California Welfare And Institutions Code Section 16605

(a) The department shall, subject to the availability of funds appropriated therefor, conduct a Kinship Support Services Program that is a grants-in-aid program providing startup and expansion funds for local kinship support services programs that provide community-based family support services to relative caregivers and the children placed in their homes by the juvenile court or who are at risk of dependency or delinquency. Relatives with children in voluntary placements may access services, at the discretion of the county. (b) The Kinship Support Services Program shall create a public-private partnership. A combination of federal, state, county, and private sector resources shall finance the establishment and ongoing operation of the program. (c) The counties that elect to participate in the program shall meet the following conditions and requirements: (1) Have a demonstrated capacity for collaboration and interagency coordination. (2) Have a viable plan for ongoing financial support of the local kinship support services program. (3) Utilize relative caregivers as employees of the program. (4) Have strong and viable public or private agencies to operate the program. (5) Provide to the department the number of relative caretakers residing in the county, and the projected number of relative caretakers to be served. (6) Describe how the county will develop and maintain the necessary community supports. (7) Outline the county`s outcome improvement goals for the program. These goals shall include, but shall not be limited to, moving children out of foster care and into the Kinship Guardian Assistance Payment Program (Kin-GAP), or adoption, placement stability, and preventing children from entering foster care. The county shall also agree to measure and report data regarding the Kinship Support Services Program, as required by the department. (d) The Kinship Support Services Program shall demonstrate the use of supportive services provided to relative caregivers and children placed in their homes using a community-based kinship support services model. This model shall provide services to relative caregivers that are aimed at helping to ensure permanent family kinship placements for children who have been placed with them by the juvenile court, and to provide family support services that will eliminate the need for juvenile court jurisdiction and the provision of services by the county welfare department. (e) The program shall provide family support services appropriate for the target populations. These services may include, but are not limited to, the following: (1) Assessment and case management. (2) Social services referral and intervention aimed at maintaining the kinship family unit, for example, housing, homemaker services, respite care, legal services, and day care. (3) Transportation for medical care and educational and recreational activities. (4) Information and referral services. (5) Individual and group counseling in the area of parent-child relationships and group conflict. (6) Counseling and referral services aimed at promoting permanency, including kinship adoption and guardianship. (7) Tutoring and mentoring. (f) The Edgewood Center for Children and Families in San Francisco or any other appropriate agency or individual approved by the department in consultation with the Statewide Kinship Advisory Committee shall provide technical assistance to the Kinship Support Services Program and shall facilitate the sharing of information and resources among the local programs.