SACRAMENTO – Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger announced today that he has signed SB 679, by State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto), a bill to allow San Mateo County to operate group homes for emotionally disturbed young people who require out-of-home care.
SB 679 will allow San Mateo County to care for hard-to-place youth in local facilities instead of placing them far from their homes or out of the state. Under current law, only private, non-profit providers are allowed to operate group homes and receive Department of Social Services foster care funding. The result has been a shortage of services for particularly needy young people.
San Mateo County has been operating a county-run facility at Canyon Oaks to serve the most severely disturbed children. Initial findings show that Canyon Oaks has reduced the amount of time that young people remain in out-of-home care, and has allowed multiple agencies to work together to meet young people’s needs.
To learn more about SB 679, visit http://www.leginfo.ca.gov .