2023 California Code › Welfare and Institutions Code - WIC › DIVISION 2 - CHILDREN › PART 1 - DELINQUENTS AND WARDS OF THE JUVENILE COURT › CHAPTER 2 - Juvenile Court Law › ARTICLE 25 - Support of Wards and Dependent Children › Section 903.25.

903.25. (a) In addition to the liability established by any other law, a parent or guardian of a minor who has been delivered to the custody of the probation department, or who has been placed into a children’s receiving home, a foster care home or facility, shall be liable for the reasonable costs of food, shelter, and care of the minor while in the custody of the probation department when all of the following circumstances are applicable:
(1) The parent or guardian receives actual notice by telephone or by written communication from the probation officer that the minor is scheduled for release from custody and that the parent or guardian, in person or through a responsible relative, is requested to take delivery of the minor. The notice shall inform the parent or guardian of the financial liability created by this section.
(2) It is reasonably possible for the parent or guardian to take delivery of the minor, in person or through a responsible relative, at the place designated by the probation officer within 12 hours from the time notice of release was received, or within 48 hours from the time notice of release is received in any case where a petition to declare the minor a dependent child of the court pursuant to Section 300 was dismissed at or before the jurisdictional hearing.
(3) The parent states a refusal to take delivery of the minor or fails to make a reasonable effort to take delivery of the minor, in person or through a responsible relative, within 12 hours from the time of actual receipt of the notice, or within 48 hours from the time of actual receipt of the notice in any case where a petition to declare the minor a dependent child of the court pursuant to Section 300 was dismissed at or before the jurisdictional hearing.
(b) The liability established by this section, when combined with any liability arising under Section 903, shall not exceed one hundred dollars ($100) for each 24-hour period, beginning when notice of release was actually received, or beginning 48 hours after notice of release was actually received in any case where a petition to declare the minor a dependent child of the court pursuant to Section 300 was dismissed at or before the jurisdictional hearing, in which a notified parent or guardian has failed to make a reasonable effort to take delivery of the minor, in person or through a responsible relative, in accordance with the request and instructions of the probation officer.
(c) The liability established by this section shall be limited by the financial ability of the parents, guardians, or other persons to pay. Any parent, guardian, or other person who is assessed under this section shall, upon request, be entitled to an evaluation and determination of ability to pay under the provisions of Section 903.45. Any parent, guardian, or other person who is assessed under this section shall also be entitled, upon petition, to a hearing and determination by the juvenile court on the issues of liability and ability to pay.
(d) (1) This section does not apply to a minor who is adjudged a ward of the juvenile court, who is placed on probation pursuant to Section 725, who is the subject of a petition that has been filed to adjudge the minor a ward of the juvenile court, or who is the subject of a program of supervision undertaken pursuant to Section 654.
(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), this section applies to a minor who is designated as a dual status child pursuant to Section 241.1, for purposes of the dependency jurisdiction only and not for purposes of the delinquency jurisdiction.
(Amended by Stats. 2017, Ch. 678, Sec. 23. (SB 190) Effective January 1, 2018.)