SB1041 Sb 1041 Bill 20120627 Chaptered

User Manual: SB1041

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Senate Bill No. 1041

CHAPTER 47

An act to amend Sections 17311.5 and 17706 of the Family Code, to

amend Sections 1522 and 1596.871 of the Health and Safety Code, to amend

Section 6151 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, and to amend Sections

11320.1, 11320.3, 11325.71, 11329.5, 11462.04, 11464, 11487, 12301.06,

12305.87, 12306.6, 14124.93, 15525, 18285, 19704, 19705, and 19709 of,

to amend the heading of Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 19700) of

Part 2 of Division 10 of, to amend, repeal, and add Sections 11322.63,

11322.8, 11451.5, and 11454.5 of, to add Sections 11265.45, 11265.46,

11265.47, 11265.48, 11322.85, 11322.86, 11322.87, 11334.6, 19705.1, and

19710 to, to repeal Sections 12301.03, 12301.05, 14132.957, 19700, 19701,

19702, and 19706 of, to repeal Part 1.75 (commencing with Section 10200)

of Division 9 of, and to repeal, add, and repeal Section 11334.8 of, the

Welfare and Institutions Code, and to amend Section 72 of Chapter 32 of

the Statutes of 2011, relating to human services, and making an appropriation

therefor, to take effect immediately, bill related to the budget.

[Approved by Governor June 27, 2012. Filed with

Secretary of State June 27, 2012.]

legislative counsel’s digest

SB 1041, Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review. Human services.

Under existing law, the parents of a minor child are responsible for

supporting the child. Existing law establishes the Department of Child

Support Services, which administers all federal and state laws and regulations

relating to child support enforcement obligations. The Director of Child

Support Services is also responsible for implementing and managing the

statewide automated child support system, which includes the State

Disbursement Unit. Existing law establishes the Child Support Payment

Trust Fund in the State Treasury and authorizes the deposit of child support

payments received by the State Disbursement Unit into that fund, including

overpayments, for the purpose of processing and providing child support

payments. Under existing law, the Department of Child Support Services

may enter into a trust agreement with an intermediary to receive or disburse

child support collections. A trust agreement under these provisions may

create trust accounts held outside the State Treasury.

This bill, for the 2012–13 ﬁscal year only, would authorize money in

those trust accounts to be invested in speciﬁed securities or alternatives that

offer comparable security, including mutual funds and money market funds.

The bill would not authorize an investment or transfer that would interfere

with the objective of the Child Support Payment Trust Fund.

Existing law requires each county to provide cash assistance and other

social services to needy families through the California Work Opportunity

and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program, using federal Temporary

Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) block grant program, state, and county

funds.

Under existing law, the county is required to annually redetermine

eligibility for CalWORKs beneﬁts. Existing law additionally requires the

county to redetermine recipient eligibility and grant amounts on a quarterly

basis, using prospective budgeting, and to prospectively determine the grant

amount that a recipient is entitled to receive for each month of the quarterly

reporting period. Under existing law, a CalWORKs recipient is required to

report to the county, orally or in writing, speciﬁed changes that could affect

the amount of aid to which the recipient is entitled. Under existing law, the

CalWORKs quarterly reporting system becomes inoperative on October 1,

2013. A semiannual reporting system becomes operative on April 1, 2013,

and is required to be implemented by counties no later than October 1, 2013,

as speciﬁed.

This bill, notwithstanding existing law, would exempt a CalWORKs

assistance unit that does not include an eligible adult from periodic reporting

requirements other than the annual redetermination, and would specify grant

calculation income reporting thresholds, recipient reporting duties, and other

criteria applicable to these assistance units.

Under existing law, a parent or caretaker relative is ineligible for

CalWORKs aid when he or she has received aid for a cumulative total of

48 months, as speciﬁed. Certain months are not counted as months of aid

for purposes of calculating the 48-month time limit.

Under the CalWORKs program, certain recipients are required to

participate in speciﬁed welfare-to-work activities, unless an applicable

exemption applies. Exempted individuals include, until July 1, 2012, a parent

or other relative who has primary responsibility for personally providing

care to one child who is from 12 to 23 months of age, inclusive, or 2 or

more children who are under 6 years of age.

This bill would make the caregiver exemption described above inoperative

on January 1, 2013. The bill would require counties to reengage the exempted

individuals in welfare-to-work activities, by October 1, 2014, except as

speciﬁed. The bill also would create a similar, one-time exemption for

caregivers of a child from birth to 23 months of age, inclusive, as speciﬁed,

and would provide, effective January 1, 2013, that a month during which

this exemption applies and a month during which a recipient was exempted

under the prior exemption and has not been reengaged would not be counted

as a month of receipt of aid for the recipient. By expanding eligibility for

CalWORKs aid under some circumstances, this bill would make an

appropriation, and by expanding county duties, the bill also would impose

a state-mandated local program.

Existing law requires a participant to participate for at least 20 hours per

week in core activities, as speciﬁed.

— 2 —Ch. 47

This bill effective January 1, 2013, would modify the number of

welfare-to-work participation hours to conform to certain federal

requirements, and would eliminate the above-described requirement relating

to core activities.

This bill would revise welfare-to-work requirements applicable to new

CalWORKs recipients, on and after January 1, 2013. These recipients would

receive 24 months of speciﬁed welfare-to-work services and activities, and

would then be required to meet federal work participation requirements, as

speciﬁed, unless they are exempted from participation, or receive an

extension, as prescribed. By increasing county duties, the bill would impose

a state-mandated local program.

Existing law gives counties, through the 2011–12 ﬁscal year, the option

to redirect funding, both from and to the amounts appropriated for

CalWORKs mental health employment assistance services and CalWORKs

substance abuse treatment services, and from and to other CalWORKs

employment services that are necessary for individuals to participate in

welfare-to-work activities.

This bill would extend this county authority through the 2013–14 ﬁscal

year.

Existing law provides that certain amounts are exempt from the calculation

of income of the family for purposes of determining eligibility for beneﬁts

under the CalWORKs program. Certain exempt amounts are calculated

based on the amount of disability-based unearned income and earned income.

State funds are continuously appropriated to pay for a share of costs under

the CalWORKs program.

This bill would change the exempt amount described above by revising

the calculation. To the extent that this bill would expand CalWORKs

eligibility or increase grant amounts, the bill would make an appropriation.

In addition, by increasing county administrative duties, the bill would impose

a state-mandated local program.

Existing law provides that when aid under the CalWORKs program is

repaid to the state by means of child support collections, the state is entitled

to the entire amount of the aid repaid, except where federal and county funds

were paid, in which case the federal government remains entitled to a

proportionate share of the amount received or recovered and the county

remains entitled to its proportionate share, except for county funds received

or recovered during the 2011–12 ﬁscal year, which are retained by the state.

This bill would extend the suspension of the county’s recovery of repaid

funds under the above provisions, for the 2012–13 ﬁscal year, thus allowing

the state to retain those funds.

Existing law provides that the 10 counties with the best performance

standards shall receive an additional 5% of the state’s share of those counties’

collections that are used to reduce or repay aid that is paid under the

California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs)

program. Existing law requires these additional funds received by a county

to be used for speciﬁed child support-related activities. Existing law suspends

Ch. 47— 3 —

the payment of this additional 5% for the 2002–03 to 2011–12 ﬁscal years,

inclusive.

This bill would extend the suspension of the additional 5% payments

through the 2014–15 ﬁscal year.

Existing law provides for the Medi-Cal program, which is administered

by the State Department of Health Care Services, and under which qualiﬁed

low-income persons receive health care services. Existing law requires the

Department of Child Support Services to provide payments to the local child

support agency of $50 per case for obtaining 3rd-party health coverage or

insurance of Medi-Cal beneﬁciaries, to the extent that funds are appropriated

in the Budget Act. Under existing law, these payments are suspended for

the 2003–04 to 2011–12 ﬁscal years, inclusive.

This bill would extend the suspension of the above-described payments

to local child support agencies through the 2014–15 ﬁscal year.

Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services, before

issuing a license or special permit to any person to operate or manage a

community care facility or a day care facility, to secure from an appropriate

law enforcement agency a criminal record to determine whether the applicant

or any other speciﬁed person has ever been convicted of various crimes.

