Bill Text: CA AB163 | 2019-2020 | Regular Session | Introduced

California Assembly Bill 163 (Prior Session Legislation)

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

Bill Title: Services for unaccompanied undocumented minors: facilities liaison.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 15-0)

Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2019-08-30 - In committee: Held under submission. [AB163 Detail]

Download: California-2019-AB163-Introduced.html

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2019–2020 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 163

Introduced by Assembly Members Cristina Garcia and Blanca Rubio
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Aguiar-Curry, Bonta, Chu, Eggman, Eduardo Garcia, Gipson, Kalra, Limón, McCarty, Medina, and Reyes)

January 07, 2019

An act to add Sections 1538.91 and 1538.92 to the Health and Safety Code, relating to care facilities.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 163, as introduced, Cristina Garcia. Group homes: foster family agencies: unaccompanied undocumented minors.

Existing law, the California Community Care Facilities Act, provides for the licensure and regulation of community care facilities, including group homes and foster family agencies, by the State Department of Social Services. Existing law subjects every licensed community care facility, except as specified, to unannounced inspections by the department, and authorizes the department to inspect these facilities as often as necessary to ensure the quality of care provided. A violation of this act is a misdemeanor.

Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services, subject to the availability of funding, to contract with qualified nonprofit legal services organizations to provide legal services to unaccompanied undocumented minors, as defined, who are transferred to the care and custody of the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement and who are present in this state.

This bill would require a group home or foster family agency that houses unaccompanied undocumented minors, as defined, who are under the custody of the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement, to, among other things, report the number of unaccompanied undocumented minors under the custody of the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement who are placed in the group home or placed by the foster family agency with a resource family and their length of placement, and arrange a meeting for those minors to meet with a specified organization providing certain legal services. The bill would require a county child welfare department representative to meet with each unaccompanied undocumented minor under the custody of the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement who is placed in a group home or placed by the foster family agency with a resource family to assess the well-being of the minor and to offer mental health services to the minor. The bill would require the department to inspect each group home and each foster family agency, and its resource families, with those minors at least once each quarter to ensure compliance with the act and the quality of care provided. Because the failure of a group home or foster family agency to comply with these provisions would be a misdemeanor, and the bill would impose new requirements on county officials, the bill would impose a state-mandated local 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.

Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: YES

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

SECTION 1.

Section 1538.91 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read:

1538.91.

(a) A group home or foster family agency that houses unaccompanied undocumented minors who are under the custody of the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement shall do all of the following:

(1) Report both of the following to the department on a quarterly basis:

(A) The number of unaccompanied undocumented minors under the custody of the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement who are placed in the group home or placed by the foster family agency with a resource family.

(B) The length of placement for the minors specified in subparagraph (A).

(2) Arrange a meeting for each unaccompanied undocumented minor under the custody of the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement to meet with a qualified organization that has received a grant to provide legal services to unaccompanied undocumented minors pursuant to Chapter 5.6 (commencing with Section 13300) of Part 3 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

(3) Provide access to the county child welfare department to meet with unaccompanied undocumented minors under the custody of the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement, so that the minors may be assessed and offered mental health services.

(b) A county child welfare department representative shall meet with each unaccompanied undocumented minor under the custody of the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement who is placed in a group home or placed by the foster family agency with a resource family to assess the well-being of the minor and to offer mental health services to the minor.

(c) For purposes of this section, “unaccompanied undocumented minor” has the same meaning as defined in Section 13300 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

SEC. 2.

Section 1538.92 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read:

1538.92.

At least once each quarter, the department shall inspect each group home and each foster family agency, and the resource families used by the foster family agency, that houses unaccompanied undocumented minors, as defined in Section 13300 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, who are under the custody of the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement to ensure compliance with this chapter and the quality of care provided.

SEC. 3.

To the extent that this act has an overall effect of increasing the costs already borne by a local agency for programs or levels of service mandated by the 2011 Realignment Legislation within the meaning of Section 36 of Article XIII of the California Constitution, it shall apply to local agencies only to the extent that the state provides annual funding for the cost increase. Any new program or higher level of service provided by a local agency pursuant to this act above the level for which funding has been provided shall not require a subvention of funds by the state or otherwise be subject to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.

With regard to certain other costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district, no reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because, in that regard, this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.