Bill > AB926

This bill seeks to modify California's juvenile court laws regarding visitation between children in the foster care system and their parents or legal guardians. The bill requires courts to make visitation orders at the initial petition hearing, mandating that contact between parent and child must commence within 72 hours. The legislation significantly shifts the default presumption toward unsupervised visitation, requiring courts to order unsupervised visits unless specific substantial dangers to the child can be demonstrated. If supervised visitation is ordered, the court must specify the factual basis for that decision and instruct the agency to assess potential supervisors proposed by the parent. The bill removes previous language prohibiting visitation that might "jeopardize the safety of the child" and instead requires visits to take place in the "least restrictive setting that is most conducive to quality family time." Courts must now consider factors like the parent's non-custodial status or lack of established relationship with the child as insufficient grounds alone to mandate supervised visitation. Additionally, the bill requires social workers to document efforts to liberalize visitation in their reports and provide specific reasons why visitation might not be expanded. The legislation applies to multiple sections of the Welfare and Institutions Code and aims to prioritize maintaining parent-child connections while still protecting the child's safety and well-being.

Budget and Finance, Health and Social Services, Justice

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB926