Amended IN Assembly May 25, 2018 Amended IN Assembly March 19, 2018 CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE 20172018 REGULAR SESSION Assembly Bill No. 2083Introduced by Assembly Member CooleyFebruary 07, 2018 An act to add Section 16521.6 to the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to foster youth.LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGESTAB 2083, as amended, Cooley. Foster youth: trauma-informed system of care.Existing law, commonly known as Continuum of Care Reform (CCR), states the intent of the Legislature in adopting CCR to improve Californias child welfare system and its outcomes by using specified measures, including an increase in the use of home-based family care. Existing law, as part of CCR, provides for the implementation of the resource family approval process, which replaces the multiple processes for licensing foster family homes, certifying foster homes by foster family agencies, approving relatives and nonrelative extended family members as foster care providers, and approving guardians and adoptive families.As part of the resource family approval process, a county is responsible for, among other things, ensuring that a resource family applicant completes specified training that includes certain courses, including one regarding the effects of trauma and child abuse and neglect on child development and behavior, and methods to behaviorally support children impacted by that trauma or child abuse and neglect. Existing law also establishes an intensive services foster care program, developed by the State Department of Social Services, that provides specialized programs to serve children with specific needs, and requires training for that program to include, among other things, information relating to working with children who have experienced trauma.This bill would state the intent of the Legislature in adopting the bill to build upon the current CCR implementation effort by, among other things, developing a coordinated, timely, and trauma-informed system-of-care approach for foster children and youth who have experienced severe trauma. The bill would require each county to develop and implement a memorandum of understanding, as specified, setting forth the roles and responsibilities of agencies and other entities that serve children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma. ByThis bill would require the memorandum of understanding to include, at a minimum, provisions addressing, among other things, the establishment and operation of an interagency leadership team and an interagency placement committee. The bill would authorize members of the team and committee, to the extent permitted by federal law, to disclose to, and exchange with, one another information or a writing that may be designated as confidential under state law if certain conditions are met, and would make any discussion concerning the disclosed or exchanged information or writing during a team or committee meeting confidential and not open to public inspection.By creating new duties for county officials relating to foster care services, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.This bill would require the Secretary of California Health and Human Services and the Superintendent of Public Instruction, no later than June 1, 2019, to establish a joint interagency resolution team, consisting of representatives from specified state departments, whose primary roles would be to develop guidance and provide support and technical assistance to counties with regard to those children and youth and the memoranda of understanding, as specified. The bill would also require the team, no later than January 1, 2020, in consultation with specified entities and persons, to review the placement and service options available to county child welfare agencies and county probation departments for those children and youth, to develop and submit recommendations to the Legislature, regarding identified gaps in placement, needed services, a statewide, pooled financing structure, and a centralized process for services, as specified, and, no later than June 1, 2020, to develop a multiyear plan for increasing the capacity and delivery of trauma-informed care to foster children and youth served by short-term residential therapeutic programs and other foster care and behavioral health providers.Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest.This bill would make legislative findings to that effect.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.Digest Key Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: YES Bill TextThe people of the State of California do enact as follows:SECTION 1. It is the intent of the Legislature in adopting this act to build upon the current Continuum of Care Reform implementation effort by developing a coordinated, timely, and trauma-informed system-of-care approach for foster children and youth who have experienced severe trauma, implementing related memoranda of understanding on the county level, and establishing a joint interagency resolution team on the state level to assist counties in serving those children and youth.SEC. 2. Section 16521.6 is added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read:16521.6. To ensure that coordinated, timely, and trauma-informed services are provided to children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma, all of the following shall be met:(a) (1) Each county shall develop and implement a memorandum of understanding setting forth the roles and responsibilities of agencies and other entities that serve children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma. Participants in the development and implementation of the memorandum of understanding shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following:(A) The county child welfare agency.(B) The county probation department.(C) The county behavioral health departments.(D) The county office of education.(E) The regional center or centers that serve children and youth with developmental disabilities in the county.(2) The memorandum of understanding shall include, at a minimum, provisions addressing all of the following:(A) Establishment and operation of an interagency leadership team.(B) Establishment and operation of an interagency placement committee.(C) Commitment to implementation of an integrated core practice model.(D) Processes for screening, assessment, and entry to care.(E) Processes for child and family teaming and universal service planning.(F) Alignment and coordination of transportation and other foster youth services.(G) Recruitment and management of resource families and delivery of therapeutic foster care services.(H) Information and data sharing agreements.(I) Staff recruitment, training, and coaching.(J) Financial resource management and cost sharing.(K) Dispute resolution.(3) Members of the interagency leadership team and the interagency placement committee described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (2), respectively, may, to the extent permitted by federal law, disclose to, and exchange with, one another information or a writing that may be designated as confidential under state law if the member of the team or committee having that information or writing reasonably believes it is generally relevant to the identification, reduction, or elimination of barriers to services for, or to placement of, children and youth in foster care or to improve provision of those services or those placements. Any discussion concerning the disclosed or exchanged information or writing during a team or committee meeting is confidential and shall not be open to public inspection.(b) (1) (A) No later than June 1, 2019, the Secretary of California Health and Human Services and the Superintendent of Public Instruction shall establish a joint interagency resolution team consisting of representatives from the State Department of Social Services, the State Department of Health Care Services, the State Department of Developmental Services, and the State Department of Education.(B) (i) The primary roles of the joint interagency resolution team shall be to develop guidance to counties, county offices of education, and regional centers with regard to developing the memoranda of understanding required by this section, to support the implementation of those memoranda of understanding, and to provide technical assistance to counties to identify and secure the appropriate level of services to meet the needs of children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma.