Juveniles: Youth Bill of Rights.

Existing law, commencing July 1, 2021, establishes the Office of Youth and Community Restoration in the California Health and Human Services Agency to, among other things, identify policy recommendations for improved outcomes and integrated programs and services to best support delinquent youth and identify and disseminate best practices to help inform rehabilitative and restorative youth practices. Existing law requires the office to have an ombudsperson and specifies the duties of the ombudsperson. Existing law requires the Division of Juvenile Justice to close on June 30, 2023, and provides for the transition of youth who are currently housed within a Division of Juvenile Justice facility to the care and custody of counties. Existing law further requires that, beginning July 1, 2021, counties are generally responsible for all youth adjudged wards of the court. Existing law requires the office to have an ombudsperson who has the authority to investigate complaints from youth, families, staff, and others about harmful conditions or practices, violations of laws and regulations governing facilities, and circumstances presenting an emergency situation, or to refer complaints to another body for investigation. Existing law requires the ombudsperson to notify a complainant of the decision to investigate or refer the complaint. Existing law requires the ombudsperson to publish and provide regular reports to the Legislature about complaints received and subsequent findings and actions taken. This bill would require the ombudsperson to notify the complainant in writing of the intention to investigate or refer the complaint for investigation. The bill would also require the ombudsperson to provide written notice of the final outcome of a complaint. The bill would require data published and provided to the Legislature by the ombudsperson to be disaggregated by gender, sexual orientation, race, and ethnicity of the complainants to the extent this information is available. Existing law establishes the Youth Bill of Rights, which includes the right to live in a safe, healthy, and clean environment conducive to treatment and rehabilitation, to contact attorneys, ombudspersons, and other advocates regarding conditions of confinement or violations of rights, and to receive a quality education. Under existing law, the Youth Bill of Rights applies to youth confined in a facility of the Division of Juvenile Justice in the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. This bill would make the Youth Bill of Rights applicable to youth confined in any juvenile facility. The bill would further require, as part of the Youth Bill of Rights, that youth have access to postsecondary academic and career technical education and programs and access to information regarding parental rights, among other things. The bill would require the Office of Youth and Community Restoration, in consultation with other specified parties, to develop standardized information explaining these rights no later than July 1, 2023. Existing law requires facilities under the Division of Juvenile Justice to provide care, placement, and services to youth in their custody without discriminating on the basis of actual or perceived race, ethnic group identification, ancestry, national origin, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, mental or physical disability, or HIV status. Existing law requires the Office of the Ombudspersons of the Division of Juvenile Facilities to investigate complaints related to the care, placement, or services, within juvenile facilities, and compile and make available data regarding these complaints, as specified. The bill would additionally prohibit discrimination against youth on the basis of gender expression or immigration status. The bill would make related and conforming changes and update cross-references to the Office of Youth and Community Restoration. To the extent that this bill would impose a higher level of service on local facilities, it would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would additionally make organizational changes to these provisions. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 2200 of the Welfare and Institutions Code proposed by AB 207 and SB 124 to be operative only if this bill and either AB 207 or SB 124 are enacted and this bill is enacted last. 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, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.