2010 California Code
Health and Safety Code
Article 4. Suspension And Revocation

1596.885.  The department may deny an application for or suspend or
revoke any license, registration, or special permit issued under this
act upon any of the following grounds and in the manner provided in
this act:
   (a) Violation by the licensee, registrant, or holder of a special
permit of this act or of the rules and regulations promulgated under
this act.
   (b) Aiding, abetting, or permitting the violating of this act or
of the rules and regulations promulgated under this act.
   (c) Conduct which is inimical to the health, morals, welfare, or
safety of either an individual in or receiving services from the
facility or the people of this state.
   (d) The conviction of a licensee, or other person specified in
Section 1596.871, at any time before or during licensure, of a crime
as defined in Section 1596.871.
   (e) Engaging in acts of financial malfeasance concerning the
operation of a facility, 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 for the care of
clients.


1596.886.  The director may temporarily suspend any license,
registration, or special permit prior to any hearing when, in the
opinion of the director, the action is necessary to protect any child
of a child day care facility from physical or mental abuse,
abandonment, or any other substantial threat to health or safety. The
director shall notify the licensee, registrant, or holder of the
special permit of the temporary suspension and the effective date
thereof and at the same time shall serve the provider with an
accusation. Upon receipt of a notice of defense to the accusation by
the licensee, registrant, or holder of the special permit, the
director shall, within 15 days, set the matter for hearing, and the
hearing shall be held as soon as possible but not later than 30 days
after receipt of the notice. The temporary suspension shall remain in
effect until such time as the hearing is completed and the director
has made a final determination on the merits. However, the temporary
suspension shall be deemed vacated if the director fails to make a
final determination on the merits within 30 days after the original
hearing has been completed.



1596.8865.  (a) When a local child protective agency, as defined in
Section 11165 of the Penal Code, has a reasonable suspicion, as
defined in subdivision (a) of Section 11166 of the Penal Code, that
the death or serious injury of a child occurred at a child day care
facility because of abuse or willful neglect by the personnel of the
child day care facility, the agency shall immediately notify the
director.
   (b) Within two working days of receipt of the evidence that the
death or serious injury occurred at a child day care facility because
of abuse or willful neglect by the personnel of the child day care
facility, the department shall temporarily suspend the license,
registration, or special permit of the facility, and shall
immediately notify the licensee, registrant, or holder of the special
permit of the temporary suspension and the effective date thereof
and at the same time serve the provider with an accusation. The
hearing shall be set and conducted in the manner provided in Section
1596.886, and the temporary suspension shall have the same effect and
duration as provided in Section 1596.886.
   (c) The director shall request that the city police, county
sheriff, or other law enforcement agencies, and any other county
agencies, investigating the death or serious injury of the child
shall expedite and coordinate evidence gathering in the case, and, to
the extent that providing the evidence will not adversely affect any
criminal prosecution, make that evidence available as soon as
possible for the purposes of the hearing on the temporary suspension.
   (d) As used in this section, "serious injury" means a serious
impairment of physical condition, including, but not limited to, the
following: loss of consciousness; concussion; bone fracture;
protracted loss or impairment of function of any bodily member or
organ; a wound requiring extensive suturing; and serious
disfigurement.


1596.8866.  The State Department of Social Services shall reopen an
investigation into a licensed child day care facility when any person
provides the department with a certified copy of a court record in
which a judicial officer has determined that an injury to a child may
have been inflicted while in the care and custody of a day care
provider.



1596.8867.  (a) The department shall conduct an unannounced visit to
a facility within 30 days after the effective date of a temporary
suspension of a license, in order to ensure that the facility is
nonoperational, unless the department has previously verified that
the facility is nonoperational.
   (b) The department shall conduct an unannounced visit to a
facility within 30 days after the effective date of a revocation of a
license in order to ensure that the facility is nonoperational,
unless the department has previously verified that the facility is
nonoperational.



1596.887.  (a) Proceedings for the suspension, revocation, or denial
of a license, registration, or special permit under this chapter
shall be conducted in accordance with Chapter 5 (commencing with
Section 11500) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government
Code, and the department shall have all the powers granted by that
chapter. In the event of conflict between the provisions of this
chapter and those provisions of the Government Code, the provisions
of the Government Code shall prevail.
   (b) In all proceedings conducted in accordance with this section,
the standard of proof to be applied shall be by the preponderance of
the evidence.
   (c) If the license is not temporarily suspended pursuant to
Section 1596.8865, the hearing shall be held within 90 days after
receipt of the notice of defense, unless a continuance of the hearing
is granted by the department or the administrative law judge. When
the matter has been set for hearing, only the administrative law
judge may grant a continuance of the hearing. The administrative law
judge may, but need not, grant a continuance of the hearing, only
upon finding the existence of one or more of the following:
   (1) The death or incapacitating illness of a party, a
representative or attorney of a party, a witness to an essential
fact, or of the parent, child, or member of the household of such
person, when it is not feasible to substitute another representative,
attorney, or witness because of the proximity of the hearing date.
   (2) Lack of notice of hearing as provided in Section 11509 of the
Government Code.
   (3) A material change in the status of the case where a change in
the parties or pleadings requires postponement, or an executed
settlement or stipulated findings of fact obviate the need for
hearing. A partial amendment of the pleadings shall not be good cause
for continuance to the extent that the unamended portion of the
pleadings is ready to be heard.
   (4) A stipulation for continuance signed by all parties or their
authorized representatives, including, but not limited to, a
representative, which is communicated with the request for
continuance to the administrative law judge no later than 25 business
days before the hearing.
   (5) The substitution of the representative or attorney of a party
upon showing that the substitution is required.
   (6) The unavailability of a party, representative, or attorney of
a party, or witness to an essential fact due to a conflicting and
required appearance in a judicial matter if when the hearing date was
set, the person did not know and could neither anticipate nor at any
time avoid the conflict, and the conflict with request for
continuance is immediately communicated to the administrative law
judge.
   (7) The unavailability of a party, a representative or attorney of
a party, or a material witness due to an unavoidable emergency.
   (8) Failure by a party to comply with a timely discovery request
if the continuance request is made by the party who requested the
discovery.