(ii) The roles described in clause (i) shall include, but not be limited to, development of a process for case-specific intervention in circumstances in which a county needs state-level assistance to meet the service or placement needs of a severely traumatized child or youth in foster care. That assistance shall be prioritized to maintain the children and youth in their communities of origin and in home-based placements whenever possible.(2) (A) No later than January 1, 2020, the joint interagency resolution team, in consultation with county agencies, service providers, and advocates for children and resource families, shall review the placement and service options available to county child welfare agencies and county probation departments for children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma and shall develop and submit recommendations to the Legislature addressing any identified gaps in placement types or availability, needed services to resource families, or other identified issues. A(B) As part of the review and recommendation process described in subparagraph (A), the joint interagency resolution team shall also develop and submit to the Legislature, no later than January 1, 2020, options and recommendations for a statewide, pooled financing structure and a process for centralized entry, authorization, and access to services to ensure the provision of treatment and services to foster children and youth with intensive needs.(C) A report submitted to the Legislature pursuant to this paragraph shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.(3) No later than June 1, 2020, the joint interagency resolution team, in consultation with county agencies, service providers, behavioral health professionals, schools of social work, and advocates for children and resource families, shall develop a multiyear plan for increasing the capacity and delivery of trauma-informed care to foster children and youth served by short-term residential therapeutic programs and other foster care and behavioral health providers.SEC. 3. The Legislature finds and declares that Section 2 of this act, which adds Section 16521.6 to the Welfare and Institutions Code, imposes a limitation on the publics right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies within the meaning of Section 3 of Article I of the California Constitution. Pursuant to that constitutional provision, the Legislature makes the following findings to demonstrate the interest protected by this limitation and the need for protecting that interest:The Legislature finds and declares that in order to protect the privacy of children and youth in foster care, it is necessary that any discussion, during a meeting by a county interagency leadership team or interagency placement committee that is established pursuant to this act, concerning information or a writing disclosed or exchanged pursuant to this act by a member of the team or committee, be confidential.SEC. 3.SEC. 4. 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 XIIIB of the California Constitution.
Amended IN Assembly May 25, 2018 Amended IN Assembly March 19, 2018 CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE 20172018 REGULAR SESSION Assembly Bill No. 2083Introduced by Assembly Member CooleyFebruary 07, 2018 An act to add Section 16521.6 to the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to foster youth.LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGESTAB 2083, as amended, Cooley. Foster youth: trauma-informed system of care.Existing law, commonly known as Continuum of Care Reform (CCR), states the intent of the Legislature in adopting CCR to improve Californias child welfare system and its outcomes by using specified measures, including an increase in the use of home-based family care. Existing law, as part of CCR, provides for the implementation of the resource family approval process, which replaces the multiple processes for licensing foster family homes, certifying foster homes by foster family agencies, approving relatives and nonrelative extended family members as foster care providers, and approving guardians and adoptive families.As part of the resource family approval process, a county is responsible for, among other things, ensuring that a resource family applicant completes specified training that includes certain courses, including one regarding the effects of trauma and child abuse and neglect on child development and behavior, and methods to behaviorally support children impacted by that trauma or child abuse and neglect. Existing law also establishes an intensive services foster care program, developed by the State Department of Social Services, that provides specialized programs to serve children with specific needs, and requires training for that program to include, among other things, information relating to working with children who have experienced trauma.This bill would state the intent of the Legislature in adopting the bill to build upon the current CCR implementation effort by, among other things, developing a coordinated, timely, and trauma-informed system-of-care approach for foster children and youth who have experienced severe trauma. The bill would require each county to develop and implement a memorandum of understanding, as specified, setting forth the roles and responsibilities of agencies and other entities that serve children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma. ByThis bill would require the memorandum of understanding to include, at a minimum, provisions addressing, among other things, the establishment and operation of an interagency leadership team and an interagency placement committee. The bill would authorize members of the team and committee, to the extent permitted by federal law, to disclose to, and exchange with, one another information or a writing that may be designated as confidential under state law if certain conditions are met, and would make any discussion concerning the disclosed or exchanged information or writing during a team or committee meeting confidential and not open to public inspection.By creating new duties for county officials relating to foster care services, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.This bill would require the Secretary of California Health and Human Services and the Superintendent of Public Instruction, no later than June 1, 2019, to establish a joint interagency resolution team, consisting of representatives from specified state departments, whose primary roles would be to develop guidance and provide support and technical assistance to counties with regard to those children and youth and the memoranda of understanding, as specified. The bill would also require the team, no later than January 1, 2020, in consultation with specified entities and persons, to review the placement and service options available to county child welfare agencies and county probation departments for those children and youth, to develop and submit recommendations to the Legislature, regarding identified gaps in placement, needed services, a statewide, pooled financing structure, and a centralized process for services, as specified, and, no later than June 1, 2020, to develop a multiyear plan for increasing the capacity and delivery of trauma-informed care to foster children and youth served by short-term residential therapeutic programs and other foster care and behavioral health providers.Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest.This bill would make legislative findings to that effect.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.Digest Key Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: YES
Amended IN Assembly May 25, 2018 Amended IN Assembly March 19, 2018
Amended IN Assembly May 25, 2018
Amended IN Assembly March 19, 2018
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE 20172018 REGULAR SESSION
Assembly Bill No. 2083
Introduced by Assembly Member CooleyFebruary 07, 2018
Introduced by Assembly Member Cooley
February 07, 2018
An act to add Section 16521.6 to the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to foster youth.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
## LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2083, as amended, Cooley. Foster youth: trauma-informed system of care.
