Existing law states that it is the public policy of this state that foster family agencies or noncustodial adoption agencies, also known as FFAs, provide necessary services to vulnerable youth and are integral to the foster care system. Existing law provides that an FFA, which contracts with a public entity for the provision of foster youth services, may be held liable for injury or damage caused by the FFAs negligence but not for the injury or damage caused by the public entity. Existing law requires the FFA and the public entity to each bear the cost of insuring against their respective acts and omissions and defending against claims arising from those risks. Existing law prohibits the above provisions from being waived or suspended by a court, and specifies that certain indemnification provisions in contracts between FFAs and public entities are void as against public policy and unenforceable. Existing law repeals these provisions on January 1, 2027.

This bill would instead repeal those provisions on January 1, 2028.

Existing law states that it is the public policy of this state that foster family agencies or noncustodial adoption agencies, also known as FFAs, provide necessary services to vulnerable youth and are integral to the foster care system. Existing law provides that an FFA, which contracts with a public entity for the provision of foster youth services, may be held liable for injury or damage caused by the FFAs negligence but not for the injury or damage caused by the public entity. Existing law requires the FFA and the public entity to each bear the cost of insuring against their respective acts and omissions and defending against claims arising from those risks. Existing law prohibits the above provisions from being waived or suspended by a court, and specifies that certain indemnification provisions in contracts between FFAs and public entities are void as against public policy and unenforceable. Existing law repeals these provisions on January 1, 2027.

This bill would instead repeal those provisions on January 1, 2028.

Existing law states that it is the public policy of this state that foster family agencies or noncustodial adoption agencies, also known as FFAs, provide necessary services to vulnerable youth and are integral to the foster care system. Existing law provides that an FFA, which contracts with a public entity for the provision of foster youth services, may be held liable for injury or damage caused by the FFAs negligence but not for the injury or damage caused by the public entity. Existing law requires the FFA and the public entity to each bear the cost of insuring against their respective acts and omissions and defending against claims arising from those risks. Existing law prohibits the above provisions from being waived or suspended by a court, and specifies that certain indemnification provisions in contracts between FFAs and public entities are void as against public policy and unenforceable. Existing law repeals these provisions on January 1, 2027.

This bill would instead repeal those provisions on January 1, 2030. 2028.

Existing law states that it is the public policy of this state that foster family agencies or noncustodial adoption agencies, also known as FFAs, provide necessary services to vulnerable youth and are integral to the foster care system. Existing law provides that an FFA, which contracts with a public entity for the provision of foster youth services, may be held liable for injury or damage caused by the FFAs negligence but not for the injury or damage caused by the public entity. Existing law requires the FFA and the public entity to each bear the cost of insuring against their respective acts and omissions and defending against claims arising from those risks. Existing law prohibits the above provisions from being waived or suspended by a court, and specifies that certain indemnification provisions in contracts between FFAs and public entities are void as against public policy and unenforceable. Existing law repeals these provisions on January 1, 2027.

This bill would instead repeal those provisions on January 1, 2030.

 CONSENT  

Bill No: AB 2333

Author: Pellerin (D)

Amended: 4/27/26 in Assembly

Vote: 21

SENATE HUMAN SERVICES COMMITTEE: 5-0, 6/1/26

AYES: Becker, Ochoa Bogh, Laird, Pérez, Weber Pierson

SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE: 13-0, 6/23/26

AYES: Umberg, Niello, Allen, Ashby, Caballero, Durazo, Laird, Reyes, Stern, Valladares, Wahab, Weber Pierson, Wiener

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 73-0, 5/4/26 (Consent) - See last page for vote

SUBJECT: Child welfare nongovernmental organizations

SOURCE: Author

DIGEST:

This bill extends the sunset from January 1, 2027 to January 1, 2028 for liability protections for foster family agencies (FFAs).

ANALYSIS:

Exiting law:

1. Provides that the Foster Family Agency Accountability Act applies to any claim or lawsuit against a foster family agency or a noncustodial adoption agency for the acts of their employees, contractors, or volunteers brought by a recipient of those services or on the recipient’s behalf. (Code of Civil Procedure Code Section [CCP] 1062.30)
2. Provides that it is the public policy of the State of California that foster family agencies or noncustodial adoption agencies, also known as FFAs, provide necessary services to vulnerable youth throughout the state and are integral to the foster care system. (CCP 1062.31)
   
3. Defines “FFA” as a foster family agency or a noncustodial adoption agency, as defined in Section 1502 of the Health and Safety Code. (CCP 1062.32)
   
4. Defines “public entity” as having the same meaning as defined in Section 811.2 of the Government Code. (CCP 1062.32)
   
5. Provides that an FFA may be held liable for injury or damage caused by the negligence of the FFA but not for the injury or damage caused by the public entity, including its officers, employees, or volunteers, acting in its capacity. The FFA and the public entity shall each bear the cost of insuring against their respective acts and omissions and shall each bear the costs of defending itself against claims arising from those risks. (CCP 1062.33)
   
6. Provides that, notwithstanding any other law, 5) above shall not be waived or suspended by any court. Any provision in a nongovernmental organization contract for child, youth, and family services in which a public entity is indemnified, held harmless, or insured for damages, claims, losses, or expenses arising from injury or damage, including, but not limited to, bodily injury, mental anguish, property damage, or economic or noneconomic damages or loss, caused by or resulting from a public entity’s negligence or intentional conduct, in whole or in part, shall be void as against public policy and unenforceable. (CCP 1062.33)
   
7. Provides that 1) – 6) above shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2027, and as of that date is repealed. (CCP 1062.34)
   

This bill:

1. Extends the sunset from January 1, 2027 to January 1, 2028 for liability protections for FFAs outlined in 1)-6) above.

