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AB-1962 Education finance: local control funding formula: unduplicated pupils: foster youth: dependent child of a tribal court.(2017-2018)

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Date Published: 09/27/2018 09:00 PM
AB1962:v95#DOCUMENT

Assembly Bill No. 1962
CHAPTER 748

An act to amend Sections 42238.01 and 49085 of the Education Code, relating to education finance.

[ Approved by Governor  September 26, 2018. Filed with Secretary of State  September 26, 2018. ]

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 1962, Wood. Education finance: local control funding formula: unduplicated pupils: foster youth: dependent child of a tribal court.
Existing law establishes a public school financing system that requires state funding for county superintendents of schools, school districts, and charter schools to be calculated pursuant to a local control funding formula, as specified. Existing law requires funding pursuant to the local control funding formula to include, in addition to a base grant, supplemental and concentration grant add-ons that are based on the percentage of certain categories of pupils, known as unduplicated pupils, served by the county superintendent of schools, school district, or charter school. Existing law includes among unduplicated pupils, a pupil who is classified as an English learner, eligible for a free or reduced-price meal, or a foster youth, as defined, and requires county superintendents of schools, school districts, and charter schools to submit and report data relating to these pupils.
This bill, no later than the 2020–21 fiscal year, would include in that definition of “foster youth” a dependent child of a court of an Indian tribe, consortium of tribes, or tribal organization who is the subject of a petition filed in the tribal court in accordance with the tribe’s law, provided the child would also meet one of the descriptions of specified existing law describing when a child may be adjudged a dependent child of the juvenile court. To the extent this provision would impose additional duties on county superintendents of schools, school districts, and charter schools in relation to submitting and reporting data relating to these pupils, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
Existing law requires the State Department of Education and the State Department of Social Services to enter into a memorandum of understanding on or before February 1, 2014, that requires the State Department of Social Services, at least once per week, to share disaggregated information related to foster youth with the State Department of Education.
This bill would exempt the State Department of Social Services from collecting or sharing specified information relating to a dependent child of a court of an Indian tribe, consortium of tribes, or tribal organization as described above.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: YES  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 Section 42238.01 of the Education Code is amended to read:

42238.01.
 For purposes of Section 42238.02, the following definitions shall apply:
(a) “Eligible for free or reduced-price meals” means determined to meet federal income eligibility criteria, either through completing an application for the federal National School Lunch Program or through an alternative household income data collection form, or deemed to be categorically eligible for free or reduced-price meals under the federal National School Lunch Program, as described in Part 245 of Title 7 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
(1) A school participating in a special assistance alternative authorized by Section 11(a)(1) of the federal Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (Public Law 113-79), including Provision 2, Provision 3, or the Community Eligibility Provision, may establish a base year for purposes of the local control funding formula by determining the pupils at the school who are eligible for free or reduced-price meals and using each pupil’s eligibility status in that base year to report eligibility for up to each of the following three school years. The school may include between base year eligibility determinations, any newly enrolled pupils who are determined to be eligible for free or reduced-price meals or any current pupils found to be newly eligible for free or reduced-price meals as identified through a local or state direct certification match or another categorical designation.
(2) A school that uses the special assistance alternative shall maintain information on each pupil’s eligibility status and annually submit information on that status in the California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 42238.02 or subparagraph (A) of paragraph (3) of subdivision (b) of Section 2574, as applicable.
(3) For a pupil who transfers to a school using a special assistance alternative and who is transferring between schools within the same school district, documentation supporting eligibility for that pupil for purposes of the local control funding formula may be transferred from the pupil’s old school to the pupil’s new school, as long as the documentation supporting eligibility for that pupil is less than four years old and is updated at least once every four years.
(4) To the extent permitted by federal law, a school may choose to establish a new base year for purposes of the federal National School Lunch Program at the same time the school establishes a new base year for purposes of the local control funding formula. A school may use federal National School Lunch Program application forms to collect household income data as permitted under the federal National School Lunch Program. If the use of federal National School Lunch Program application forms is not permitted, a school shall use alternative household income data collection forms.
(5) An alternative household income data collection form shall be confidential and shall not be shared by the school other than as necessary for purposes of determining funding allocations under the local control funding formula and for assessing the accountability of that funding. An alternative household income data collection form shall contain, at a minimum, all of the following information:
(A) Information sufficient to identify the pupil or pupils.
(B) Information sufficient to determine that the pupil or household meets federal income eligibility criteria sufficient to qualify for either a free or reduced-priced meal under the federal Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (Public Law 113-79).
(C) Certification that the information is true and correct by the pupil’s adult household member.
(6) Paragraphs (1) and (3) are effective commencing with the 2014–15 fiscal year.
(b) “Foster youth” means any of the following:
(1) A child who is the subject of a petition filed pursuant to Section 300 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, whether or not the child has been removed from his or her home by the juvenile court pursuant to Section 319 or 361 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
(2) A child who is the subject of a petition filed pursuant to Section 602 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, has been removed from his or her home by the juvenile court pursuant to Section 727 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, and is in foster care as defined by subdivision (d) of Section 727.4 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
(3) A nonminor under the transition jurisdiction of the juvenile court, as described in Section 450 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, who satisfies all of the following criteria:
(A) He or she has attained 18 years of age while under an order of foster care placement by the juvenile court, and is not more than 19 years of age on or after January 1, 2012, not more than 20 years of age on or after January 1, 2013, and not more than 21 years of age, on or after January 1, 2014, and as described in Section 10103.5 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
(B) He or she is in foster care under the placement and care responsibility of the county welfare department, county probation department, Indian tribe, consortium of tribes, or tribal organization that entered into an agreement pursuant to Section 10553.1 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
(C) He or she is participating in a transitional independent living case plan pursuant to Section 475(8) of the federal Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 675), as contained in the federal Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008 (Public Law 110-351), as described in Section 11403 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
(4) (A) A dependent child of the court of an Indian tribe, consortium of tribes, or tribal organization who is the subject of a petition filed in the tribal court pursuant to the tribal court’s jurisdiction in accordance with the tribe’s law, provided that the child would also meet one of the descriptions in Section 300 of the Welfare and Institutions Code describing when a child may be adjudged a dependent child of the juvenile court.
(B) This paragraph is effective no later than the 2020–21 fiscal year.
(c) “Pupils of limited English proficiency” means pupils who do not have the clearly developed English language skills of comprehension, speaking, reading, and writing necessary to receive instruction only in English at a level substantially equivalent to pupils of the same age or grade whose primary language is English. “English learner” shall have the same meaning as provided for in subdivision (a) of Section 306 and as “pupils of limited English proficiency.”

