BILL NUMBER: SB 1089AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY AUGUST 6, 2012 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JULY 3, 2012 AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 17, 2012 AMENDED IN SENATE MARCH 19, 2012 INTRODUCED BY Senator Liu (Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Portantino) FEBRUARY 15, 2012 An act to add Section 1502.2 to the Health and Safety Code, relating to care facilities. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SB 1089, as amended, Liu. Alternative treatment facilities for youth. Existing law, the California Community Care Facilities Act (the act), provides for the licensure and regulation of community care and residential facilities by the State Department of Social Services. Under existing law, a violation of any of these provisions is punishable as a misdemeanor. This bill would define "private nontraditional alternative treatment facility for youth," for purposes of the act. The bill would prohibit a person, firm, partnership, association organization, or corporation from operating, establishing, managing, conducting, or maintaining these type of treatment facilities unless licensing provisions are met and components of the program are accredited by an approved organization, as specified. The bill would prohibit a private nontraditional alternative treatment facility for youth from using corporal punishment, as defined. By adding private nontraditional alternative treatment facilities for youth to the act, this bill would create a new crime and 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. State-mandated local program: yes. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following: (a) Youth "boot camps," "ranch camps," "forestry camps," or other nontraditional treatment programs are intended to be less restrictive treatment options for children with significant behavioral issues. (b) Since the 1990s, hundreds of these programs have been established nationwide, with thousands of allegations of abuse, including death. (c) These programs are administered by nonprofit organizations described in Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. (d) These programs advertise services for youth with behavioral issues to families who may feel they have few other options. (e) These boot camps are shown to utilize high-risk tactics on children, such as extreme physical exertion. (f) A particularly troubling instance of neglect and abuse of power surfaced in 2011 at a youth boot camp in Pasadena, California, including allegations of kidnapping, child abuse, child endangerment, extortion, and unlawful use of a badge. (g) The few boot camp-style programs for youth that operate in California do so without licensure. (h) Boot camps that fail to apply for a license put children at risk. (i) It is the role of the Legislature to ensure proper licensing and regulation of social service providers for the protection and care of all citizens. SEC. 2. Section 1502.2 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read: 1502.2. "Private nontraditional alternative treatment facility for youth" means any residential or nonresidential facility or program operated by an organization that provides aggressive nontraditional punitive, retaliatory, aversive, or military style behavioral treatment or intervention services for youth. (a) No person, firm, partnership, association organization, or corporation shall operate, establish, manage, conduct, or maintain a private nontraditional alternative treatment facility for youth, unless the applicable licensing requirements are met and all components of the program are accredited by an independent nonprofit accrediting organization approved by the department, including the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation International or the Joint Commission. (b) Corporal punishment shall not be used in any private nontraditional alternative treatment facility for youth. (c) For the purposes of this section, "corporal punishment" means willfully causing the infliction of physical pain or injury on a child through physical contact, verbal or emotional harassment, intimidation, humiliation, exploitation, or abuse. (d) A resolution, bylaw, rule, ordinance, or any other act or authority permitting or authorizing the operation of a private nontraditional alternative treatment facility for youth that does not comply with this section is void and unenforceable. (e) Private nontraditional alternative treatment facilities for youth do not include programs under the jurisdiction of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, the Division of Juvenile Facilities, the State Department of Education, county-operated facilities or programs , community care facilities as defined in Section 1502 , or a residential or nonresidential behavior program for youth with developmental disabilities that is under the jurisdiction of the State Department of Developmental Services or vendorized by a regional center pursuant to Division 4.5 (commencing with Section 4500) of the Welfare and Institutions Code. SEC. 3. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because 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.