Existing law, except during the 2003–04 to the 2011–12 ﬁscal years,

inclusive, prohibits the Department of Justice and the State Department of

Social Services from charging a fee for the ﬁngerprinting of an applicant

for a license to operate a community care facility that will provide

nonmedical board, room, and care for 6 or fewer children, the ﬁngerprinting

of a day care facility applicant that will serve 6 or fewer children, or any

family day care applicant, or for obtaining a criminal record of these

applicants.

This bill would extend this authorization through the 2012–13 ﬁscal year.

Under existing law, one of the methods by which Medi-Cal program

services are provided is pursuant to contracts with various types of managed

care plans. Existing federal law provides for the federal Medicare Program,

which is a public health insurance program for persons 65 years of age and

older and speciﬁed persons with disabilities who are under 65 years of age.

Existing law also provides for the county-administered In-Home Supportive

Services (IHSS) program, under which, either through employment by the

recipient, by or through contract by the county, by the creation of a public

authority, or pursuant to a contract with a nonproﬁt consortium, qualiﬁed

aged, blind, and disabled persons receive services enabling them to remain

in their own homes.

Existing law requires the State Department of Health Care Services to

establish a medication machine pilot project for certain at-risk Medi-Cal

recipients, as speciﬁed, and designates the duties of the department in this

regard. Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services, if the

Department of Finance makes a speciﬁed determination, to implement, with

some exceptions, a reduction in authorized hours of service to each IHSS

recipient, as prescribed.

This bill would delete these latter provisions.

— 4 —Ch. 47

Existing law makes speciﬁed ﬁndings and declarations with respect to

the effect of decreased funding for CalWORKs for the 2009–10 to 2011–12

ﬁscal years, inclusive. In connection with this decreased funding, existing

law extends certain exemptions from months counted as a month of receipt

of aid, and allows counties to redirect funding between speciﬁed employment

assistance and substance abuse treatment programs during the speciﬁed

ﬁscal years, and to revise a speciﬁed welfare-to-work exemption in order

to implement the county’s portion of speciﬁed funding reductions.

This bill would extend the above provisions indeﬁnitely to apply to

speciﬁed decreases in CalWORKs funding.

Existing law requires recipients of aid under the CalWORKs program

who are under 19 years of age who are pregnant or custodial parents to

participate in certain educational programs, which are referred to as the

Cal-Learn Program. Existing law makes the Cal-Learn Program inoperative

until July 1, 2012, except as speciﬁed.

This bill would provide that from July 1, 2012, to March 31, 2013,

inclusive, counties be provided full or partial year funding, depending on

the pace of their progression to full implementation of the Cal-Learn Program

by April 1, 2013. By increasing the duties of counties, this bill would impose

a state-mandated local program.

This bill would require the State Department of Social Services to submit

a report to the budget committees of the Legislature with speciﬁed

information relating to the Cal-Learn Program.

Existing law prohibits the establishment of a new group home rate or

change to an existing rate under the AFDC-FC program for a prescribed

period, except for exemptions granted on a case-by-case basis, and repeals

this prohibition on January 1, 2013.

This bill would limit exceptions for any program with a rate classiﬁcation

level (RCL) below 10 to exceptions associated with a program change.

Existing law also requires the State Department of Social Services to

implement a 3.6% reduction in service hours to each IHSS recipient, until

July 1, 2012.

This bill would extend this reduction in service hours through July 1,

2013.

Existing law, the Sales and Use Tax Law, imposes a sales tax on retailers

for the privilege of selling tangible personal property at retail, measured by

the gross receipts from the sale of tangible personal property sold at retail

in this state. A violation of speciﬁed provisions of this law is a crime.

Existing law similarly imposes a sales tax on providers of support services

for the privilege of selling support services at retail, measured by the gross

receipts from the sale of those services in this state at a speciﬁed rate of

those gross receipts.

Existing law creates the Personal Care IHSS Quality Assurance Revenue

Fund in the State Treasury, and requires the revenue from the tax, less

refunds, to be deposited in the fund. The fund is continuously appropriated

to the State Department of Social Services for purposes of providing

speciﬁed supplementary payments to providers of in-home supportive

Ch. 47— 5 —

services. Existing law requires the IHSS provider tax and related

supplementary payments to be implemented no earlier than July 1, 2010.

This bill would extend the earliest implementation date for the provider

tax and supplementary payment provisions to January 1, 2012.

Existing law establishes the Aid to Families with Dependent

Children-Foster Care (AFDC-FC) program, under which counties provide

payments to foster care providers, including group homes, on behalf of

qualiﬁed children in foster care, according to a schedule of basic foster care

rates. The program is funded by a combination of federal, state, and county

funds. Under existing law, the basic AFDC-FC rates are adjusted annually

on July 1 by the annual percentage change in the California Necessities

Index applicable to the calendar year within which that July 1 occurs.

Existing law declares the need to provide enhanced reimbursement to

address the extraordinary care and supervision needs of children who are

consumers of regional center services and also receiving AFDC-FC, Kinship

Guardianship Assistance Payment Program (Kin-GAP), or Adoption

Assistance Program (AAP) beneﬁts, at a rate that is higher than the average

rate they would otherwise receive through the foster care system and higher

than the rate other children with medical and other signiﬁcant special needs

receive. Existing law requires that if the schedule of foster care basic rates

is increased on or after January 1, 2008, these enhanced rates shall be

similarly adjusted.

This bill would revise the requirements relating to the adjustment of the

enhanced rates payable for children who are dually eligible, as described

above, to instead require those rates to be annually adjusted by the percentage

change in the California Necessities Index, beginning with the 2011–12

ﬁscal year.

Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services to establish

a Work Incentive Nutritional Supplement (WINS) program, under which

each county is required to provide a $40 monthly additional food assistance

beneﬁt for each eligible food stamp household, as deﬁned. Under existing

law, the WINS program, in tandem with a preassistance employment

readiness system (PAERS) program, are required to be implemented by the

department on speciﬁed dates.

This bill would reduce the amount of the WINS beneﬁt to $10 per month

and would revise the various dates applicable to the implementation of the

programs.

Existing law creates the Child Health and Safety Fund, consisting of

revenues from a speciﬁed license plate program and civil penalties imposed

on child day care facility providers. Upon appropriation by the Legislature,

50% of those moneys in the fund derived from the license plate program

are required to be expended to address various child health and safety

concerns, as speciﬁed.

This bill would include an additional $501,000 allocation, upon

appropriation by the Legislature, for these purposes.

Existing law vests in the Department of Rehabilitation the responsibility

and authority for the provision of vocational rehabilitation services to

— 6 —Ch. 47

individuals with physical or mental disabilities. Existing law provides for

the Rehabilitation Appeals Board within the department to hear appeals, as

prescribed, that have been ﬁled with the board by any applicant for, or client

of, the department. Existing law provides that any applicant for, or client

of, the department, upon ﬁling a request, as prescribed, has the right to a

fair hearing before the board that is required to be held within 45 days of

the date the written request is received by the board.

This bill would eliminate the Rehabilitation Appeals Board, provide that

a fair hearing will be held before an impartial hearing ofﬁcer within 60 days

of a written request for a hearing, and make related changes.

Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services, in

consultation with designated stakeholders in the In-Home Supportive

Services program, to develop a new ratesetting methodology for public

authority administrative costs, to go into effect commencing with the

2012–13 ﬁscal year.

This bill would delay the effective date of the new ratesetting methodology

to the 2013–14 ﬁscal year.

Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services to

implement a single statewide Child Welfare Services Case Management

System (CWS/CMS) to administer and evaluate the state’s child welfare

services and foster care programs. Existing law also requires the department,

in partnership with the Ofﬁce of Systems Integration (OSI) and designated

stakeholders, to perform various activities regarding the effectiveness and

operation of the CWS/CMS, and to report on these activities to the

Legislature, by January 10, 2012.

This bill would require the State Department of Social Services to use

funding included in the Budget Act of 2012 related to replacement of the

CWS/CMS for the next steps necessary to move forward with the

recommendation of the Child Welfare Automation Study Team (CAST) to

proceed toward procuring a new system, as speciﬁed. The bill would require

the OSI and the department to report the results of these activities, in addition

to key milestones and anticipated timelines, to the Legislature by March 1,

2013, for review during the 2013 budget hearings.

This bill would require the State Department of Social Services and the

Ofﬁce of Systems Integration to have a qualiﬁed 3rd party conduct a

cost-reasonableness assessment of the costs proposed by the vendor to

migrate the Consortium-IV counties to the newly developed Los Angeles

Eligibility, Automated Determination, Evaluation and Reporting (LEADER)

Replacement System, in order to determine whether the proposed overall

costs are within range of reasonableness, based on speciﬁed factors.

This bill would require the State Department of Social Services, in

consultation with stakeholders, including counties advocates, and legislative

staff, to convene a work group to identify best practices and other strategies

to improve early welfare-to-work engagement and barrier removal efforts,

to maximize a recipient’s welfare-to-work opportunities, as speciﬁed. The

bill would require the work group to report its ﬁndings to the Legislature

by January 10, 2013.

Ch. 47— 7 —

This bill would require the State Department of Social Services to annually

update the Legislature regarding the changes made by the bill to the

CalWORKs program, and contract with an independent, research-based

institution for an evaluation and written report, with speciﬁed contents,

which would be provided to the Legislature by October 1, 2017.

This bill would authorize the State Department of Social Services to

implement certain of its provisions by all-county letters or similar

instructions, pending the adoption of emergency regulations by July 1, 2014.

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 these statutory provisions.

This bill would appropriate $1,000 from the General Fund to the California

Health and Human Services Agency for administration.

This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as a bill

providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.

Appropriation: yes.

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

SECTION 1. Section 17311.5 of the Family Code is amended to read:

17311.5. (a) The department may enter into a trust agreement with a

trustee or ﬁscal intermediary to receive or disburse child support collections.

The trust agreement may contain provisions the department deems reasonable

and proper for the security of the child support payments. Any trust accounts

created by the trust agreements may be held outside the State Treasury.

(b) For the 2012–13 ﬁscal year only, trust account moneys may be

invested in any of the types of securities listed in Section 16430 of the

Government Code or alternatives offering comparable security, including,

but not limited to, mutual funds and money market funds. This subdivision

does not authorize investments or transfers that would interfere with carrying

out the objective for which the Child Support Payment Trust Fund was

created.

SEC. 2. Section 17706 of the Family Code is amended to read:

17706. (a) It is the intent of the Legislature to encourage counties to

elevate the visibility and signiﬁcance of the child support enforcement

program in the county. To advance this goal, effective July 1, 2000, the

counties with the 10 best performance standards pursuant to clause (ii) of

subparagraph (B) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 17704 shall

receive an additional 5 percent of the state’s share of those counties’

collections that are used to reduce or repay aid that is paid pursuant to Article

6 (commencing with Section 11450) of Chapter 2 of Part 3 of Division 9

of the Welfare and Institutions Code. The counties shall use the increased

recoupment for child support-related activities that may not be eligible for

— 8 —Ch. 47

federal child support funding under Part D of Title IV of the Social Security

Act, including, but not limited to, providing services to parents to help them

better support their children ﬁnancially, medically, and emotionally.

(b) The operation of subdivision (a) shall be suspended for the 2002–03,

2003–04, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2009–10,

2010–11, 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14, and 2014–15 ﬁscal years.

SEC. 3. Section 1522 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read:

1522. The Legislature recognizes the need to generate timely and accurate

positive ﬁngerprint identiﬁcation of applicants as a condition of issuing

licenses, permits, or certiﬁcates of approval for persons to operate or provide

direct care services in a community care facility, foster family home, or a

certiﬁed family home of a licensed foster family agency. Therefore, the

Legislature supports the use of the ﬁngerprint live-scan technology, as

identiﬁed in the long-range plan of the Department of Justice for fully

automating the processing of ﬁngerprints and other data by the year 1999,

otherwise known as the California Crime Information Intelligence System

(CAL-CII), to be used for applicant ﬁngerprints. It is the intent of the

Legislature in enacting this section to require the ﬁngerprints of those

individuals whose contact with community care clients may pose a risk to

the clients’ health and safety. An individual shall be required to obtain either

a criminal record clearance or a criminal record exemption from the State

Department of Social Services before his or her initial presence in a

community care facility.

(a) (1) Before issuing a license or special permit to any person or persons

to operate or manage a community care facility, the State Department of

Social Services shall secure from an appropriate law enforcement agency

a criminal record to determine whether the applicant or any other person

speciﬁed in subdivision (b) has ever been convicted of a crime other than

a minor trafﬁc violation or arrested for any crime speciﬁed in Section 290

of the Penal Code, for violating Section 245 or 273.5, of the Penal Code,

subdivision (b) of Section 273a of the Penal Code, or, prior to January 1,

1994, paragraph (2) of Section 273a of the Penal Code, or for any crime for

which the department cannot grant an exemption if the person was convicted

and the person has not been exonerated.

(2) The criminal history information shall include the full criminal record,

if any, of those persons, and subsequent arrest information pursuant to

Section 11105.2 of the Penal Code.

(3) Except during the 2003–04 to the 2012–13 ﬁscal years, inclusive,

neither the Department of Justice nor the State Department of Social Services

may charge a fee for the ﬁngerprinting of an applicant for a license or special

permit to operate a facility providing nonmedical board, room, and care for

six or less children or for obtaining a criminal record of the applicant

pursuant to this section.

(4) The following shall apply to the criminal record information:

(A) If the State Department of Social Services ﬁnds that the applicant,

or any other person speciﬁed in subdivision (b), has been convicted of a

Ch. 47— 9 —

crime other than a minor trafﬁc violation, the application shall be denied,

unless the director grants an exemption pursuant to subdivision (g).

(B) If the State Department of Social Services ﬁnds that the applicant,

or any other person speciﬁed in subdivision (b) is awaiting trial for a crime

other than a minor trafﬁc violation, the State Department of Social Services

may cease processing the application until the conclusion of the trial.

of Justice shall provide the applicant and the State Department of Social

Services with a statement of that fact.

(D) If the State Department of Social Services ﬁnds after licensure that

the licensee, or any other person speciﬁed in paragraph (1) of subdivision

(b), has been convicted of a crime other than a minor trafﬁc violation, the

license may be revoked, unless the director grants an exemption pursuant

to subdivision (g).

(E) An applicant and any other person speciﬁed in subdivision (b) shall

submit ﬁngerprint images and related information to the Department of

Justice for the purpose of searching the criminal records of the Federal

Bureau of Investigation, in addition to the criminal records search required

by this subdivision. If an applicant and all other persons described in

subdivision (b) meet all of the conditions for licensure, except receipt of

the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s criminal offender record information

search response for the applicant or any of the persons described in

subdivision (b), the department may issue a license if the applicant and each

person described in subdivision (b) has signed and submitted a statement

that he or she has never been convicted of a crime in the United States, other

than a trafﬁc infraction, as prescribed in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of

Section 42001 of the Vehicle Code. If, after licensure, the department

determines that the licensee or any other person speciﬁed in subdivision (b)

has a criminal record, the license may be revoked pursuant to Section 1550.

The department may also suspend the license pending an administrative

hearing pursuant to Section 1550.5.

(F) The State Department of Social Services shall develop procedures

to provide the individual’s state and federal criminal history information

with the written notiﬁcation of his or her exemption denial or revocation

based on the criminal record. Receipt of the criminal history information

shall be optional on the part of the individual, as set forth in the agency’s

procedures. The procedure shall protect the conﬁdentiality and privacy of

the individual’s record, and the criminal history information shall not be

made available to the employer.

(G) Notwithstanding any other law, the department is authorized to

provide an individual with a copy of his or her state or federal level criminal

offender record information search response as provided to that department

by the Department of Justice if the department has denied a criminal

background clearance based on this information and the individual makes

a written request to the department for a copy specifying an address to which

it is to be sent. The state or federal level criminal offender record information

search response shall not be modiﬁed or altered from its form or content as

— 10 —Ch. 47

provided by the Department of Justice and shall be provided to the address

speciﬁed by the individual in his or her written request. The department

shall retain a copy of the individual’s written request and the response and

date provided.