SEC. 2.

 Section 49085 of the Education Code is amended to read:

49085.
 (a) On or before February 1, 2014, the department and the State Department of Social Services shall develop and enter into a memorandum of understanding that shall, at a minimum, require the State Department of Social Services, at least once per week, to share with the department both of the following:
(1) Disaggregated information on children and youth in foster care sufficient for the department to identify pupils in foster care.
(2) Disaggregated data on children and youth in foster care that is helpful to county offices of education and other local educational agencies responsible for ensuring that pupils in foster care receive appropriate educational supports and services.
(b) To the extent allowable under federal law, the department shall regularly identify pupils in foster care and designate those pupils in the California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System or any future data system used by the department to collect disaggregated pupil outcome data.
(c) To the extent allowable under federal law, the Superintendent, on or before July 1 of each even-numbered year, shall report to the Legislature and the Governor on the educational outcomes for pupils in foster care at both the individual schoolsite level and school district level. The report shall include, but is not limited to, all of the following:
(1) Individual schoolsite level and school district level educational outcome data for each local educational agency that enrolls at least 15 pupils in foster care, each county in which at least 15 pupils in foster care attend school, and for the entire state.
(2) The number of pupils in foster care statewide and by each local educational agency.
(3) The academic achievement of pupils in foster care.
(4) The incidence of suspension and expulsion for pupils in foster care.
(5) Truancy rates, attendance rates, and dropout rates for pupils in foster care.
(d) To the extent allowable under federal law, the department, at least once per week, shall do all of the following:
(1) Inform school districts and charter schools of any pupils enrolled in those school districts or charter schools who are in foster care.
(2) Inform county offices of education of any pupils enrolled in schools in the county who are in foster care.
(3) Provide schools districts, county office of education, and charter schools disaggregated data helpful to ensuring pupils in foster care receive appropriate educational supports and services.
(e) (i) For purposes of this section “pupil in foster care” has the same meaning as “foster youth,” as defined in Section 42238.01.
(ii) Nothing in this section shall require the State Department of Social Services to collect, nor share with the department, any information regarding the population described in paragraph (4) of subdivision (b) of Section 42238.01.

SEC. 3.

 If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.