FINAL_executed_MOU_#06509-17_CSEC.pdf

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#06509-17

SOLANO COUNTY

COMMERCIALLY SEXUALLY EXPLOITED CHILDREN (CSEC)

MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING

Introduction

I. PARTIES

II. GUIDING PRINCIPLES

a. Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children

b. Responses to CSEC

III. STEERING COMMITTEE

a. Description of the Steering Committee to Oversee the CSEC Program

b. Steering Committee Member Responsibilities

IV. SCREENING AND ASSESSMENT

a. Permissible and prohibited disclosure and uses of information and statements obtained during Screening and Assessment

V. FORMATION OF A CSEC MULTIDISCIPLINARY TEAM (MDT)

a. Extension of Thirty (30) day Period to Exchange Information

b. Referrals

c. Confidentiality

d. MDT Team Members Bound by Confidentiality Obligations of Holder

e. Non-MOU Service Provider

f. MDT Members Must Protect Privacy and Confidentiality Rights of Youth

g. No Re-Disclosure or Exchange with Non-Members

h. Parents and Care Providers Participating in the MDT Must Sign and Abide by MDT

Confidentiality Agreement

i. Non-Minor Dependents Must Provide Explicit Written Consent for MDT to Exchange

Information

VI. CONFIDENTIALITY

a. Parties

b. Departments

c. Breaches

VII. DATA COLLECTION AND COORDINATION

VIII. GENERAL TERMS

IX. CITATIONS

X. EXHIBIT A – Parties to MOU

XI. SIGNATURE PAGES – Organized by categories

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WHEREAS, an individual child who is commercially sexually exploited or sexually trafficked, as described in section 236.1 of the California Penal Code, or who receives food or shelter in exchange for, or who is paid to perform, sexual acts described in section 236.1 or 11165.1 of the California Penal Code, and whose parent or guardian failed to, or was unable to protect the child, is a commercially sexually exploited child (CSEC) and may be served through the County child welfare system pursuant to

California Welfare and Institutions (W&I) Code section 300(b)(2); and

WHEREAS, Solano County (County) elected to participate in the CSEC Program as described in section

16524.7 of W&I Code in order to more effectively serve CSEC by utilizing a multidisciplinary approach for case management, service planning, and the provision of services; and

WHEREAS, the parties to this Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) identified in Exhibit A, have developed the following MOU to guide the County’s approach to serving CSEC; and

WHEREAS, the MOU reflects the County and the parties’ commitment to the guiding principles described below;

WHEREAS, the parties agree to, through the MOU, form a CSEC Steering Committee to provide ongoing oversight and support to ensure the Solano County Departments and partners effectively collaborate to better identify and serve victims of commercial sexual exploitation and children at risk of becoming exploited; and

WHEREAS, the parties agree to form a multidisciplinary team (MDT), pursuant to W&I Code section

16524.7(d)(2) for CSEC, to build on a youth’s strengths and respond to his/her needs in a coordinated manner; and

WHEREAS, W&I Code sections 18960-18964 states a county may establish a child abuse MDT within the county to allow provider agencies to share confidential information in order for provider agencies to investigate reports of suspected child abuse or neglect pursuant to California Penal Code section 11160, 11166, or 11166.05, or for the purposes of child welfare agencies making a detention determination; and

WHEREAS, the parties agree that the information they receive from other parties concerning a child that is obtained during the identification and assessment process or during a multidisciplinary team meeting shall be used solely for prevention, identification, and treatment purposes and shall otherwise be confidential and retained in the files of the entity performing the screening or assessment. Such information shall not be subject to subpoena or other court process for use in any other proceeding or for any other purpose pursuant to W&I Code section 18961.7(c); and

WHEREAS, the parties, as defined by law, must comply with mandatory reporting guidelines as defined by California Penal Code sections 11164 – 11174.3 and report known or suspected child abuse and neglect, which includes sexual exploitation; and

WHEREAS, this MOU defines the mutually agreed upon responsibilities of each of the parties under the

CSEC Program pursuant to W&I Code section 16524.7. This MOU is not intended to establish legal duties or otherwise alter the respective responsibilities of the parties; and

NOW, THEREFORE, the parties of this MOU set forth the following as the terms and conditions of their understanding:

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I. PARTIES

This MOU is made on December 1, 1016, between and among the agencies listed in Exhibit A of this

MOU and shall collectively be referred to as “parties”.

II. GUIDING PRINCIPLES

This MOU reflects the County and the parties’ commitment to the following guiding principles:

A. Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children:

1. Must be understood as child abuse and reported as such, and

2. Child victims should not be criminalized.

B. Responses to CSEC should be:

1. Victim-centered

2. Trauma-informed

3. Strengths-based

4. Developmentally appropriate

5. Culturally, linguistically, and LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, Tran-sexual, Queer) competent and affirming,

6. Committed to active efforts that engage CSEC early and often,

7. Multidisciplinary, collaborative, individualized, flexible, and timely, and

8. Data and outcome driven.

III. STEERING COMMITTE

The parties agree to form a CSEC Steering Committee to provide ongoing oversight and support to ensure

County agencies and partners effectively collaborate through this MOU to better identify and serve victims of commercial sexual exploitation and children at risk of becoming exploited.

A. Description of the Steering Committee to Oversee the CSEC Program

The steering committee will provide ongoing oversight and leadership to ensure the county agencies and partners effectively collaborate to better identify and serve youth who are at risk of or have been commercially sexually exploited, specifically:

Developing the Interagency CSEC MOU (hereinafter MOU), Implementing the MOU, Overseeing implementation of the MOU, Revising the MOU as needed on an ongoing basis, Assessing the sufficiency of CSEC-specific resources in the county, Identifying necessary training and ensuring such training occurs, and

B. Steering Committee Member Responsibilities.

Each Member of the Steering Committee agrees to fulfill the following responsibilities as part of its work on the Steering Committee under this MOU:

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Appoint a director or designee of the member agency who is empowered to make decisions on behalf of the represented agency, Attend regularly scheduled meetings and participate collaboratively in committee, Report on successes, barriers to providing services, and areas for improvement, including recommendations for adapting the MOU and training needs/gaps, Work collaboratively to create protocols to aide in the identification, assessment and delivery of services to the CSEC youth in the community, Work collaboratively to develop CSEC training which will meet the needs of the agencies working with CSEC youth in the community and ensure that service providers having contact with youth receive appropriate CSEC training, Work collaboratively to ensure that agencies working with target youth screen and assess

CSEC youth and make referrals for the youth and their family to CSEC services when appropriate, Work collaboratively to ensure that the service providers working with the target population are providing data on identified CSEC youth and services accessed by CSEC youth as appropriate and as required by the state.

IV. SCREENING AND ASSESSMENT

The parties agree to work collaboratively to ensure that service providers working with the target population screen to identify at risk and active CSEC youth. The parties also agree that the assessment of an exploited youth’s needs and strengths must take place upon identification and on an ongoing basis.

Further, the parties agree that it is in the best interest of each youth within the target population to limit unnecessary and or duplicative assessments. Accordingly, the parties will coordinate to ensure that assessments are streamlined and limited when appropriate.

A. Permissible and prohibited disclosure and uses of information and statements obtained during Screening and Assessment

The parties agree that the information and statements obtained from a youth as part of the screening and/or assessment process will be maintained, disclosed, and used only for the purposes of meeting the youth’s needs in accordance with the confidentiality provisions of this MOU and with all applicable state and federal laws and regulations..

V. FORMATION OF A CSEC MULTIDISCIPLINARY TEAM

Through this MOU, the parties agree to utilize the existing County Interagency Multidisciplinary Team as a qualified child abuse multidisciplinary team ("MDT"), subject to the provisions contained in W&I Code section 18961.7 for the purposes of CSEC clients. The MDT convened for purposes of CSEC youth shall include representatives from Child Welfare Services (CWS), Probation, Mental Health, Substance Abuse and Public Health as required by law. The purpose of the MDT will be to allow the agencies participating in the MDT in whole or in part to share confidential information in order to determine how best to protect and meet the needs of the CSEC youth. Members of the Steering Committee may request that a MDT be held for CSEC youth on their case load.

All members fully participating in the CSEC MDT meetings shall be qualified under W&I Code section

18961.7 to participate in an MDT and have been trained in the prevention, identification or treatment of child abuse and neglect and are qualified to provide a broad range of services related to child abuse.

Service providers who are not qualified under W&I Code section 18961.7 but have information to provide to the CSEC MDT may be invited to share information but will not be able to fully participate in the

MDT. The conclusions, action plan or safety plan developed by the MDT may be used as part of any

Page 5 of 14 CSEC MOU juvenile action initiated on behalf of the CSEC youth, however, any underlying confidential information shared during the MDT will not be republished in the Juvenile Court reports, case notes or other records of any agency participating in the MDT unless the confidential information is also obtained with a release or other statutorily authorized source.