Existing law, commonly known as Continuum of Care Reform (CCR), states the intent of the Legislature in adopting CCR to improve Californias child welfare system and its outcomes by using specified measures, including an increase in the use of home-based family care. Existing law, as part of CCR, provides for the implementation of the resource family approval process, which replaces the multiple processes for licensing foster family homes, certifying foster homes by foster family agencies, approving relatives and nonrelative extended family members as foster care providers, and approving guardians and adoptive families.As part of the resource family approval process, a county is responsible for, among other things, ensuring that a resource family applicant completes specified training that includes certain courses, including one regarding the effects of trauma and child abuse and neglect on child development and behavior, and methods to behaviorally support children impacted by that trauma or child abuse and neglect. Existing law also establishes an intensive services foster care program, developed by the State Department of Social Services, that provides specialized programs to serve children with specific needs, and requires training for that program to include, among other things, information relating to working with children who have experienced trauma.This bill would state the intent of the Legislature in adopting the bill to build upon the current CCR implementation effort by, among other things, developing a coordinated, timely, and trauma-informed system-of-care approach for foster children and youth who have experienced severe trauma. The bill would require each county to develop and implement a memorandum of understanding, as specified, setting forth the roles and responsibilities of agencies and other entities that serve children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma. ByThis bill would require the memorandum of understanding to include, at a minimum, provisions addressing, among other things, the establishment and operation of an interagency leadership team and an interagency placement committee. The bill would authorize members of the team and committee, to the extent permitted by federal law, to disclose to, and exchange with, one another information or a writing that may be designated as confidential under state law if certain conditions are met, and would make any discussion concerning the disclosed or exchanged information or writing during a team or committee meeting confidential and not open to public inspection.By creating new duties for county officials relating to foster care services, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.This bill would require the Secretary of California Health and Human Services and the Superintendent of Public Instruction, no later than June 1, 2019, to establish a joint interagency resolution team, consisting of representatives from specified state departments, whose primary roles would be to develop guidance and provide support and technical assistance to counties with regard to those children and youth and the memoranda of understanding, as specified. The bill would also require the team, no later than January 1, 2020, in consultation with specified entities and persons, to review the placement and service options available to county child welfare agencies and county probation departments for those children and youth, to develop and submit recommendations to the Legislature, regarding identified gaps in placement, needed services, a statewide, pooled financing structure, and a centralized process for services, as specified, and, no later than June 1, 2020, to develop a multiyear plan for increasing the capacity and delivery of trauma-informed care to foster children and youth served by short-term residential therapeutic programs and other foster care and behavioral health providers.Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest.This bill would make legislative findings to that effect.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.
Existing law, commonly known as Continuum of Care Reform (CCR), states the intent of the Legislature in adopting CCR to improve Californias child welfare system and its outcomes by using specified measures, including an increase in the use of home-based family care. Existing law, as part of CCR, provides for the implementation of the resource family approval process, which replaces the multiple processes for licensing foster family homes, certifying foster homes by foster family agencies, approving relatives and nonrelative extended family members as foster care providers, and approving guardians and adoptive families.
As part of the resource family approval process, a county is responsible for, among other things, ensuring that a resource family applicant completes specified training that includes certain courses, including one regarding the effects of trauma and child abuse and neglect on child development and behavior, and methods to behaviorally support children impacted by that trauma or child abuse and neglect. Existing law also establishes an intensive services foster care program, developed by the State Department of Social Services, that provides specialized programs to serve children with specific needs, and requires training for that program to include, among other things, information relating to working with children who have experienced trauma.
This bill would state the intent of the Legislature in adopting the bill to build upon the current CCR implementation effort by, among other things, developing a coordinated, timely, and trauma-informed system-of-care approach for foster children and youth who have experienced severe trauma. The bill would require each county to develop and implement a memorandum of understanding, as specified, setting forth the roles and responsibilities of agencies and other entities that serve children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma. By
This bill would require the memorandum of understanding to include, at a minimum, provisions addressing, among other things, the establishment and operation of an interagency leadership team and an interagency placement committee. The bill would authorize members of the team and committee, to the extent permitted by federal law, to disclose to, and exchange with, one another information or a writing that may be designated as confidential under state law if certain conditions are met, and would make any discussion concerning the disclosed or exchanged information or writing during a team or committee meeting confidential and not open to public inspection.
