Navigating Emergency Placements (Including SB 354 Court Ordered Authorized Placements)

When a child must be detained and/or removed from home and cannot be placed with a non-custodial parent, the social worker is legally required to give preferential consideration to the placement of the child with a relative, and in the case of an Indian child, an extended family member, whenever possible. The Agency must also assess any of those individuals who are available and requests emergency placement.

The assessment process is designed to be easy and to allow a temporary emergency placement as soon as possible. Recent changes in the law, related to background checks, emergency funding and the juvenile court’s authority to make an emergency relative placement that will not endanger the child, remove barriers to placing a child with kin quickly. Placing a child with kin right away provides continuity for the child and reduces placement changes and helps to maintain connections for the child and family.

• WIC 309 – Emergency Placement.
• WIC 319 – Detention Hearing.
• WIC 361.3 – Preferential consideration of relative.
• WIC 361.31 – Placement Preferences for Indian Children.
• WIC 361.4 – Emergency Placement Assessment.
• WIC 727.05 – Probation Agency making potential Emergency Placement.
• Family Code 7950 – Placement considerations.
• H&S 1522(g) – Criminal records exemptions.
• ACL 22-33 – Senate Bill 354 (Chapter 687; Statutes Of 2021).

Upon detention and/or removal, if a child cannot be placed with a noncustodial parent, the child’s first placement, including any emergency placement, should be with a relative, extended family member of an Indian child or non-relative extended family member whenever possible regardless of the proposed caregiver’s income, immigration status and actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.

Immediate placement with a relative or non-relative extended family member, can be made through the emergency placement process. In addition, the juvenile court can authorize a temporary emergency placement at the detention hearing.

Any foster care or guardianship placement of an Indian child, or any emergency removal of a child who is known to be, or if there is reason to know that the child is, an Indian child shall be in the least restrictive setting that most approximates a family situation and in which the child’s special needs, if any, may be met. The child shall also be placed within reasonable proximity to the child’s home, taking into account any special needs of the child. Preference shall be given to the child’s placement with one of the following, in descending priority order:

1. A member of the child’s extended family, as defined in Section 1903 of the federal Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 (25 U.S.C. Sec. 1901 et seq.).
2. A foster home licensed, approved or specified by the child’s tribe.
3. An Indian foster home licensed or approved by an authorized non-Indian licensing authority.
4. An institution for children approved by an Indian tribe or operated by an Indian organization that has a program suitable to meet the Indian child’s needs.

When a child must be detained and/or removed from home, an emergency placement may be made in the home of a relative, non-relative extended family member or an extended family member of an Indian child.

If a relative, an extended family member of an Indian child, or a non-relative extended family member, is available and requests emergency placement of the child pending the detention hearing, or after the detention hearing and pending the dispositional hearing conducted pursuant to WIC 358, the county welfare department shall initiate an assessment of the relative’s or non-relative extended family member’s suitability for emergency placement pursuant to WIC 361.4.

As part of the engagement process, the social worker should inform each identified relative, extended family member of an Indian child and non-relative extended family member about the dependency process and the ways the individual can be involved to support the child and the family, including providing a placement, unless placement with that individual would pose a risk to the health or safety of the child.

The social worker must conduct an emergency placement assessment of every relative, extended family member of an Indian child, or non-relative extended family who requests emergency placement. The emergency placement assessment includes an in-home inspection and a check of prior allegations of child abuse and/or neglect via CWS/CMS.

In-Home Inspection

Conduct an in-home inspection to assess the safety of the home and the ability of the relative, extended family member of an Indian child, or non-relative extended family member to care for the child’s needs. (Please note this in-home inspection is separate from the RFA Home assessment that is conducted after an RFA application has been submitted. The home does not need to meet the RFA standards for an emergency placement.)

Child Abuse Central Index (CACI) Requirements

Conduct a Child Abuse Central Index (CACI) check of allegations of prior child abuse or neglect concerning the relative or non-relative extended family member and other adults in the home.

A CACI hit does not preclude placement. If a person appears to have a record in the CACI database, evaluate the information to determine the risk the person may pose to the child and take the information into consideration when evaluating placement options.

Criminal Records Check: CLETS

Initiate a state-level criminal records check through the California Law Enforcement Telecommunications System (CLETS) for:

• All persons over 18 years of age living or regularly present in the home of the individual seeking emergency placement of the child, excluding any non-minor dependent.
• At the discretion of the county child welfare department, any other person over 18 years of age known to the department to be regularly present in the home, other than professionals providing professional services to the child.
• At the discretion of the county welfare department, any person over 14 years of age living in the home who the department believes may have a criminal record. This subparagraph shall not apply to a child under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court.

Note: Federally recognized Tribes are not subject to state approval standards when approving a Tribally Approved Home (TAH), but the TAH must meet criminal background check and CACI requirements in order to receive federal IV-E foster care maintenance (AFDC-FC) payments. The tribe can choose to conduct its own criminal background check or ask the county or CDSS to do so.

Information from the CLETS may be taken into consideration in making the placement decision if the information affects the health and safety of the child, but a CLETS hit does not preclude placement. If the CLETS discloses any violations, determine whether an exemption is necessary.

Exemptions are not necessary for:

• Arrests that have not resulted in a conviction.
• Infractions (violations that are not a misdemeanor or felony).

When the emergency assessment process has been completed, the child may be placed in the assessed home.

Placement Prior to RFA Due to Compelling Reason

The child may be placed once the RFA application has been made and prior to the RFA process being completed if there is a compelling reason. Compelling reasons may include:

• The unique needs of a child or nonminor dependent.
• The best interest of a child to maintain their family or family-like connections with an applicant.
• In the case of an Indian child, complying with ICWA placement preferences.

Prior to placing a child or nonminor dependent with an RFA applicant for a compelling reason:

• Verify that a health and safety assessment of the home and grounds, outdoor activity space and storage areas of the home has been completed and documented on form RFA-03: Resource Family Home Health and Safety Assessment Checklist and that a capacity determination has been completed.
• Verify that a background check of the applicant and all adults residing or regularly present in the home has been completed and if necessary, any criminal record exemptions have been approved.
• Initiate emergency caregiver funding. (The child is not eligible for AFDC-FC until the caregiver receives Resource Family Approval and the child meets all other eligibility criteria.)

Emergency/Compelling Reason Placement

Emergency placement can be made once the emergency assessment or the RFA process for placement prior to approval is completed.

Initiate funding, calendar follow-up items and provide support in order to help make the placement successful and reduce stress for the child and the caregiver. See Appendix IV: Making the Emergency Placement Successful for more specific recommended practices.

Kinship Placement by the Court

If the child cannot be placed with a relative, extended family member of an Indian child, or non-relative extended family member prior to the detention hearing because a proposed relative caregiver has not been completed the process, the court can authorize immediate placement with a relative if the court finds that the placement does not pose a risk to the health and safety of the child. The court must take into consideration the recommendations of the social worker based on the home assessment, including the results of the criminal records check and any prior child abuse allegations.

• If the child is not released from custody, the court must consider a relative placement and may order the temporary placement of the child for a period not to exceed 15 judicial days in.
• The home of a relative, an extended family member of an Indian child, or a non-relative extended family member that has been assessed (refer to assessment section).
• The approved home of a resource family or a Tribally approved home of the Indian child’s Tribe or Tribal organization.
• The home of a relative, regardless of the status of any criminal record exemption or resource family approval, if the court finds that the placement does not pose a risk to the health and safety of the child, taking into consideration the recommendations of the social worker based on the home assessment, including the results of a criminal records check and prior child abuse allegations, if any.
• Prior to the detention hearing, provide the court with the results of the home assessment pursuant to WIC 361.4 and any recommendation(s) concerning whether placement with an identified relative, extended family member of an Indian child or non-relative extended family member would, or would not, pose a risk to the health and safety of the child.

Before Making a Non-Kin Placement

If placement with a relative, extended family member of an Indian child, or non-relative extended family member, appears to be unavailable for any reason, before making a non-kin placement:

• Consult the kinship navigator, kinship support staff or other staff with expertise in making kinship placements to determine whether any additional steps can be taken to identify and support an emergency placement with kin.
• Take any additional steps to make an emergency kinship placement possible.
• Initiate any additional policies and procedures necessary to make a kinship placement possible on a non-emergency basis in the future.
• Request and obtain a written Kinship Placement Exemption4 from the Supervisor or other staff designated to provide an exemption.
• Initiate policies or protocols to provide automatic increased staffing and support if a child is not placed with a relative.