Background

Author’s Statement. According to the author, “Foster family agencies, known as FFAs, serve some of the most vulnerable children in public care. These nonprofit organizations provide invaluable support and guidance to foster families and are an integral part of California’s foster system. In recent years, FFAs have struggled to access liability insurance and in August of 2024, the insurer of 90% of California’s FFAs announced that it would non-renew its contracts with FFAs. Since then, over two dozen FFAs have closed their doors. FFAs that have been able to secure liability coverage have faced six-digit premium increases, representing increases of 200 to 400%.

“In response to the looming insurance crisis, I authored AB 2496 in 2024, which provided that FFAs could not be held liable for harm caused by the actions or negligence of the county and that FFAs and counties bear the costs of insuring themselves against their respective acts and omissions.

“In 2025, the California Department of Social Services was required to report to the Legislature available options to make insurance available to foster family agencies. Unfortunately, this report has not yet materialized and DSS has yet to make concrete recommendations to the Legislature. In order to ensure that the insurance market does not deteriorate further while a long-term solution is found, AB 2333 extends the sunset date of the indemnification provisions of AB 2496 from January 1, 2027 to January 1, 2028.”

Foster Family Agencies (FFAs). FFAs are nonprofit entities that contract with county placing departments to find placements for children who require more intensive care than a typical foster family home, usually as an alternative to a short-term residential therapeutic program. FFAs recruit, certify and train foster parents and provide social workers and other supports to foster families. By law, an FFA’s processes are distinct from the resource family licensing procedures: homes and families certified by an FFA are not simultaneously licensed or approved by the county or the state, and an FFA-approved home must forfeit its county- or state-issued license upon being approved by the FFA.

Insurance Coverage Crisis. County contracts require FFAs to maintain liability insurance. However, insurers are not required to cover FFAs. Insurance Commissioner Lara issued a memo^[1] on August 23, 2024, explaining that the Nonprofits Insurance Alliance of California (NIAC) had begun issuing nonrenewal notices to some FFAs, as well as paused acceptance of coverage for new FFAs, due to recent high-valued court judgment settlements against FFAs. The memo explains that this has resulted in FFAs unable to obtain mandatory insurance coverage at an affordable rate. The memo concludes, “This lack of coverage will likely force many FFAs to start shuttering their programs, thus upending the stability of the foster children and youth that they serve. On a larger scale, thousands of foster children and youth are potentially at risk of losing their current FFA placement.” Without insurance, children placed in FFA homes would have to be moved – with a potential displacement of 9,000 children. Counties lack the capacity to house these children, putting vulnerable foster youth at risk.

Temporary Solution In 2024, the author of this bill also authored AB 2496 (Pellerin, Chapter 403, Statutes of 2024) as a response to the crisis caused by the nonrenewal notices issued by NIAC. AB 2496 allowed homes under an FFA, upon the FFA receiving a nonrenewal notice, to move, or “port” to either another FFA that does have insurance or into county supervision without a reduction in rate. This process usually takes approximately three months, but the bill streamlined that process to allow these resource family homes the ability to continue to provide a home for the foster children in their care. The streamlined process in AB 2496 sunsets in 2027, this bill seeks to delay the sunset one year to 2028. This will allow time for a more permanent solution to the insurance coverage crises to be developed.

The Budget Act of 2025 also provided for $31.5 million to support the operation of FFA providers facing higher liability insurance premiums. CDSS administers this money through an application process. The first round of funding allocated about $24 million. The second round of funding will allocate the remaining $7.5 million. The application deadline for the second round of funding ended April 30, 2026.

Related/Prior Legislation

AB 2496 (Pellerin, Chapter 403, Statutes of 2024) authorized CDSS to temporarily waive provisions in order to facilitate the expedient transfer of an approval of a resource family from an FFA to a county. Provides that an FFA may be held liable for injury or damage caused by the negligence of the FFA, but not for the injury or damage caused by the public entity. Requires the FFA and the public entity to each bear the cost of insuring against their respective acts and omissions, and to each bear the costs of defending itself against claims arising from those risks.

AB 403 (Stone, Chapter 733, Statutes of 2015) implemented the Continuum of Care Reform effort to the state’s child welfare system, which included sunsetting existing licensure, rate-setting, and other provisions for FFAs.

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

SUPPORT: (Verified 6/25/26)

All for Kids
California Alliance of Child and Family Services
Seneca Family of Agencies

OPPOSITION: (Verified 6/25/26)

None received

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 73-0, 5/4/26

AYES: Addis, Aguiar-Curry, Ahrens, Alanis, Alvarez, Ávila Farías, Bains, Bauer-Kahan, Berman, Boerner, Bonta, Bryan, Calderon, Carrillo, Castillo, Connolly, Davies, DeMaio, Dixon, Elhawary, Ellis, Fong, Gabriel, Gallagher, Garcia, Gipson, Jeff Gonzalez, Mark González, Hadwick, Haney, Harabedian, Hart, Hoover, Irwin, Jackson, Johnson, Kalra, Krell, Lackey, Lee, Lowenthal, Macedo, McKinnor, Muratsuchi, Nguyen, Ortega, Pacheco, Papan, Patel, Patterson, Pellerin, Petrie-Norris, Quirk-Silva, Ramos, Ransom, Celeste Rodriguez, Michelle Rodriguez, Rogers, Blanca Rubio, Sanchez, Schiavo, Schultz, Sharp-Collins, Solache, Soria, Stefani, Ta, Tangipa, Valencia, Ward, Wicks, Zbur, Rivas

