – with requirements such as a home health and safety assessment, background check, and health questionnaire. While California has taken steps to streamline this process to address barriers and delays, there is not currently a single more streamlined process for relatives and kin.

On September 28, 2023, the federal Administration for Children and Families published a final rule regarding licensing and approval standards for kinship placements, permitting Title IV-E agencies to claim Title IV-E federal financial participation on behalf of a child who is placed in a relative or kinship licensed or approved foster family home, when the agency uses different licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship foster family homes and non-relative or non-kinship foster family homes. Currently, California lacks such an approval process to qualify for these federal dollars. This bill would requires CDSS to adopt a simplified approval process for relative placement, consistent with federal regulations.

Related/Prior Legislation

SB 407 (Wiener, Chapter 226, Statutes of 2023) required resource families to demonstrate an ability and willingness to meet the needs of a child, regardless of the child’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression, and adds specified responsibilities to counties related to ensuring that foster youth will be placed with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning, or another diverse identity-affirming resource families.

SB 584 (Jones, Chapter 548, Statutes of 2021) expanded existing mandatory training for resource families and resource family applicants to include information on providing care and supervision to children who have been victims of child labor trafficking.

SB 354 (Skinner, Chapter 687, Statutes of 2021) adopted changes to the criminal background check process during the RFA process for relatives of children placed in the child welfare system; permitted the court to authorize placement of children with relatives in certain circumstances, regardless of the status of any criminal exemption or RFA; and, required CDSS to submit a report to the Legislature related to criminal record exemptions.

FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes Local: No

According to the Senate Appropriations Committee, the CDSS indicates unknown one-time General Fund cost pressures of at least $1 million for potential automation costs for the Child Welfare Services California Automated Response and Engagement System (CARES).

SUPPORT: (Verified 8/15/24)

Alliance for Children's Rights (source)
Aspiranet
Association of Regional Center Agencies
California Alliance of Caregivers
California Catholic Conference
Children Now
Children's Law Center of California
Steinberg Institute

OPPOSITION: (Verified 8/15/24)

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 73-0, 5/21/24

AYES: Addis, Aguiar-Curry, Alanis, Alvarez, Arambula, Bains, Bauer-Kahan, Bennett, Berman, Boerner, Bonta, Bryan, Calderon, Juan Carrillo, Wendy Carrillo, Chen, Connolly, Davies, Dixon, Essayli, Flora, Mike Fong, Vince Fong, Gallagher, Garcia, Gipson, Grayson, Haney, Hart, Hoover, Irwin, Jackson, Jones-Sawyer, Kalra, Lackey, Lee, Low, Lowenthal, Maienschein, McCarty, McKinnor, Muratsuchi, Stephanie Nguyen, Ortega, Pacheco, Papan, Jim Patterson, Joe Patterson, Pellerin, Petrie-Norris, Quirk-Silva, Ramos, Rendon, Reyes, Rodriguez, Blanca Rubio, Sanchez, Santiago, Schiavo, Soria, Ta, Ting, Valencia, Villapudua, Waldron, Wallis, Ward, Weber, Wicks, Wilson, Wood, Zbur, Robert Rivas

NO VOTE RECORDED: Cervantes, Megan Dahle, Friedman, Gabriel, Holden, Mathis, Luz Rivas

Prepared by: Heather Hopkins / HUMAN S. / (916) 651-1524

8/18/24 12:30:21

**** END ****

1. https://www.cdss.ca.gov/inforesources/resource-family-approval-program ↑

SENATE COMMITTEE ON

Senator Anna Caballero, Chair

2023 - 2024 Regular Session

AB 2830 (Robert Rivas) - Foster care: relative placement: approval process

Bill Summary:

AB 2830 would require the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) to adopt a simplified approval process for foster care relative caregivers, as specified.

Fiscal Impact:

The CDSS indicates unknown one-time General Fund cost pressures of at least $1 million for potential automation costs for the Child Welfare Services California Automated Response and Engagement System (CARES).

Background:

Under the child welfare services (CWS) system, social workers in each county receive reports of abuse or neglect, and investigate and resolve those reports. If it is determined that a child cannot remain in the home, even with family preservation and support services, the child comes under the jurisdiction of the county’s juvenile dependency court while the family is served by a CWS system social worker. This system seeks to ensure the safety and protection of these children, and where possible, preserve and strengthen families through visitation and family reunification. It is the state’s goal to reunify a foster child or youth with their biological family whenever possible.

Generally, if a child cannot be safely returned home after the time allotted for reunification services ends, the court terminates the parental rights of the child’s parents. The child’s case plan then focuses on permanency services, in an effort to connect the child to a permanent placement through adoption or guardianship. If an adoption or guardianship is not established, a child may remain in long-term foster care.

Current law requires, when a child is removed from their home, a social worker to use due diligence in investigating the names and locations of the relatives, as well as any parent and alleged parents. Current law requires placement, if possible, to be made in the home of a relative, unless the placement would not be in the best interest of the child.

On September 28, 2023, the federal Administration for Children and Families published a final rule regarding licensing and approval standards for kinship placements, allowing federal funding to be available on behalf of a child who is placed in a relative or kinship licensed or approved foster family home, when the agency uses different licensing or approval standards for non-relative or non-kinship foster family homes.

Proposed Law:

Specific provisions of the bill would:

• Require CDSS to adopt a simplified approval process for foster care relative caregivers, as specified; and provide that the simplified approval process be implemented only if and to the extent that federal financial participation is available and after necessary federal approval of state plan amendments has been obtained.
• Require, upon implementation of a simplified approval process and no later than 18 months after implementation, the CDSS to track and report to the Legislature specified information.
• Require, on or before September 30, 2026, the CDSS to report to the Legislature for consideration the additional statutory changes required to fully implement separate resource family approval standards for relative caregivers.

-- END --

SENATE COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES

Senator Alvarado-Gil, Chair

2023 - 2024 Regular

Subject: Foster care: relative placement: approval process

SUMMARY

This bill would require the Department of Social Services (CDSS), by January 1, 2027, to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers, consistent with federal regulations, and would specify that the simplified approval process be implemented only if and to the extent that federal financial participation is available, as specified. Requires CDSS report to the Legislature by September 30, 2026.

