California's permit and background-check law for child performer services.
This page preserves the parent-facing guide to AB1660, including who needs a permit, what the permit covers, how to verify it, and the practical safety steps families should use before working with anyone.
Background checks
Permit verification
Minor safety first
Bottom line for parents
Before anyone works with your child in entertainment for money, they need a Child Performer Services Permit that includes background-check clearance.
When your child steps onto a set, safety and supervision are non-negotiable. AB 1660 ensures that professionals working with minors in the entertainment industry are vetted through background checks and held to legal standards.
Prior to this law, convicted sex offenders were able to re-enter the entertainment industry as managers, publicists, and teachers. High-profile abuse cases helped drive the law forward.
No person required to register as a sex offender may represent or provide covered services to any minor artist. This is a complete ban.
What AB1660 does and why it exists.
Passed in 2012, California's Child Performer Protection Act requires background checks and permits for adults who work with child performers in a paid capacity. That includes photographers, acting coaches, managers, and service providers offering career support to a minor actor.
Providers working with child performers need a real permit, not a promise.
The source page breaks this into required application steps and the kinds of services that trigger the rule.
Permit requirements
- Apply for a Child Performer Services Permit.
- Submit to a LiveScan background check with FBI-level fingerprinting.
- Be cleared through the California Department of Justice.
- Pay a $198 application fee plus fingerprinting costs.
- Renew every two years for $166.
Services that require a permit
- Still photography, digital photography, video, and film services used for a performer's career.
- Acting, modeling, voice, singing, or dance coaching.
- Talent management or career counseling.
- Seminars, workshops, or instruction related to getting hired as a performer.
- Camp counselors, coaches, and instructors at performance-related camps.
- Publicists managing a child performer's reputation and media presence.
Exemptions
- Parents or guardians when not working for pay.
- School or church events that are not commercially motivated.
- Studio teachers already certified by the Labor Commissioner.
- Licensed talent agents regulated under separate laws.
- People with only incidental contact with minors, such as equipment rental companies.
- Locations where parents must be present and within sight or sound at all times.
Compliance reality check
Investigative reporting has shown that entertainment professionals do not always comply automatically. Parents should verify the permit every time rather than assuming someone has already handled it.
Compliance details
California Child Services Permit
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Bonded and insured
#57BSBJE4765
How parents should verify a permit before hiring anyone.
The original page is blunt here: if someone cannot show proof, the safe answer is do not hire them.
- Ask the provider directly: "Do you hold a current California Child Performer Services Permit?"
- If they cannot show proof, do not hire them.
- Search the official California Child Performer Services Permit database.
- Confirm the permit is posted conspicuously at their place of business.
Absolute rule
No permit equals no work with your child.
The application process takes time. A provider saying they are about to get it is not the same as having it.
Operating without a permit carries real consequences.
The source copy includes both the penalties for noncompliance and the basic application flow for providers.
Penalties for noncompliance
- Operating without a permit is a misdemeanor in California.
- Fines can reach up to $10,000 per violation.
- Willful violations can carry up to one year in county jail.
- Injured parties may bring civil lawsuits for damages and injunctive relief.
- Punitive damages may be awarded when violations are willful.
How the application process works
- Complete the application online or by mail.
- Pay the $198 fee plus fingerprinting costs.
- Get LiveScan fingerprinting at an approved location.
- Wait for the FBI background check, which may take around 45 days.
- Receive the permit if cleared and post it visibly in the workplace.
- Renew every two years for $166.
The permit is not the only safeguard families should use.
The page ends by pairing the law with everyday parent behavior: verify, supervise, document, and trust your instincts.
Verify permits before signing contracts.
Stay involved in your child's professional interactions.
Maintain open communication about every experience.
Trust your instincts and investigate anything that feels off.
Build a network of other entertainment parents for perspective.
Keep copies of permits, contracts, and communications.
Common parent questions about AB1660.
These are preserved from the existing legal-library source and focus on edge cases families actually run into.
My child takes online acting classes with a coach from another state. Do they need a permit?
If they are offering paid services to a California-based child, the permit requirement still matters. The provider's location does not erase the safety expectation for California minors.
What about photographers who only take headshots?
If the photography is specifically tied to the child's entertainment career, the permit requirement can apply. A general family portrait session is a different context.
Does the permit guarantee the person is safe to work with my child?
No permit can guarantee character. It does mean the provider passed the background-check threshold required by law, but parents still need supervision, boundaries, and open communication.
What if someone says they are about to get their permit?
Do not proceed until the permit is active and verifiable. The application process can take weeks, and the safe answer is no permit, no work.
Are there different rules for different types of entertainment work?
The rule is broad: if someone is being paid to help a minor succeed in entertainment, families should assume permit verification matters unless a clear exemption applies.
What should I do if I discover someone working with my child does not have a permit?
Stop the relationship immediately and report it to California CPS licensing. Depending on the situation, you may also have grounds for legal action.
Reference names carried forward from the source page.
The original page listed resource names without structured URLs in the pasted source. They are preserved here without inventing outbound links.
Official government resources
- California DIR Child Performer Services Permit page
- Official FAQ for Child Performer Services Permits
- Search Child Performer Services Permit Database
- Full Bill Text - AB 1660
- AB 1660 regulations detail
Contact and reporting
- CPS licensing questions: cpslicensing@dir.ca.gov
- CPS licensing phone: 510-285-2123
- LiveScan and fingerprint background check information
- Better Business Bureau scam reporting
Industry and education references
- BizParentz Foundation AB 1660 information
- SAG-AFTRA resources on protecting young performers
- Industry panel materials on AB 1660
- Deadline investigation on enforcement issues
- Backstage guides on child entertainment work permits
- California child labor law guides