New State Law on Teen Welfare Mothers Put Off

California officials have postponed implementation of a controversial new law that requires teenage welfare mothers to live at home, conceding that enforcement of the measure is proving more complicated than expected.

The new state law was to have taken effect Saturday, but will be put off for at least a month and probably longer while state and county officials address a number of problems.

The law stipulates that mothers under 18 live with parents or in an adult-supervised setting to receive public assistance. Officials estimate that about 4,400 women would be affected. But the state has yet to devise a plan of action in cases where abuse or other factors preclude such an arrangement.

Such cases would require state and local authorities to send social workers to investigate home conditions and possibly find other suitable guardians. However, efforts to coordinate these activities have yet to be worked out, officials said.

The law would affect fewer than 100 clients in Orange County, said Angelo Doti, assistant director of the county Social Services Agency. He described the measure as an issue of “social control.”

“It’s kind of like policing,” Doti said, adding that many minors leave their parents’ homes for reasons ranging from getting a job to starting a family.

California welfare officials are still gathering input on how to approach some of the issues and have yet to announce regulations that would act as a framework for the program. Officials from several counties also reportedly raised concerns about potential stresses on existing services and asked the state to delay enforcement.

“It took a little bit longer to resolve these issues than we thought,” said Dell Sayles, a welfare administrator with the state Department of Social Services. “And once we issue regulations to the counties, they will need some lead time to make it happen and to get their staff trained and ready. That’s why we haven’t fixed on a date.”

Officials say complications arose in coordinating the functions of three different programs: Aid to Families With Dependent Children, whose eligibility workers take applications for and dispense aid; child protective services, whose caseworkers are charged with determining the safety of a home; and family maintenance and reunification services, where social workers provide ongoing supportive services.

Sayles said it has not been decided what role each set of workers will play in determining who is exempt from the requirements and who would provide long-term support services if they are needed.

Teenage parents who are married, who have no parent or legal guardian living, who have been legally emancipated or who have lived apart from their parents for at least 12 months would be exempt from the law’s provisions. The law also requires that teenage parents stay in school and receive services under the state’s Cal-Learn program in order to get aid.

State regulations mandate that a decision be made on an application for public assistance within 45 days. Sayles said counties will be given 20 days to determine if a home environment is safe. But some county officials are concerned that the process could take far longer and exceed the 45-day limit.

“If the process for determining the health and safety issue takes two months or goes beyond the 45-day limit, do we go ahead and approve this person in the intervening time? That’s something that hasn’t been determined,” said Tom Vonah, an administrator with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Social Services, which administers the county’s Aid to Families With Dependent Children program.

In addition, if it is determined that a young mother should not stay with her parents, a decision would have to be made about what to do with her. County child protection workers presumably would take the lead role in assessing the best option, be it foster care, a group home or independent living, but they are seeking guidance from the state.

“One of our issues is what do you do in a situation when a parent does not want the child to return home, because that directly affects us,” said Victoria Pipkin, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services. “And if it’s a situation where the senior parent is being abused, then we can’t return a minor to that home because it’s not safe. She comes into our system, and we have to decide what’s the appropriate placement for her.”

The delays spotlight the problem of transforming social policy into smoothly functioning reality, a scenario that is likely to be repeated as sweeping new welfare laws begin to take shape.

Social welfare advocates argue that many of the laws are quick-fix measures that do not take heed of the complexity of family relations or the needs of teenage mothers.

Times staff writer Scott Martelle in Orange County contributed to this story.