California’s Foster Care Ombudsman does not have the independence needed to fulfill its ombudsperson role. Currently, the Ombudsman is appointed by the head of the Department of Social Services. As the National Center for Youth Law has observed: “This structure creates direct conflicts of interest—or, at the very least, the appearance of conflicts—because the department director controls all aspects of the program’s operation and allocation of resources. This means the ombudsman has no independent authority to recommend policy or program improvements.”
AB 1988 will solve this problem by making the Ombudsman a Governor’s appointee, confirmed by the Senate, instead of a Department appointee.