(b) (1) In addition to the applicant, this section shall be applicable to

criminal convictions of the following persons:

(A) Adults responsible for administration or direct supervision of staff.

(B) Any person, other than a client, residing in the facility.

bathing, or personal hygiene. Any nurse assistant or home health aide

meeting the requirements of Section 1338.5 or 1736.6, respectively, who

is not employed, retained, or contracted by the licensee, and who has been

certiﬁed or recertiﬁed on or after July 1, 1998, shall be deemed to meet the

criminal record clearance requirements of this section. A certiﬁed nurse

assistant and certiﬁed home health aide who will be providing client

assistance and who falls under this exemption shall provide one copy of his

or her current certiﬁcation, prior to providing care, to the community care

facility. The facility shall maintain the copy of the certiﬁcation on ﬁle as

long as care is being provided by the certiﬁed nurse assistant or certiﬁed

home health aide at the facility. Nothing in this paragraph restricts the right

of the department to exclude a certiﬁed nurse assistant or certiﬁed home

health aide from a licensed community care facility pursuant to Section

1558.

(D) Any staff person, volunteer, or employee who has contact with the

clients.

(E) If the applicant is a ﬁrm, partnership, association, or corporation, the

chief executive ofﬁcer or other person serving in like capacity.

(F) Additional ofﬁcers of the governing body of the applicant, or other

persons with a ﬁnancial interest in the applicant, as determined necessary

by the department by regulation. The criteria used in the development of

these regulations shall be based on the person’s capability to exercise

substantial inﬂuence over the operation of the facility.

(2) The following persons are exempt from the requirements applicable

under paragraph (1):

(A) A medical professional as deﬁned in department regulations who

holds a valid license or certiﬁcation from the person’s governing California

medical care regulatory entity and who is not employed, retained, or

contracted by the licensee if all of the following apply:

(i) The criminal record of the person has been cleared as a condition of

licensure or certiﬁcation by the person’s governing California medical care

regulatory entity.

(ii) The person is providing time-limited specialized clinical care or

services.

(iii) The person is providing care or services within the person’s scope

of practice.

(iv) The person is not a community care facility licensee or an employee

of the facility.

Ch. 47— 11 —

(B) A third-party repair person or similar retained contractor if all of the

following apply:

(i) The person is hired for a deﬁned, time-limited job.

(ii) The person is not left alone with clients.

(iii) When clients are present in the room in which the repair person or

contractor is working, a staff person who has a criminal record clearance

or exemption is also present.

licensed hospice interdisciplinary teams who have a contract with a client

or resident of the facility and are in the facility at the request of that client

or resident’s legal decisionmaker. The exemption does not apply to a person

who is a community care facility licensee or an employee of the facility.

(D) Clergy and other spiritual caregivers who are performing services

in common areas of the community care facility or who are advising an

individual client at the request of, or with the permission of, the client or

legal decisionmaker, are exempt from ﬁngerprint and criminal background

check requirements imposed by community care licensing. This exemption

does not apply to a person who is a community care licensee or employee

of the facility.

(E) Members of fraternal, service, or similar organizations who conduct

group activities for clients if all of the following apply:

(i) Members are not left alone with clients.

(ii) Members do not transport clients off the facility premises.

(iii) The same organization does not conduct group activities for clients

more often than deﬁned by the department’s regulations.

(3) In addition to the exemptions in paragraph (2), the following persons

in foster family homes, certiﬁed family homes, and small family homes are

exempt from the requirements applicable under paragraph (1):

(A) Adult friends and family of the licensed or certiﬁed foster parent,

who come into the home to visit for a length of time no longer than deﬁned

by the department in regulations, provided that the adult friends and family

of the licensee are not left alone with the foster children. However, the

licensee, acting as a reasonable and prudent parent, as deﬁned in paragraph

(2) of subdivision (a) of Section 362.04 of the Welfare and Institutions Code,

may allow his or her adult friends and family to provide short-term care to

the foster child and act as an appropriate occasional short-term babysitter

for the child.

(B) Parents of a foster child’s friend when the foster child is visiting the

friend’s home and the friend, licensed or certiﬁed foster parent, or both are

also present. However, the licensee, acting as a reasonable and prudent

parent, may allow the parent of the foster child’s friend to act as an

appropriate short-term babysitter for the child without the friend being

present.

to provide short-term care to the child for periods not to exceed 24 hours.

Caregivers shall use a reasonable and prudent parent standard in selecting

— 12 —Ch. 47

appropriate individuals to act as appropriate occasional short-term

babysitters.

(4) In addition to the exemptions speciﬁed in paragraph (2), the following

persons in adult day care and adult day support centers are exempt from the

requirements applicable under paragraph (1):

(A) Unless contraindicated by the client’s individualized program plan

(IPP) or needs and service plan, a spouse, signiﬁcant other, relative, or close

friend of a client, or an attendant or a facilitator for a client with a

developmental disability if the attendant or facilitator is not employed,

retained, or contracted by the licensee. This exemption applies only if the

person is visiting the client or providing direct care and supervision to the

client.

(B) A volunteer if all of the following applies:

(i) The volunteer is supervised by the licensee or a facility employee

with a criminal record clearance or exemption.

(ii) The volunteer is never left alone with clients.

(iii) The volunteer does not provide any client assistance with dressing,

grooming, bathing, or personal hygiene other than washing of hands.

(5) (A) In addition to the exemptions speciﬁed in paragraph (2), the

following persons in adult residential and social rehabilitation facilities,

unless contraindicated by the client’s individualized program plan (IPP) or

needs and services plan, are exempt from the requirements applicable under

paragraph (1): a spouse, signiﬁcant other, relative, or close friend of a client,

or an attendant or a facilitator for a client with a developmental disability

if the attendant or facilitator is not employed, retained, or contracted by the

licensee. This exemption applies only if the person is visiting the client or

providing direct care and supervision to that client.

(B) Nothing in this subdivision shall prevent a licensee from requiring

a criminal record clearance of any individual exempt from the requirements

of this section, provided that the individual has client contact.

(6) Any person similar to those described in this subdivision, as deﬁned

by the department in regulations.

(b) who is not exempted from ﬁngerprinting shall obtain either a criminal

record clearance or an exemption from disqualiﬁcation pursuant to

subdivision (g) from the State Department of Social Services prior to

employment, residence, or initial presence in the facility. A person speciﬁed

in subdivision (b) who is not exempt from ﬁngerprinting shall be

ﬁngerprinted and shall sign a declaration under penalty of perjury regarding

any prior criminal convictions. The licensee shall submit ﬁngerprint images

and related information to the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau

of Investigation, through the Department of Justice, for a state and federal

level criminal offender record information search, or comply with paragraph

(1) of subdivision (h). These ﬁngerprint images and related information

shall be sent by electronic transmission in a manner approved by the State

Department of Social Services and the Department of Justice for the purpose

of obtaining a permanent set of ﬁngerprints, and shall be submitted to the

Ch. 47— 13 —

Department of Justice by the licensee. A licensee’s failure to prohibit the

employment, residence, or initial presence of a person speciﬁed in

subdivision (b) who is not exempt from ﬁngerprinting and who has not

received either a criminal record clearance or an exemption from

disqualiﬁcation pursuant to subdivision (g) or to comply with paragraph (1)

of subdivision (h), as required in this section, shall result in the citation of

a deﬁciency and the immediate assessment of civil penalties in the amount

of one hundred dollars ($100) per violation per day for a maximum of ﬁve

days, unless the violation is a second or subsequent violation within a

12-month period in which case the civil penalties shall be in the amount of

one hundred dollars ($100) per violation for a maximum of 30 days, and

shall be grounds for disciplining the licensee pursuant to Section 1550. The

department may assess civil penalties for continued violations as permitted

by Section 1548. The ﬁngerprint images and related information shall then

be submitted to the Department of Justice for processing. Upon request of

the licensee, who shall enclose a self-addressed stamped postcard for this

purpose, the Department of Justice shall verify receipt of the ﬁngerprints.

