Amended in Assembly March 31, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 1984

Introduced by Assembly Member Linder

February 16, 2016

An act to add begin insert and repeal end insert Section 16007 to the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to foster youth.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1984, as amended, Linder. Foster youth: enrichment activities.

Existing law provides that it is the policy of the state that all minors and nonminors in foster care have specified rights, including, among others, the right to attend school and participate in extracurricular, cultural, and personal enrichment activities, consistent with the child’s age and developmental level, with minimal disruptions to school attendance and educational stability.

This bill would require the State Department of Social Services, begin delete on or before May 1, 2017, and after consultation with a workgroup composed of individuals and groups that represent the interests of foster youth, to submit a report to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee that outlines a program to provide grants to foster youth to enable the foster youth to participate in enrichment activities. The bill would require the report to address, among other things, the criteria and review process for youth to submit applications for grants for enrichment activities. The bill would require the department, on or before July 1, 2017, an upon appropriation by the Legislature, to implement the program outlined in the report. end delete begin insert on or before March 1, 2017, to convene a workgroup and would require the workgroup to develop an implementation plan for the California Foster Youth Enrichment Grant Program. The bill would require the department, on or before January 1, 2018, upon appropriation by the Legislature and in consideration of the implementation plan, to establish that program in order to provide grants of $500 or less to qualified foster youth to enable the foster youth to participate in activities that enhance the foster youth’s skills, abilities, self-esteem, or overall well-being. The bill would specify eligibility criteria for receipt of a grant and the authorized uses of a grant. The bill would require a recipient, within 6 months after receipt of a grant, to submit documentation that describes how the grant was used and the actual cost, supported by copies of receipts, of the program, product, or service, and directly related costs, purchased with the grant. The bill would require the department, on or before January 1, 2021, to submit a report to the Legislature the addresses, among other things, data on the number of applications received and the number of grants awarded. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2022. end insert

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

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

SECTION 1.  

Section 16007 is added to the Welfare and
Institutions Code, to read:

16007.  

(a) (1) The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:

(A) California foster youth face many challenges. Approximately
three-fourths of youth in foster care have spent two or more years
in the system between birth and 12th grade. While in foster care,
about 70 percent of youth had three or more placements. Less than
half of begin insert all end insert foster youth complete high school.

(B) Although the state has seen a reduction in the number of
children in foster care and a decreased reliance on group homes,
it continues to struggle to find stable, fulfilling families for
children.

(C) Participating in enrichment activities, including, but not
limited to, sports leagues, camps, college preparation courses, arts,
music, and formative social experiences, can greatly contribute to
a foster youth’s sense of normalcy and increase the likelihood of
a successful transition to adulthood.

(2) The purpose of this section is begin delete to create a program end delete to begin insert establish
the California Foster Youth Enrichment Grant Program, which
will end insert provide grants to foster youth to participate in begin delete enrichment
activities and provide for the program’s transition from public
funding and control to private funding and control. end delete begin insert activities that
enhance their skills, abilities, self-esteem, or overall well-being. end insert

(b) On or before begin delete February end delete begin insert March end insert 1, 2017, the State Department
of Social Services shall convene a workgroup composed of
individuals and groups that represent the interests of foster youth.

begin insert The workgroup shall develop an implementation plan to maximize
the California Foster Youth Enrichment Grant Program’s impact. end insert

begin delete

(c) On or before May 1, 2017, the State Department of Social
Services, after consultation with the workgroup established
pursuant to subdivision (b), shall submit a report to the Joint
Legislative Budget Committee that outlines a program to provide
grants to foster youth to enable the foster youth to participate in
enrichment activities. The report shall address, at a minimum, all
of the following:

(1) The nonprofit organization that will receive the funds
appropriated for the program and serve as administrator of the
program.

(2) The criteria and review process for youth to submit
applications for grants for enrichment activities, including a list
of preapproved categories of enrichment activities.

(3) The maximum amount of the grant.

