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Assembly committee approves bill allowing provisional hires for foster-care residential programs while awaiting out‑of‑state clearances
Summary
The Assembly Committee on Human Services voted unanimously to pass AB 276 to the Assembly Public Safety Committee. The bill would let qualified out‑of‑state candidates begin work under supervision after clearing DOJ, FBI and California Child Abuse Central Index checks while their full out‑of‑state registry checks complete.
Chair Lee called the California State Assembly Committee on Human Services to order and the panel voted unanimously to send AB 276 to the Assembly Public Safety Committee.
AB 276, authored by Assemblymember Bennett, would allow children’s residential agencies to provisionally hire candidates who have cleared federal and California background screenings while the agencies await out‑of‑state child abuse registry checks. Under the bill, provisional hires could not have unsupervised contact with children until the out‑of‑state registry check is complete.
The bill’s author said the proposal addresses lengthy delays that bar qualified candidates from beginning work. "Professionals from outside of California often wait up to 9 months for clearance even after passing all the federal and California criminal background checks," Assemblymember Bennett said. He told the committee those waits can make it effectively impossible to hire for critical roles.
Annie Thomas, speaking for the California Alliance of Child and Family Services, described workforce shortages across community‑based residential programs and said delays sometimes exceed a year. "Providers are losing qualified candidates before they can even begin," she said, adding that many programs receive roughly 30% or more of their applicants from out of state and operate on fixed funding models that do not account for months‑long hiring delays.
Dr. Teresa Plant, Regional Director of Casa Pacifica Centers for Children and Families, gave a recent example of a top candidate who is a military spouse and has lived in multiple states. "Is my best candidate worth the wait? That's absolutely unfair, both to the candidate who is best qualified and to the youth whom they would be serving," Dr. Plant said. She testified that out‑of‑state clearances have averaged three to six months for her organization and have at times taken longer.
Supporters emphasized that AB 276 requires clearance through the California Department of Justice (DOJ), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the California Child Abuse Central Index before provisional work begins, and that provisional staff would be supervised and restricted from unsupervised contact with children while out‑of‑state checks are pending.
No witnesses testified in opposition during the hearing. Assemblymember Calderon moved the bill and Assemblymember Jackson seconded the motion. The committee roll call recorded five aye votes and the bill was reported out to the Assembly Public Safety Committee.
The committee chair recommended the bill for an aye vote and the motion passed. The committee noted written testimony remains accepted through the committee's position letter portal for those who wish to submit further comment.