1596.8871.  (a) The administrative law judge conducting a hearing
under this article may permit the testimony of a child witness, or a
similarly vulnerable witness, including a witness who is
developmentally disabled, to be taken outside the presence of the
respondent or respondents if all of the following conditions exist:
   (1) The administrative law judge determines that taking the
witness's testimony outside the presence of the respondent or
respondents is necessary to ensure truthful testimony.
   (2) The witness is likely to be intimidated by the presence of the
respondent or respondents.
   (3) The witness is afraid to testify in front of the respondent or
respondents.
   (b) If the testimony of the witness is taken outside of the
presence of the respondent or respondents, the department shall
provide for the use of one-way closed-circuit television so the
respondent or respondents can observe the testimony of the witness.
Nothing in this section shall limit a respondent's right of
cross-examination.
   (c) The administrative law judge conducting a hearing under this
section may clear the hearing room of any persons who are not a party
to the action in order to protect any witness from intimidation or
other harm, taking into account the rights of all persons.




1596.8872.  (a) (1) An out-of-court statement made by a minor under
12 years of age who is the subject or victim of an allegation at
issue is admissible evidence at an administrative hearing conducted
pursuant to this article. The out-of-court statement may be used to
support a finding of fact unless an objection is timely made and the
objecting party establishes that the statement is unreliable because
it was the product of fraud, deceit, or undue influence. However, the
out-of-court statement may not be the sole basis for the finding of
fact, unless the adjudicator finds that the time, content, and
circumstances of the statement provide sufficient indicia of
reliability.
   (2) The proponent of the statement shall give reasonable notice to
all parties of the intended introduction of the statement at the
hearing.
   (3) For purposes of this subdivision, an objection is timely if it
identifies with reasonable specificity the disputed out-of-court
statement and it gives the proponent of the evidence a reasonable
period of time to prepare a response to the objection prior to the
hearing.
   (b) This section shall not be construed to limit the right of any
party to the administrative hearing to subpoena a witness whose
statement is admitted as evidence or to introduce admissible evidence
relevant to the weight of the hearsay evidence or the credibility of
the hearsay declarant.



1596.8875.  In addition to the witness fees and mileage provided by
Section 11450.40 of the Government Code, the department may pay
actual, necessary, and reasonable expenses in an amount not to exceed
the per diem allowance payable to a nonrepresented state employee on
travel status. The department may pay witness expenses pursuant to
this section in advance of the hearing.



1596.888.  Any license, registration, or special permit suspended
pursuant to this chapter, and any special permit revoked pursuant to
this chapter, may be reinstated pursuant to Section 11522 of the
Government Code.


1596.889.  In all proceedings conducted in accordance with Section
1596.887, the preponderance of the evidence standard shall apply.



1596.8895.  (a) Whenever the director temporarily suspends the
license, registration, or special permit of a child day care facility
pursuant to Section 1596.886, the director or the local licensing
agency shall send written notification to the parent or legal
guardian of each child receiving services in the facility. The
department or the local licensing agency, if there is one, shall also
post a written notice of the temporary suspension at the facility in
a place readily visible and accessible to the parents or guardians
of children receiving services at the facility. Removal of the posted
notice while the temporary suspension is in effect is a violation of
this chapter punishable by a fine of five hundred dollars ($500).
   (b) If a temporary suspension order is not effected within 30 days
of the filing of an accusation, the director or the local licensing
agency shall send written notification that the accusation has been
filed to the parent or legal guardian of each child receiving
services in the facility.
   (c) (1) Upon receipt of an accusation indicating the department's
intent to revoke a facility's license, the licensee shall provide
copies of a summary of the accusation to the parent or legal guardian
of each child receiving services in the facility until that
accusation is either dismissed or resolved through the administrative
hearing process or stipulated agreement.
   (2) Upon enrollment of a new child in a facility, the licensee
shall provide to the parents or legal guardians of the newly
enrolling child copies of a summary of any accusation that the
licensee has received during the prior 12-month period that indicates
the department's intent to revoke the facility's license.
   (3) The licensee shall require each recipient of the summary of
the accusation to sign a statement indicating that he or she has
received the document and the date it was received.
   (4) The licensee shall keep verification of receipt in each child'
s file.
   (5) The department shall prepare and provide to the licensee the
summary of the accusation.