By creating new duties for county officials relating to foster care services, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
This bill would require the Secretary of California Health and Human Services and the Superintendent of Public Instruction, no later than June 1, 2019, to establish a joint interagency resolution team, consisting of representatives from specified state departments, whose primary roles would be to develop guidance and provide support and technical assistance to counties with regard to those children and youth and the memoranda of understanding, as specified. The bill would also require the team, no later than January 1, 2020, in consultation with specified entities and persons, to review the placement and service options available to county child welfare agencies and county probation departments for those children and youth, to develop and submit recommendations to the Legislature, regarding identified gaps in placement, needed services, a statewide, pooled financing structure, and a centralized process for services, as specified, and, no later than June 1, 2020, to develop a multiyear plan for increasing the capacity and delivery of trauma-informed care to foster children and youth served by short-term residential therapeutic programs and other foster care and behavioral health providers.
Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest.
This bill would make legislative findings to that effect.
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.
## Digest Key
## Bill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:SECTION 1. It is the intent of the Legislature in adopting this act to build upon the current Continuum of Care Reform implementation effort by developing a coordinated, timely, and trauma-informed system-of-care approach for foster children and youth who have experienced severe trauma, implementing related memoranda of understanding on the county level, and establishing a joint interagency resolution team on the state level to assist counties in serving those children and youth.SEC. 2. Section 16521.6 is added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read:16521.6. To ensure that coordinated, timely, and trauma-informed services are provided to children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma, all of the following shall be met:(a) (1) Each county shall develop and implement a memorandum of understanding setting forth the roles and responsibilities of agencies and other entities that serve children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma. Participants in the development and implementation of the memorandum of understanding shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following:(A) The county child welfare agency.(B) The county probation department.(C) The county behavioral health departments.(D) The county office of education.(E) The regional center or centers that serve children and youth with developmental disabilities in the county.(2) The memorandum of understanding shall include, at a minimum, provisions addressing all of the following:(A) Establishment and operation of an interagency leadership team.(B) Establishment and operation of an interagency placement committee.(C) Commitment to implementation of an integrated core practice model.(D) Processes for screening, assessment, and entry to care.(E) Processes for child and family teaming and universal service planning.(F) Alignment and coordination of transportation and other foster youth services.(G) Recruitment and management of resource families and delivery of therapeutic foster care services.(H) Information and data sharing agreements.(I) Staff recruitment, training, and coaching.(J) Financial resource management and cost sharing.(K) Dispute resolution.(3) Members of the interagency leadership team and the interagency placement committee described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (2), respectively, may, to the extent permitted by federal law, disclose to, and exchange with, one another information or a writing that may be designated as confidential under state law if the member of the team or committee having that information or writing reasonably believes it is generally relevant to the identification, reduction, or elimination of barriers to services for, or to placement of, children and youth in foster care or to improve provision of those services or those placements. Any discussion concerning the disclosed or exchanged information or writing during a team or committee meeting is confidential and shall not be open to public inspection.(b) (1) (A) No later than June 1, 2019, the Secretary of California Health and Human Services and the Superintendent of Public Instruction shall establish a joint interagency resolution team consisting of representatives from the State Department of Social Services, the State Department of Health Care Services, the State Department of Developmental Services, and the State Department of Education.(B) (i) The primary roles of the joint interagency resolution team shall be to develop guidance to counties, county offices of education, and regional centers with regard to developing the memoranda of understanding required by this section, to support the implementation of those memoranda of understanding, and to provide technical assistance to counties to identify and secure the appropriate level of services to meet the needs of children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma.(ii) The roles described in clause (i) shall include, but not be limited to, development of a process for case-specific intervention in circumstances in which a county needs state-level assistance to meet the service or placement needs of a severely traumatized child or youth in foster care. That assistance shall be prioritized to maintain the children and youth in their communities of origin and in home-based placements whenever possible.(2) (A) No later than January 1, 2020, the joint interagency resolution team, in consultation with county agencies, service providers, and advocates for children and resource families, shall review the placement and service options available to county child welfare agencies and county probation departments for children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma and shall develop and submit recommendations to the Legislature addressing any identified gaps in placement types or availability, needed services to resource families, or other identified issues. A(B) As part of the review and recommendation process described in subparagraph (A), the joint interagency resolution team shall also develop and submit to the Legislature, no later than January 1, 2020, options and recommendations for a statewide, pooled financing structure and a process for centralized entry, authorization, and access to services to ensure the provision of treatment and services to foster children and youth with intensive needs.(C) A report submitted to the Legislature pursuant to this paragraph shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.(3) No later than June 1, 2020, the joint interagency resolution team, in consultation with county agencies, service providers, behavioral health professionals, schools of social work, and advocates for children and resource families, shall develop a multiyear plan for increasing the capacity and delivery of trauma-informed care to foster children and youth served by short-term residential therapeutic programs and other foster care and behavioral health providers.SEC. 3. The Legislature finds and declares that Section 2 of this act, which adds Section 16521.6 to the Welfare and Institutions Code, imposes a limitation on the publics right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies within the meaning of Section 3 of Article I of the California Constitution. Pursuant to that constitutional provision, the Legislature makes the following findings to demonstrate the interest protected by this limitation and the need for protecting that interest:The Legislature finds and declares that in order to protect the privacy of children and youth in foster care, it is necessary that any discussion, during a meeting by a county interagency leadership team or interagency placement committee that is established pursuant to this act, concerning information or a writing disclosed or exchanged pursuant to this act by a member of the team or committee, be confidential.SEC. 3.SEC. 4. 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 XIIIB of the California Constitution.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
## The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1. It is the intent of the Legislature in adopting this act to build upon the current Continuum of Care Reform implementation effort by developing a coordinated, timely, and trauma-informed system-of-care approach for foster children and youth who have experienced severe trauma, implementing related memoranda of understanding on the county level, and establishing a joint interagency resolution team on the state level to assist counties in serving those children and youth.
