Social Services

Establishes a statewide 24/7 hotline as the primary entry point for foster youth and caregivers during crisis situations. Requires counties to provide mobile crisis response teams within 3 hours for urgent needs and 24 hours for non-urgent cases. Mandates counties to review their mobile response system plans every two years to ensure service effectiveness. Prioritizes trauma-informed care by requiring specialized training for response team staff and inclusion of peer support.

Establishes a $208.8 million annual fund for county-based juvenile justice rehabilitation and supervision services. Requires counties to provide prepopulated electronic or mailed semiannual reports to CalWORKs recipients by August 2025. Mandates child welfare agencies to hold team meetings for families receiving maintenance services starting July 2025. Creates a pilot program allowing CalFresh recipients to earn supplemental benefits for purchasing fresh produce.

Establishes a statewide Master Plan for Developmental Services to improve accessibility and equity in service delivery. Requires regional centers to implement implicit bias training to enhance service access for diverse communities. Eliminates monthly parental fees for families with children receiving out-of-home care services. Allocates $2.8 million for planning activities to improve outcomes for individuals with developmental disabilities.

Expands CalFresh food benefits access by automatically qualifying all public college programs as employment training. Establishes a data-sharing system between colleges and social services to identify eligible students for food benefits. Requires public colleges to contact eligible students about CalFresh benefits starting in 2027. Mandates annual reporting on approved campus programs and student outreach efforts through 2030.

Requires talent agents, managers, and coaches working with minors to report suspected child abuse. Failure to report suspected abuse can result in jail time and a $1,000 fine. Expands child protection in the entertainment industry through mandatory abuse reporting. Aligns entertainment professionals with existing mandated reporter requirements for youth workers.

Extends CalWORKs aid eligibility for parents whose children are placed in out-of-home care beyond six months. Requires counties to integrate welfare-to-work activities into child reunification plans. Ends immunization verification penalties when a child enters out-of-home care. Implements changes only if determined to be cost-neutral or generate savings.

Requires juvenile detention facilities to provide free hygiene products to indigent youth detainees. Prohibits using access to hygiene products as a disciplinary measure or reward. Mandates the discharge of all hygiene product debts accrued before January 1, 2026. Defines indigent status as having $25 or less in trust accounts over seven days.

Establishes a new independent Developmental Services Ombudsperson office to monitor regional center services. Authorizes the office to investigate complaints and advocate for individuals with developmental disabilities. Requires regional centers to inform clients about the office's toll-free number during annual planning meetings. Mandates strict confidentiality protections for investigation records and consumer information.

Requires foster care supplemental payments to be adjusted for inflation starting January 2026. Establishes new payments for pregnant youth in foster care during their final trimester. Provides an additional $200 monthly payment to teen parents in foster care who complete parenting plans.

Limits denial of family reunification services to parents with violent felony convictions within the past 5 years. Requires courts to prove specific risks to child safety before denying reunification services due to violent felonies. Mandates reunification services unless courts find it against the child's best interests. Expands county welfare departments' duties to provide reunification services without state reimbursement.

Exempts higher education financial aid from CalWORKs and CalFresh eligibility calculations. Excludes educational funds as countable resources for 12 months after receipt. Requires implementation through county-level instructions by March 1, 2026. Aligns CalFresh income exclusions with CalWORKs program rules.

Requires courts to consider human trafficking allegations when determining child custody arrangements. Mandates review of human trafficking evidence from the past 10 years in custody decisions. Applies when a parent has protective orders, criminal convictions, or substantiated trafficking complaints. Protects trafficking victims through address confidentiality programs and civil remedies.

Requires regional centers to complete developmental disability assessments for foster children within 60 days. Mandates assessment of foster children even when documentation is incomplete to prevent service delays. Establishes annual public reporting requirements to track assessment timelines and outcomes by regional center. Creates standardized information packets about services in multiple languages for families seeking assistance.

Expands the California ABLE Program to accept funding from philanthropic entities and legislative appropriations. Authorizes tax refunds to be directly deposited into ABLE accounts for disability-related expenses. Enables the ABLE Program Board to target specific eligible groups through public awareness campaigns. Requires tax forms to include information about the ABLE Program savings option.

Expands the State Emergency Food Bank Reserve Program to provide diapers and wipes during disasters. Authorizes food banks to distribute and receive reimbursement for diaper-related costs in emergencies. Targets support for low-income families struggling with diaper costs that average $100 per month per child. Streamlines implementation by exempting the program from certain contracting requirements.

Expands CalWORKs eligibility by exempting in-kind gifts and noncustodial parent income from benefit calculations. Removes the 100-hour work limit requirement for unemployed parents seeking CalWORKs assistance. Requires counties to prioritize subsidized job placements with employers having labor agreements and good safety records. Mandates a comprehensive study by 2027 to evaluate potential expansions of the CalWORKs program.

Requires the Department of Social Services to provide foster parents with educational resources on culturally appropriate grooming products. Ensures foster youth receive hygiene products that respect their culture, ethnicity, and gender identity. Expands foster youth rights to include access to culturally sensitive personal care items.

Extends the CalWORKs Home Visiting Program to serve families with children up to age 3 instead of age 2. Allows participants to continue receiving home visits for 12 months after losing CalWORKs eligibility. Provides culturally competent home visiting services for at least 24 months to support low-income families.

Requires county jails to provide regular in-person visits between incarcerated parents and their children in foster care. Allows video calls or phone communication when in-person visits are not feasible due to safety or logistics. Mandates child welfare agencies to coordinate visits and document all visitation activities in court reports. Requires written notification to incarcerated parents about their visitation rights and procedures.

Requires emergency shelters to coordinate with aging services agencies during disasters to support older adults. Mandates formal agreements between shelter agencies and aging services to ensure continuous care during evacuations. Establishes guaranteed shelter access for aging service providers during active emergencies.

Requires standardized training for mandated child abuse reporters by July 2027 to address racial disparities. Mandates employers ensure mandated reporters complete training within 3 months of hire or by March 2030. Establishes a Mandated Reporting Advisory Committee to transform reporting practices and reduce systemic bias. Requires counties to provide community support resources to families as part of their prevention services plans.

Protects guaranteed income payments from affecting eligibility for state benefit programs like CalWORKs and Medi-Cal. Requires state agencies to obtain federal waivers to implement the income protection provisions. Defines guaranteed income as unconditional recurring cash payments from public or private sources. Mandates that benefit program payments cannot affect eligibility for guaranteed income programs.

Establishes new statewide quality measures for developmental disability services by January 2027. Requires regional centers to track and report outcomes for individuals with developmental disabilities. Mandates a comprehensive review of existing service quality measures by July 2026. Creates performance benchmarks that can trigger probation for underperforming regional centers.

Requires foster youth transitional housing programs to let residents choose their roommates and living arrangements. Mandates that housing providers allow bedroom and unit sharing regardless of gender identity. Establishes staffing ratios of one case manager for every twelve foster youth participants. Requires program managers to hold master's degrees and have two years of youth services experience.

Expands CalWORKs protections for victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking. Requires counties to waive program requirements that could endanger abuse survivors or their children. Mandates creation of standardized forms and materials to help abuse survivors access resources. Requires six-month reviews of requirement waivers and written notices for all waiver decisions.