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ASSEMBLY BILL 408 (STEINBERG – 2003)
CHAPTER 813, STATUTES OF 2003, AB 408
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Welfare and Institutions Code sections relating to dependent children were affected in 2003 following legislative passage of Assembly Bill 408. (See Exhibit #1g) This bill was introduced on February 14, 2003 by Assembly member Darrell Steinberg. (See Exhibit #1a) At this time, Assembly member Steinberg served as chair of the Assembly Committee on Appropriations. (See Exhibit #7)
Assembly Bill 408 was assigned to the Assembly Committee on Judiciary, the Assembly Committee on Health and Human Services, the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services and the Senate Committee on Judiciary where policy issues raised by the bill were considered. (See Exhibits #3, #5, #10 and #12) The fiscal ramifications of the bill were considered by the Assembly Committee on Appropriations and the Senate Committee on Appropriations. (See Exhibits #7 and #14)
Five amendments were made to Assembly Bill 408. (See Exhibits #1b through #1f and #2) Subsequent to legislative approval, Governor Gray Davis signed the bill on October 10, 2003, and it was recorded by the Secretary of State on October 11 as Chapter 813 of the Statutes of 2003. (See Exhibits #1g and #2)
The Third Reading analysis of Assembly Bill 408 that was prepared by the Office of Senate Floor Analyses indicated that the bill made “changes in dependency law to help achieve permanency for older foster youth.” (See Exhibit #15, page 1)
With more specificity, this analysis described the bill, in part, as follows:
This bill:
1. Adds a statement of legislative intent that the state shall encourage approaches to child protection that ensure that no child leaves foster care without a life-long connection to a committed adult.
2. Requires that the notice to a child of a dependency status review hearing state that the child has the right to attend and participate in the hearing, and requires the court, if a minor 10 years of age or older who is the subject of a juvenile court hearing is not present at that hearing, to determine whether the minor was properly notified of his or her right to attend the hearing.