SECTION 1. It is the intent of the Legislature in adopting this act to build upon the current Continuum of Care Reform implementation effort by developing a coordinated, timely, and trauma-informed system-of-care approach for foster children and youth who have experienced severe trauma, implementing related memoranda of understanding on the county level, and establishing a joint interagency resolution team on the state level to assist counties in serving those children and youth.
SECTION 1. It is the intent of the Legislature in adopting this act to build upon the current Continuum of Care Reform implementation effort by developing a coordinated, timely, and trauma-informed system-of-care approach for foster children and youth who have experienced severe trauma, implementing related memoranda of understanding on the county level, and establishing a joint interagency resolution team on the state level to assist counties in serving those children and youth.
### SECTION 1.
SEC. 2. Section 16521.6 is added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read:16521.6. To ensure that coordinated, timely, and trauma-informed services are provided to children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma, all of the following shall be met:(a) (1) Each county shall develop and implement a memorandum of understanding setting forth the roles and responsibilities of agencies and other entities that serve children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma. Participants in the development and implementation of the memorandum of understanding shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following:(A) The county child welfare agency.(B) The county probation department.(C) The county behavioral health departments.(D) The county office of education.(E) The regional center or centers that serve children and youth with developmental disabilities in the county.(2) The memorandum of understanding shall include, at a minimum, provisions addressing all of the following:(A) Establishment and operation of an interagency leadership team.(B) Establishment and operation of an interagency placement committee.(C) Commitment to implementation of an integrated core practice model.(D) Processes for screening, assessment, and entry to care.(E) Processes for child and family teaming and universal service planning.(F) Alignment and coordination of transportation and other foster youth services.(G) Recruitment and management of resource families and delivery of therapeutic foster care services.(H) Information and data sharing agreements.(I) Staff recruitment, training, and coaching.(J) Financial resource management and cost sharing.(K) Dispute resolution.(3) Members of the interagency leadership team and the interagency placement committee described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (2), respectively, may, to the extent permitted by federal law, disclose to, and exchange with, one another information or a writing that may be designated as confidential under state law if the member of the team or committee having that information or writing reasonably believes it is generally relevant to the identification, reduction, or elimination of barriers to services for, or to placement of, children and youth in foster care or to improve provision of those services or those placements. Any discussion concerning the disclosed or exchanged information or writing during a team or committee meeting is confidential and shall not be open to public inspection.(b) (1) (A) No later than June 1, 2019, the Secretary of California Health and Human Services and the Superintendent of Public Instruction shall establish a joint interagency resolution team consisting of representatives from the State Department of Social Services, the State Department of Health Care Services, the State Department of Developmental Services, and the State Department of Education.(B) (i) The primary roles of the joint interagency resolution team shall be to develop guidance to counties, county offices of education, and regional centers with regard to developing the memoranda of understanding required by this section, to support the implementation of those memoranda of understanding, and to provide technical assistance to counties to identify and secure the appropriate level of services to meet the needs of children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma.(ii) The roles described in clause (i) shall include, but not be limited to, development of a process for case-specific intervention in circumstances in which a county needs state-level assistance to meet the service or placement needs of a severely traumatized child or youth in foster care. That assistance shall be prioritized to maintain the children and youth in their communities of origin and in home-based placements whenever possible.(2) (A) No later than January 1, 2020, the joint interagency resolution team, in consultation with county agencies, service providers, and advocates for children and resource families, shall review the placement and service options available to county child welfare agencies and county probation departments for children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma and shall develop and submit recommendations to the Legislature addressing any identified gaps in placement types or availability, needed services to resource families, or other identified issues. A(B) As part of the review and recommendation process described in subparagraph (A), the joint interagency resolution team shall also develop and submit to the Legislature, no later than January 1, 2020, options and recommendations for a statewide, pooled financing structure and a process for centralized entry, authorization, and access to services to ensure the provision of treatment and services to foster children and youth with intensive needs.(C) A report submitted to the Legislature pursuant to this paragraph shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.(3) No later than June 1, 2020, the joint interagency resolution team, in consultation with county agencies, service providers, behavioral health professionals, schools of social work, and advocates for children and resource families, shall develop a multiyear plan for increasing the capacity and delivery of trauma-informed care to foster children and youth served by short-term residential therapeutic programs and other foster care and behavioral health providers.
