Foster care: placement transition planning.

The document changed from the official chaptered legislative format (with section numbers, page headers, and formal statutory language) to a web page layout that includes site navigation elements like 'skip to content,' 'home,' 'accessibility,' 'FAQ,' 'feedback,' 'sitemap,' 'login,' 'Quick Search,' 'Bill Number,' 'Bill Keyword,' and other website UI components. No policy, funding, eligibility, or enforcement changes were made.

Section 16500 of the Welfare and Institutions Code was removed from the list of sections the bill amends, narrowing the bill's scope slightly.

In Section 16001.9(a)(37), the phrase 'including placement decisions, decisions and placement transition planning' was corrected to 'including placement decisions and placement transition planning,' removing a redundant word.

The term 'gender affirming' was changed to 'gender-affirming' (adding a hyphen) in paragraphs (22)(A) and (37) of Section 16001.9, a style/consistency change with no substantive policy effect.

The bill now amends Sections 16001.9, 16010.7, and 16519.5 of the Welfare and Institutions Code and adds new Section 16010.11, rather than only making technical changes to Section 16500.

Section 16001.9 is rewritten to enumerate 41 specific rights of children in foster care, including rights related to gender affirming health care, reproductive health consent at age 12, tribal cultural practices, access to medical records until age 26, and involvement in case plan development including placement transition planning.

Section 16519.5 is substantially amended to establish a unified resource family approval process replacing multiple existing processes for licensing foster homes, certifying agency homes, approving relatives, and approving guardians and adoptive families, with a pilot program of five early implementation counties.

New Section 16010.11 requires each county child welfare agency to adopt a placement transition planning policy that ensures foster children have the opportunity to provide input on their placement transitions and provides guidance to social workers for obtaining input and sharing information during transitions.

The new section requires the State Department of Social Services to issue guidance to counties describing best practices for placement transition planning, and requires counties to submit their policies to the department within one year after guidance is issued and funding is provided.

Section 16010.7 is substantially expanded to require written notice to parents, caregivers, attorneys, and children (age 10+) at least 14 calendar days before a placement change, prohibit unplanned placement changes between 9 p.m. and 7 a.m. without mutual agreement, and require the social worker to ensure appropriate placement transition planning if a placement cannot be preserved.

The bill's fiscal designation changes from no fiscal committee review and no state-mandated local program to both being required, reflecting the new duties imposed on counties.

New legislative findings section (Section 1) declares that placement transitions can result in trauma for children, caregivers, families, and professionals, and that developmentally and trauma-informed transition plans are necessary for healthy child development.

The document header changed from Assembly/Senate passage certification language to 'STATE OF CALIFORNIA AUTHENTICATED ELECTRONIC LEGAL MATERIAL' with Chapter 564 designation and the Governor's approval date of October 10, 2025.

Page numbering changed from enrolled bill number 96 to chaptered reference 95, and page headers changed from 'AB 896' to 'Ch. 564.'

The Assembly and Senate passage certification pages (with Chief Clerk and Secretary signatures) were removed as they are no longer part of the final chaptered document.