(2) Within 14 calendar days of the receipt of the ﬁngerprint images, the

Department of Justice shall notify the State Department of Social Services

of the criminal record information, as provided for in subdivision (a). If no

criminal record information has been recorded, the Department of Justice

shall provide the licensee and the State Department of Social Services with

a statement of that fact within 14 calendar days of receipt of the ﬁngerprint

images. Documentation of the individual’s clearance or exemption from

disqualiﬁcation shall be maintained by the licensee and be available for

inspection. If new ﬁngerprint images are required for processing, the

Department of Justice shall, within 14 calendar days from the date of receipt

of the ﬁngerprints, notify the licensee that the ﬁngerprints were illegible,

the Department of Justice shall notify the State Department of Social

Services, as required by Section 1522.04, and shall also notify the licensee

by mail, within 14 days of electronic transmission of the ﬁngerprints to the

Department of Justice, if the person has no criminal history recorded. A

violation of the regulations adopted pursuant to Section 1522.04 shall result

in the citation of a deﬁciency and an immediate assessment of civil penalties

in the amount of one hundred dollars ($100) per violation per day for a

maximum of ﬁve days, unless the violation is a second or subsequent

violation within a 12-month period in which case the civil penalties shall

be in the amount of one hundred dollars ($100) per violation for a maximum

of 30 days, and shall be grounds for disciplining the licensee pursuant to

Section 1550. The department may assess civil penalties for continued

violations as permitted by Section 1548.

(3) Except for persons speciﬁed in subdivision (b) who are exempt from

ﬁngerprinting, the licensee shall endeavor to ascertain the previous

employment history of persons required to be ﬁngerprinted. If it is

determined by the State Department of Social Services, on the basis of the

ﬁngerprint images and related information submitted to the Department of

Justice, that subsequent to obtaining a criminal record clearance or exemption

— 14 —Ch. 47

from disqualiﬁcation pursuant to subdivision (g), the person has been

convicted of, or is awaiting trial for, a sex offense against a minor, or has

been convicted for an offense speciﬁed in Section 243.4, 273a, 273d, 273g,

or 368 of the Penal Code, or a felony, the State Department of Social

Services shall notify the licensee to act immediately to terminate the person’s

employment, remove the person from the community care facility, or bar

the person from entering the community care facility. The State Department

of Social Services may subsequently grant an exemption from

disqualiﬁcation pursuant to subdivision (g). If the conviction or arrest was

for another crime, except a minor trafﬁc violation, the licensee shall, upon

notiﬁcation by the State Department of Social Services, act immediately to

either (A) terminate the person’s employment, remove the person from the

community care facility, or bar the person from entering the community

care facility; or (B) seek an exemption from disqualiﬁcation pursuant to

subdivision (g). The State Department of Social Services shall determine

if the person shall be allowed to remain in the facility until a decision on

the exemption from disqualiﬁcation is rendered. A licensee’s failure to

comply with the department’s prohibition of employment, contact with

clients, or presence in the facility as required by this paragraph shall result

in a citation of deﬁciency and an immediate assessment of civil penalties

in the amount of one hundred dollars ($100) per violation per day and shall

be grounds for disciplining the licensee pursuant to Section 1550.

(4) The department may issue an exemption from disqualiﬁcation on its

own motion pursuant to subdivision (g) if the person’s criminal history

indicates that the person is of good character based on the age, seriousness,

and frequency of the conviction or convictions. The department, in

consultation with interested parties, shall develop regulations to establish

the criteria to grant an exemption from disqualiﬁcation pursuant to this

paragraph.

(5) Concurrently with notifying the licensee pursuant to paragraph (3),

the department shall notify the affected individual of his or her right to seek

an exemption from disqualiﬁcation pursuant to subdivision (g). The

individual may seek an exemption from disqualiﬁcation only if the licensee

terminates the person’s employment or removes the person from the facility

after receiving notice from the department pursuant to paragraph (3).

(d) (1) Before issuing a license or certiﬁcate of approval to any person

or persons to operate a foster family home or certiﬁed family home as

described in Section 1506, the State Department of Social Services or other

approving authority shall secure California and Federal Bureau of

Investigation criminal history information to determine whether the applicant

or any person speciﬁed in subdivision (b) who is not exempt from

ﬁngerprinting has ever been convicted of a crime other than a minor trafﬁc

violation or arrested for any crime speciﬁed in subdivision (c) of Section

290 of the Penal Code, for violating Section 245 or 273.5, subdivision (b)

of Section 273a or, prior to January 1, 1994, paragraph (2) of Section 273a

of the Penal Code, or for any crime for which the department cannot grant

an exemption if the person was convicted and the person has not been

Ch. 47— 15 —

exonerated. The State Department of Social Services or other approving

authority shall not issue a license or certiﬁcate of approval to any foster

family home or certiﬁed family home applicant who has not obtained both

a California and Federal Bureau of Investigation criminal record clearance

or exemption from disqualiﬁcation pursuant to subdivision (g).

(2) The criminal history information shall include the full criminal record,

if any, of those persons.

(3) Neither the Department of Justice nor the State Department of Social

Services may charge a fee for the ﬁngerprinting of an applicant for a license,

special permit, or certiﬁcate of approval described in this subdivision. The

record, if any, shall be taken into consideration when evaluating a prospective

applicant.

(4) The following shall apply to the criminal record information:

(A) If the applicant or other persons speciﬁed in subdivision (b) who are

not exempt from ﬁngerprinting have convictions that would make the

applicant’s home unﬁt as a foster family home or a certiﬁed family home,

the license, special permit, or certiﬁcate of approval shall be denied.

(B) If the State Department of Social Services ﬁnds that the applicant,

or any person speciﬁed in subdivision (b) who is not exempt from

ﬁngerprinting is awaiting trial for a crime other than a minor trafﬁc violation,

the State Department of Social Services or other approving authority may

cease processing the application until the conclusion of the trial.

under Section 8712 of the Family Code may be used by the department or

other approving agency.

(D) To the same extent required for federal funding, an applicant for a

foster family home license or for certiﬁcation as a family home, and any

other person speciﬁed in subdivision (b) who is not exempt from

ﬁngerprinting, shall submit a set of ﬁngerprint images and related

information to the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of

Investigation, through the Department of Justice, for a state and federal

level criminal offender record information search, in addition to the criminal

records search required by subdivision (a).

(5) Any person speciﬁed in this subdivision shall, as a part of the

application, be ﬁngerprinted and sign a declaration under penalty of perjury

regarding any prior criminal convictions or arrests for any crime against a

child, spousal or cohabitant abuse or, any crime for which the department

cannot grant an exemption if the person was convicted and shall submit

these ﬁngerprints to the licensing agency or other approving authority.

(6) (A) Subsequent to initial licensure or certiﬁcation, a person speciﬁed

in subdivision (b) who is not exempt from ﬁngerprinting shall obtain both

a California and Federal Bureau of Investigation criminal record clearance,

or an exemption from disqualiﬁcation pursuant to subdivision (g), prior to

employment, residence, or initial presence in the foster family or certiﬁed

family home. A foster family home licensee or foster family agency shall

submit ﬁngerprint images and related information of persons speciﬁed in

subdivision (b) who are not exempt from ﬁngerprinting to the Department

— 16 —Ch. 47

of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, through the Department

of Justice, for a state and federal level criminal offender record information

search, or to comply with paragraph (1) of subdivision (h). A foster family

home licensee’s or a foster family agency’s failure to either prohibit the

employment, residence, or initial presence of a person speciﬁed in

subdivision (b) who is not exempt from ﬁngerprinting and who has not

received either a criminal record clearance or an exemption from

disqualiﬁcation pursuant to subdivision (g), or comply with paragraph (1)

of subdivision (h), as required in this section, shall result in a citation of a

deﬁciency, and the immediate civil penalties of one hundred dollars ($100)

per violation per day for a maximum of ﬁve days, unless the violation is a

second or subsequent violation within a 12-month period in which case the

civil penalties shall be in the amount of one hundred dollars ($100) per

violation for a maximum of 30 days, and shall be grounds for disciplining

the licensee pursuant to Section 1550. A violation of the regulation adopted

pursuant to Section 1522.04 shall result in the citation of a deﬁciency and

an immediate assessment of civil penalties in the amount of one hundred

dollars ($100) per violation per day for a maximum of ﬁve days, unless the

violation is a second or subsequent violation within a 12-month period in

which case the civil penalties shall be in the amount of one hundred dollars

($100) per violation for a maximum of 30 days, and shall be grounds for

disciplining the foster family home licensee or the foster family agency

pursuant to Section 1550. The State Department of Social Services may

assess penalties for continued violations, as permitted by Section 1548. The

ﬁngerprint images shall then be submitted to the Department of Justice for

processing.

