Existing law establishes the Office of the State Foster Care Ombudsperson in the State Department of Social Services with prescribed powers and duties relating to the management of foster children, including the dissemination of information on the rights of children and youth in foster care provides for the out-of-home placement of children who are unable to remain in the custody and care of their parent or parents, including providing for a range of child welfare and foster care services, at the state and local levels. Existing law identifies the case plan as the foundation and central unifying tool in child welfare services, and requires various categories of information to be incorporated into a child’s case plan.

This bill would require the office State Department of Social Services to take all necessary steps to establish and implement an Internet Web-based foster care document storage pilot program and authorize the counties of Los Angeles, San Francisco, and San Bernardino to participate in this pilot program in accordance with the bill. The bill would provide that the pilot program would consist of an interactive, secured Internet Web site designed to give foster youth and their care providers former foster youth from 15 to 21 years of age, inclusive, access to designated personal information of the foster youth. The bill would require the office department to ensure that the Internet Web site maintains the confidentiality of medical and other records on the Internet Web site, consistent with applicable state and federal law.

This bill would require participating counties to report to the Legislature, on or before October 1, 2014, on the effectiveness of the pilot program, as specified. It would authorize the funding of the pilot program through private, public, or nonprofit funding sources.