BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                  AB 1261
                                                                  Page  1


          ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
          AB 1261 (Leno)
          As Amended April 6, 2005
          Majority vote 

           EDUCATION           11-0        APPROPRIATIONS      18-0        
           
           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
          |Ayes:|Goldberg, Tran, Arambula, |Ayes:|Chu, Sharon Runner, Bass, |
          |     |Coto, Hancock, Huff, Liu, |     |Berg, Calderon, Emmerson, |
          |     |Mullin, Pavley, Richman,  |     |Mullin, Haynes, Karnette, |
          |     |Umberg                    |     |Klehs, Leno, Nakanishi,   |
          |     |                          |     |Nation, Oropeza,          |
          |     |                          |     |Ridley-Thomas, Saldana,   |
          |     |                          |     |Walters, Yee              |
          |-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
          |     |                          |     |                          |
           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
           SUMMARY  :  Clarifies provisions related to the education of  
          foster youth in the areas of educational placement, coursework  
          credit, records transfer, and educational programs offered to  
          foster youth.  Specifically,  this bill  :  

          1)Clarifies that foster children have the right to remain in  
            their school of origin until the end of the school year,  
            unless the holder of educational rights determines that it is  
            not in the child's best interest to do so. 

          2)Defines "local educational agency" as a school district, a  
            county office of education, a charter school participating as  
            a member of a special education local plan area, or a special  
            education local plan area. 

          3)Defines "pupil in foster care" for the purposes of this bill  
            as any child who has been removed from his or her home  
            pursuant to Welfare and Institutions Code Section 309, is the  
            subject of a petition filed under Welfare and Institutions  
            Code Section 300 or 602, or has been removed from his or her  
            home and is the subject of a petition filed under Welfare and  
            Institutions Code Section 300 or 602.   

          4)Requires that records be transferred and foster children be  
            granted immediate enrollment even if the foster child has  
            outstanding fees, fines, textbooks or other items or monies  








                                                                  AB 1261
                                                                  Page  2


            due to the school last attended. 

          5)Clarifies that any disputes that arise as to school placement  
            or enrollment of a foster child shall be resolved in  
            accordance with the existing dispute resolution process  
            available to any pupil served by the local educational agency.  


          6)Establishes parameters for evaluating how far back in time to  
            look into identifying a "school of origin," or the school with  
            which the child feels most connected. 

          7)Codifies the court's authority to make educational decisions  
            for the child when no responsible adult can be identified and  
            the appointment of a surrogate parent is not legally  
            warranted.

          8)Authorizes the court, in limited circumstances, to temporarily  
            limit the right of the parent to make educational decisions  
            for their children when the parent is unable or unwilling to  
            exercise educational rights and the child's educational needs  
            cannot otherwise be met.
          9)Requires the county welfare department to provide emancipated  
            youths with a health and education summary.  
           
          FISCAL EFFECT  :  According to the Assembly Appropriations  
          Committee analysis, one-time General Fund (Proposition 98)  
          mandated reimbursable costs, likely less than $75,000, to school  
          districts to develop a process to resolve disputes, as  
          specified.  

           COMMENTS  :  This bill is sponsored by the Children's Law Center  
          of Los Angeles.  According to the author, this bill seeks to  
          ensure that all eligible youth receive the full protection of  
          the law and opportunity for academic stability and success  
          promised by AB 490 (Steinberg), Chapter 862, Statutes of 2003,  
          which makes numerous changes to the law related to the education  
          of foster youth in the areas of educational placement,  
          coursework credit, records transfer, and educational programs  
          offered to foster youth.  

          The author states:  "While a good education is critical to every  
          child's successful transition to adulthood, it is especially  
          true for children who spend long periods of their childhood in  








                                                                  AB 1261
                                                                  Page  3


          foster care. Yet frequent placement moves, delays and  
          difficulties in transferring educational records, and the  
          general upheaval associated with family crises conspire to make  
          it difficult for foster youth to keep up and do well in school.   


          "To address dismal educational outcomes for foster youth  
          chronicled in a number of reports to the Legislature by the  
          American Institutes for Research, the Legislature passed AB 490  
          (Steinberg), Chapter 862, Statutes of 2003, which instituted a  
          number of reforms designed to promote school stability and  
          ensure that pupils residing in foster care have a meaningful  
          opportunity to meet the academic achievement standards to which  
          all students are held." 
          AB 490 was enacted with broad and bipartisan support.  In the  
          year and a half since the law's enactment, groups across the  
          state have worked together to create materials, present  
          trainings, and develop implementation plans to ensure that  
          at-risk children receive the benefits promised by the law.

          "In the process of implementation, education liaisons at  
          California schools, established by AB 490, and child advocates  
          have identified some gaps in AB 490 protections for foster youth  
          which are addressed by this measure."  
           

          Analysis Prepared by  :    Josefina Ramirez / ED. / (916) 319-2087  



                                                                FN: 0010305