NO VOTE RECORDED: Arambula, Bennett, Caloza, Chen, Flora, Wallis, Wilson

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

6/26/26 13:09:15

**** END ****

1. https://www.insurance.ca.gov/0250-insurers/0300-insurers/0200-bulletins/bulletin-notices-commiss-opinion/upload/Notice-Foster-Family-Liability-Insurance-Availability-August-2024.pdf ↑

SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE

Senator Thomas Umberg, Chair

2025-2026 Regular Session

Bill No: AB 2333 (Author:Pellerin)

Version: April 27, 2026

Hearing Date: June 23, 2026

Fiscal: No

Urgency: No

Consultant: ME

SUBJECT

Child welfare nongovernmental organizations

DIGEST

This bill extends the January 1, 2027 sunset date of the provisions enacted in AB 2496 (Pellerin, Ch. 403, Stats. 2024) for an additional year.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

As explained in the Senate Judiciary Committee analysis of AB 2496:

[Foster Family Agencies (FFA)] are nonprofit entities that contract with county placing departments to find placements for children who require more intensive care than a typical foster family home, usually as an alternative to a group home or short-term residential therapeutic program (STRTP). FFAs recruit, certify and train foster parents and provide social workers and other supports to the foster families. By law, an FFA’s processes are distinct from the resource family licensing procedures.

FFAs’ contracts with counties require FFAs to maintain liability insurance; NIAC, the bill’s sponsor, is a state-authorized risk pool for a wide range of nonprofit organizations that insures 90 percent of the FFAs in California. According to NIAC, a recent change in the legal landscape has resulted in several high-value jury verdicts and settlements against FFAs; as a result, NIAC says, it will stop renewing FFA insurance policies unless the Legislature passes legislation to modify FFAs’ potential exposure for harms caused by third parties, including foster parents approved by the FFA. The bill, as currently in print, makes significant changes to how a foster child injured in a placement made by an FFA could pursue a claim against an FFA for its failures in the placement process, as well as a claim against an FFA’s insurer alleging bad faith.

The author brought AB 2496 to buy some time to work with stakeholders on a solution that allows FFAs to continue to operate and that protects foster children’s rights.

The author brings AB 2333 in order to provide stability while a longer-term solution to the insurance crisis is developed. AB 2333 extends the sunset date of AB 2496 from January 1, 2027 to January 1, 2028. The author explains that the extension also allows additional time for the Department of Social Services to report their findings to the Legislature as was required by AB 2496. The additional time gives all parties another year to find a long-term solution to the problem. This bill is author-sponsored and is supported by All For Kids, California Alliance of Child and Family Services, Seneca. No timely opposition has been received by the Committee. This bill passed out of the Senate Human Services Committee on a vote of 5 to 0. Should this bill pass out of this Committee it will then be referred to the Senate Appropriations Committee.

PROPOSED CHANGES TO THE LAW

Existing law:

1. Provides that it is the public policy of this state that foster family agencies or noncustodial adoption agencies, also known as FFAs, provide necessary services to vulnerable youth and are integral to the foster care system. (Code Civ. Proc. 1062.31.)
2. Provides that an FFA, which contracts with a public entity for the provision of foster youth services, may be held liable for injury or damage caused by the FFA’s negligence but not for the injury or damage caused by the public entity. (Code Civ. Proc. 1062.33 (a).)
3. Requires the FFA and the public entity to each bear the cost of insuring against their respective acts and omissions and defending against claims arising from those risks. (Code Civ. Proc. 1062.33 (a).)
4. Prohibits the above provisions from being waived or suspended by a court, and specifies that certain indemnification provisions in contracts between FFAs and public entities are void as against public policy and unenforceable. (Code Civ. Proc. 1062.3(b).) Specifically, any provision in a nongovernmental organization contract for child, youth, and family services in which a public entity is indemnified, held harmless, or insured for damages, claims, losses, or expenses arising from injury or damage, including, but not limited to, bodily injury, mental anguish, property damage, or economic or noneconomic damages or loss, caused by or resulting from a public entity’s negligence or intentional conduct, in whole or in part, shall be void as against public policy and unenforceable. (Id.)
5. Repeals these above provisions in paragraphs 1) through 4) on January 1, 2027. (Code Civ. Proc. 1062.34.)

This bill extends the repeal of the above provisions by one year by changing the sunset provision from January 1, 2027 to January 1, 2028.

COMMENTS

1. Extends the provisions adopted through AB 2496 by one year

According to the author:

Foster family agencies, known as FFAs, serve some of the most vulnerable children in public care. These nonprofit organizations provide invaluable support and guidance to foster families and are an integral part of California’s foster system. In recent years, FFAs have struggled to access liability insurance and in August of 2024, the insurer of 90% of California’s FFAs announced that it would non-renew its contracts with FFAs. Since then, over two dozen FFAs have closed their doors. FFAs that have been able to secure liability coverage have faced six-digit premium increases, representing increases of 200 to 400%.

In response to the looming insurance crisis, I authored AB 2496 in 2024, which provided that FFAs could not be held liable for harm caused by the actions or negligence of the county and that FFAs and counties bear the costs of insuring themselves against their respective acts and omissions.

In 2025, the California Department of Social Services was required to report to the Legislature available options to make insurance available to foster family agencies. Unfortunately, this report has not yet materialized and DSS has yet to make concrete recommendations to the Legislature. In order to ensure that the insurance market does not deteriorate further while a long-term solution is found, AB 2333 extends the sunset date of the indemnification provisions of AB 2496 from January 1, 2027 to January 1, 2028.

