Foster care.

(1) Existing law provides for the early implementation, by counties and foster family agencies, of the resource family approval process, which is a unified, family friendly, and child-centered approval process that replaces the multiple processes for licensing foster family homes, approving relatives and nonrelative extended family members as foster care providers, and approving adoptive families. Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services to implement the resource family approval process in all counties and with all foster family agencies by January 1, 2017. This bill would also specify that the resource family approval process replaces certification of foster homes by foster family agencies and the approval of guardians. The bill would make conforming statutory changes related to the statewide implementation of the resource family approval process, including prohibiting the department and counties from accepting applications to license foster family homes, and prohibiting foster family agencies from accepting applications to certify foster homes, on and after January 1, 2017. The bill would also make specified changes relating to resource families including by, among others, requiring the department to develop a basic rate that ensures that a child placed in a licensed foster family home, a certified family home, or with a resource family approved by a county or foster family agency is eligible for the same basic rate, and would revise certain aspects of the resource family approval process, including by, among other things, requiring counties and foster family agencies to conduct annual, announced inspections of resource family homes and to inspect resource family homes as often as necessary to ensure the quality of care provided; authorizing counties to grant, deny, or rescind criminal records exemptions; and making it a misdemeanor to willfully and knowingly, with the intent to deceive, make a false statement or fail to disclose a material fact in a resource family application. By imposing additional duties on counties, by creating a new crime, and by expanding the duties of foster family agencies, for which the failure to comply is a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law, the California Community Care Facilities Act, provides for the licensure of short-term residential treatment centers, which are residential facilities licensed by the State Department of Social Services and operated by any public agency or private organization that provides short-term, specialized, and intensive treatment, and 24-hour care and supervision to children. The act also provides for the licensure of foster family agencies, which are organizations engaged in the recruiting, certifying, and training of, and providing professional support to, foster parents, or in finding homes and other places for placement of children for temporary or permanent care who require that level of care. A violation of the act is a crime. This bill would instead identify "short-term residential treatment centers" as "short-term residential therapeutic programs" and would provide that they are facilities operated by a public agency or private organization and licensed by the department that provide an integrated program of specialized and intensive care and supervision, services and supports, treatment, and short-term, 24-hour care and supervision to children. The bill would make various changes relating to the licensing and operation of short-term residential therapeutic programs and foster family agencies, including by, among other things, requiring the department to establish rates for short-term residential therapeutic programs and foster family agencies that include an interim rate, provisional rate, and probationary rate, and providing for the implementation of those rates; specifying that a foster family agency licensed before January 1, 2017, has until December 31, 2018, to obtain accreditation, and that a foster family agency licensed on or after January 1, 2017, or a short-term residential therapeutic program has up to 24 months from the date of licensure to obtain accreditation; and requiring a private short-term residential therapeutic program to be organized and operated on a nonprofit basis. By expanding the scope of a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (3) Existing federal law, the Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997, among other provisions, establishes a permanent placement option for older children as an alternative to long-term foster care, referred to in the act as "another planned permanent living arrangement" (APPLA) . Existing law declares the intent of the Legislature to conform state law to the federal act, as specified. Existing law generally provides a minor 16 years of age and older with another planned permanent living arrangement, as prescribed. This bill would make conforming changes by deleting references to long-term foster care and instead providing for placement in another planned permanent living arrangement. (4) This bill would require the State Department of Social Services and the State Department of Health Care Services to adopt regulations to implement its provisions, and to implement certain other provisions of existing law. The bill would authorize those departments to implement the provisions of this bill by all-county letter or similar written instructions until regulations are adopted. The bill would make other changes related to foster care and the placement of foster children. (5) This bill would incorporate additional changes made by AB 741, AB 1001, AB 1067, AB 1688, AB 1702, AB 1762, AB 1838, AB 1849, AB 2005, AB 2231, AB 2537, SB 524, and SB 1336 that would become operative only if this bill is chaptered last. (6) 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 specified reasons.