California Health and Safety Code 1558 – (a) The department may prohibit any person from being a member …
(a) The department may prohibit any person from being a member of the board of directors, an executive director, or an officer of a licensee, or a licensee from employing, or continuing the employment of, or allowing in a licensed facility or certified family home, or allowing contact with clients of a licensed facility or certified family home by, any employee, prospective employee, or person who is not a client who has:
(1) Violated, or aided or permitted the violation by any other person of, any provisions of this chapter or of any rules or regulations promulgated under this chapter.
Terms Used In California Health and Safety Code 1558
- Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
- Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
- certified family home: means an individual or family certified by a licensed foster family agency and issued a certificate of approval by that agency as meeting licensing standards, and used exclusively by that foster family agency for placements. See California Health and Safety Code 1506
- department: means State Department of Health Services. See California Health and Safety Code 20
- Director: means the Director of Social Services. See California Health and Safety Code 1502
- Embezzlement: In most states, embezzlement is defined as theft/larceny of assets (money or property) by a person in a position of trust or responsibility over those assets. Embezzlement typically occurs in the employment and corporate settings. Source: OCC
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- license: means a basic permit to operate a community care facility. See California Health and Safety Code 1503
- Person: means any person, firm, association, organization, partnership, business trust, corporation, limited liability company, or company. See California Health and Safety Code 19
- Remainder: An interest in property that takes effect in the future at a specified time or after the occurrence of some event, such as the death of a life tenant.
- special permit: means a permit issued by the state department authorizing a community care facility to offer specialized services as designated by the director in regulations. See California Health and Safety Code 1504
- State: means the State of California, unless applied to the different parts of the United States. See California Health and Safety Code 23
(2) Engaged in conduct that is inimical to the health, morals, welfare, or safety of either the people of this state or an individual in, or receiving services from, the facility or certified family home.
(3) Been denied an exemption to work or to be present in a facility or certified family home, when that person has been convicted of a crime, as defined in Section 1522.
(4) Engaged in any other conduct that would constitute a basis for disciplining a licensee or certified family home.
(5) Engaged in acts of financial malfeasance concerning the operation of a facility or certified family home, including, but not limited to, improper use or embezzlement of client moneys and property or fraudulent appropriation for personal gain of facility moneys and property, or willful or negligent failure to provide services.
(b) The excluded person, the facility or certified family home, and the licensee shall be given written notice of the basis of the department’s action and of the excluded person’s right to an appeal. The notice shall be served either by personal service or by registered mail. Within 15 days after the department serves the notice, the excluded person may file with the department a written appeal of the exclusion order. If the excluded person fails to file a written appeal within the prescribed time, the department’s action shall be final.
(c) (1) The department may require the immediate removal of a member of the board of directors, an executive director, or an officer of a licensee or exclusion of an employee, prospective employee, or person who is not a client from a facility or certified family home pending a final decision of the matter, when, in the opinion of the director, the action is necessary to protect residents or clients from physical or mental abuse, abandonment, or any other substantial threat to their health or safety.
(2) If the department requires the immediate removal of a member of the board of directors, an executive director, or an officer of a licensee or exclusion of an employee, prospective employee, or person who is not a client from a facility or certified family home, the department shall serve an order of immediate exclusion upon the excluded person that shall notify the excluded person of the basis of the department’s action and of the excluded person’s right to a hearing.
(3) Within 15 days after the department serves an order of immediate exclusion, the excluded person may file a written appeal of the exclusion with the department. The department’s action shall be final if the excluded person does not appeal the exclusion within the prescribed time. The department shall do both of the following upon receipt of a written appeal:
(A) Within 30 days of receipt of the appeal, serve an accusation upon the excluded person.
(B) Within 60 days of receipt of a notice of defense pursuant to § 11506 of the Government Code by the excluded person to conduct a hearing on the accusation.
(4) An order of immediate exclusion of the excluded person from the facility or certified family home shall remain in effect until the hearing is completed and the director has made a final determination on the merits. However, the order of immediate exclusion shall be deemed vacated if the director fails to make a final determination on the merits within 60 days after the original hearing has been completed.
(d) An excluded person who files a written appeal with the department pursuant to this section shall, as part of the written request, provide their current mailing address. The excluded person shall subsequently notify the department in writing of any change in mailing address, until the hearing process has been completed or terminated.
(e) Hearings held pursuant to this section shall be conducted in accordance with Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 11500) of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code. The standard of proof shall be the preponderance of the evidence and the burden of proof shall be on the department.
(f) The department may institute or continue a disciplinary proceeding against a member of the board of directors, an executive director, or an officer of a licensee or an employee, prospective employee, or person who is not a client upon any ground provided by this section. The department may enter an order prohibiting any person from being a member of the board of directors, an executive director, or an officer of a licensee or prohibiting the excluded person’s employment or presence in the facility or certified family home, or otherwise take disciplinary action against the excluded person, notwithstanding any resignation, withdrawal of employment application, or change of duties by the excluded person, or any discharge, failure to hire, or reassignment of the excluded person by the licensee or that the excluded person no longer has contact with clients at the facility or certified family home.
(g) A licensee’s or certified family home’s failure to comply with the department’s exclusion order after being notified of the order shall be grounds for disciplining the licensee pursuant to Section 1550.
(h) (1) (A) In cases in which the excluded person appealed the exclusion order, the person shall be prohibited from working in any facility or being licensed to operate any facility licensed by the department or from being a certified foster parent for the remainder of the excluded person’s life, unless otherwise ordered by the department.
(B) The excluded individual may petition for reinstatement one year after the effective date of the decision and order of the department upholding the exclusion order pursuant to § 11522 of the Government Code. The department shall provide the excluded person with a copy of § 11522 of the Government Code with the decision and order.
(2) (A) In cases in which the department informed the excluded person of their right to appeal the exclusion order and the excluded person did not appeal the exclusion order, the person shall be prohibited from working in any facility or being licensed to operate any facility licensed by the department or a certified foster parent for the remainder of the excluded person’s life, unless otherwise ordered by the department.
(B) The excluded individual may petition for reinstatement after one year has elapsed from the date of the notification of the exclusion order pursuant to § 11522 of the Government Code. The department shall provide the excluded person with a copy of § 11522 of the Government Code with the exclusion order.
(i) Notwithstanding paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) or subdivision (c) of Section 1550, the department shall take reasonable action, including, but not limited to, prohibiting a person from being a member of the board of directors, an executive director, or an officer of a licensee of a licensed facility or certified family home, or denying an application for, or suspending or revoking, a license, special permit, certificate of approval, or administrator certificate, issued under this chapter, or denying a transfer of a license pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (c) of Section 1524, upon a finding of a violation of subdivision (i) of § 11166 of the Penal Code.
(j) For purposes of this section, exclusion, as specified in subdivision (a), shall include exclusion from the home of a resource family, as defined in Section 1517 of this code and § 16519.5 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
(Amended by Stats. 2019, Ch. 777, Sec. 12. (AB 819) Effective January 1, 2020.)