(B) Upon request of the licensee, who shall enclose a self-addressed

envelope for this purpose, the Department of Justice shall verify receipt of

the ﬁngerprints. Within ﬁve working days of the receipt of the criminal

record or information regarding criminal convictions from the Department

of Justice, the department shall notify the applicant of any criminal arrests

or convictions. If no arrests or convictions are recorded, the Department of

Justice shall provide the foster family home licensee or the foster family

agency with a statement of that fact concurrent with providing the

information to the State Department of Social Services.

(7) If the State Department of Social Services ﬁnds that the applicant,

or any other person speciﬁed in subdivision (b) who is not exempt from

ﬁngerprinting, has been convicted of a crime other than a minor trafﬁc

violation, the application shall be denied, unless the director grants an

exemption from disqualiﬁcation pursuant to subdivision (g).

(8) If the State Department of Social Services ﬁnds after licensure or the

granting of the certiﬁcate of approval that the licensee, certiﬁed foster parent,

or any other person speciﬁed in subdivision (b) who is not exempt from

ﬁngerprinting, has been convicted of a crime other than a minor trafﬁc

violation, the license or certiﬁcate of approval may be revoked by the

department or the foster family agency, whichever is applicable, unless the

director grants an exemption from disqualiﬁcation pursuant to subdivision

Ch. 47— 17 —

(g). A licensee’s failure to comply with the department’s prohibition of

employment, contact with clients, or presence in the facility as required by

paragraph (3) of subdivision (c) shall be grounds for disciplining the licensee

pursuant to Section 1550.

(e) The State Department of Social Services shall not use a record of

arrest to deny, revoke, or terminate any application, license, employment,

or residence unless the department investigates the incident and secures

evidence, whether or not related to the incident of arrest, that is admissible

in an administrative hearing to establish conduct by the person that may

pose a risk to the health and safety of any person who is or may become a

client. The State Department of Social Services is authorized to obtain any

arrest or conviction records or reports from any law enforcement agency as

necessary to the performance of its duties to inspect, license, and investigate

community care facilities and individuals associated with a community care

facility.

(f) (1) For purposes of this section or any other provision of this chapter,

a conviction means a plea or verdict of guilty or a conviction following a

plea of nolo contendere. Any action that the State Department of Social

Services is permitted to take following the establishment of a conviction

may be taken when the time for appeal has elapsed, when the judgment of

conviction has been afﬁrmed on appeal, or when an order granting probation

is made suspending the imposition of sentence, notwithstanding a subsequent

order pursuant to Sections 1203.4 and 1203.4a of the Penal Code permitting

the person to withdraw his or her plea of guilty and to enter a plea of not

guilty, or setting aside the verdict of guilty, or dismissing the accusation,

information, or indictment. For purposes of this section or any other

provision of this chapter, the record of a conviction, or a copy thereof

certiﬁed by the clerk of the court or by a judge of the court in which the

conviction occurred, shall be conclusive evidence of the conviction. For

purposes of this section or any other provision of this chapter, the arrest

disposition report certiﬁed by the Department of Justice, or documents

admissible in a criminal action pursuant to Section 969b of the Penal Code,

shall be prima facie evidence of the conviction, notwithstanding any other

law prohibiting the admission of these documents in a civil or administrative

action.

(2) For purposes of this section or any other provision of this chapter,

the department shall consider criminal convictions from another state or

federal court as if the criminal offense was committed in this state.

(g) (1) After review of the record, the director may grant an exemption

from disqualiﬁcation for a license or special permit as speciﬁed in paragraph

(4) of subdivision (a), or for a license, special permit, or certiﬁcate of

approval as speciﬁed in paragraphs (4), (7), and (8) of subdivision (d), or

for employment, residence, or presence in a community care facility as

speciﬁed in paragraphs (3), (4), and (5) of subdivision (c), if the director

has substantial and convincing evidence to support a reasonable belief that

the applicant and the person convicted of the crime, if other than the

applicant, are of good character as to justify issuance of the license or special

— 18 —Ch. 47

permit or granting an exemption for purposes of subdivision (c). Except as

otherwise provided in this subdivision, an exemption shall not be granted

pursuant to this subdivision if the conviction was for any of the following

offenses:

(A) (i) An offense speciﬁed in Section 220, 243.4, or 264.1, subdivision

(a) of Section 273a or, prior to January 1, 1994, paragraph (1) of Section

273a, Section 273d, 288, or 289, subdivision (c) of Section 290, or Section

368 of the Penal Code, or was a conviction of another crime against an

individual speciﬁed in subdivision (c) of Section 667.5 of the Penal Code.

(ii) Notwithstanding clause (i), the director may grant an exemption

regarding the conviction for an offense described in paragraph (1), (2), (7),

or (8) of subdivision (c) of Section 667.5 of the Penal Code, if the employee

or prospective employee has been rehabilitated as provided in Section

4852.03 of the Penal Code, has maintained the conduct required in Section

4852.05 of the Penal Code for at least 10 years, and has the recommendation

of the district attorney representing the employee’s county of residence, or

if the employee or prospective employee has received a certiﬁcate of

rehabilitation pursuant to Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 4852.01)

of Title 6 of Part 3 of the Penal Code. This clause shall not apply to foster

care providers, including relative caregivers, nonrelated extended family

members, or any other person speciﬁed in subdivision (b), in those homes

where the individual has been convicted of an offense described in paragraph

(1) of subdivision (c) of Section 667.5 of the Penal Code.

(B) A felony offense speciﬁed in Section 729 of the Business and

Professions Code or Section 206 or 215, subdivision (a) of Section 347,

subdivision (b) of Section 417, or subdivision (a) of Section 451 of the Penal

Code.

this subdivision to any foster care provider applicant if that applicant, or

any other person speciﬁed in subdivision (b) in those homes, has a felony

conviction for either of the following offenses:

(i) A felony conviction for child abuse or neglect, spousal abuse, crimes

against a child, including child pornography, or for a crime involving

violence, including rape, sexual assault, or homicide, but not including other

physical assault and battery. For purposes of this subparagraph, a crime

involving violence means a violent crime speciﬁed in clause (i) of

subparagraph (A), or subparagraph (B).

(ii) A felony conviction, within the last ﬁve years, for physical assault,

battery, or a drug- or alcohol-related offense.

(iii) This subparagraph shall not apply to licenses or approvals wherein

a caregiver was granted an exemption to a criminal conviction described in

clause (i) or (ii) prior to the enactment of this subparagraph.

(iv) This subparagraph shall remain operative only to the extent that

compliance with its provisions is required by federal law as a condition for

receiving funding under Title IV-E of the federal Social Security Act (42

U.S.C. Sec. 670 et seq.).

Ch. 47— 19 —

(2) The department shall not prohibit a person from being employed or

having contact with clients in a facility on the basis of a denied criminal

record exemption request or arrest information unless the department

complies with the requirements of Section 1558.

(h) (1) For purposes of compliance with this section, the department

may permit an individual to transfer a current criminal record clearance, as

deﬁned in subdivision (a), from one facility to another, as long as the

criminal record clearance has been processed through a state licensing

district ofﬁce, and is being transferred to another facility licensed by a state

licensing district ofﬁce. The request shall be in writing to the State

Department of Social Services, and shall include a copy of the person’s

driver’s license or valid identiﬁcation card issued by the Department of

Motor Vehicles, or a valid photo identiﬁcation issued by another state or

the United States government if the person is not a California resident. Upon

request of the licensee, who shall enclose a self-addressed envelope for this

purpose, the State Department of Social Services shall verify whether the

individual has a clearance that can be transferred.

(2) The State Department of Social Services shall hold criminal record

clearances in its active ﬁles for a minimum of three years after an employee

is no longer employed at a licensed facility in order for the criminal record

clearance to be transferred.

