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| IN EL DORADO COUNTY THAT IS |
(01-17) 04:00 PST Sacramento — 2007-01-17 04:00:00 PST Sacramento -- The state of California neglects foster care children once they turn 18, turning them out onto the street with nowhere to live, no way to support themselves and nobody to turn to for support, according to a new report by the Children's Advocacy Institute.
The institute, run out of the University of San Diego School of Law, on Tuesday called upon the state Legislature and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to support new legislation providing substantial financial support for foster youth once they "age out" of the system at 18 and ensure they have an adult guardian to provide guidance.
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"These are not other people's children. These are legally our children," said Robert Fellmeth, director of the institute. "How you treat them is a measure of your devotion to family values."
Youth nationwide who live with their parents typically don't become self-sufficient until age 26 -- and their parents on average contribute $44,000 after they turn 18 in rent, utilities, food, medical care, college tuition, transportation and other necessities to help them get there, according to the report.
For foster youth, it's an entirely different story. Every year, 4,000 of them age out of California's foster care system. Many get Medi-Cal health coverage. Some get help with rent and college tuition. But, according to the authors of the report, state assistance comes piecemeal and adds up to 12 percent of the average $44,000 other youth get from their parents after turning 18.
The consequences are dire, the report authors said. Sixty-five percent leave foster care with nowhere to live, and 51 percent are unemployed. Far more will wind up in prison than in college -- 20 percent to 3 percent by comparison. Girls who age out of the system are four times more likely than the general population to receive public assistance.
Forty percent of people living in California's homeless shelters are former foster children.
This bleak picture isn't anything new, and numerous governmental and university studies have shown similar statistics, according to Denis Udall, a senior program officer at the Walter S. Johnson Foundation who specializes in foster care.
"It's really commonly accepted throughout the country that this is an extremely at-risk, vulnerable population," he said.
CALIFORNIA / Aid urged for older foster kids / Abandonment at age 18 causes huge problems, group says,January 17, 2007|By Heather Knight, Chronicle Staff Writer