(a) The department, in consultation with the county alcohol and drug program administrators and other interested organizations and individuals, shall develop program standards specific to each type of residential and nonresidential program, to be used during its certification process. These standards shall be advisory only and are excluded from the provisions of Section 11340.5 of the Government Code and other rulemaking requirements of the Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code), and Chapter 8 (commencing with Section 11835).
(b) The program standards shall include, but not be limited to, both of the following:
(1) Recognition and characterization of different approaches and solutions to the alcohol and drug problems that the department determines have sufficient merit for a separate standard.
(2) Reference to the needs of youth, the elderly, women, pregnant women, mothers and their children, gays, lesbians, the disabled, and special populations, with recognition of innovative solutions to the problems of those special populations.
(c) The program standards shall serve as educational documents to inform the public of the current state-of-the-art in effective and cost-efficient alcohol and drug problem programming.
(Amended by Stats. 2004, Ch. 862, Sec. 100. Effective January 1, 2005.)