ABSTRACT

Existing Law:

1. Establishes a state and local system of child welfare services, including foster care, for children who have been adjudged by the court to be at risk of abuse and neglect or have been abused or neglected, as specified. (WIC 202)
   
2. States that the purpose of foster care law is to provide maximum safety and protection for children who are currently being physically, sexually, emotionally abused, neglected, or
   exploited, and to ensure the safety, protection, and physical and emotional well-being of children who are at risk of harm. (WIC 300.2)
   
3. States the intent of the Legislature to preserve and strengthen a child’s family ties whenever possible and to reunify a foster youth with their biological family whenever possible, or to provide a permanent placement alternative, such as adoption or guardianship. (WIC 16000)
   
4. Requires a county to file a petition to the court requesting a detention hearing within 48 hours of placing a child under temporary custody to determine whether a child should remain in custody and whether any specific court permissions are necessary to provide for the health and safety of the child. (WIC 313 and 319)
   
5. Requires, if a child is removed, the social worker to conduct, within 30 days, an investigation in order to identify and locate all grandparents, parents of a sibling of the child, if the parent has legal custody of the sibling, adult siblings, other adult relatives of the child, including any other adult relatives suggested by the parents, and, if it is known or there is reason to know. (WIC 309(e)(1))
   
6. Requires a social worker to use due diligence in investigating the names and locations of the relatives, as well as any parent and alleged parents, and requires each county welfare department to do both of the following:
   
   1. Create and make public a procedure by which a parent and relatives of a child who has been removed from their parents or guardians may identify themselves to the county welfare department and requires the county welfare department to provide parents and relatives with specified notices; and,
      
   2. Notify CDSS, on or before January 1, 2024, in an email or other correspondence, whether it has adopted one of the suggested practices for family finding and, generally, whether the practice has been implemented. Requires, if a county welfare department has not adopted one of the suggested practices for family finding, the county welfare department to provide a copy to CDSS of its existing family finding policies and practices, as reflected in memoranda, handbooks, manuals, training manuals, or any other document. (WIC 309(e)(3))
      
7. Defines “family finding” to mean conducting an investigation, including, but not limited to, through a computer-based search engine, to identify relatives and kin and to connect a child or youth, who may be disconnected from their parents, with those relatives and kin in an effort to provide family support and possible placement. If it is known or there is reason to know that the child is an Indian child, as defined “family finding” also includes contacting the Indian child’s tribe to identify relatives and kin. (WIC 309(e)(3)(B))
   
8. Requires preferential consideration be given to a request by a relative to have the child placed with the relative if the child has been removed from the physical custody of the child’s parent(s). (WIC 361.3(a))
   
9. Requires, when placing a child in the home of a relative, an extended family member, or nonrelative extended family member (NREFM) on a temporary basis, the court to consider the recommendations of the social worker based on the assessment required by current law, including the results of a criminal records check and prior child abuse allegations, if any, before ordering that the child be placed with a relative or NREFM. (WIC 319(h)(3))
   
10. Requires CDSS to provide technical assistance to encourage and facilitate the county placement agency’s evaluation of placement needs and the development of needed placement resources and programs. (WIC 16001.1)
    
11. Requires updates by counties as it relates to children placed by child welfare, the family finding activities attempted or underway, or other activities to connect the child to caring adults outside of the congregate (group home) care setting; identification of the counties that have any existing or planned contracts, or efforts to directly provide or contract for intensive child specific recruitment services; identification of counties with any existing or planned specialty mental health services targeted to address the mental health service needs of a foster child transitioning from congregate care to permanency or other family based care setting, and a summary of any gaps that remain; and the number of children that successfully achieved permanency following receipt of the services described. (WIC 16523.57)
    
12. Requires the juvenile court to make full consideration of the proximity of a child’s natural parents to the potential foster care placement of that child in order to facilitate visitation and family reunification, and if possible, for the placement to be made in the home of a relative, unless the placement would not be in the best interest of the child. (Family Code [FAM] 7950(a))
    
13. Requires placement, if possible, to be made in the home of a relative, unless the placement would not be in the best interest of the child, and requires diligent efforts to be made by an agency or entity to locate an appropriate relative. Requires the court, at any permanency hearing in which the court terminates reunification services, or at any post-permanency hearing for a child not placed for adoption, to find that the agency or entity has made diligent efforts to locate an appropriate relative and that each relative whose name has been submitted as a possible caretaker, either by the relative or by other persons, has been evaluated as an appropriate placement resource. (FAM 7950 (a)(1))
    
14. Defines “child and family team” to mean a group of individuals who are convened by the placing agency and who are engaged through a variety of team-based processes to identify the strengths and needs of the child or youth and their family, and to help achieve positive outcomes for safety, permanency, and well-being. (WIC 16501(a)(4))

This Bill:

1. Makes the following legislative findings and declarations:
   
   1. It is the goal of the child welfare system to maintain cultural and familial bonds whenever possible.
      
   2. The current child welfare system struggles to meet the needs of children and youth entering into and being served within the system, and expanding the number of relatives caring for children and youth is one way to ensure adequate resources to meet their needs.
      
   3. Children and youth in the child welfare system who are placed with relatives and extended family members generally experience better outcomes than children and youth who are placed with nonrelatives.
      
   4. Relative caregivers experience unique needs and circumstances, including the challenges that stem from emergency placements and the associated financial impacts of providing for a child with little to no preparation.
      
   5. The length of time required for a prospective caregiver to receive resource family approval can vary based on a number of factors.
      
   6. Relatives often serve as caregivers in the child welfare system for their family members and typically do not intend to receive placements of youth to whom they are not related.
      
   7. In recognition of these factors, the federal Administration on Children, Youth and Families published Separate Licensing or Approval Standards for Relative or Kinship Foster Family Homes on pages 66700 to 66709 of Volume 88 (September 28, 2023) of the Federal Register, effective November 27, 2023, revising the definition of foster family homes to permit claiming of Title IV-E federal financial participation for relative and kinship placements when the agency uses different licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship placements and all nonrelative foster family homes.
      
   8. It is the intent of the Legislature to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers that achieves the goals of safety, permanency, and well-being for children in out-of-home care.
      
2. Requires CDSS by January 1, 2027 to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers consistent with the definition of foster family homes for the purposes of Title IV-E eligibility in Section 1355.20 of Title 45 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
   
3. Provides that the simplified approval process for relative and kinship caregivers shall be implemented only if and to the extent that federal financial participation is available and after necessary federal approval of state plan amendments has been obtained.
   
4. Provides that CDSS may convene government-to-government consultation with tribes and communicate with other interested individuals and organizations to develop a simplified approval process for relative and kinship caregivers that achieves the goals of safety, permanency, and well-being for children in out-of-home care. The communication may include seeking feedback from relative and kinship caregivers, foster youth, county child welfare and probation agencies, foster family agencies, tribes, tribal organizations, tribal consortia, and other interested community partners.
   