SEC. 2. Section 16521.6 is added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read:
### SEC. 2.
16521.6. To ensure that coordinated, timely, and trauma-informed services are provided to children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma, all of the following shall be met:(a) (1) Each county shall develop and implement a memorandum of understanding setting forth the roles and responsibilities of agencies and other entities that serve children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma. Participants in the development and implementation of the memorandum of understanding shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following:(A) The county child welfare agency.(B) The county probation department.(C) The county behavioral health departments.(D) The county office of education.(E) The regional center or centers that serve children and youth with developmental disabilities in the county.(2) The memorandum of understanding shall include, at a minimum, provisions addressing all of the following:(A) Establishment and operation of an interagency leadership team.(B) Establishment and operation of an interagency placement committee.(C) Commitment to implementation of an integrated core practice model.(D) Processes for screening, assessment, and entry to care.(E) Processes for child and family teaming and universal service planning.(F) Alignment and coordination of transportation and other foster youth services.(G) Recruitment and management of resource families and delivery of therapeutic foster care services.(H) Information and data sharing agreements.(I) Staff recruitment, training, and coaching.(J) Financial resource management and cost sharing.(K) Dispute resolution.(3) Members of the interagency leadership team and the interagency placement committee described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (2), respectively, may, to the extent permitted by federal law, disclose to, and exchange with, one another information or a writing that may be designated as confidential under state law if the member of the team or committee having that information or writing reasonably believes it is generally relevant to the identification, reduction, or elimination of barriers to services for, or to placement of, children and youth in foster care or to improve provision of those services or those placements. Any discussion concerning the disclosed or exchanged information or writing during a team or committee meeting is confidential and shall not be open to public inspection.(b) (1) (A) No later than June 1, 2019, the Secretary of California Health and Human Services and the Superintendent of Public Instruction shall establish a joint interagency resolution team consisting of representatives from the State Department of Social Services, the State Department of Health Care Services, the State Department of Developmental Services, and the State Department of Education.(B) (i) The primary roles of the joint interagency resolution team shall be to develop guidance to counties, county offices of education, and regional centers with regard to developing the memoranda of understanding required by this section, to support the implementation of those memoranda of understanding, and to provide technical assistance to counties to identify and secure the appropriate level of services to meet the needs of children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma.(ii) The roles described in clause (i) shall include, but not be limited to, development of a process for case-specific intervention in circumstances in which a county needs state-level assistance to meet the service or placement needs of a severely traumatized child or youth in foster care. That assistance shall be prioritized to maintain the children and youth in their communities of origin and in home-based placements whenever possible.(2) (A) No later than January 1, 2020, the joint interagency resolution team, in consultation with county agencies, service providers, and advocates for children and resource families, shall review the placement and service options available to county child welfare agencies and county probation departments for children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma and shall develop and submit recommendations to the Legislature addressing any identified gaps in placement types or availability, needed services to resource families, or other identified issues. A(B) As part of the review and recommendation process described in subparagraph (A), the joint interagency resolution team shall also develop and submit to the Legislature, no later than January 1, 2020, options and recommendations for a statewide, pooled financing structure and a process for centralized entry, authorization, and access to services to ensure the provision of treatment and services to foster children and youth with intensive needs.(C) A report submitted to the Legislature pursuant to this paragraph shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.(3) No later than June 1, 2020, the joint interagency resolution team, in consultation with county agencies, service providers, behavioral health professionals, schools of social work, and advocates for children and resource families, shall develop a multiyear plan for increasing the capacity and delivery of trauma-informed care to foster children and youth served by short-term residential therapeutic programs and other foster care and behavioral health providers.
16521.6. To ensure that coordinated, timely, and trauma-informed services are provided to children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma, all of the following shall be met:(a) (1) Each county shall develop and implement a memorandum of understanding setting forth the roles and responsibilities of agencies and other entities that serve children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma. Participants in the development and implementation of the memorandum of understanding shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following:(A) The county child welfare agency.(B) The county probation department.(C) The county behavioral health departments.(D) The county office of education.(E) The regional center or centers that serve children and youth with developmental disabilities in the county.(2) The memorandum of understanding shall include, at a minimum, provisions addressing all of the following:(A) Establishment and operation of an interagency leadership team.(B) Establishment and operation of an interagency placement committee.(C) Commitment to implementation of an integrated core practice model.(D) Processes for screening, assessment, and entry to care.(E) Processes for child and family teaming and universal service planning.(F) Alignment and coordination of transportation and other foster youth services.(G) Recruitment and management of resource families and delivery of therapeutic foster care services.(H) Information and data sharing agreements.(I) Staff recruitment, training, and coaching.(J) Financial resource management and cost sharing.(K) Dispute resolution.(3) Members of the interagency leadership team and the interagency placement committee described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (2), respectively, may, to the extent permitted by federal law, disclose to, and exchange with, one another information or a writing that may be designated as confidential under state law if the member of the team or committee having that information or writing reasonably believes it is generally relevant to the identification, reduction, or elimination of barriers to services for, or to placement of, children and youth in foster care or to improve provision of those services or those placements. Any discussion concerning the disclosed or exchanged information or writing during a team or committee meeting is confidential and shall not be open to public inspection.(b) (1) (A) No later than June 1, 2019, the Secretary of California Health and Human Services and the Superintendent of Public Instruction shall establish a joint interagency resolution team consisting of representatives from the State Department of Social Services, the State Department of Health Care Services, the State Department of Developmental Services, and the State Department of Education.(B) (i) The primary roles of the joint interagency resolution team shall be to develop guidance to counties, county offices of education, and regional centers with regard to developing the memoranda of understanding required by this section, to support the implementation of those memoranda of understanding, and to provide technical assistance to counties to identify and secure the appropriate level of services to meet the needs of children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma.(ii) The roles described in clause (i) shall include, but not be limited to, development of a process for case-specific intervention in circumstances in which a county needs state-level assistance to meet the service or placement needs of a severely traumatized child or youth in foster care. That assistance shall be prioritized to maintain the children and youth in their communities of origin and in home-based placements whenever possible.(2) (A) No later than January 1, 2020, the joint interagency resolution team, in consultation with county agencies, service providers, and advocates for children and resource families, shall review the placement and service options available to county child welfare agencies and county probation departments for children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma and shall develop and submit recommendations to the Legislature addressing any identified gaps in placement types or availability, needed services to resource families, or other identified issues. A(B) As part of the review and recommendation process described in subparagraph (A), the joint interagency resolution team shall also develop and submit to the Legislature, no later than January 1, 2020, options and recommendations for a statewide, pooled financing structure and a process for centralized entry, authorization, and access to services to ensure the provision of treatment and services to foster children and youth with intensive needs.(C) A report submitted to the Legislature pursuant to this paragraph shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.(3) No later than June 1, 2020, the joint interagency resolution team, in consultation with county agencies, service providers, behavioral health professionals, schools of social work, and advocates for children and resource families, shall develop a multiyear plan for increasing the capacity and delivery of trauma-informed care to foster children and youth served by short-term residential therapeutic programs and other foster care and behavioral health providers.