As of April 1, 2024, 8,161 children in foster care in California were in FFA placements, which is just under 20 percent of the state’s total foster care population.^[1]

See the Senate Judiciary Committee analysis of AB 2496 (Ch. 403, Stats. 2024) for a detailed background on FFAs and the need for the provisions that were codified through that bill.

2. Support

According to All For Kids in support of the bill:

Following the August 2024 decision by the Nonprofit Insurance Alliance of California (NIAC) to non-renew policies, which previously insured 90% of FFAs, no admitted insurers have reentered the market, forcing many of our colleague agencies to purchase costlier, lower coverage plans from non-admitted carriers simply to meet contractual and safety requirements. While our agency was one of the few not covered by NIAC, and have maintained coverage with our carrier, this has only been possible through absorbing hefty increases in our premiums.

Should the indemnification provisions of AB 2496 not be extended, it would reintroduce even more uncertainty into an already fragile insurance market. Maintaining the indemnification protections enacted in 2024 provides continuity and market stability while longer-term solutions to the insurance crisis are identified. To be clear, AB 2333 does not shield FFAs from accountability as we remain fully responsible for claims arising from our own acts or omissions. The bill simply extends provisions prohibiting counties from requiring FFAs extend our insurance to cover county conduct, reinforcing clear lines of responsibility and reducing unnecessary market risk.

SUPPORT

All For Kids

California Alliance of Child and Family Services

Seneca

OPPOSITION

None known

RELATED LEGISLATION

Pending legislation: None known.

Prior legislation: AB 2496 (Pellerin, Ch. 403, Stats. 2024) See the Executive Summary for a discussion of this bill.

AB 1997 (Stone, Ch. 612, Stats. 2016) was a clean-up of AB 403 (below), which included eliminating the option to extend an FFA license if it failed to obtain accreditation, as specified.

AB 403 (Stone, Ch. 733, Stats. 2015) implemented the Continuum of Care Reform effort to the state’s child welfare system, which included sunsetting existing licensure, rate-setting, and other provisions for FFAs and implementing new regimes.

PRIOR VOTES:

Senate Human Services Committee (Ayes 5, Noes 0)

Assembly Floor (Ayes 73, Noes 0)

Assembly Human Services Committee (Ayes 6, Noes 0)

**************

1. California Child Welfare Indicators Project, University of California at Berkeley, Report: Children in Care—Point in Time Court, CWS/CMS 2024 Quarter 1 Extract (retrieved Jun. 27, 2024), available at https://ccwip.berkeley.edu/childwelfare/reports/PIT/MTSG/r/ab636/s (link current as of June 27, 2024). ↑

SENATE COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES

Senator Becker, Chair

2025 - 2026 Regular

Subject: Child welfare nongovernmental organizations

SUMMARY

This bill extends the sunset from January 1, 2027 to January 1, 2028 for liability protections for foster family agencies (FFAs)

ABSTRACT

Exiting Law:

1. Provides that the Foster Family Agency Accountability Act applies to any claim or lawsuit against a foster family agency or a noncustodial adoption agency for the acts of their employees, contractors, or volunteers brought by a recipient of those services or on the recipient’s behalf. (Code of Civil Procedure Code [CCP] 1062.30)
2. Provides that it is the public policy of the State of California that foster family agencies or noncustodial adoption agencies, also known as FFAs, provide necessary services to vulnerable youth throughout the state and are integral to the foster care system. (CCP 1062.31)
   
3. Defines “FFA” as a foster family agency or a noncustodial adoption agency, as defined in Section 1502 of the Health and Safety Code. (CCP 1062.32)
   
4. Defines “public entity” as having the same meaning as defined in Section 811.2 of the Government Code. (CCP 1062.32)
   
5. Provides that an FFA may be held liable for injury or damage caused by the negligence of the FFA but not for the injury or damage caused by the public entity, including its officers, employees, or volunteers, acting in its capacity. The FFA and the public entity shall each bear the cost of insuring against their respective acts and omissions and shall each bear the costs of defending itself against claims arising from those risks. (CCP 1062.33)
   
6. Provides that, notwithstanding any other law, 5) above shall not be waived or suspended by any court. Any provision in a nongovernmental organization contract for child, youth, and family services in which a public entity is indemnified, held harmless, or insured for damages, claims, losses, or expenses arising from injury or damage, including, but not limited to, bodily injury, mental anguish, property damage, or economic or noneconomic damages or loss, caused by or resulting from a public entity’s negligence or intentional conduct, in whole or in part, shall be void as against public policy and unenforceable. (CCP 1062.33)
   
7. Provides that 1) – 6) above shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2027, and as of that date is repealed. (CCP 1062.34)
   
8. Provides that every person is responsible, not only for the result of their willful acts, but also for an injury occasioned to another by their want of ordinary care or skill in the management of their property or person, except so far as the latter has, willfully or by want of ordinary care, brought the injury upon themselves. (Civil Code [CIV] 1714)
9. Defines “indemnity” as a contract by which one engages to save another from a legal consequence of the conduct of one of the parties, or of some other person. (CIV 2772)
10. Provides that an agreement to indemnify a person against an act thereafter to be done is void if the person committing the act knew it was unlawful at the time of the act. (CIV 2773)
    
11. Provides that one who indemnifies another against an act to be done by the latter is liable jointly with the person indemnified, and separately, to every person injured by such act. (CIV 2777)
12. 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 to have been abused or neglected, as specified. (Welfare and Institutions Code [WIC] 202)
    
13. Establishes a system of juvenile dependency for children for specified reasons, and designates that a child who meets certain criteria is within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court and may be adjudged as a dependent child of the court, as specified. (WIC 300 et seq.)
    
