CWDA Successful in Championing Legislation to Uplift the State’s Most Vulnerable
Sacramento, CA – The deadline for Gov. Gavin Newsom to act on legislation sent to his desk at the end of session has arrived and The County Welfare Directors Association (CWDA) of California is proud to announce three of our sponsored bills have been signed into law. These measures will improve the quality of life for some of our state’s most vulnerable, including youth involved in the child welfare system and adults served by the adult protective services program.
“Our member counties often work with people during some of the most stressful moments of their lives. It is our hope these new laws will work to ease some of their burden,” said CWDA Executive Director Cathy Senderling-McDonald. “Making systems easier to navigate, increasing supports for youth and families served by our programs and removing barriers to family reunification are among our top priorities, and these bills work towards those goals.”
AB 1686, authored by Assemblyman Isaac Bryan and co-sponsored by the Alliance for Children’s Rights will reduce repayment obligations for parents whose children are placed in foster care, long a barrier to reunification.
“This change will improve the conditions of life for tens of thousands of families across California,” said Assemblyman Bryan. “With the Governor’s signature, we are lifting a tremendous financial burden that punishes poverty and keeps families from reunifying and thriving. I’m enormously grateful to the families, advocates and allies who fought to make this bill law, particularly the Alliance for Children’s Rights and the California Welfare Directors Association. Today we are celebrating, but change isn’t a one-time event, and we still have a tremendous amount of work ahead of us.”
SB 1054, authored by Sen. Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh, makes it easier for adult protective services multi-disciplinary teams and child welfare multi-disciplinary teams to share information to better serve families, children, and older adults.
Finally, SB 1090, authored by Sen. Melissa Hurtado and co-sponsored by Children Now, clarifies service expectations for the existing statewide hotline for caregivers and current or former foster children during moments of instability and a county-based mobile response system for further support and in-person response.
“Once in effect, these new laws will support counties in meeting our state’s goals to improve outcomes for youth and adults served by our programs,” said Senderling-McDonald. “Recognizing that adults and youth of color are disproportionately represented in many of the programs and services counties provide, these bills also take important steps toward greater equity. And we look forward to the next legislative session, where we will continue to fight to support and lift up our clients.”