(4) The means by which grants will be disbursed.

(5) A plan to transition the program from public funding to
private funding and control.

(d) On or before July 1, 2017, upon an appropriation by the
Legislature, the State Department of Social Services shall
implement the program, as outlined in the report.

end delete begin insert

(c) On or before January 1, 2018, upon appropriation by the
Legislature and in consideration of the plan developed pursuant
to subdivision (b), the State Department of Social Services shall
establish the California Foster Youth Enrichment Grant Program
to provide grants to qualified foster youth to enable the foster
youth to participate in activities that enhance the foster youth’s
skills, abilities, self-esteem, or overall well-being.

end insert begin insert

(d) Grant applicants shall meet all of the following criteria
immediately prior to approval of a grant:

end insert begin insert

(1) Be a California foster youth between six years of age and
17 years of age, inclusive, or a California nonminor dependent.

end insert begin insert

(2) Be placed in a foster family home, certified family home, or
group home.

end insert begin insert

(3) Be enrolled in a California school.

end insert begin insert

(e) (1) Grants awarded under this section shall be five hundred
dollars ($500) or less and shall be used to fund a program, service,
or product, and any directly related costs, that provide any of the
following to a foster youth:

end insert begin insert

(A) Skill development, including, but not limited to, lessons in
music, dance, or drama, and the rental or purchase of equipment
needed to further skill development.

end insert begin insert

(B) Academic or school-related assistance, including, but not
limited to, school trips, college campus visits, Advanced Placement
or International Baccalaureate exam fees, test preparation courses
or materials, and books.

end insert begin insert

(C) Recreational or social participation, including, but not
limited to, summer camp attendance, sports league participation,
school-sponsored formal dance attendance, and participation in
school graduation activities.

end insert begin insert

(2) Grants shall not be awarded to fund any activity that does
not directly contribute to the enhancement of an individual foster
youth’s skills, abilities, self-esteem, or overall well-being,
including, but not limited to, either of the following:

end insert begin insert

(A) Child care expenses for the foster youth or his or her child.

end insert begin insert

(B) A vacation with the foster youth’s foster family.

end insert begin insert

(f) Applications for grants under this section shall be on forms
developed by the department, and shall include, at a minimum, all
of the following:

end insert begin insert

(1) Evidence that the applicant meets the eligibility criteria
specified in subdivision (d).

end insert begin insert

(2) A description of the need for and proposed use of the grant,
the anticipated cost of the program, product, or service, and
directly related costs, and the projected benefit to the foster youth.

end insert begin insert

(3) Any other information that the department determines is
necessary to further the intent of this section.

end insert begin insert

(g) Within six months after a grant is awarded, the recipient
shall submit documentation, on forms developed by the department,
that describes how the grant was used and the actual cost,
supported by copies of receipts, of the program, product, or service,
and directly related costs, purchased with the grant. A foster youth
shall not be eligible for a subsequent grant until this documentation
is received.

end insert begin insert

(h) (1) On or before January 1, 2021, the department shall
submit a report to the Legislature that addresses, at a minimum,
all of the following:

end insert begin insert

(A) Data on the number of applications received, aggregated
by year.

end insert begin insert

(B) Data on the number of grants awarded, aggregated by year.

end insert begin insert

(C) Data on the programs, products, or services, and directly
related costs, the grants were used to fund, aggregated by year.

end insert begin insert

(D) A description of the documentation a recipient is required
to submit pursuant to subdivision (g).

end insert begin insert

(E) Data on the number of recipients who provided the
documentation required pursuant to subdivision (g) and who did
not provide the documentation required by subdivision (g),
aggregated by year.

end insert begin insert

(2) The report required pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be
submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government
Code.

end insert begin insert

(i) It is the intent of the Legislature that the department explore
the feasibility of transitioning the program to private funding and
control.

end insert begin insert

(j) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2022,
and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
is enacted before January 1, 2022, deletes or extends that date.

end insert