16521.6. To ensure that coordinated, timely, and trauma-informed services are provided to children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma, all of the following shall be met:(a) (1) Each county shall develop and implement a memorandum of understanding setting forth the roles and responsibilities of agencies and other entities that serve children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma. Participants in the development and implementation of the memorandum of understanding shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following:(A) The county child welfare agency.(B) The county probation department.(C) The county behavioral health departments.(D) The county office of education.(E) The regional center or centers that serve children and youth with developmental disabilities in the county.(2) The memorandum of understanding shall include, at a minimum, provisions addressing all of the following:(A) Establishment and operation of an interagency leadership team.(B) Establishment and operation of an interagency placement committee.(C) Commitment to implementation of an integrated core practice model.(D) Processes for screening, assessment, and entry to care.(E) Processes for child and family teaming and universal service planning.(F) Alignment and coordination of transportation and other foster youth services.(G) Recruitment and management of resource families and delivery of therapeutic foster care services.(H) Information and data sharing agreements.(I) Staff recruitment, training, and coaching.(J) Financial resource management and cost sharing.(K) Dispute resolution.(3) Members of the interagency leadership team and the interagency placement committee described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (2), respectively, may, to the extent permitted by federal law, disclose to, and exchange with, one another information or a writing that may be designated as confidential under state law if the member of the team or committee having that information or writing reasonably believes it is generally relevant to the identification, reduction, or elimination of barriers to services for, or to placement of, children and youth in foster care or to improve provision of those services or those placements. Any discussion concerning the disclosed or exchanged information or writing during a team or committee meeting is confidential and shall not be open to public inspection.(b) (1) (A) No later than June 1, 2019, the Secretary of California Health and Human Services and the Superintendent of Public Instruction shall establish a joint interagency resolution team consisting of representatives from the State Department of Social Services, the State Department of Health Care Services, the State Department of Developmental Services, and the State Department of Education.(B) (i) The primary roles of the joint interagency resolution team shall be to develop guidance to counties, county offices of education, and regional centers with regard to developing the memoranda of understanding required by this section, to support the implementation of those memoranda of understanding, and to provide technical assistance to counties to identify and secure the appropriate level of services to meet the needs of children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma.(ii) The roles described in clause (i) shall include, but not be limited to, development of a process for case-specific intervention in circumstances in which a county needs state-level assistance to meet the service or placement needs of a severely traumatized child or youth in foster care. That assistance shall be prioritized to maintain the children and youth in their communities of origin and in home-based placements whenever possible.(2) (A) No later than January 1, 2020, the joint interagency resolution team, in consultation with county agencies, service providers, and advocates for children and resource families, shall review the placement and service options available to county child welfare agencies and county probation departments for children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma and shall develop and submit recommendations to the Legislature addressing any identified gaps in placement types or availability, needed services to resource families, or other identified issues. A(B) As part of the review and recommendation process described in subparagraph (A), the joint interagency resolution team shall also develop and submit to the Legislature, no later than January 1, 2020, options and recommendations for a statewide, pooled financing structure and a process for centralized entry, authorization, and access to services to ensure the provision of treatment and services to foster children and youth with intensive needs.(C) A report submitted to the Legislature pursuant to this paragraph shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.(3) No later than June 1, 2020, the joint interagency resolution team, in consultation with county agencies, service providers, behavioral health professionals, schools of social work, and advocates for children and resource families, shall develop a multiyear plan for increasing the capacity and delivery of trauma-informed care to foster children and youth served by short-term residential therapeutic programs and other foster care and behavioral health providers.
16521.6. To ensure that coordinated, timely, and trauma-informed services are provided to children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma, all of the following shall be met:
(a) (1) Each county shall develop and implement a memorandum of understanding setting forth the roles and responsibilities of agencies and other entities that serve children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma. Participants in the development and implementation of the memorandum of understanding shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following:
(A) The county child welfare agency.
(B) The county probation department.
(C) The county behavioral health departments.
(D) The county office of education.
(E) The regional center or centers that serve children and youth with developmental disabilities in the county.
