California chose to participate in an optional federal program and enacted Assembly Bill 12 (“AB 12”), which was amended by Assembly Bill 212. AB 12 was authored by Assembly Member Jim Beall, Jr. and Speaker‐Emeritus Karen Bass, and is also known as the California Fostering Connections to Success Act. AB 12 became law on October 4, 2011 and its provisions took immediate effect.
AB 12 allows young adults who meet certain criteria to remain in foster placement past age 18 and up to age 20. The new law is intended to help them make an easier transition to independent living and perhaps avoid the sometimes abrupt release of unprepared young adults from foster placement.