The Board of Supervisors finds and declares the following:
(a) Foster youth are a vulnerable population at risk of homelessness, indigence, welfare dependency, incarceration and other adverse outcomes if they exit foster care without the proper skills to become self-sufficient; and
(b) Many foster youth who exit from the foster care system cannot depend on their family for ongoing financial support while they pursue post-secondary education or career development; and
(c) When many foster youth exit the foster care system, their primary source of financial support, AFDC-Foster Care payments, terminates at 18 years of age, diminishing their resources for self-support; and
(d) Some foster youth cannot successfully complete education or training programs due to trauma suffered while in the care of their parents, and possibly from multiple placements while in the foster care system.
(Added by Ord. 3-04, File No. 031242, App. 1/16/2004)