California Blue Ribbon Commission on Children in Foster Care

Information Kit

"We owe our most vulnerable children fair, just, and timely court experiences. We owe their parents, and their caregivers, too, hearings in which they can explain their problems and their need for help. Finally, we owe judges and court officials a system that allows them to do the work they are trained to do."

Supreme Court Associate Justice Carlos R. Moreno and Assembly Majority Leader Karen Bass, San Francisco Chronicle, April 8, 2007

California is restructuring its child welfare system to better support the needs of children in foster care. Central to that reform is the California Blue Ribbon Commission on Children in Foster Care, a statewide panel that includes former foster youth, caretakers, child advocates, philanthropists, tribal leaders, and experts representing the many agencies and organizations that work with children in foster care.

This commission is a first for the state to focus on the courts' leadership role in child welfare. Appointed in March 2006 by Chief Justice Ronald M. George, the commission is charged with developing concrete and practical proposals to improve an overstressed and underresourced juvenile court system. The commission issued a set of draft proposals for public comment in March 2008 and plans to publish a final report. The commission will then submit final recommendations to the Judicial Council in August 2008 and develop a detailed implementation plan that will help turn the recommendations into reality.

The commission staff has prepared an information kit that describes the dependency court system, the hearing process for children and families in foster care, and the historical context of child welfare laws in California. The kit, designed for the media and other interested stakeholders, includes:

Overview: California Blue Ribbon Commission on Children in Foster Care (PDF, 29 KB)
Why the Blue Ribbon Commission is necessary and what it is doing to support California's children in foster care.

Facts-At-A-Glance: California Dependency Courts (PDF, 39 KB)
The statistics on California's foster-care system, in particular, judicial and attorney caseloads, court programs and facilities, and dependency court hearings.

Chronology: California Dependency Courts (PDF, 29 KB)
The state's rich history of judicial support for children and families dating back to 1903.

Backgrounder: California Dependency Courts and the Hearing Process (PDF, 40 KB)
A description of the dependency court process and the path taken by every child and family in the system.