14. Declares the intent of the Legislature to, whenever possible, preserve and strengthen a child’s family ties and, when a child must be removed from the physical custody of their parents, to give preferential consideration to placement with relatives. States the intent of the Legislature 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 the intent of the Legislature that all children live with a committed, permanent, nurturing family and states that services and supports should be tailored to meet the specific needs of the individual child and family being served, as specified. (WIC 16000)
    
15. Requires out-of-home placement of a child in foster care to be based upon the selection of a safe setting that is the least restrictive family setting that promotes normal childhood experiences and the most appropriate setting that meets the child’s individual needs and is available, in proximity to the parent’s home, in proximity to the child’s school, consistent with the selection of the environment best suited to meet the child’s special needs and best interests. (WIC 16501.1(d)(1))
    
16. Defines “placing agency” to mean a county child welfare department, a county probation department, or an FFA with responsibility for the placement of the child or nonminor dependent. (WIC 362.06(a)(4))
    
17. Defines a “resource family” to mean an individual or family that has successfully met both the home environment assessment and the permanency assessment criteria, as specified, necessary for providing care for a child placed by a public or private child placement agency by court order, or voluntarily placed by a parent or legal guardian. (WIC 16519.5(c)(1))
    
18. Requires the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) to implement the Resource Family Approval process as a unified, family friendly, and child-centered process to replace the existing multiple processes for licensing foster family homes, certifying foster homes by licensed FFAs, approving relatives and nonrelative extended family members as foster care providers, and approving guardians and adoptive families. (WIC 16519.5(a))
    
19. Stipulates that a resource family shall be considered eligible to provide foster care for children in out-of-home placement and shall be considered approved for adoption and guardianship, and authorizes a county to approve a resource family to care for a specific child, as specified. (WIC 16519.5(c)(4))
    
20. Provides that approval of a resource family does not guarantee an initial, continued, or adoptive placement of a child with a resource family or with a relative or non-relative extended family member. Further, approval of a resource family does not guarantee the establishment of a legal guardianship of a child with a resource family. (WIC 16519.5(c)(6))
    
21. Establishes requirements for FFAs that approve resource families, including, among other things, requiring an FFA to be responsible for approving or denying resource family applications, and preparing a written evaluation of an applicant’s capacity to foster, adopt, or provide legal guardianship, as specified. (HSC 1517(b))
    
22. Provides that it is the policy of this state that all persons engaged in providing care and services to foster children, including, but not limited to, foster parents, adoptive parents, relative caregivers, and other caregivers contracting with a county welfare department, shall have fair and equal access to all available programs, services, benefits, and licensing processes, and shall not be subjected to discrimination or harassment on the basis of their clients’ or their own actual or perceived race, ethnic group identification, ancestry, national origin, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, mental or physical disability, or HIV status. Further, clarifies that these provisions shall not be interpreted to create or modify existing preferences for foster parents or to limit the local placement agency’s ability to make placement decisions for a child based on the child’s best interest. (WIC 16013)
    
23. Requires CDSS, in consultation with county placement agencies, foster care providers, and other interested community parties, to establish criteria to be used for conducting a comprehensive home study of a licensed or foster parent that evaluates the ability, readiness, and willingness of the licensed foster parent to meet the varying needs of children. (WIC 16518)
    
24. Specifies the following appropriations out of any money in the State Treasury not otherwise appropriated:
    
    1. To each county for the support and maintenance of needy children, as specified;
       
    2. To each county for the support and maintenance of pregnant mothers, as specified;
       
    3. After deducting federal funds available for the adequate care of each child receiving Aid to Families with Dependent Children – Foster Care, as specified. (WIC 15200)
       
25. Specifies when placing foster children, the placing agency shall not decline to place a child with a resource family because of a resource family parent’s actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. (WIC 16518.5)

This Bill:

1. Extends the sunset from January 1, 2027 to January 1, 2028 for liability protections for FFAs outlined in 1)-6) above.

FISCAL IMPACT

This bill has been keyed non-fiscal by the Legislative Counsel.

BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION

Purpose of the Bill:

According to the author, “Foster family agencies, known as FFAs, serve some of the most vulnerable children in public care. These nonprofit organizations provide invaluable support and guidance to foster families and are an integral part of California’s foster system. In recent years, FFAs have struggled to access liability insurance and in August of 2024, the insurer of 90% of California’s FFAs announced that it would non-renew its contracts with FFAs. Since then, over two dozen FFAs have closed their doors. FFAs that have been able to secure liability coverage have faced six-digit premium increases, representing increases of 200 to 400%.

“In response to the looming insurance crisis, I authored AB 2496 in 2024, which provided that FFAs could not be held liable for harm caused by the actions or negligence of the county and that FFAs and counties bear the costs of insuring themselves against their respective acts and omissions.

“In 2025, the California Department of Social Services was required to report to the Legislature available options to make insurance available to foster family agencies. Unfortunately, this report has not yet materialized and DSS has yet to make concrete recommendations to the Legislature. In order to ensure that the insurance market does not deteriorate further while a long-term solution is found, AB 2333 extends the sunset date of the indemnification provisions of AB 2496 from January 1, 2027 to January 1, 2028.”

