If the parent or guardian of the pupil refuses to enter into a contract providing for the payment to the county or school district, as the case may be, of a sum sufficient to meet the average cost of maintaining a pupil within the school, including meals and a reasonable sum for lodging, and if the presence of the child within another school of the county or district, as the case may be, or within its home is a menace to the future welfare of other children or of the child itself, the county superintendent or superintendent of schools of the district, as the case may be, shall cause to be filed in the superior court of the county, acting in the department of the court performing the functions of the juvenile court or in any other court of competent jurisdiction, a complaint asking for an order of the court, committing the child to the 24-hour school and fixing the amount the parent or guardian shall pay for his maintenance until such time as the county superintendent or superintendent of schools of the district, as the case may be, reports to the court that the best interests of the minor will be served by his discharge from the school. A copy of the complaint shall at the same time be furnished the parent or guardian. If the parent or guardian is unable to pay the amount, the court may in the order provide for the payment by the county of a sum sufficient to cover the costs of maintenance of the child during the period of his commitment to the school.

(Enacted by Stats. 1976, Ch. 1010.)