(a) (1) The department shall allocate funds appropriated for the purpose of providing training and community-based, culturally relevant, trauma-informed services in order to reduce the frequency of law enforcement involvement and delinquency petitions arising from incidents at group homes and other facilities licensed to provide residential care to dependent children. For county departments participating in the program, participation shall be at the county’s option.

(2) The department’s allocation of the funds shall include, at a minimum, both of the following:

(A) Consultation with stakeholders to establish a methodology to identify facilities in need of training and to establish a methodology for defining areas of highest need for services for youth. The department shall involve stakeholders from rural areas and counties with fewer than 1,000,000 residents.

(B) Identification of highest areas of need by county based on youth living in areas with the highest rate of crossover and dual status youth as described in subdivision (a) of Section 241.1 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, youth placed in probation-supervised foster care placements and foster youth placed in juvenile hall, and youth living in congregate care facilities specified in Sections 1536 and 1538.7, with excessive licensing complaints and excessive calls to law enforcement.

(b) (1) Eligible lead agencies include county child welfare departments, county behavioral health departments, county public health departments, or private nonprofit community-based agencies with experience providing social and mental health services to youth and families. For county departments participating in the program, participation shall be at the county’s option.

(2) A group home, transitional shelter care facility, short-term residential therapeutic program, as defined in Section 1502, and temporary shelter care facility, as defined in subdivision (c) of Section 1530.8, is ineligible to receive funds as specified in this section.

(c) (1) By March 1, 2019, the department shall allocate the funds appropriated to it for these purposes in the annual Budget Act to lead agencies that submit a three-year plan via a request for proposal developed by the department. Funds awarded but not expended during any year shall remain eligible for expenditure by a selected lead agency in the following year. Up to 10 percent of funds awarded may be allocated to the lead agency for the coordination and administration of the program.

(2) (A) A prospective lead agency shall indicate its interest in participating in the program by submitting a three-year plan by February 1 of the first year, and shall submit any plan modifications by February 1 of each subsequent year.

(B) The plan shall designate the lead agency and the community-based organization or organizations that will provide services, including program descriptions and the targeted geographic areas in most need of services. The plan shall provide evidence of all of the following:

(i) Braided or matching county funds of at least 25 percent.

(ii) A memorandum of understanding (MOU) with local law enforcement assuring law enforcement participation in the training and diversion protocols. A plan that does not include a direct MOU with law enforcement may be considered, but plans that include the MOU will have priority for funding.

(iii) Direct coordination of services with identified facilities and collaboration regarding the integration of services with the facility program.

(iv) Youth educational and well-being outcome measures developed in coordination with the department.

(C) The lead agency shall allocate no less than 90 percent of the funds awarded to one or more community-based service providers to provide direct services as described in this section.

(D) If the lead agency is also a community-based organization, the lead agency may directly administer services under this section.

(3) Funding provided to a county pursuant to this section shall supplement, and not supplant, county funding expended for purposes described in subdivision (a) as of the 2016–17 fiscal year.

(4) The department shall issue guidance to eligible lead agencies regarding fund and plan requirements by October 1 of each year in order to ensure maximum utilization of federal funding opportunities, and may periodically revise that guidance following consultation with county agencies, other state departments, advocates for children and youth, and other stakeholders.

(d) (1) For the purposes of this section, community-based, culturally relevant, trauma-informed services include, but are not limited to, mentoring, educational enrichment, college and career preparation, arts, recreation, cultural and ethnic studies, cultural healing practices, permanency services, and self-awareness and health programming, which shall be provided as alternatives to arrest, detention, and incarceration for system-impacted youth living in areas with the highest rates of foster youth arrests and crossover youth.

(2) The services described in paragraph (1) shall be provided by nongovernmental organizations that are easily accessible to residents of the congregate care facilities.

(e) The department shall use five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) of the funds appropriated to it in the annual Budget Act for purposes of this section to contract with one or more community-based organizations for training purposes pursuant to subdivision (a). The department shall seek federal matching funds to maximize funding for this purpose. The department shall consider the allocation of funds as specified in subdivision (c) when contracting for training purposes.

(1) Training and technical assistance to professionals interacting with youth shall include all of the following:

(A) Adolescent development principles.

(B) Deescalation techniques.

(C) Culturally relevant and trauma-informed interventions.

(2) Training shall be provided to group home, shelter, and short-term residential treatment program staff, and the responding local law enforcement serving youth living in the facilities or areas identified in paragraph (2) of subdivision (a).

(f) The department shall contract with a research firm or university to measure youth outcomes and justice system measures over a three-year period beginning July 1, 2019.

(1) Youth outcome measures may include, but are not limited to, exits to families from congregate care, improvement in the youths’ health and well-being, school and community stability, educational attainment, and employment opportunities, as described in Section 11467 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

(2) Justice system measures may include, but are not limited to, frequency of law enforcement responses to facilities for low-level offenses, number of charges filed resulting from law enforcement responses, number of hearings resulting from law enforcement responses, days youth spend in detention, youth placement in congregate care, school and placement disruptions, and facility staff turnover.

(3) The department shall seek any necessary federal approvals to obtain federal financial participation for the training and evaluation pursuant to this section, including any approvals necessary to obtain enhanced federal financial participation, as applicable.

(g) The department shall adopt regulations as required to implement the provisions of this section. Notwithstanding the rulemaking provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code), the department may implement and administer this section through all-county letters or similar written instructions until regulations are adopted.

(h) Notwithstanding any other law, contracts or grants awarded for purposes of this section shall be exempt from the personal services contracting requirements of Article 4 (commencing with Section 19130) of Chapter 5 of Part 2 of Division 5 of Title 2 of the Government Code.

(i) Notwithstanding any other law, contracts or grants awarded for purposes of this section are exempt from the Public Contract Code and the State Contracting Manual, and are not subject to the approval of the Department of General Services.

(j)  This section shall become inoperative on July 1, 2023, and, as of January 1, 2024, is repealed.

(Amended by Stats. 2019, Ch. 497, Sec. 153. (AB 991) Effective January 1, 2020. Inoperative July 1, 2023. Repealed as of January 1, 2024, by its own provisions.)