5. Provides that “relative” has the same meaning as defined in subdivision (m) of Section 11400, or an extended family member of an Indian child, as defined in subdivision (c) of Section 224.1, and that CDSS shall consider using a broader definition of “relative” that includes nonrelative extended family members, as defined in subdivision (n) of Section 11400.
   
6. Provides that upon implementation of a simplified approval process, and no later than 18 months after implementation, CDSS shall track and report to the Legislature all of the following, to the extent that the requested data can be tracked in the statewide child welfare information system:
   
   1. The average length of time required for an applicant who had placement prior to approval to receive resource family approval, and whether the average length of time has increased, decreased, or remained the same over time, after January 1, 2023.
      
   2. Whether the placement of children or youth with relatives has increased, decreased, or remained the same over time, after January 1, 2023.
      
   3. What barriers exist, if any that affect implementation of the simplified approval process described in Section 16519.3.
      
7. Provides that on or before September 30, 2026, CDSS shall report to the Legislature for consideration of the additional statutory changes required to fully implement separate resource family approval standards for relative caregivers.
   
8. Provides that the report shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
   
9. Provides that pursuant to Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, this section shall become inoperative on June 30, 2030, and, as of January 1, 2031, is repealed.
   

FISCAL IMPACT

According to the analysis from the Assembly Committee on Appropriations, “CDSS estimates one time General Fund automation costs in the range of $880,000 to $1.5 million for new placement types and other data for the CARES System. CDSS indicates changes in automation would not occur until the department notifies the Legislature the child welfare information system can provide the functionality necessary to implement this bill. CDSS indicates it expects this bill will streamline the application process and reduce the number of steps necessary for relative caregivers to become foster care providers. To the extent these new standards result in fewer requirements for counties, this bill will likely improve approval timelines and allow the state to leverage Title IV-E funding sooner. According to the Legislative Analyst’s Office, the General Fund faces a structural deficit in the tens of billions of dollars over the next several fiscal years.”

BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION

Purpose of the Bill:

According to the author, “AB 2830 seeks to increase placement of foster youth with relatives and extended family members by requiring CDSS to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers, and by requiring CDSS to track and report to the Legislature certain data and outcomes about how the simplified approval process is working. We know that youth have better outcomes when they are placed with relatives; by increasing the number of youth placed with relatives, this bill will have positive impacts on outcomes for youth in foster care and will help ensure youth remain connected to their family and their community.”

Child Welfare Services (CWS)

The CWS system is an essential component of the state’s safety net. Social workers in each county who receive reports of abuse or neglect, investigate and resolve those reports. When a case is substantiated, a family is either provided with services to ensure a child’s well-being and avoid court involvement, or a child is removed and placed into foster care. In 2023, the state’s child welfare agencies received 433,571 reports of abuse or neglect. Of these, 47,845 reports contained allegations that were substantiated and 18,147 children were removed from their homes and placed into foster care via the CWS system.

Kinship Care and Family Placement

Kinship care refers to care of a child by relatives. According to the Child Welfare Information Gateway, a government organization providing information and tools for improving child welfare practice, kinship care is the preferred option in most U.S. child welfare systems because it is the least restrictive, most family like placement for children. They further note that children in kinship care environments have fewer disruptions and overall better permanency outcomes than children in non-familial placements.

The Juvenile Law Center writes, “Kinship care must be sought more frequently and be a top priority for Black and Native families and other communities in the child welfare system that have been historically disenfranchised, ripped apart, and devalued throughout American history. The child welfare system must prioritize the kinship care model to ensure the care of children, promote equity among families, sustain family/familial relationships, and to protect, and preserve the culture and history of these communities.”

Relative Family Approval (RFA) Process

CDSS explains^[1] the current system as “a new family-friendly and child-centered caregiver approval process that combines elements of the current foster parent licensing, relative approval, and approvals for adoption and guardianship processes and replaces those processes.” CDSS describes the RFA process as: streamlined; eliminates the duplication of existing processes; unifies approval standards for all caregivers, regardless of the child’s case plan; includes a comprehensive psychosocial assessment, home environment check, and training for all families, including relatives; prepares families to better meet the needs of vulnerable children in the foster care system; and allows seamless transition to permanency.

The original intention of the RFA process was to streamline foster parent approval and adoption approval requirements to facilitate an easy transition for caregivers from foster placement to adoption. The combination of these two processes results in a RFA process that can be lengthy and involved – with requirements such as a home health and safety assessment, background check, and health questionnaire. While California has taken steps to streamline this process to address barriers and delays, there is not currently a single more streamlined process for relatives and kin.

On September 28, 2023, the federal Administration for Children and Families published a final rule regarding licensing and approval standards for kinship placements, permitting Title IV-E agencies to claim Title IV-E federal financial participation on behalf of a child who is placed in a relative or kinship licensed or approved foster family home, when the agency uses different licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship foster family homes and non-relative or non-kinship foster family homes. Currently, California lacks such an approval process to qualify for these federal dollars. This bill would requires CDSS to adopt a simplified approval process for relative placement, consistent with federal regulations.

Related/Prior Legislation:

SB 407 (Wiener, Chapter 226, Statutes of 2023) required resource families to demonstrate an ability and willingness to meet the needs of a child, regardless of the child’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression, and adds specified responsibilities to counties related to ensuring that foster youth will be placed with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning, or another diverse identity-affirming resource families.

SB 584 (Jones, Chapter 548, Statutes of 2021) expanded existing mandatory training for resource families and resource family applicants to include information on providing care and supervision to children who have been victims of child labor trafficking.

SB 354 (Skinner, Chapter 687, Statutes of 2021) adopted changes to the criminal background check process during the RFA process for relatives of children placed in the child welfare system; permitted the court to authorize placement of children with relatives in certain circumstances, regardless of the status of any criminal exemption or RFA; and, required CDSS to submit a report to the Legislature related to criminal record exemptions.

COMMENTS

This bill would require CDSS to develop a simplified approval process for relative caregivers consistent with the definition of foster family homes for the purposes of Title IV-E eligibility in Section 1355.20 of Title 45 of the Code of Federal Regulations. Doing so provides a two-fold benefit, as it increases placement in homes of relative caregivers, which often results in better outcomes for those children, and allows California to draw down federal dollars.

