My Family Had a Past CPS Case in Sonoma County
The Process to Request Child Welfare Records
- To request a redacted copy of records you are legally entitled to, please come to the Family, Youth & Children’s Division office, 1202 Apollo Way, Santa Rosa, CA 95407 during regular business hours, or call (707) 565-4300 to complete a Redact Request form.
- Please provide a phone number where you can be easily reached, and where we can leave a voicemail if you are unavailable.
- You will be contacted by a member of our team with ten (10) business days of your request being received. If you do not answer, or respond to our phone call within thirty (30) days, your request will be considered complete and you will need to submit a new request to obtain records.
- Before starting to redact records, we will need to see a photo ID and confirm your relation to the minor/s you are requesting documentation for.
- Please only request the documentation you need. Copying and redacting a case file can take considerable time. We want to get you the information you need as quickly as possible and requested only the specific information will aide us in that goal.
- You will be notified by phone when your records are ready to be picked up.
- If you do not pick up your records within 30 days of the initial call notifying you that they are complete, the redacted copy will be destroyed and you will need to submit a new request.
- If you live out of county, we can mail the records, or email via encrypted email.
Who is Eligible to Request Child Welfare Records
- Birth parents, legally appointed guardians (with documentation), adoptive parents (If parental rights have been terminated, or the youth has turned 18, the amount of information allowed to parents/guardians will stop at the date of termination or the youth’s 18th birthday)
- Current or former foster youth (age 18+)
- Court personnel, District Attorney, County Counsel, city attorney or city prosecutor
- Attorneys or their representative for family law court
- Members of child protective agencies and people serving in a similar capacity for an Indian tribe, reservation, or tribal court.
- California Department of Social Services (CDSS)
Information that cannot, and will not be provided
- SCARS / CLETS / LEADS / Police repor ts/attached toxicology reports
- Emergency Response Referral Document or Incident/Investigation reports
- Any documents that say ‘Do Not Duplicate’ or ‘Confidential’
- Child abuse or severe neglect indexing form
- Pictures (unless family pictures)
- Psychological evaluations, mental health, substance abuse treatment and medical records can only be provided to the subject of the records
- Any reference regarding STDs, pregnancy, sexual activity or identification
- Any communication between County Counsel or therapist and the social worker
- Probation department or Guardianship investigation
- Adoption files
- Any information that would identify a reporting party or secondary source: address, name of agency, phone number, etc.
- Foster parent/substitute caregiver information
- Any information regarding non-involved dependents
- Public Aid information (Medi-Cal, CalWorks, CalFresh)
- Social Security numbers
- In cases of domestic violence: addresses and phone numbers
- Collateral interviews, e.g conversations with teachers, therapists, relatives, significant others
- Documents on/after a youth’s 18th birthday (unless the youth is the requestor)
For more on what information can be shared and who can receive it, view the Welfare Institutions Code(WIC) 827 Code