(a) All powers, duties, and functions pertaining to the care and treatment of wards provided by any provision of law and not specifically and expressly assigned to the Juvenile Justice branch of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, or to the Board of Parole Hearings, shall be exercised and performed by the Secretary of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. The secretary shall be the appointing authority for all civil service positions of employment in the department. The secretary may delegate the powers and duties vested in the secretary by law, in accordance with Section 7.
(b) Commencing July 1, 2005, the secretary is authorized to make and enforce all rules appropriate to the proper accomplishment of the functions of the Division of Juvenile Facilities, Division of Juvenile Programs, and Division of Juvenile Parole Operations. The rules shall be promulgated and filed pursuant to Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, and shall, to the extent practical, be stated in language that is easily understood by the general public.
(c) The secretary shall maintain, publish, and make available to the general public, a compendium of rules and regulations promulgated by the department pursuant to this section.
(d) The following exceptions to the procedures specified in this section shall apply to the department:
(1) The department may specify an effective date that is any time more than 30 days after the rule or regulation is filed with the Secretary of State; provided that no less than 20 days prior to that effective date, copies of the rule or regulation shall be posted in conspicuous places throughout each institution and shall be mailed to all persons or organizations who request them.
(2) The department may rely upon a summary of the information compiled by a hearing officer; provided that the summary and the testimony taken regarding the proposed action shall be retained as part of the public record for at least one year after the adoption, amendment, or repeal.
(Repealed and added by Stats. 2020, Ch. 337, Sec. 39. (SB 823) Effective September 30, 2020.)