The parties agree to the following guidelines which reflect statutory requirements under California law:

A. Extension of Thirty (30) Day Period to Exchange Information.

Given the complexities of the issues involved in CSEC matters, the parties agree there is good cause to extend the 30-day period for members of the MDT to meet, disclose, and exchange information, documents, or any other material that relate to any incident of child abuse reported under the Protocol.

This information may be exchanged even though the information may also be designated as confidential under state law as long as a member of the MDT having the information reasonably believes it is generally relevant to the prevention, identification, or treatment of child abuse.

B. Referrals. Any party to this MOU may contact the CWS CSEC liaison to schedule an identified

CSEC youth for discussion at an Inter-Agency multidisciplinary team meeting.

C. Confidentiality. Any discussion related to the disclosure or exchange of the information or anything that is written down during a team meeting is confidential. Testimony concerning this discussion is inadmissible in any criminal, civil, or juvenile court proceeding.

D. MDT Team Members Bound by Confidentiality Obligations of Holder. Every MDT team member who either receives information or records regarding children and families in the capacity of an

MDT member shall be under the same privacy and confidentiality obligations and subject to the same confidentiality penalties as the person disclosing or providing the information or records.

E. Non-MOU Service Provider – As authorized by W&I Code 18961.7 (d) and (f), a person who is not an employee of a party to this MOU but who is trained and qualified to serve on a multidisciplinary team may be deemed, by the team, to be part of the team as necessary for the purpose of the prevention, identification, management, or treatment of an abused child and his or her parents. The designated team may deem a person to be a member of the team for a particular case, and that team shall specify its reasons, in writing, for deeming that person to be a member of the team. The person, when deemed a member of the team, may receive and disclose information relevant to a particular case as though he or she were a member of the team. The information and records which may be disclosed shall not be restricted to those obtained in the course of providing services pursuant to this chapter. The individual must sign a written statement that he or she will be bound by the terms of this MOU as applied to MDT team members and shall not disclose any confidential information received as a result of attending the meeting except as permitted under the terms of this MOU and applicable MDT statutes, laws and regulations. A copy of the Non-MOU Service Provider MDT Confidentiality Agreement is included in the Appendices.

F. MDT Members and Participants in MDT Meetings Must Protect the Privacy and

Confidentiality Rights of Youth. All information or records obtained during the MDT must be maintained in a manner that ensures the maximum protection of privacy and confidentiality rights.

G. No Re-Disclosure or Exchange with Non-Members. Disclosure and exchange of information shall not be made to anyone other than members of the MDT.

H. Parent and Care Providers Participating in the MDT Must Sign and Abide by MDT

Confidentiality Agreement. Under W&I Code 18964, a MDT may allow a parent, legal guardian or

Page 6 of 14 CSEC MOU other caregiver of the child to attend the MDT meeting and provide information, without becoming a member of the MDT. The individual must sign a written statement that he or she will not disclose any confidential information received as a result of attending the meeting.

I. Non-Minor Dependents Must Provide Explicit Written Consent for MDT to Exchange

Information. If the youth is a non-minor dependent, the MDT team may have access to confidential records only with the explicit written and informed consent of the non-minor dependent.

VI. CONFIDENTIALITY

The parties agree that information will be shared and used by the parties in a manner that complies with state and federal laws, and ethical considerations governing confidentiality, including re-disclosure and privilege, and that does not violate the youth’s due process rights as respondents or defendants in delinquency, criminal, summary offense, status offense, and child welfare cases, including their rights against self-incrimination.

A. Parties. Each party to this MOU agrees to maintain the confidentiality of all records including, but not limited to County records and client records in accordance with all applicable federal, state and local laws, regulations, ordinances, and directives regarding confidentiality. This will include, but is not limited to, the confidentiality provisions of section 827 and section 10850 of the W&I Code and

California Department of Social Services Manual of Policies and Procedures Division 19, Health

Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, Public Law 104-191 ("HIPAA"), section 13402 of

Title XII of Division A and Title IV of Division B, the Health Information Technology for Economic and

Clinical Health Act (“HITECH”) of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Pub. L. 111-

5), the Confidentiality of Medical Information Act, Cal. Civ. Code 56 et seq. ("CMIA"); and Health and

Safety Code section 123100 et seq., among others, as applicable, which require the parties to protect and safeguard both child abuse and patient medical information and prevent unauthorized access to such information.

