Existing law, the California Community Care Facilities Act, provides for the licensing and regulation of community care facilities, including short-term residential therapeutic programs, by the State Department of Social Services, and defines a short-term residential therapeutic program as a residential facility licensed by the department and operated by any public agency or private organization that provides an integrated program of specialized and intensive care and supervision, services and supports, treatment, and short-term, 24-hour care and supervision to children that is trauma-informed.

Existing law requires a short-term residential therapeutic program to prepare and maintain a current, written plan of operation that includes a program statement containing, among other things, a description of how the short-term residential therapeutic program will meet specified standards established by the department in collaboration with the State Department of Health Care Services. Existing law requires a short-term residential therapeutic plan to ensure the availability of licensed nursing staff, as specified.