Family reunification services.

Assembly Member Jackson's legislation modifies California's family reunification requirements by limiting how violent felony convictions affect parents' eligibility for reunification services in juvenile dependency cases. The bill establishes a five-year lookback period for considering violent felony convictions and requires additional findings before courts can deny reunification services based on such convictions.

Under the proposed changes, courts must find by a preponderance of the evidence that specific circumstances exist beyond the conviction alone to deny reunification services. These circumstances include cases where the parent used force or a weapon against a child, where providing services would likely endanger or traumatize the child, or where the parent has multiple recent convictions that collectively pose a current safety risk. If these circumstances are not present, courts must order reunification services unless they determine reunification is not in the child's best interest or the parent is disqualified for other reasons.

The legislation expands county child welfare departments' obligations by requiring them to provide reunification services to a broader group of parents and guardians. While this creates additional duties for local agencies, the bill specifies that increased costs will not require state reimbursement beyond existing realignment funding. Local agencies must implement these expanded responsibilities within their current resources.