(SACRAMENTO, CA) – The California State Assembly passed legislation authored by Assemblymember Phil Ting (D-San Francisco) to help pregnant and parenting foster care youth be better parents.
Sponsored by the John Burton Foundation, the Children’s Law Center of California and First Place for Youth, Assembly Bill (AB) 1838 passed unanimously with a 73-0 vote and moves to the State Senate for further review.
“Few people are more challenged in our society than foster youth and we need to do more to help them succeed,” said Ting. “Adding pregnancy and childcare makes transitioning out of foster care even more difficult when these youth are already vulnerable to poverty, homelessness, and health care access. This bill will help us stop malnutrition, cognitive delays, and low academic achievement as intergenerational disadvantages plaguing our foster youth.”
Out of approximately 60,000 foster youth, some 850 are parents. Young women in foster care are two and a half times more likely to become pregnant by age 19, and children of parents in foster care are three times more likely than their peers to spend time in foster care.
AB 1838 would increase the infant supplement to parenting foster youth by nearly 70%, allow mothers to receive them six months prior to birth in order to encourage prenatal care access, and develop a new infant supplement for youth in group homes. Currently, parenting foster youth receive an infant supplement of $411 per month. AB 1838 would raise the infant supplement to $688, the basic rate provided to foster parents for children under five.
In 2014, the California Youth Transitions to Adulthood Study found that 20% of pregnant foster care mothers were not able to receive any prenatal care, increasing the likelihood that their children are born with health problems or be stillborn. Other studies found that over a third of foster youth who had their first child before the age of 18 had given birth again while in foster care. Short-term birth intervals pose a risk to both mother and child because there is an increased risk of placental abruption, low birth weight, and pre-term birth. By making the infant supplement available prior to birth, pregnant foster care youth can receive prenatal care and participate in expectant mother programs.
Here’s what supporters of AB 1838 are saying:
“With AB 1838, California is taking an important step forward by preventing poverty, low educational attainment, and child maltreatment. Currently the children in foster youth are raised in poverty. California can do better, and with the passage of this historic legislation, we end this shameful practice and begin to provide young families with the support they need.”
- Amy Lemley, Policy Director of the John Burton Foundation
“Pregnant and parenting foster youth face a range of challenges that put them and their children at risk of poverty, poor health and low-educational attainment. Their numbers are not large, but the obstacles they face are serious. AB 1838 will address these issues and give young families in foster care the opportunity to succeed.”
- Leslie Heimov, Executive Director, and Sue Abrams, Policy Director, of the Children’s Law Center of California
“We see firsthand the challenges parenting foster youth face being young parents, who often lack essential supports and resources. This important policy will improve outcomes among a small, but vulnerable population in California: parenting foster youth and their children.”
- Sam Cobbs, CEO of First Place for Youth
“Children born to youth in foster care are disproportionately at-risk for involvement in the child welfare system. Existing law results in children born to foster youth being born into poverty, since the current infant supplement is below the federal poverty line. This sets in motion a range of socioeconomic disadvantages and does little to stabilize an incredibly vulnerable population. AB 1838 would enable pregnant foster youth to receive the infant supplement six months prior to the due date, in addition to after the child’s birth. These changes would directly impact the vulnerabilities of this population and help improve the outcomes for both parenting youth and their children, helping secure a brighter future for both generations.”
- Phil Ladew, Associate and Legal Director of the California Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children
“We believe that supporting our pregnant and parenting foster youth with appropriate resources will greatly impact the foster care system for the better. Our members agree that AB 1838 is the right vehicle to support this vulnerable population because it will directly support the parenting youth at a very important juncture of their lives.”
- Vanessa Hernández, Statewide Legislative Coordinator of the California Youth Connection
“Casa de Amparo understands the basic and therapeutic needs of this growing population of pregnant and parenting foster youth and the additional stressors that affect their daily lives as new or expecting parents. Additional funding through AB 1838 will provide these underserved parenting foster youth a broader variety of resources to provide for their health and the health of their children.”
- Tamara Fleck Myers, Executive Director of Casa de Amparo
“iFoster supports transition age foster youth nationwide by providing the resources they need to succeed. Our experience with pregnant and parenting foster youth is that they need supplemental services and resources in advance. We support funding the expansion of funds to help them get the resources that they need to become a successful parent.”
- Serita Cox, Executive Director of iFoster
“Our agency has first-hand experience providing services to this population, and understands how needed this additional support is for parenting foster youth, who do not receive the same level of familial support as non-foster youth. This additional support will help to prevent the children of these foster youth from entering into the system themselves.”
- Patt Sweeney, Program Manager of the Redwood Community Action Agency
“StarVista supports AB 1838 because research shows the impact of early intervention and support, and we have seen the need and value of this in our community in our work with foster youth and parenting foster youth. This is an essential time to provide parents and their children with support – this is a critical window for these young families.”
- Stephanie Weisner, Department Director of StarVista
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CONTACT: Anthony Matthews, tel. (916) 319-2019, Anthony.Matthews@asm.ca.gov