CA AB 896

Title: Foster care: placement transition planning.
Author: Robert A. Rivas

Summary
AB 896, as amended, Elhawary. Foster care: placement transition planning. Existing law generally provides for the placement of foster youth in various placement settings. Existing law requires, prior to making a change in the placement of a dependent child, a social worker or placing agency to develop and implement a placement preservation strategy to preserve the dependent child’s placement.This bill would, among other things, require each county child welfare agency to adopt a placement transition planning policy for supporting foster children who are transitioning between placement settings and who are transitioning from foster care to reunification, and requires that the policy ensures that foster children are provided the opportunity to provide input on their placement transition and provides guidance to social workers for obtaining input and sharing information in placement transition planning. The bill would require, if a child’s placement cannot be preserved, the social worker to ensure that there is appropriate placement transition planning, consistent with the county’s adopted policy. The bill would require the State Department of Social Services to issue guidance to county child welfare agencies to describe best practices and strategies for successful placement transition planning, and would require county child welfare agencies to submit to the department its placement transition planning policy, as specified. By imposing new duties on counties, 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.Existing law requires the state, through the State Department of Social Services and county welfare departments, to establish and support a public system of statewide child welfare services to be developed as rapidly as possible and to be available in each county of the state. Existing law requires all counties to establish and maintain specialized organizational entities within the county welfare department, having sole responsibility for the operation of the child welfare services program.This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to those provisions.

Status
Read second time. Ordered to Consent Calendar.

Bill Documents
CA AB 896 - 03/17/25 - Amended Assembly
03/17/25 - CA AB 896 (03/17/25 - Amended Assembly)