The heiress to a famed hotel, once known for her high-profile nightclub appearances, has turned her attention to a much more sedate venue: the California State Capitol.

Paris Hilton supports Senate Bill 1043, authored by Senator Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield) and co-authored by two Democratic lawmakers, which would require residential treatment centers to report to parents and the state government when they use restraint or seclusion rooms in disciplining minors .

It’s the latest move in what has become Hilton’s political centerpiece in recent years as she has positioned herself as a voice for young people who have suffered abuse at teen treatment centers. Hilton has traveled to Washington, DC and Utah to push for stricter regulations on residential treatment programs. She will testify in Sacramento on April 15 in support of the new legislation.

As a survivor of the Troubled Teen Industry, I am proud to work with Senator Shannon Grove… to bring much-needed transparency to California’s youth services,” Hilton said in a statement.

The bill aims to protect children and young adults housed in facilities approved by the California Department of Social Services by requiring the agency to publish data on a public dashboard on its website that tracks the use of restraint and seclusion rooms reported, including cases of serious injury or death. . It would also require notification of parents or guardians when security and seclusion rooms are used with minors.

The Ministry of Social Affairs said it does not comment on the legislation.

California used to send foster youth with serious behavioral problems to out-of-state treatment programs, but after numerous reports of abuse, a 2021 law banned those placements. The state has since created an alternative known as Short Term Residential Therapeutic Programs, but the use of seclusion rooms and restraints on minors still occurs, Grove’s office said.

Hilton, who is 43, has spoken out candidly about the mental and physical abuse she suffered as a teenager for 11 months as a resident of Utah’s Provo Canyon School, a boarding school and youth psychiatric treatment center. Provo Canyon was sold more than 20 years ago and declined to comment on any allegations after Hilton made her story public

about events

which took place before the new owner.

Some youth are sent to these treatment programs by their parents; others are foster children ordered by the court to attend.

The so-called “troubled teen” industry dates back at least 50 years and refers to a network of programs that target teens struggling with issues such as substance abuse, mental illness and problematic behavior. The programs typically cost about the same amount as college tuition, and despite being at the center of many abuse and corruption scandals, the industry remains largely unregulated, according to the American Bar Assn.

Following her experiences with residential treatment in the 1990s, Hilton founded a nonprofit organization, released a documentary and wrote a memoir telling her personal story of abuse. And she advocates for the protection of minors in residential programs and facilities.

In 2021, Hilton tested in the Utah state Capitol for a bill that would require greater government oversight of residential treatment centers for youth and documentation when they apply restrictions to minors. The bill also prohibits the use of anesthesia or mechanical restraints without prior authorization in treatment centers. The bill was signed into law, affecting the state’s 100 youth treatment centers and paving the way for more legislation.

The National Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs, the nation’s largest membership organization, supported the bill in Utah.

“We strongly support the creation of laws that will help protect the rights and safety of students who attend our programs,” the group said

wrote in a letter read by Utah Sen. Todd Weiler.

Last year, Hilton was at the U.S. Capitol to advocate for the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act, a federal bill to establish best practices and transparency in child welfare programs.

This issue is deeply personal to me,” Hilton said at a news conference in Washington introducing the bill. ‘From the age of 16 to 18 I was sent to four problematic teenage industries. Each time was more horrifying than the last. I witnessed and experienced sexual abuse by adult staff, and suffered verbal and emotional abuse on a daily basis. …What I went through will haunt me for the rest of my life.