PRIOR VOTES

POSITIONS

Support:

Alliance for Children's Rights (Sponsor)
Aspiranet
Association of Regional Center Agencies
California Alliance of Caregivers
California Catholic Conference
Children Now
Children's Law Center of California
Steinberg Institute

Oppose:

None

-- END --

1. https://www.cdss.ca.gov/inforesources/resource-family-approval-program ↑

ASSEMBLY THIRD READING

ATR Bill Id:AB 2830

Author:(Robert Rivas)

As Amended Ver:April 15, 2024

Majority vote

SUMMARY

Requires the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) to adopt a simplified approval process for relatives to become foster care providers in alignment with federal regulations, and to track and report to the Legislature specified data on implementation of the new process.

Major Provisions

1. Requires CDSS, notwithstanding any other law and no later than January 1, 2026, to implement a simplified approval process for relative caregivers to become foster care providers consistent with federal regulations.
2. Authorizes CDSS to consult with stakeholders to determine the changes necessary to adopt a simplified process for relative caregivers that achieves the goals of safety, permanency, and well-being for children in out-of-home care. Specifies that the stakeholders shall include, but not be limited to, advocates representing caregivers, advocates representing foster youth, representatives from county child welfare and probation agencies, foster family agencies, tribes, tribal organizations, and tribal consortia.
3. Specifies that "relative" has the same meaning as defined in existing law, which means an adult who is related to the child by blood, adoption, or affinity within the fifth-degree of kinship, including stepparents, stepsiblings, and all relatives whose status is preceded by the words "great," "great-great," or "grand" or the spouse of any of these persons even if the marriage was terminated by death or dissolution, or an extended family member of an Indian child, as defined in the federal Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA).
4. Permits CDSS to choose to use a broader definition of "relative" that includes nonrelative extended family members, as defined in existing law, to mean an adult caregiver who has an established familial or mentoring relationship with the child, as described.
5. Requires CDSS, upon implementation of the simplified approval process adopted pursuant to 1) above, and no later than January 1, 2028, to track and report to the Legislature all of the following:
6. Whether the number of approved relatives has increased, decreased, or remained the same over time;
7. The average length of time required for a relative to receive resource family approval (RFA), and whether the average length of time has increased, decreased, or remained the same over time;
8. Whether the placement of youths with relatives has increased, decreased, or remained the same over time;
9. Whether relatives experience barriers to timely approval as a resource parent; and,
10. What, if any, barriers exist that affect implementation of the simplified approval process.
11. Specifies that the reporting provisions in 5) above shall become inoperative on June 30, 2029, and, as of January 1, 2030, are repealed, as required by existing law.
12. Makes the following findings and declarations:
13. It is the goal of the child welfare system to maintain cultural and familial bonds whenever possible;
14. Children and youth in the child welfare system who are placed with relatives and extended family members experience better outcomes than children and youth who are placed with nonrelatives;
15. Relative caregivers experience unique needs and circumstances, including the challenges that stem from emergency placements and the associated financial impacts of providing for a child with little to no preparation;
16. The length of time required for a prospective caregiver to receive RFA can vary based on a number of factors;
17. Relatives often serve as caregivers in the child welfare system for their family members and typically do not intend to receive placements of youth to whom they are not related; and,
18. In recognition of these factors, in the fall of 2023, the federal Administration on Children, and Families (ACF) published Separate Licensing or Approval Standards for Relative or Kinship Foster Family Homes on pages 66,700 to 66,709 of Volume 88 (September 28, 2023) of the Federal Register, effective November 27, 2023, permitting Title IV-E agencies to claim title IV-E federal financial participation on behalf of a child who is placed in a relative or kinship licensed or approved foster family home when the agency uses different licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship foster family homes and non-relative or non-kinship foster family homes.
19. Declares it is the Legislature's intent to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers that achieves the goals of safety, permanency, and well-being for children in out-of-home care.

COMMENTS

Background: Continuum of Care Reform (CCR). Beginning in 2015, California has enacted legislation, known as CCR, to improve placement and treatment options for youth in foster care. AB 403 (Stone), Chapter 773, Statutes of 2015, sponsored by CDSS, sought to improve outcomes for children and youth served by the CWS system by working to ensure that foster youth have their day-to-day physical, mental, and emotional needs met, that they have the opportunity to grow up in permanent and supportive homes, and have the opportunities necessary to become self-sufficient and successful adults. CCR also sought to reduce the use of congregate care as a frequently used placement option for youth, as data have demonstrated that youth placed in congregate care settings experience poorer outcomes than youth placed in family settings.

Resource Family Approval. The RFA Program, authorized by AB 340 (Hancock), Chapter 464, Statutes of 2007, and SB 1013 (Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review), Chapter 35, Statutes of 2012, implemented RFA statewide on January 1, 2017. RFA is a unified, family-friendly, and child-centered process that combines elements of foster parent licensing, relative approval, and adoption/guardianship approval processes. RFA is also a route to direct permanency for caregivers who wish to adopt or be guardians of youth in care, as the RFA process includes elements required by both the adoption and guardianship processes. The development of a unified RFA process replaced previous multiple processes for licensing foster homes, approving relatives and nonrelative extended family members as foster care providers, and approving adoptive families. A resource family considered eligible to provide foster care for related and unrelated children in out-of-home placement is considered approved for adoption or legal guardianship and does not have to undergo any additional approval or licensure processes.

Part of the RFA process includes comprehensive training requirements for both resource family applicants and individuals who have been approved as resource families. Specifically, resource family applicants must undergo 12 hours of preapproval caregiver training on a variety of topics, including an overview of the child protective and probation systems; the effects of trauma on child development; positive discipline and the importance of self-esteem; and, health issues in foster care, among others. Approved resource families are required to complete annual caregiver training on a variety of topics, including a resource family’s responsibility to act as a reasonable and prudent parent, and to provide a family setting that promotes normal childhood experiences and that serves the needs of the child. Current law also allows a county to require a resource family or resource family applicant to receive relevant specialized training for the purpose of preparing the resource family to meet the needs of a particular child in care.

Tribally Approved Homes. Pursuant to ICWA, a federally recognized Indian tribe or tribal agency is permitted to approve a home for the foster or adoptive placement of an Indian child (although it is not required to do so). These tribally approved homes are not subject to state licensing approval standards, with the exception of requirements related to criminal background checks. Tribes and tribal agencies have the independent authority to approve homes using their own socially and culturally appropriate standards and are not subject to California's RFA requirements.

