(a) Within 60 days of receipt of a request from another state to conduct a study of a home environment for purposes of assessing the safety and suitability of placing a child in the home, a county child welfare agency shall, directly or by contract, do both of the following:

(1) Conduct and complete the study.

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(2) Return a report to the requesting state on the results of the study. The report shall address the extent to which placement in the home would meet the needs of the child.

(b) Except as provided in subdivision (c), in the case of a home study commenced on or before September 30, 2008, if the agency fails to comply with subdivision (a) within the 60-day period as a result of circumstances beyond the control of the agency, the agency shall have 75 days to comply with subdivision (a). The agency shall document the circumstances involved and certify that completing the home study is in the best interests of the child. For purposes of this subdivision, “circumstances beyond the control of the agency” include, but are not limited to, the failure of a federal agency to provide the results of a background check or the failure of any entity to provide completed medical forms, if the background check or records were requested by the agency at least 45 days before the end of the 60-day period.

(c) Subdivision (b) shall not be construed to require the agency to have completed, within the applicable period, the parts of the home study involving the education and training of the prospective foster or adoptive parents.

(d) The agency shall treat any report described in subdivision (a) that is received from another state, an Indian tribe, or a private agency under contract with another state, as meeting any requirements imposed by the state for the completion of a home study before placing a child in the home, unless, within 14 days after receipt of the report, the agency determines, based on grounds that are specific to the content of the report, that making a decision in reliance on the report would be contrary to the welfare of the child.

(e) A county is not restricted from contracting with a private agency for the conduct of a home study described in subdivision (a).

(f) The department shall work with counties to identify barriers to meeting the timeframes specified in this section and to develop recommendations to reduce or eliminate those barriers.

(Added by Stats. 2007, Ch. 583, Sec. 1. Effective January 1, 2008.)