Foster Family Agencies (FFAs)

FFAs are nonprofit entities that contract with county placing departments to find placements for children who require more intensive care than a typical foster family home, usually as an alternative to a short-term residential therapeutic program. FFAs recruit, certify and train foster parents and provide social workers and other supports to foster families. By law, an FFA’s processes are distinct from the resource family licensing procedures: homes and families certified by an FFA are not simultaneously licensed or approved by the county or the state, and an FFA-approved home must forfeit its county- or state-issued license upon being approved by the FFA.

Insurance Coverage Crisis

County contracts require FFAs to maintain liability insurance. However, insurers are not required to cover FFAs. Insurance Commissioner Lara issued a memo^[1] on August 23, 2024, explaining

that the Nonprofits Insurance Alliance of California (NIAC) had begun issuing nonrenewal notices to some FFAs, as well as paused acceptance of coverage for new FFAs, due to recent high-valued court judgment settlements against FFAs. The memo explains that this has resulted in FFAs unable to obtain mandatory insurance coverage at an affordable rate. The memo concludes, “This lack of coverage will likely force many FFAs to start shuttering their programs, thus upending the stability of the foster children and youth that they serve. On a larger scale, thousands of foster children and youth are potentially at risk of losing their current FFA placement.” Without insurance, children placed in FFA homes would have to be moved – with a potential displacement of 9,000 children. Counties lack the capacity to house these children, putting vulnerable foster youth at risk.

Temporary Solution

In 2024, the author of this bill also authored AB 2496 (Pellerin, Chapter 403, Statutes of 2024) as a response to the crisis caused by the nonrenewal notices issued by NIAC. AB 2496 allowed homes under an FFA, upon the FFA receiving a nonrenewal notice, to move, or “port” to either another FFA that does have insurance or into county supervision without a reduction in rate. This process usually takes approximately three months, but the bill streamlined that process to allow these resource family homes the ability to continue to provide a home for the foster children in their care. The streamlined process in AB 2496 sunsets in 2027, this bill seeks to delay the sunset one year to 2028. This will allow time for a more permanent solution to the insurance coverage crises to be developed.

The Budget Act of 2025 also provided for $31.5 million to support the operation of FFA providers facing higher liability insurance premiums. CDSS administers this money through an application process. The first round of funding allocated about $24 million. The second round of funding will allocate the remaining $7.5 million. The application deadline for the second round of funding ended April 30, 2026.

Related/Prior Legislation:

AB 2496 (Pellerin, Chapter 403, Statutes of 2024) authorized CDSS to temporarily waive provisions in order to facilitate the expedient transfer of an approval of a resource family from an FFA to a county. Provides that an FFA may be held liable for injury or damage caused by the negligence of the FFA, but not for the injury or damage caused by the public entity. Requires the FFA and the public entity to each bear the cost of insuring against their respective acts and omissions, and to each bear the costs of defending itself against claims arising from those risks.

AB 403 (Stone, Chapter 733, Statutes of 2015) implemented the Continuum of Care Reform effort to the state’s child welfare system, which included sunsetting existing licensure, rate-setting, and other provisions for FFAs.

COMMENTS

FFAs provide a critical role in the dependency system, providing homes to thousands of foster youth. In order to do this critical work, these homes must be insured. In the absence of such insurance, this bill continues for an additional year the temporary solution of a streamlined process for these homes to move to an insured FFA or the county.

Since 2024, CDSS reports that 28 FFAs have closed their doors. Of those, 71% ported to an FFA, and 29% ported to a county. This porting process ensures that foster youth can remain in their same placement. The temporary solution that AB 2496 proposed is set to sunset in 2027. This bill will extend the sunset another year to allow more time for a permanent solution.

PRIOR VOTES

POSITIONS

Support:

All for Kids
California Alliance of Child and Family Services

Oppose:

None received

-- END --

1. https://www.insurance.ca.gov/0250-insurers/0300-insurers/0200-bulletins/bulletin-notices-commiss-opinion/upload/Notice-Foster-Family-Liability-Insurance-Availability-August-2024.pdf ↑

Date of Hearing: April 23, 2026

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES

Alex Lee, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 2333 (

Author:Pellerin) – As Introduced Ver:February 19, 2026

SUBJECT: Child welfare nongovernmental organizations

SUMMARY: Extends the sunset of the liability protections for Foster Family Agencies (FFAs) from 2027 to 2030. Specifically, this bill extends the following provisions from 2027 to 2030:

1. It is the public policy of the State of California that FFAs or noncustodial adoption agencies provide necessary services to vulnerable youth throughout the state and are integral to the foster care system, and therefore are afforded the rights specified in 3), below.
2. An FFA may be held liable for injury or damage caused by the negligence of the FFA, but not for the injury or damage caused by the public entity, including its officers, employees, or volunteers, acting in its capacity; and specifies:
   1. The FFA and the public entity shall each bear the cost of insuring against their own respective acts and omissions; and,
   2. The entity and the FFA shall each bear the costs of defending itself against claims arising from its own risks.
3. Prohibits 2) above from being waived or suspended by any court and that any provision in a nongovernmental organization contract for child, youth, and family services in which a public entity is indemnified, held harmless, or insured for damages, claims, losses, or expenses arising from injury or damage caused by or resulting from a public entity's negligence or intentional conduct, in whole or in part, shall be void as against public policy and unenforceable.
4. Specifies that 2) above does not limit or affect the immunity provided by any other law that would otherwise be an available defense to either party.