Final Rule. As noted in the findings and declarations, on September 28, 2023, the federal ACF published a final rule regarding licensing and approval standards for kinship placements, permitting Title IV-E agencies to claim Title IV-E federal financial participation on behalf of a child who is placed in a relative or kinship licensed or approved foster family home, when the agency uses different licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship foster family homes and non-relative or non-kinship foster family homes. The key points of the final rule include the following:

1. Separate Licensing Standards: Title IV-E agencies are now allowed to adopt different licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship foster family homes compared to non-relative foster family homes. This flexibility aims to place fewer burdens on kinship families while ensuring safety and well-being;
2. Equal Foster Care Maintenance Payments (FCMP): During periodic reviews, Title IV-E agencies must ensure that children receive the same amount of FCMP whether placed in a licensed or approved relative, kinship, or unrelated foster family home. This requirement ensures equitable financial support for all types of foster placements; and,
3. Definition of "foster family home": The rule aligns the definition of a "foster family home" with changes made by the FFPSA. It limits the definition to the "home of an individual or family" and requires the foster parent to reside in the home with the child. ACF encourages all Title IV-E agencies to adopt licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship foster family homes that place as few burdens on these families as possible, consistent with ensuring the safety and well-being of children in foster care.

Specifically, ACF encourages Title IV-E agencies to strongly consider developing standards for relative and kinship foster family homes that meet only the requirements for licensing or approval standards established by the licensing authority that are reasonably in accordance with recommended standards of national organizations for foster family homes related to admission policies, safety, sanitation, protection of civil rights, and use of the reasonable and prudent parenting standards, and ensuring that the relative or kin fully meets federal requirements for criminal background checks for all foster parents.

While separate licensing standards for relatives differ from the recent reforms California has undertaken to create one, simplified process for approving caregivers, the federal guidance recognizes the importance of removing barriers to placing youth with family and others who are familiar to the youth who is already experiencing trauma by being removed from their home.

This bill would require CDSS to implement a simplified approval process for relative caregivers to become foster care providers consistent with federal regulations. As part of developing the simplified process for relatives, CDSS will consult with stakeholders that include advocates representing caregivers, advocates representing foster youth, representatives from county child welfare and probation agencies, foster family agencies, tribes, tribal organizations, and tribal consortia. Upon implementation of the simplified process, CDSS would be required to submit a report to the Legislature on whether the number of approved relatives has increased, decreased, or remained the same over time, among other data points that will help to measure the effectiveness of the new process.

Equity Implications: The provisions of this bill seek to align California's relative caregiver approval process with federal regulations that create a separate licensing and approval standard for relatives and kin who take foster youth in their home. As noted by ACF, "Separate licensing or approval standards can have an especially strong impact on underserved groups that traditionally rely more heavily on kin and family in times of need. Adopting separate licensing standards enables Title IV-E agencies to provide more support to low-income prospective relative and kin caregivers, many of whom are families of color, are from underserved rural areas, or are members of other communities in which long-term systemic factors such as poverty hamper families from making intergenerational progress."

According to the Author

"[This bill] seeks to increase placement of foster youth with relatives and kin by requiring CDSS to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers, and by requiring CDSS to track and report to the Legislature certain data and outcomes about how the simplified approval process is working. We know that youth have better outcomes when they are placed with relatives; by increasing the number of youth placed with relatives, this bill will have positive impacts on outcomes for foster youth and will help ensure youth remain connected to their family and their community."

Arguments in Support

According to the Alliance for Children's Rights, "The federal Administration on Children, Youth and Families published a new rule related to Separate Licensing or Approval Standards for Relative or Kinship Foster Family Homes effective November 27, 2023, permitting Title IV-E agencies to claim title IV-E federal financial participation on behalf of a child who is placed in a relative or kinship licensed or approved foster family home when the agency uses different licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship foster family homes and nonrelative or nonkinship foster family homes. We think the new rule creates a distinct and critical opportunity for California to embrace a leadership role to remove barriers and burdens for kinship caregivers in areas such as creating more opportunities for relative and community placements, addressing placement barriers to be more reflective of culturally appropriate and/or community appropriate norms, training, and other practices and processes."

Arguments in Opposition

No opposition on file.

FISCAL COMMENTS

According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee on May 14, 2024, "CDSS estimates onetime General Fund automation costs in the range of $880,000 to $1.5 million for new placement types and other data for the CARES System. CDSS indicates changes in automation would not occur until the department notifies the Legislature the child welfare information system can provide the functionality necessary to implement this bill.

CDSS indicates it expects this bill will streamline the application process and reduce the number of steps necessary for relative caregivers to become foster care providers. To the extent these new standards result in fewer requirements for counties, this bill will likely improve approval timelines and allow the state to leverage Title IV-E funding sooner.

According to the Legislative Analyst’s Office, the General Fund faces a structural deficit in the tens of billions of dollars over the next several fiscal years."

VOTES

ASM HUMAN SERVICES: 6-0-1

YES: Lee, Essayli, Calderon, Gipson, Jackson, Ortega

ABS, ABST OR NV: Mathis

ASM APPROPRIATIONS: 15-0-0

YES: Wicks, Sanchez, Arambula, Bryan, Calderon, Wendy Carrillo, Dixon, Mike Fong, Grayson, Haney, Hart, Jim Patterson, Pellerin, Ta, Villapudua

UPDATED

VERSION: April 15, 2024

CONSULTANT: Jessica Langtry / HUM. S. / (916) 319-2089 FN: 0003224

Date of Hearing: May 15, 2024

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS

Buffy Wicks, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 2830

Author:(Robert Rivas) – As Amended Ver:April 15, 2024

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

SUMMARY:

This bill requires the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) to adopt a simplified approval process for relatives to become foster care providers in alignment with federal regulations, and to track and report to the Legislature specified data on implementation of the new process.

Specifically, this bill:

1. Requires CDSS, notwithstanding any other law and no later than January 1, 2026, to implement a simplified approval process for relative caregivers to become foster care providers consistent with federal regulations.
2. Authorizes CDSS to consult with stakeholders, as specified, to determine the changes necessary to adopt a simplified process for relative caregivers that achieves the goals of safety, permanency, and well-being for children in out-of-home care.
3. Specifies that “relative” has the same meaning as defined in existing law, which means an adult who is related to the child by blood, adoption, or affinity within the fifth-degree of kinship, including stepparents, stepsiblings, and all relatives whose status is preceded by the words “great,” “great-great,” or “grand” or the spouse of any of these persons even if the marriage was terminated by death or dissolution, or an extended family member of an Indian child, as defined in the federal Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA).
4. Permits CDSS to choose to use a broader definition of “relative” that includes nonrelative extended family members, as defined in existing law, to mean an adult caregiver who has an established familial or mentoring relationship with the child, as described.
5. Requires CDSS, upon implementation of the simplified approval process, and no later than January 1, 2028, to track and report to the Legislature data on the impact of the program, as specified.