(3) The following shall apply to a criminal record clearance or exemption

from the department or a county ofﬁce with department-delegated licensing

authority:

(A) A county ofﬁce with department-delegated licensing authority may

accept a clearance or exemption from the department.

(B) The department may accept a clearance or exemption from any county

ofﬁce with department-delegated licensing authority.

accept a clearance or exemption from any other county ofﬁce with

department-delegated licensing authority.

(4) With respect to notiﬁcations issued by the Department of Justice

pursuant to Section 11105.2 of the Penal Code concerning an individual

whose criminal record clearance was originally processed by the department

or a county ofﬁce with department-delegated licensing authority, all of the

following shall apply:

(A) The Department of Justice shall process a request from the department

or a county ofﬁce with department-delegated licensing authority to receive

the notice only if all of the following conditions are met:

(i) The request shall be submitted to the Department of Justice by the

agency to be substituted to receive the notiﬁcation.

(ii) The request shall be for the same applicant type as the type for which

the original clearance was obtained.

(iii) The request shall contain all prescribed data elements and format

protocols pursuant to a written agreement between the department and the

Department of Justice.

— 20 —Ch. 47

(B) (i) On or before January 7, 2005, the department shall notify the

Department of Justice of all county ofﬁces that have department-delegated

licensing authority.

(ii) The department shall notify the Department of Justice within 15

calendar days of the date on which a new county ofﬁce receives

department-delegated licensing authority or a county’s delegated licensing

authority is rescinded.

ofﬁce with department-delegated licensing authority, or a county child

welfare agency with criminal record clearance and exemption authority, a

fee for each time a request to substitute the recipient agency is received for

purposes of this paragraph. This fee shall not exceed the cost of providing

the service.

(5) (A) A county child welfare agency with authority to secure clearances

pursuant to Section 16504.5 of the Welfare and Institutions Code and to

grant exemptions pursuant to Section 361.4 of the Welfare and Institutions

Code may accept a clearance or exemption from another county with criminal

record and exemption authority pursuant to these sections.

(B) With respect to notiﬁcations issued by the Department of Justice

pursuant to Section 11105.2 of the Penal Code concerning an individual

whose criminal record clearance was originally processed by a county child

welfare agency with criminal record clearance and exemption authority, the

Department of Justice shall process a request from a county child welfare

agency with criminal record and exemption authority to receive the notice

only if all of the following conditions are met:

(i) The request shall be submitted to the Department of Justice by the

agency to be substituted to receive the notiﬁcation.

(ii) The request shall be for the same applicant type as the type for which

the original clearance was obtained.

(iii) The request shall contain all prescribed data elements and format

protocols pursuant to a written agreement between the State Department of

Social Services and the Department of Justice.

(i) The full criminal record obtained for purposes of this section may be

used by the department or by a licensed adoption agency as a clearance

required for adoption purposes.

(j) If a licensee or facility is required by law to deny employment or to

terminate employment of any employee based on written notiﬁcation from

the state department that the employee has a prior criminal conviction or is

determined unsuitable for employment under Section 1558, the licensee or

facility shall not incur civil liability or unemployment insurance liability as

a result of that denial or termination.

(k) The State Department of Social Services may charge a fee for the

costs of processing electronic ﬁngerprint images and related information.

(l) Amendments to this section made in the 1999 portion of the 1999–2000

Regular Session shall be implemented commencing 60 days after the

effective date of the act amending this section in the 1999 portion of the

1999–2000 Regular Session, except that those provisions for the submission

Ch. 47— 21 —

of ﬁngerprints for searching the records of the Federal Bureau of

Investigation shall be implemented 90 days after the effective date of that

act.

SEC. 4. Section 1596.871 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to

read:

1596.871. The Legislature recognizes the need to generate timely and

accurate positive ﬁngerprint identiﬁcation of applicants as a condition of

issuing licenses, permits, or certiﬁcates of approval for persons to operate

or provide direct care services in a child care center or family child care

home. It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this section to require

the ﬁngerprints of those individuals whose contact with child day care

facility clients may pose a risk to the children’s health and safety. An

individual shall be required to obtain either a criminal record clearance or

a criminal record exemption from the State Department of Social Services

before his or her initial presence in a child day care facility.

(a) (1) Before issuing a license or special permit to any person to operate

or manage a day care facility, the department shall secure from an appropriate

law enforcement agency a criminal record to determine whether the applicant

or any other person speciﬁed in subdivision (b) has ever been convicted of

a crime other than a minor trafﬁc violation or arrested for any crime speciﬁed

in subdivision (c) of Section 290 of the Penal Code, for violating Section

245 or 273.5, subdivision (b) of Section 273a or, prior to January 1, 1994,

paragraph (2) of Section 273a of the Penal Code, or for any crime for which

the department cannot grant an exemption if the person was convicted and

the person has not been exonerated.

(2) The criminal history information shall include the full criminal record,

if any, of those persons, and subsequent arrest information pursuant to

Section 11105.2 of the Penal Code.

(3) Except during the 2003–04 through 2012–13 ﬁscal years, inclusive,

neither the Department of Justice nor the department may charge a fee for

the ﬁngerprinting of an applicant who will serve six or fewer children or

any family day care applicant for a license, or for obtaining a criminal record

of an applicant pursuant to this section.

(4) The following shall apply to the criminal record information:

(A) If the State Department of Social Services ﬁnds that the applicant

or any other person speciﬁed in subdivision (b) has been convicted of a

crime, other than a minor trafﬁc violation, the application shall be denied,

unless the director grants an exemption pursuant to subdivision (f).

(B) If the State Department of Social Services ﬁnds that the applicant,

or any other person speciﬁed in subdivision (b), is awaiting trial for a crime

other than a minor trafﬁc violation, the State Department of Social Services

may cease processing the application until the conclusion of the trial.

of Justice shall provide the applicant and the State Department of Social

Services with a statement of that fact.

(D) If the State Department of Social Services ﬁnds after licensure that

the licensee, or any other person speciﬁed in paragraph (2) of subdivision

— 22 —Ch. 47

(b), has been convicted of a crime other than a minor trafﬁc violation, the

license may be revoked, unless the director grants an exemption pursuant

to subdivision (f).

(E) An applicant and any other person speciﬁed in subdivision (b) shall

submit ﬁngerprint images and related information to the Department of

Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, through the Department of

Justice, for a state and federal level criminal offender record information

search, in addition to the search required by subdivision (a). If an applicant

meets all other conditions for licensure, except receipt of the Federal Bureau

of Investigation’s criminal history information for the applicant and persons

listed in subdivision (b), the department may issue a license if the applicant

and each person described by subdivision (b) has signed and submitted a

statement that he or she has never been convicted of a crime in the United

States, other than a trafﬁc infraction as deﬁned in paragraph (1) of

subdivision (a) of Section 42001 of the Vehicle Code. If, after licensure,

the department determines that the licensee or person speciﬁed in subdivision

(b) has a criminal record, the license may be revoked pursuant to Section

1596.885. The department may also suspend the license pending an

administrative hearing pursuant to Section 1596.886.

(b) (1) In addition to the applicant, this section shall be applicable to

criminal convictions of the following persons:

(A) Adults responsible for administration or direct supervision of staff.

(B) Any person, other than a child, residing in the facility.

(D) Any staff person, volunteer, or employee who has contact with the

children.

(i) A volunteer providing time-limited specialized services shall be

exempt from the requirements of this subdivision if this person is directly

supervised by the licensee or a facility employee with a criminal record

clearance or exemption, the volunteer spends no more than 16 hours per

week at the facility, and the volunteer is not left alone with children in care.

(ii) A student enrolled or participating at an accredited educational

institution shall be exempt from the requirements of this subdivision if the

student is directly supervised by the licensee or a facility employee with a

criminal record clearance or exemption, the facility has an agreement with

the educational institution concerning the placement of the student, the

student spends no more than 16 hours per week at the facility, and the student

is not left alone with children in care.

(iii) A volunteer who is a relative, legal guardian, or foster parent of a

client in the facility shall be exempt from the requirements of this

subdivision.

(iv) A contracted repair person retained by the facility, if not left alone

with children in care, shall be exempt from the requirements of this

subdivision.

