BILL ANALYSIS Ó ----------------------------------------------------------------- |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 217| |Office of Senate Floor Analyses | | |(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | | |327-4478 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- CONSENT Bill No: AB 217 Author: Maienschein (R) Introduced:2/2/15 Vote: 21 SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE: 7-0, 6/9/15 AYES: Jackson, Moorlach, Anderson, Hertzberg, Leno, Monning, Wieckowski ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 3/23/15 (Consent) - See last page for vote SUBJECT: Juvenile law: hearings SOURCE: Children's Advocacy Institute - University of San Diego School of Law DIGEST: This bill requires the court to inform a minor, if the minor is present at the juvenile hearing, of his or her right to address the court and participate in the hearing. ANALYSIS: Existing law: 1)Requires that a child 10 years of age and older receive notice of his or her dependency hearings, including the initial petition hearing, jurisdictional hearings, and review hearings. (Welf. & Inst. Code Secs. 290.1-295.) AB 217 Page 2 2)Allows a minor who is the subject of a dependency hearing, and who is entitled to notice of the hearing, to be present at the hearing. (Welf. & Inst. Code Sec. 349.) 3)Provides that a minor present at a hearing has the right to address the court, to participate in the hearing, and to be represented by counsel of his or her choice. (Welf. & Inst. Code Sec. 349.) 4)Requires the court to determine if a minor, who is 10 years of age or older and not present at a hearing, was properly notified of his or her right to attend the hearing, and allows a court to continue the hearing if the minor was not properly notified or wished to be present at the hearing, unless the court determines that it is not in the best interest of the child to do so. (Welf. & Inst. Code Sec. 349.) This bill additionally requires the court to inform a minor at a hearing that he or she has the right to address the court and participate in the hearing. Background The importance of allowing a dependent child to participate in court hearings has been recognized in California since 2003, when the Legislature enacted AB 408 (Steinberg, Chapter 813, Statutes of 2003) which afforded a minor the right to address the court and otherwise participate in a dependency hearing. In 2006, Congress also recognized the importance of input from children in court proceedings in the Child and Family Services Improvement Act which required "procedural safeguards to be put in place to assure that in any permanency hearing with respect to a child, the court consults, in an age-appropriate manner, the child regarding the proposed permanency or transition plan. (42 U.S.C. Sec. 675(5)(C).) This bill additionally requires the court to inform a child during a dependency proceeding that he or she has a right to address the court and participate in the hearing. FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.:NoLocal: No AB 217 Page 3 SUPPORT: (Verified6/11/15) Children's Advocacy Institute - University of San Diego School of Law (source) Advokids Children Now County Welfare Directors Association of California Crittenton Services for Children and Families Executive Committee of the Family Law Section of the State Bar Juvenile Court Judges of California Laborers' International Union of North America locals 777 & 792 OPPOSITION: (Verified6/11/15) None received ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: According to the author: Juvenile Dependency hearings are critical to determining the path of a child's future. Existing law as defined by Section 349 of the Welfare and Institutions Code already provides children with the right to talk during these hearings. Oftentimes the child's input would be critical and swing a decision in one way or another, but the child is fearful to speak up because they have understandably not been exposed to legal proceedings, or understand their right to speak up. This bill simply adds one sentence to Section 349 requiring the court to inform a minor of his or her pre-existing right to address the court if so desired. This fix allows a child to make his or her voice and desires heard, and empower that child to possibly influence a decision that will affect that child for life. AB 217 Page 4 ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 3/23/15 AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Campos, Chang, Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines, Gallagher, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Roger Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Olsen, Patterson, Perea, Quirk, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Atkins NO VOTE RECORDED: Brough, Gray Prepared by:Nichole Rapier / JUD. / (916) 651-4113 6/12/15 9:22:45 **** END ****