FISCAL EFFECT:

CDSS estimates onetime General Fund automation costs in the range of $880,000 to $1.5 million for new placement types and other data for the CARES System. CDSS indicates changes in automation would not occur until the department notifies the Legislature the child welfare information system can provide the functionality necessary to implement this bill.

CDSS indicates it expects this bill will streamline the application process and reduce the number of steps necessary for relative caregivers to become foster care providers. To the extent these new standards result in fewer requirements for counties, this bill will likely improve approval timelines and allow the state to leverage Title IV-E funding sooner. 

According to the Legislative Analyst’s Office, the General Fund faces a structural deficit in the tens of billions of dollars over the next several fiscal years. 

COMMENTS:

1. Purpose. According to the Author:

[This bill] seeks to increase placement of foster youth with relatives and kin by requiring CDSS to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers, and by requiring CDSS to track and report to the Legislature certain data and outcomes about how the simplified approval process is working. We know that youth have better outcomes when they are placed with relatives; by increasing the number of youth placed with relatives, this bill will have positive impacts on outcomes for foster youth and will help ensure youth remain connected to their family and their community.

1. Background. California’s child welfare services (CWS) system exists to protect children from abuse and neglect, and in doing so, provides for their health, safety, and overall well-being. When suspicions of abuse or neglect are reported, Child Protective Services is tasked with investigating the report. If a child is suspected to be at risk of neglect, abuse, or abandonment, the juvenile court holds legal jurisdiction, and the CWS system appoints a social worker to ensure the needs of a youth are met. As of January 1, 2024, there are 43,633 youth between birth and 20 years of age placed in foster care in California.

Beginning in 2015, California has enacted legislation, known as Continuum of Care Reform (CCR), to improve placement and treatment options for youth in foster care. CCR also sought to reduce the use of congregate care as a frequently used placement option for youth, as data have demonstrated that youth placed in congregate care settings experience poorer outcomes than youth placed in family settings.

Title IV-E is a federal program that subsidizes the cost of foster care for eligible youth in eligible facilities. On September 28, 2023, the federal Administration on Children, Youth and Families (ACF) published a final rule regarding licensing and approval standards for kinship placements, permitting a state or tribal agency administering or supervising the administration of Title IV-E plans (a Title IV-E agency) to claim Title IV-E federal financial participation on behalf of a child who is placed in a relative or kinship licensed or approved foster family home, when the agency uses different licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship foster family homes and non-relative or non-kinship foster family homes.

A key point of the final rule is Title IV-E agencies may adopt adopt different licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship foster family homes compared to non-relative foster family homes. This flexibility aims to place fewer burdens on kinship families while ensuring safety and well-being of children in foster care.

While separate licensing standards for relatives differ from the recent reforms California has undertaken to create a simplified process for approving caregivers, the federal guidance recognizes the importance of removing barriers to placing youth with family and others who are familiar to the youth.

This bill requires CDSS to implement a simplified approval process for relative caregivers to become foster care providers consistent with federal regulations. California seeks to place children with relatives whenever possible in order to maintain familial ties and cultural bonds. This bill aligns with that goal by ensuring barriers are removed for relative placement.

Analysis Prepared by: Jennifer Swenson / APPR. / (916) 319-2081

Date of Hearing: April 23, 2024

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES

Alex Lee, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 2830 (

Author:Robert Rivas) – As Amended Ver:April 15, 2024

SUBJECT: Foster care: relative placement: family finding

SUMMARY: Requires the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) to adopt a simplified approval process for relatives to become foster care providers in alignment with federal regulations, and to track and report to the Legislature specified data on implementation of the new process. Specifically, this bill:

1. Requires CDSS, notwithstanding any other law and no later than January 1, 2026, to implement a simplified approval process for relative caregivers to become foster care providers consistent with federal regulations.
2. Authorizes CDSS to consult with stakeholders to determine the changes necessary to adopt a simplified process for relative caregivers that achieves the goals of safety, permanency, and well-being for children in out-of-home care. Specifies that the stakeholders shall include, but not be limited to, advocates representing caregivers, advocates representing foster youth, representatives from county child welfare and probation agencies, foster family agencies, tribes, tribal organizations, and tribal consortia.
3. Specifies that “relative” has the same meaning as defined in existing law, which means an adult who is related to the child by blood, adoption, or affinity within the fifth-degree of kinship, including stepparents, stepsiblings, and all relatives whose status is preceded by the words “great,” “great-great,” or “grand” or the spouse of any of these persons even if the marriage was terminated by death or dissolution, or an extended family member of an Indian child, as defined in the federal Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA).
4. Permits CDSS to choose to use a broader definition of “relative” that includes nonrelative extended family members, as defined in existing law, to mean an adult caregiver who has an established familial or mentoring relationship with the child, as described.
5. Requires CDSS, upon implementation of the simplified approval process adopted pursuant
   to 1) above, and no later than January 1, 2028, to track and report to the Legislature all of the following:
6. Whether the number of approved relatives has increased, decreased, or remained the same over time;
7. The average length of time required for a relative to receive resource family approval (RFA), and whether the average length of time has increased, decreased, or remained the same over time;
8. Whether the placement of youths with relatives has increased, decreased, or remained the same over time;
9. Whether relatives experience barriers to timely approval as a resource parent; and,
10. What, if any, barriers exist that affect implementation of the simplified approval process.
11. Specifies that the reporting provisions in 5) above shall become inoperative on June 30, 2029, and, as of January 1, 2030, are repealed, as required by existing law.
12. Makes the following findings and declarations:
13. It is the goal of the child welfare system to maintain cultural and familial bonds whenever possible;
14. Children and youth in the child welfare system who are placed with relatives and extended family members experience better outcomes than children and youth who are placed with nonrelatives;
15. Relative caregivers experience unique needs and circumstances, including the challenges that stem from emergency placements and the associated financial impacts of providing for a child with little to no preparation;
16. The length of time required for a prospective caregiver to receive RFA can vary based on a number of factors;
17. Relatives often serve as caregivers in the child welfare system for their family members and typically do not intend to receive placements of youth to whom they are not related; and,
18. In recognition of these factors, in the fall of 2023, the federal Administration on Children, and Families (ACF) published Separate Licensing or Approval Standards for Relative or Kinship Foster Family Homes on pages 66,700 to 66,709 of Volume 88 (September 28, 2023) of the Federal Register, effective November 27, 2023, permitting Title IV-E agencies to claim title IV-E federal financial participation on behalf of a child who is placed in a relative or kinship licensed or approved foster family home when the agency uses different licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship foster family homes and non-relative or non-kinship foster family homes.
19. Declares it is the Legislature’s intent to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers that achieves the goals of safety, permanency, and well-being for children in out-of-home care.