(2) The memorandum of understanding shall include, at a minimum, provisions addressing all of the following:
(A) Establishment and operation of an interagency leadership team.
(B) Establishment and operation of an interagency placement committee.
(C) Commitment to implementation of an integrated core practice model.
(D) Processes for screening, assessment, and entry to care.
(E) Processes for child and family teaming and universal service planning.
(F) Alignment and coordination of transportation and other foster youth services.
(G) Recruitment and management of resource families and delivery of therapeutic foster care services.
(H) Information and data sharing agreements.
(I) Staff recruitment, training, and coaching.
(J) Financial resource management and cost sharing.
(K) Dispute resolution.
(3) Members of the interagency leadership team and the interagency placement committee described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (2), respectively, may, to the extent permitted by federal law, disclose to, and exchange with, one another information or a writing that may be designated as confidential under state law if the member of the team or committee having that information or writing reasonably believes it is generally relevant to the identification, reduction, or elimination of barriers to services for, or to placement of, children and youth in foster care or to improve provision of those services or those placements. Any discussion concerning the disclosed or exchanged information or writing during a team or committee meeting is confidential and shall not be open to public inspection.
(b) (1) (A) No later than June 1, 2019, the Secretary of California Health and Human Services and the Superintendent of Public Instruction shall establish a joint interagency resolution team consisting of representatives from the State Department of Social Services, the State Department of Health Care Services, the State Department of Developmental Services, and the State Department of Education.
(B) (i) The primary roles of the joint interagency resolution team shall be to develop guidance to counties, county offices of education, and regional centers with regard to developing the memoranda of understanding required by this section, to support the implementation of those memoranda of understanding, and to provide technical assistance to counties to identify and secure the appropriate level of services to meet the needs of children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma.
(ii) The roles described in clause (i) shall include, but not be limited to, development of a process for case-specific intervention in circumstances in which a county needs state-level assistance to meet the service or placement needs of a severely traumatized child or youth in foster care. That assistance shall be prioritized to maintain the children and youth in their communities of origin and in home-based placements whenever possible.
(2) (A) No later than January 1, 2020, the joint interagency resolution team, in consultation with county agencies, service providers, and advocates for children and resource families, shall review the placement and service options available to county child welfare agencies and county probation departments for children and youth in foster care who have experienced severe trauma and shall develop and submit recommendations to the Legislature addressing any identified gaps in placement types or availability, needed services to resource families, or other identified issues. A
(B) As part of the review and recommendation process described in subparagraph (A), the joint interagency resolution team shall also develop and submit to the Legislature, no later than January 1, 2020, options and recommendations for a statewide, pooled financing structure and a process for centralized entry, authorization, and access to services to ensure the provision of treatment and services to foster children and youth with intensive needs.
(C) A report submitted to the Legislature pursuant to this paragraph shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
(3) No later than June 1, 2020, the joint interagency resolution team, in consultation with county agencies, service providers, behavioral health professionals, schools of social work, and advocates for children and resource families, shall develop a multiyear plan for increasing the capacity and delivery of trauma-informed care to foster children and youth served by short-term residential therapeutic programs and other foster care and behavioral health providers.
SEC. 3. The Legislature finds and declares that Section 2 of this act, which adds Section 16521.6 to the Welfare and Institutions Code, imposes a limitation on the publics right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies within the meaning of Section 3 of Article I of the California Constitution. Pursuant to that constitutional provision, the Legislature makes the following findings to demonstrate the interest protected by this limitation and the need for protecting that interest:The Legislature finds and declares that in order to protect the privacy of children and youth in foster care, it is necessary that any discussion, during a meeting by a county interagency leadership team or interagency placement committee that is established pursuant to this act, concerning information or a writing disclosed or exchanged pursuant to this act by a member of the team or committee, be confidential.
SEC. 3. The Legislature finds and declares that Section 2 of this act, which adds Section 16521.6 to the Welfare and Institutions Code, imposes a limitation on the publics right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies within the meaning of Section 3 of Article I of the California Constitution. Pursuant to that constitutional provision, the Legislature makes the following findings to demonstrate the interest protected by this limitation and the need for protecting that interest:The Legislature finds and declares that in order to protect the privacy of children and youth in foster care, it is necessary that any discussion, during a meeting by a county interagency leadership team or interagency placement committee that is established pursuant to this act, concerning information or a writing disclosed or exchanged pursuant to this act by a member of the team or committee, be confidential.
SEC. 3. The Legislature finds and declares that Section 2 of this act, which adds Section 16521.6 to the Welfare and Institutions Code, imposes a limitation on the publics right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies within the meaning of Section 3 of Article I of the California Constitution. Pursuant to that constitutional provision, the Legislature makes the following findings to demonstrate the interest protected by this limitation and the need for protecting that interest:
### SEC. 3.
The Legislature finds and declares that in order to protect the privacy of children and youth in foster care, it is necessary that any discussion, during a meeting by a county interagency leadership team or interagency placement committee that is established pursuant to this act, concerning information or a writing disclosed or exchanged pursuant to this act by a member of the team or committee, be confidential.
SEC. 3.SEC. 4. 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 XIIIB of the California Constitution.
SEC. 3.SEC. 4. 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 XIIIB of the California Constitution.
SEC. 3.SEC. 4. 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 XIIIB of the California Constitution.
### SEC. 3.SEC. 4.