(a) In addition to any other requirement of this chapter, any group home or short-term residential therapeutic program, as defined by regulations of the department, providing care for any number of persons, that is not already subject to the requirements of Section 1524.5, shall provide a procedure approved by the licensing agency for immediate response to incidents and complaints, as defined by regulations of the department. This procedure shall include a method of ensuring that the owner, licensee, or person designated by the owner or licensee is notified of the incident or complaint, that the owner, licensee, or person designated by the owner or licensee has personally investigated the matter, and that the person making the complaint or reporting the incident has received a written response, within 30 days of receiving the complaint, of action taken, or a reason why no action needs to be taken.

(b) In order to ensure the opportunity for complaints to be made directly to the owner, licensee, or person designated by the owner or licensee, and to provide the opportunity for the owner, licensee, or person designated by the owner or licensee to meet neighborhood residents and learn of problems in the neighborhood, any group home or short-term residential therapeutic program shall establish a fixed time on a periodic basis when the owner, licensee, or person designated by the owner or licensee will be present. At this fixed time, information shall be provided to neighborhood residents of the complaint procedure pursuant to Section 1538.

Terms Used In California Health and Safety Code 1524.6

  • Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
  • department: means State Department of Health Services. See California Health and Safety Code 20
  • Group home: means a residential facility that provides 24-hour care and supervision to children, delivered at least in part by staff employed by the licensee in a structured environment. See California Health and Safety Code 1502
  • Person: means any person, firm, association, organization, partnership, business trust, corporation, limited liability company, or company. See California Health and Safety Code 19
  • Short-term residential therapeutic program: means a residential facility operated by a public agency or private organization and licensed by the department pursuant to Section 1562. See California Health and Safety Code 1502

(c) Facilities shall establish procedures to comply with the requirements of this section on or before July 1, 2005.

(d) This section shall not apply to family homes certified by foster family agencies, foster family homes, and small family homes. It is not the intent of the Legislature that this section be applied in a way that is contrary to the child’s best interests.

(Amended by Stats. 2016, Ch. 612, Sec. 36. (AB 1997) Effective January 1, 2017.)

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