EXISTING LAW:

State law:

1. States that the purpose of foster care law is to provide maximum safety and protection for children who are currently being physically, sexually, or emotionally abused, neglected, or exploited, and to ensure the safety, protection, and physical and emotional well-being of children who are at risk of harm. (Welfare and Institutions Code [WIC] § 300.2)
2. States legislative intent to reaffirm its commitment to children who are in out-of-home placement to live in the least restrictive family setting and as close to the child’s family as possible, as specified. Further states legislative intent that all children live with a committed, permanent, nurturing family and that services and supports should be tailored to meet the specific needs of the individual child and family being served, as specified. (WIC § 16000)
3. Declares the commitment of California to protecting the essential tribal relations and best interest of an Indian child by promoting practices in accordance with federal law, as specified. (WIC § 224(a))
4. Requires CDSS, in consultation with county child welfare agencies, foster parent associations, and other interested community parties, to implement a unified, family friendly, and child-centered RFA process to replace the existing multiple processes for licensing foster family homes, certifying foster homes by licensed foster family agencies, approving relatives and nonrelative extended family members as foster care providers, and approving guardians and adoptive families. (WIC § 16519.5)
5. Requires counties to ensure that a resource family applicant completes a minimum of 12 hours of preapproval caregiver training on certain topics, including, the effects of trauma, grief and loss, child abuse and neglect, child development and behavior, health issues in foster care, permanence, well-being and education needs of children, among others. (WIC § 16519.5(g)(13))
6. Requires counties to ensure a resource family’s responsibility to act as a reasonable and prudent parent, defined as the standard characterized by careful and sensible parental decisions that maintain the health, safety, and best interests of a child while at the same time encouraging the emotional and developmental growth of the child, that a caregiver shall use when determining whether to allow a child in foster care under the responsibility of the state to participate in age or developmentally appropriate extracurricular, enrichment, cultural, and social activities, and to provide a family setting that promotes normal childhood experiences and that serves the needs of the child. (WIC §§ 362.05(c)(1); 16519.5.(g)(13)(m))
7. Requires counties to ensure resource families complete a minimum of eight hours of caregiver training annually, to be composed of various topics, as specified. (WIC § 16519.5(g)(14))
8. Permits a county to require a resource family or applicant to receive relevant specialized training for the purpose of preparing the resource family to meet the needs of a particular child in care, including understanding the requirements and best practices regarding psychotropic medications, including, but not limited to, court authorization, benefits, uses, side effects, interactions, assistance with self-administration, misuse, documentation, storage, and metabolic monitoring of children prescribed psychotropic medications, understanding how to use best practices for providing care and supervision to nonminor dependents and understanding how to use best practices for providing care and supervision to children with special health care needs. (WIC § 16519.5(g)(14))
9. Requires a social worker to immediately investigate the circumstances of the child being taken into the custody of the dependency system and attempt to maintain the child with the child's family through the provision of services. (WIC § 309(a))
10. Requires a social worker to conduct a search within 30 days to locate and identify all relatives of a youth in the child welfare services (CWS) system. Further, requires a social worker to provide written notification within 30 days of certain information, as specified. (WIC § 309(e)(1))
11. States legislative intent to preserve and strengthen a child's family ties whenever possible and to reunify a foster youth with their biological family whenever possible, or to provide a permanent placement alternative. (WIC § 16000)
12. Requires CDSS to provide technical assistance to encourage and facilitate the county placement agency's evaluation of placement needs and the development of needed placement resources and programs. (WIC § 16001.1)
13. Requires bills that impose a reporting requirement to include a provision that repeals the reporting requirement, or makes the reporting requirement inoperative, four years after the date on which the requirement becomes operative. (Government Code § 10231.5)

Federal Law:

1. Establishes ICWA, which provides guidance to states regarding the jurisdictional requirements, proceedings of tribal courts, and the custody proceedings involving the removal of Indian children from the custody of their parents. (25 United States Code 1901 § et seq.)
2. Establishes the Family First Prevention Services Act (FFPSA) to enhance support services to families to help children and youth to remain at home and reduce the use of congregate care placements by increasing options for prevention services and provide Title IV-E reimbursement for evidence prevention services and support for kinship caregivers. (Public Law 115-123)

FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown, this bill has not been analyzed by a fiscal committee.

COMMENTS:

Background: Child Welfare Services. California’s CWS system exists to protect children from abuse and neglect, and in doing so, provides for their health, safety, and overall well-being. When suspicions of abuse or neglect arise, often as a result of a report by a mandated reporter like a doctor or teacher, Child Protective Services is tasked with investigating the report. If the allegation of abuse or neglect is substantiated, it is then determined whether it is in the best interest of the child to remain in their parent’s custody or be placed within the CWS system. If a child is suspected to be at risk of neglect, abuse, or abandonment, the juvenile court holds legal jurisdiction, and the CWS system appoints a social worker to ensure that the needs of a youth are met. As of January 1, 2024, there are 43,633 youth between birth and 20 years of age placed in foster care in California.

Continuum of Care Reform (CCR). Beginning in 2015, California has enacted legislation, known as CCR, to improve placement and treatment options for youth in foster care. AB 403 (Stone), Chapter 773, Statutes of 2015, sponsored by CDSS, sought to improve outcomes for children and youth served by the CWS system by working to ensure that foster youth have their day-to-day physical, mental, and emotional needs met, that they have the opportunity to grow up in permanent and supportive homes, and have the opportunities necessary to become self-sufficient and successful adults. CCR also sought to reduce the use of congregate care as a frequently used placement option for youth, as data have demonstrated that youth placed in congregate care settings experience poorer outcomes than youth placed in family settings.

Resource Family Approval. The RFA Program, authorized by AB 340 (Hancock), Chapter 464, Statutes of 2007, and SB 1013 (Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review), Chapter 35, Statutes of 2012, implemented RFA statewide on January 1, 2017. RFA is a unified, family-friendly, and child-centered process that combines elements of foster parent licensing, relative approval, and adoption/guardianship approval processes. RFA is also a route to direct permanency for caregivers who wish to adopt or be guardians of youth in care, as the RFA process includes elements required by both the adoption and guardianship processes. The development of a unified RFA process replaced previous multiple processes for licensing foster homes, approving relatives and nonrelative extended family members as foster care providers, and approving adoptive families. A resource family considered eligible to provide foster care for related and unrelated children in out-of-home placement is considered approved for adoption or legal guardianship and does not have to undergo any additional approval or licensure processes.

