Foster care services: cultural competency.

Existing law, the California Community Care Facilities Act, requires the State Department of Social Services to license and regulate community care facilities, including foster family agencies and other facilities that provide foster care services for children. A violation of community care facility provisions is a misdemeanor. Existing law requires the department to develop, and an administrator of a group home facility to complete, a certification program that includes training in various areas, including the rights of foster children. Existing law requires a foster family agency to provide, and a licensed foster parent to complete, preplacement training and additional annual training in various areas, including the rights of foster children. Existing law also requires a community college district with a foster care education program to make orientation and training available to a relative or nonrelative extended family member caregiver, as specified. The bill would require the training for an administrator of a group home facility, licensed foster parent, and relative or nonrelative extended family member caregiver to also include instruction on cultural competency and sensitivity relating to, and best practices for, providing adequate care to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) youth in out-of-home care. Existing law provides that it is the policy of the state that foster children have specified rights. This bill would provide that foster children also have the right to have caregivers and child welfare personnel who have received instruction on cultural competency and sensitivity relating to, and best practices for, providing adequate care to LGBT youth in out-of-home care.