Hillsides provides a voice for the children and families who need it the most. Our blog, written by Joseph M. Costa, Hillsides chief executive officer, discusses and analyzes pressing and newsworthy issues that impact Hillsides and child welfare. Through our many advocacy opportunities, we take a stand to continually create lasting change for at-risk children, youth, and their families. Read our latest Advocacy Report.
Education
SB 940 (Beall): Removes barriers to enrolling in the Cal Grant program to improve access for youth in foster care in order to help them better benefit from the state tuition assistance program.
Status: Bill died in Assembly but program changes and funding achieved via Budget
Housing
SB 918 (Wiener): Creates the Office of Homeless Youth within the California Department of Housing and Community Development and provides $60 million in grants for housing, services, and supports for youth experiencing homelessness.
Status: Passed Legislature, Pending before Governor
Resource Family Approval (RFA)
AB 2183 (Rubio): Makes changes to the Resource Family Approval (RFA) process, including ensuring that families receive funding in a timely manner.
Status: Bill died in Assembly but funding at time of placement achieved via Budget
SB 1083 (Mitchell): Makes changes to the Resource Family Approval (RFA) process, including expediting timelines for county certification, grandfathering in families who were previously approved caregivers, and expanding access to kinship and guardianship assistance funds.
Status: Passed Legislature, Pending before Governor
Foster Care & Extended Foster Care
AB 2043 (Arambula): Establishes a statewide hotline and mobile response system to support foster families and youth during times of crisis and to link them to supportive services.
Status: Passed Legislature, Pending before Governor
AB 2247 (Gipson): Improves placement stability for youth in foster care by requiring social workers and child and family teams to develop a plan to use restorative justice and mediation to preserve existing placements when a move is being considered. When a placement change is necessary, the bill provides the child with expanded legal rights including those related to the notification process.
Status: Passed Legislature, Pending before Governor
AB 2337 (Gipson): Removes administrative barriers to make it easier for youth in need of transitional services to be able to access extended foster care.
Status: Passed Legislature, Pending before Governor