EXISTING LAW:

1. Provides that every person is responsible, not only for the result of their willful acts, but also for an injury occasioned to another by their want of ordinary care or skill in the management of their property or person, except so far as the latter has, willfully or by want of ordinary care, brought the injury upon themselves. (Civil Code [CIV] § 1714)
2. Defines “indemnity” as a contract by which one engages to save another from a legal consequence of the conduct of one of the parties, or of some other person. (CIV § 2772)
3. Provides that an agreement to indemnify a person against an act thereafter to be done is void if the person committing the act knew it was unlawful at the time of the act. (CIV § 2773)
4. Provides that one who indemnifies another against an act to be done by the latter, is liable jointly with the person indemnified, and separately, to every person injured by such act. (CIV § 2777)
5. 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 to have been abused or neglected, as specified. (Welfare and Institutions Code [WIC] § 202)
6. Establishes a system of juvenile dependency for children for specified reasons, and designates that a child who meets certain criteria is within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court and may be adjudged as a dependent child of the court, as specified. (WIC § 300 et seq.)
7. Declares legislative intent to, whenever possible, preserve and strengthen a child’s family ties and, when a child must be removed from the physical custody of their parents, to give preferential consideration to placement with relatives. 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 the legislative intent that all children live with a committed, permanent, nurturing family and states that services and supports should be tailored to meet the specific needs of the individual child and family being served, as specified. (WIC § 16000)
8. Requires out-of-home placement of a child in foster care to be based upon the selection of a safe setting that is the least restrictive family setting that promotes normal childhood experiences and the most appropriate setting that meets the child’s individual needs and is available, in proximity to the parent’s home, in proximity to the child’s school, consistent with the selection of the environment best suited to meet the child’s special needs and best interests. (WIC § 16501.1(d)(1))
9. Defines “placing agency” to mean a county child welfare department, a county probation department, or a foster family agency with responsibility for the placement of the child or nonminor dependent. (WIC § 362.06(a)(4))
10. Defines a “resource family” to mean an individual or family that has successfully met both the home environment assessment and the permanency assessment criteria, as specified, necessary for providing care for a child placed by a public or private child placement agency by court order, or voluntarily placed by a parent or legal guardian. (Health and Safety Code [HSC] § 1517; WIC § 16519.5(c)(1))
11. Requires the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) to implement the Resource Family Approval (RFA) process as a unified, family-friendly, and child-centered 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(a))
12. Provides that approval of a resource family does not guarantee an initial, continued, or adoptive placement of a child with a resource family or with a relative or non-relative extended family member. Further, approval of a resource family does not guarantee the establishment of a legal guardianship of a child with a resource family. (WIC § 16519.5(c)(6))
13. Establishes requirements for FFAs that approve resource families, including requiring an FFA to be responsible for approving or denying resource family applications, and preparing a written evaluation of an applicant’s capacity to foster, adopt, or provide legal guardianship, as specified. (HSC § 1517(b))
14. Provides that it is the policy of this state that all persons engaged in providing care and services to foster children, including, but not limited to, foster parents, adoptive parents, relative caregivers, and other caregivers contracting with a county welfare department, shall have fair and equal access to all available programs, services, benefits, and licensing processes, and shall not be subjected to discrimination or harassment on the basis of their clients’ or their own actual or perceived race, ethnic group identification, ancestry, national origin, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, mental or physical disability, or HIV status. Further, clarifies that these provisions shall not be interpreted to create or modify existing preferences for foster parents or to limit the local placement agency’s ability to make placement decisions for a child based on the child’s best interest. (WIC § 16013)
15. States legislative intent recognizing the importance of ensuring that prospective foster family homes meet specified health and safety requirements and acknowledging that there is a further need to evaluate a licensed foster parent’s ability, readiness, and willingness to meet the varying needs of children in order to ensure competent placement resources. (WIC §1521.6(a))
16. Requires CDSS, in consultation with county placement agencies, foster care providers, and other interested community parties, to establish criteria to be used for conducting a comprehensive home study of a licensed or foster parent that evaluates the ability, readiness, and willingness of the licensed foster parent to meet the varying needs of children. (WIC §16518)

FISCAL EFFECT: This bill was keyed non-fiscal by the Legislative Counsel.

COMMENTS:

Background: Continuum of Care Reform (CCR). Over the last decade, beginning in 2015, California has enacted several pieces of legislation, known as CCR, in a collective effort between the Legislature and the Administration as a way to improve placement and treatment options for youth in foster care. Among its many goals, CCR sought to reduce the use of congregate care as a frequently used placement option for youth. CCR also included the statewide adoption of the RFA program which combines elements of foster parent licensing, relative approval, and adoption/guardianship into one process. The RFA process includes a psychosocial assessment, home environment check, and training for all resource families, including relatives, in order to ensure that caregivers are equipped to best meet the needs of youth in foster care. The provisions of AB 819 (Stone), Chapter 777, Statutes of 2019, allowed for greater RFA portability by allowing resource families to transfer from one oversight organization (licensed FFAs or counties) to another in order to allow greater flexibility for caregivers.

Foster Family Agencies. FFAs contract with county welfare departments to help find placements for children in the child welfare system. They can recruit, certify, approve, and train, and provide support to, resource families; coordinating with county placing agencies to facilitate stable placements while providing comprehensive and administrative support to resource families and the children in their care. Families report preferring to use FFAs due to more accessibility and more services offered. FFAs assist counties with their workload while ensuring families are also following the minimum applicable laws.

There are two categories of FFA programs: treatment foster care and nontreatment foster care. When an FFA providing treatment services determines that a child’s needs cannot be met in an available family home, might otherwise require group home placement, and can be addressed by the services offered by the FFA being considered, the child may be referred to that treatment FFA. By contrast, a nontreatment FFA certifies a family home to place a child who is pending adoption by that family.

