California lawmakers passed a bipartisan bill Wednesday that would impose stricter public oversight on the use of seclusion or restraints on children and adolescents in residential treatment facilities, protections advocated by celebrity hotel heiress Paris Hilton.
Senate Bill 1043, authored by Sen. Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield), would require public and private short-term therapeutic programs to publish all incidents of seclusion or restraint used on minors, as well as any health or safety concerns. Policymakers across the country have expressed concern about the historical use of these punishment tactics against youth, many of whom are in foster care, criticizing the lack of transparency about these incidents.
The bill now goes to Governor Gavin Newsom for consideration.
California used to send foster youth with serious behavioral issues to out-of-state treatment programs, but after widespread reports of abuse, state lawmakers banned those placements in 2021. Since then, California has created short-term residential treatment programs, but the use of seclusion rooms and restraints on minors still occurs.
Grove found that young people encounter these tactics regularly, but foster parents and guardians are rarely made aware of them.
Under the bill, the California Department of Human Services would be required to post data on its website about every incident in which seclusion or restraint is used, for anyone to view. It’s up to the department to decide how to display the information to the public, Grove’s office said. The parent, foster parent, guardian or tribal representative of a child subjected to the punishment would also be notified.
The bill has been supported by lawmakers on both sides of the political spectrum and has received support from Hilton, who traveled to Sacramento in April to testify before a Senate committee. As a teenager, Hilton, now 43, was taken to a juvenile education facility where she said she endured physical and mental abuse, including being held in restraint and isolation rooms, an experience that has been compared to solitary confinement.
Grove accepted amendments made by the Assembly’s Human Services Committee that would require an investigation every time an incident is reported, but after financial analysts said it would be too costly, those amendments were removed. Now, an investigation into a facility will only take place if a child’s safety is at risk or if such disciplinary tactics are being misused.
Hilton’s visit to the state Capitol was just one of many appearances she has made over the years at state capitols across the country, where she has advocated for victims of what has been dubbed “the troubled teen industry.”