Part of the RFA process includes comprehensive training requirements for both resource family applicants and individuals who have been approved as resource families. Specifically, resource family applicants must undergo 12 hours of preapproval caregiver training on a variety of topics, including an overview of the child protective and probation systems; the effects of trauma on child development; positive discipline and the importance of self-esteem; and, health issues in foster care, among others. Approved resource families are required to complete annual caregiver training on a variety of topics, including a resource family’s responsibility to act as a reasonable and prudent parent, and to provide a family setting that promotes normal childhood experiences and that serves the needs of the child. Current law also allows a county to require a resource family or resource family applicant to receive relevant specialized training for the purpose of preparing the resource family to meet the needs of a particular child in care.

Tribally Approved Homes. Pursuant to ICWA, a federally recognized Indian tribe or tribal agency is permitted to approve a home for the foster or adoptive placement of an Indian child (although it is not required to do so). These tribally approved homes are not subject to state licensing approval standards, with the exception of requirements related to criminal background checks. Tribes and tribal agencies have the independent authority to approve homes using their own socially and culturally appropriate standards and are not subject to California’s RFA requirements.

Final Rule. As noted in the findings and declarations, on September 28, 2023, the federal ACF published a final rule regarding licensing and approval standards for kinship placements, permitting Title IV-E agencies to claim Title IV-E federal financial participation on behalf of a child who is placed in a relative or kinship licensed or approved foster family home, when the agency uses different licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship foster family homes and non-relative or non-kinship foster family homes. The key points of the final rule include the following:

• Separate Licensing Standards: Title IV-E agencies are now allowed to adopt different licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship foster family homes compared to non-relative foster family homes. This flexibility aims to place fewer burdens on kinship families while ensuring safety and well-being;
• Equal Foster Care Maintenance Payments (FCMP): During periodic reviews, Title IV-E agencies must ensure that children receive the same amount of FCMP whether placed in a licensed or approved relative, kinship, or unrelated foster family home. This requirement ensures equitable financial support for all types of foster placements; and,
• Definition of “foster family home”: The rule aligns the definition of a “foster family home” with changes made by the FFPSA. It limits the definition to the “home of an individual or family” and requires the foster parent to reside in the home with the child. ACF encourages all Title IV-E agencies to adopt licensing or approval standards for relative or kinship foster family homes that place as few burdens on these families as possible, consistent with ensuring the safety and well-being of children in foster care.

Specifically, ACF encourages Title IV-E agencies to strongly consider developing standards for relative and kinship foster family homes that meet only the requirements for licensing or approval standards established by the licensing authority that are reasonably in accordance with recommended standards of national organizations for foster family homes related to admission policies, safety, sanitation, protection of civil rights, and use of the reasonable and prudent parenting standards, and ensuring that the relative or kin fully meets federal requirements for criminal background checks for all foster parents.

While separate licensing standards for relatives differ from the recent reforms California has undertaken to create one, simplified process for approving caregivers, the federal guidance recognizes the importance of removing barriers to placing youth with family and others who are familiar to the youth who is already experiencing trauma by being removed from their home.

This bill would require CDSS to implement a simplified approval process for relative caregivers to become foster care providers consistent with federal regulations. As part of developing the simplified process for relatives, CDSS will consult with stakeholders that include advocates representing caregivers, advocates representing foster youth, representatives from county child welfare and probation agencies, foster family agencies, tribes, tribal organizations, and tribal consortia. Upon implementation of the simplified process, CDSS would be required to submit a report to the Legislature on whether the number of approved relatives has increased, decreased, or remained the same over time, among other data points that will help to measure the effectiveness of the new process.

Author’s Statement: According to the Author, “[This bill] seeks to increase placement of foster youth with relatives and kin by requiring CDSS to adopt a simplified approval process for relative caregivers, and by requiring CDSS to track and report to the Legislature certain data and outcomes about how the simplified approval process is working. We know that youth have better outcomes when they are placed with relatives; by increasing the number of youth placed with relatives, this bill will have positive impacts on outcomes for foster youth and will help ensure youth remain connected to their family and their community.”

Equity Implications: The provisions of this bill seek to align California’s relative caregiver approval process with federal regulations that create a separate licensing and approval standard for relatives and kin who take foster youth in their home. As noted by ACF, “Separate licensing or approval standards can have an especially strong impact on underserved groups that traditionally rely more heavily on kin and family in times of need. Adopting separate licensing standards enables Title IV-E agencies to provide more support to low-income prospective relative and kin caregivers, many of whom are families of color, are from underserved rural areas, or are members of other communities in which long-term systemic factors such as poverty hamper families from making intergenerational progress.”

Because California seeks to place children with relatives whenever possible in order to maintain familial ties and cultural bonds, this bill aligns with that goal by ensuring that barriers are removed for relative placement. Children in kinship care, rather than non-kinship care, have better outcomes including more placement stability, lower rates of re-abuse and institutional abuse, better behavioral and mental health, higher likelihood of achieving permanency.

RELATED AND PRIOR LEGISLATION:

SB 407 (Wiener), Chapter 226, Statutes of 2023, required resource families to demonstrate an ability and willingness to meet the needs of a child, regardless of the child's sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression, and adds specified responsibilities to counties related to ensuring that foster youth will be placed with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning, or another diverse identity-affirming resource families.

SB 584 (Jones), Chapter 548, Statutes of 2021, expanded existing mandatory training for resource families and resource family applicants to include information on providing care and supervision to children who have been victims of child labor trafficking.

SB 354 (Skinner), Chapter 687, Statutes of 2021, adopted changes to the criminal background check process during the RFA process for relatives of children placed in the child welfare system; permitted the court to authorize placement of children with relatives in certain circumstances, regardless of the status of any criminal exemption or RFA; and, required CDSS to submit a report to the Legislature related to criminal record exemptions.

AB 366 (Blanca Rubio), Chapter 581, Statutes of 2021, adopted changes to existing provisions on the placement of siblings within the child welfare system.

REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:

Support

Alliance for Children's Rights

Aspiranet

Steinberg Institute

Opposition

None on file.

Analysis Prepared by: Jessica Langtry / HUM. S. / (916) 319-2089