Nontreatment FFAs do not deliver treatment services; they meet a child’s basic needs and may provide specialized care in a certified family home only if the placement agency has found the child’s care needs exceed those of a typical foster child and the placement county has a specialized care system.

Insurance Availability for Foster Family Agencies. As a condition of licensure, FFAs are required to have liability insurance. However, FFAs have reported that they are struggling to maintain coverage due to affordability and availability after a series of events. In 2023, a jury awarded nearly $25 million to three siblings who were sexually abused by a foster parent. The FFA who placed the children in the home, was responsible for paying for 60% of the damages ($15 million). ^[1]

This decision was appealed on the premise that the FFA could not foresee that abuse would take place. This case prompted, in August 2024, the Nonprofit Insurance Alliance of California (NIAC), which provided coverage to 90% of FFAs, to announce that it would have to stop renewing liability coverage policies. As a result of this announcement, Insurance Commissioner Lara issued a memo^[2] on August 23, 2024, detailing that NIAC had begun issuing nonrenewal notices to some FFAs, as well as paused acceptance of coverage for new FFAs, due to recent high-valued court judgment settlements against FFAs. The memo explains that this has resulted in FFAs being unable to obtain mandatory insurance coverage at an affordable rate. The memo concludes, “This lack of coverage will likely force many FFAs to start shuttering their programs, thus upending the stability of the foster children and youth that they serve. On a larger scale, thousands of foster children and youth are potentially at risk of losing their current FFA placement.” Further, the memo urged state-admitted insurance companies to provide coverage options for FFAs.

Due to NIAC announcing they were no longer renewing FFA policies, AB 2496 (Pellerin), Chapter 403, Statutes of 2024, was introduced and signed into law as an urgency measure to offer a temporary solution. AB 2496 created a streamlined process to allow families being serviced by FFAs to more seamlessly transfer their RFA approval to the appropriate county or another operational FFA. And, provided that FFAs shall not indemnify a public entity for harms caused by the entity’s own negligent or intentional acts. The indemnification provisions are set to sunset on January 1, 2027, because they were intended as a temporary solution. This bill extends only the indemnification language until 2030.

In addition to AB 2496, the Budget Act of 2025 provided $31.5 million to support the continued operation of FFA providers impacted by the potential increase in liability insurance premiums. This money is administered by CDSS through an application process, which includes documentation demonstrating that the provider has experienced an increase in the cost of their liability insurance.^[3] The majority of the funds were allocated in the first round of funding with about $7.5 million available for distribution in the second round of funding. The second round of funding was announced on January 21, 2026, with an application deadline of April 30, 2026.^[4]

According to CDSS, since July 2024, 28 FFAs have closed their doors. Of these closures, approximately 71% of the homes have ported to an FFA, and 29% have ported to counties.

This means that placements for foster youth remain the same despite the FFA that approved the placement closing its doors.

Author’s Statement: According to the Author, “Foster family agencies, known as FFAs, serve some of the most vulnerable children in public care. These nonprofit organizations provide invaluable support and guidance to foster families and are an integral part of California’s foster system. In recent years, FFAs have struggled to access liability insurance and in August of 2024, the insurer of 90% of California’s FFAs announced that it would non-renew its contracts with FFAs. Since then, over two dozen FFAs have closed their doors. FFAs that have been able to secure liability coverage have faced six-digit premium increases, representing increases of 200 to 400%.

“In response to the looming insurance crisis, I authored AB 2496 in 2024, which provided that FFAs could not be held liable for harm caused by the actions or negligence of the county and that FFAs and counties bear the costs of insuring themselves against their respective acts and omissions.

“In 2025, the California Department of Social Services was required to report to the Legislature available options to make insurance available to foster family agencies. Unfortunately, this report has not yet materialized and DSS has yet to make concrete recommendations to the Legislature. In order to ensure that the insurance market does not deteriorate further while a long-term solution is found, [this bill] extends the sunset date of the indemnification provisions of AB 2496 from January 1, 2027 to January 1, 2030.”

Policy Considerations: On February 3, 2026, Speaker Rivas announced an oversight review process that selected legislation to look back upon and review the impact of the implementation. As a part of this process, AB 2496 was selected. As such, this Committee will be conducting a hearing in the summer of 2026 to examine the implementation of AB 2496 and how youth have been impacted. Due to the timing of the oversight and the timing of the legislative process, this bill was introduced to take action. However, pending the full oversight review, it is unclear if a three-year extension is appropriate.

Proposed Committee Amendments: The Committee proposes amendments to address policy considerations stated above to do the following:

• Extend the sunset to 2028 instead of 2030.

RELATED AND PRIOR LEGISLATION:

AB 2496 (Pellerin), Chapter 403, Statutes of 2024, See comments above.

REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:

Support

None on file.

Opposition

None on file.

Analysis Prepared by: Alexandria Smith / HUM. S. / (916) 319-2089

1. https://imprintnews.org/youth-services-insider/insurance-cliff-coming-california-foster-care/251572 ↑

2. https://www.insurance.ca.gov/0250-insurers/0300-insurers/0200-bulletins/bulletin-notices-commiss-opinion/upload/Notice-Foster-Family-Liability-Insurance-Availability-August-2024.pdf ↑

3. https://www.cdss.ca.gov/Portals/9/FCARB/FCARL/FCARL2025-03.pdf?ver=6ao2whsTZqkMBx-dd9e9Lw%3d%3d ↑

4. https://www.cdss.ca.gov/Portals/9/FCARB/FCARL/FCARL2026-01.pdf?ver=TmeRfVrRdZHCd9_C33Ldng%3d%3d ↑