B. Departments. Each department shall maintain the confidentiality of all reports, information and data received, prepared or assembled pursuant to this Agreement and will work to prevent re-disclosure of such information except as required or permitted by law, including but not limited to the Public Records

Act, Government Code 6250 et seq. Records and information includes, but is not limited to any information regarding a child or family who has received services from either CWS or Probation that becomes known to any other department during the course of providing services to the child or family.

C. Breaches. Any breaches or suspected breaches of confidentiality will be cross-reported immediately to each impacted department so there is no delay in the impacted department’s ability to meet its statutory reporting obligations. Such breaches or suspected breaches, to the extent it is legally permissible to do so, shall be reviewed by the impacted department and CWS, and the department and/or departments

VII. DATA COLLECTION AND COORDINATION

The parties will assist in developing protocols and strategies that will be utilized to coordinate, collect, and share data across systems. This will be done to better understand the scope of work between agencies, identify issues within the system and process, track youth who have been sexually exploited, and document which resources are being used.

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VIII. GENERAL TERMS

This MOU shall be effective December 1, 2016, and will remain in effect until June 30, 2017, or as subsequently amended in accord with Section 2 below, with automatic renewals each subsequent year for a total of five years through June 30, 2022.

A. A party may be added to this MOU and Steering Committee by consensus of the members of the

Steering Committee and by amending Exhibit A to add the party and obtaining the signature of an authorized representative of the party signifying the party’s agreement to the terms and conditions of this MOU.

B. It is mutually agreed that this MOU may be modified or amended upon the written mutual consent of the parties to the MOU.

C. With the exception of the obligations set forth in this MOU, this MOU contains the entire agreement and understanding regarding the subject matter among the parties and supersedes and replaces all prior negotiations and proposed agreements, whether oral or written. Each of the parties to the MOU acknowledges that no other party, nor any agent or attorney of any other party, has made any promise, representation or warrant whatsoever, express or implied, not contained herein, concerning the subject matter hereof, to induce them to execute this MOU, and acknowledges that this MOU has not been executed in reliance upon any such promise, representation or warranty not contained herein.

D. This MOU may be executed in one or more counterparts, all of which counterparts shall be deemed to be one instrument and shall constitute one agreement with the same force and effects as if all signatures have been entered in one document. The parties further agree that a faxed signature shall have the same force and effect as an original.

E. Any party may terminate its participation in this MOU by giving written notice to the Deputy

Directory of CWS.

IX. CITATIONS

The following citations were used to inform this MOU:

A. Senate Bill 855, Chapter 29, B. Welfare and Institutions Code 16524.6-16524.11

C. Welfare and Institutions Code 18960 - 18964

D. California Department Social Services ACL 14-62, 15-08, 16-08

E. California Department Social Services ACIN No. I-23-15

F. California Department Social Services County Fiscal Letter No. 15/16-41

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EXHIBIT A

PARTIES TO MOU

A. SOLANO COUNTY HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES DEPARTMENT

Child Welfare Services Division (CWS) - (Required Party)

Behavioral Health (BH) Division - (Required Party)

Public Health (PH) Division - (Required Party)

Administration Division

B. SOLANO COUNTY SUPERVISOR ERIN HANNIGAN, DISTRICT 1

C. LEGAL & JUSTICE PARTNERS

Solano County Juvenile Court

Solano County Counsel’s Office

Solano County District Attorney’s Office

Solano County Probation Department – (Required Party)

Solano County Public Defender’s Office

Solano County Alternate Defender’s Office

Solano County Family Justice Center

Court Appointed Special Advocates of Solano County

Dependency Counsel for Minors, David Meyers

D. RAPE CRISIS, DOMESTIC & VIOLENCE PREVENTION/INTERVENTION SERVICES

SafeQuest Solano

E. LAW ENFORCEMENT

Solano County Sheriff’s Department

Benicia Police Department

Dixon Police Department

Fairfield Police Department

Rio Vista Police Department

Suisun Police Department

Vacaville Police Department

Vallejo Police Department

F. EDUCATION/SCHOOL AGENCIES

Solano County Office of Education (SCOE)

G. YOUTH & PARENT ADVOCATES

First Place for Youth

Seneca Family of Agencies

H. CHILDREN’S NETWORK/FAMILY RESOURCE CENTERS

The Children’s Network

I. EMERGENCY PLACMENT AGENCIES

Aldea, Incorporated

5/25/17