Child welfare services: recipients who are deaf and hard of hearing.

Existing law establishes a system of statewide child welfare services, administered by each county under the oversight of the State Department of Social Services, with the intent that all children are entitled to be safe and free from abuse and neglect. Existing law defines "child welfare services" for these purposes to mean public social services that are directed toward the accomplishment of various purposes, including protecting and promoting the welfare of all children, and includes, among other services, emergency response services, family preservation services, family maintenance services, family reunification services, and permanent placement services. Existing law requires public social services for the deaf and hard of hearing to be available in at least 3 regions throughout the state. Existing law provides that public social services for the deaf and hard of hearing includes, but is not limited to, complete communication services through interpreter services by a professional interpreter for the deaf, as specified, and counseling. This bill would require each county welfare department and any other county entity that provides child welfare services, as defined, to ensure that a recipient of child welfare services who is deaf or hard of hearing has equal access to those services at no cost to the recipient. The bill would require each county welfare department to designate one staff person to serve as the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Coordinator, as described, for the delivery of child welfare services in the county to children and parents who are deaf and hard of hearing. By creating new duties for county officials, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require the State Department of Social Services to, among other things, establish a Deaf Services Manager within the Children and Family Services Division of the department to be responsible for the statewide implementation of these provisions and to serve as a resource for county Deaf and Hard of Hearing Coordinators, and would require the department to develop protocols, procedures, training curricula, and other materials necessary to ensure that the requirements of this section are uniformly implemented in all counties throughout the state. 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.