(v) Any person similar to those described in this subdivision, as deﬁned

by the department in regulations.

Ch. 47— 23 —

(E) If the applicant is a ﬁrm, partnership, association, or corporation, the

chief executive ofﬁcer, other person serving in like capacity, or a person

designated by the chief executive ofﬁcer as responsible for the operation

of the facility, as designated by the applicant agency.

(F) If the applicant is a local educational agency, the president of the

governing board, the school district superintendent, or a person designated

to administer the operation of the facility, as designated by the local

educational agency.

(G) Additional ofﬁcers of the governing body of the applicant, or other

persons with a ﬁnancial interest in the applicant, as determined necessary

by the department by regulation. The criteria used in the development of

these regulations shall be based on the person’s capability to exercise

substantial inﬂuence over the operation of the facility.

(H) This section does not apply to employees of child care and

development programs under contract with the State Department of

Education who have completed a criminal record clearance as part of an

application to the Commission on Teacher Credentialing, and who possess

a current credential or permit issued by the commission, including employees

of child care and development programs that serve both children subsidized

under, and children not subsidized under, a State Department of Education

contract. The Commission on Teacher Credentialing shall notify the

department upon revocation of a current credential or permit issued to an

employee of a child care and development program under contract with the

State Department of Education.

(I) This section does not apply to employees of a child care and

development program operated by a school district, county ofﬁce of

education, or community college district under contract with the State

Department of Education who have completed a criminal record clearance

as a condition of employment. The school district, county ofﬁce of education,

or community college district upon receiving information that the status of

an employee’s criminal record clearance has changed shall submit that

information to the department.

(2) Nothing in this subdivision shall prevent a licensee from requiring a

criminal record clearance of any individuals exempt from the requirements

under this subdivision.

subdivision (b) and not exempted from ﬁngerprinting shall, as a condition

to employment, residence, or presence in a child day care facility be

ﬁngerprinted and sign a declaration under penalty of perjury regarding any

prior criminal conviction. The licensee shall submit ﬁngerprint images and

related information to the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of

Investigation, through the Department of Justice, or to comply with

paragraph (1) of subdivision (h), prior to the person’s employment, residence,

or initial presence in the child day care facility.

(B) These ﬁngerprint images for the purpose of obtaining a permanent

set of ﬁngerprints shall be electronically submitted to the Department of

Justice in a manner approved by the State Department of Social Services

— 24 —Ch. 47

and to the Department of Justice, or to comply with paragraph (1) of

subdivision (h), as required in this section, shall result in the citation of a

deﬁciency, and an immediate assessment of civil penalties in the amount

of one hundred dollars ($100) per violation per day for a maximum of ﬁve

days, unless the violation is a second or subsequent violation within a

12-month period in which case the civil penalties shall be in the amount of

one hundred dollars ($100) per violation for a maximum of 30 days, and

shall be grounds for disciplining the licensee pursuant to Section 1596.885

or Section 1596.886. The State Department of Social Services may assess

civil penalties for continued violations permitted by Sections 1596.99 and

1597.62. The ﬁngerprint images and related information shall then be

submitted to the department for processing. Within 14 calendar days of the

receipt of the ﬁngerprint images, the Department of Justice shall notify the

State Department of Social Services of the criminal record information, as

provided in this subdivision. If no criminal record information has been

recorded, the Department of Justice shall provide the licensee and the State

Department of Social Services with a statement of that fact within 14

calendar days of receipt of the ﬁngerprint images. If new ﬁngerprint images

are required for processing, the Department of Justice shall, within 14

calendar days from the date of receipt of the ﬁngerprint images, notify the

licensee that the ﬁngerprints were illegible.

maintained by the licensee, and shall be available for inspection. When

live-scan technology is operational, as deﬁned in Section 1522.04, the

Department of Justice shall notify the department, as required by that section,

and notify the licensee by mail within 14 days of electronic transmission of

the ﬁngerprints to the Department of Justice, if the person has no criminal

record. Any violation of the regulations adopted pursuant to Section 1522.04

shall result in the citation of a deﬁciency and an immediate assessment of

civil penalties in the amount of one hundred dollars ($100) per violation

per day for a maximum of ﬁve days, unless the violation is a second or

subsequent violation within a 12-month period in which case the civil

penalties shall be in the amount of one hundred dollars ($100) per violation

for a maximum of 30 days, and shall be grounds for disciplining the licensee

pursuant to Section 1596.885 or Section 1596.886. The department may

assess civil penalties for continued violations, as permitted by Sections

1596.99 and 1597.62.

(2) Except for persons speciﬁed in paragraph (2) of subdivision (b), the

licensee shall endeavor to ascertain the previous employment history of

persons required to be ﬁngerprinted under this subdivision. If it is determined

by the department, on the basis of ﬁngerprints submitted to the Department

of Justice, that the person has been convicted of a sex offense against a

minor, an offense speciﬁed in Section 243.4, 273a, 273d, 273g, or 368 of

the Penal Code, or a felony, the State Department of Social Services shall

notify the licensee to act immediately to terminate the person’s employment,

remove the person from the child day care facility, or bar the person from

entering the child day care facility. The department may subsequently grant

Ch. 47— 25 —

an exemption pursuant to subdivision (f). If the conviction was for another

crime except a minor trafﬁc violation, the licensee shall, upon notiﬁcation

by the State Department of Social Services, act immediately to either (1)

terminate the person’s employment, remove the person from the child day

care facility, or bar the person from entering the child day care facility; or

(2) seek an exemption pursuant to subdivision (f). The department shall

determine if the person shall be allowed to remain in the facility until a

decision on the exemption is rendered. A licensee’s failure to comply with

the department’s prohibition of employment, contact with clients, or presence

in the facility as required by this paragraph shall result in a citation of

deﬁciency and an immediate assessment of civil penalties by the department

against the licensee, in the amount of one hundred dollars ($100) per

violation per day for a maximum of ﬁve days, unless the violation is a second

or subsequent violation within a 12-month period in which case the civil

penalties shall be in the amount of one hundred dollars ($100) per violation

for a maximum of 30 days, and shall be grounds for disciplining the licensee

pursuant to Section 1596.885 or 1596.886.

(3) The department may issue an exemption on its own motion pursuant

to subdivision (f) if the person’s criminal history indicates that the person

is of good character based on the age, seriousness, and frequency of the

conviction or convictions. The department, in consultation with interested

parties, shall develop regulations to establish the criteria to grant an

exemption pursuant to this paragraph.

(4) Concurrently with notifying the licensee pursuant to paragraph (3),

the department shall notify the affected individual of his or her right to seek

an exemption pursuant to subdivision (f). The individual may seek an

exemption only if the licensee terminates the person’s employment or

removes the person from the facility after receiving notice from the

department pursuant to paragraph (3).

(d) (1) For purposes of this section or any other provision of this chapter,

a conviction means a plea or verdict of guilty or a conviction following a

plea of nolo contendere. Any action that the department is permitted to take

following the establishment of a conviction may be taken when the time for

appeal has elapsed, when the judgment of conviction has been afﬁrmed on

appeal, or when an order granting probation is made suspending the

imposition of sentence, notwithstanding a subsequent order pursuant to

Sections 1203.4 and 1203.4a of the Penal Code permitting the person to

withdraw his or her plea of guilty and to enter a plea of not guilty, or setting

aside the verdict of guilty, or dismissing the accusation, information, or

indictment. For purposes of this section or any other provision of this chapter,

the record of a conviction, or a copy thereof certiﬁed by the clerk of the

court or by a judge of the court in which the conviction occurred, shall be

conclusive evidence of the conviction. For purposes of this section or any

other provision of this chapter, the arrest disposition report certiﬁed by the

Department of Justice, or documents admissible in a criminal action pursuant

to Section 969b of the Penal Code, shall be prima facie evidence of

— 26 —Ch. 47

conviction, notwithstanding any other provision of law prohibiting the

admission of these documents in a civil or administrative action.

(2) For purposes of this section or any other provision of this chapter,

the department shall consider criminal convictions from another state or

federal court as if the criminal offense was committed in this state.

(e) The State Department of Social Services may not use a record of