BILL NUMBER: SB 1660 CHAPTERED 09/25/08 CHAPTER 276 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE SEPTEMBER 25, 2008 APPROVED BY GOVERNOR SEPTEMBER 25, 2008 PASSED THE SENATE AUGUST 21, 2008 PASSED THE ASSEMBLY AUGUST 14, 2008 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY AUGUST 8, 2008 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JULY 2, 2008 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 17, 2008 AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 21, 2008 AMENDED IN SENATE MARCH 27, 2008 INTRODUCED BY Senator Romero FEBRUARY 22, 2008 An act to amend Section 41530 of the Education Code, relating to teachers. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SB 1660, Romero. Teachers: compensation. Existing law requires the governing board of a school district to fix and order paid the compensation of persons in public school service requiring certification qualifications employed by the governing board. The governing board of each school district also is required to adopt, cause to be printed, and make available to each certificated employee a schedule of salaries to be paid. Each person employed by a school district in a position requiring certification qualifications, except a person employed in a position requiring administrative or supervisory credentials, is required to be classified on the salary schedule on the basis of uniform allowance for years of training and years of experience, except if a salary schedule based on criteria other than that uniform allowance is negotiated and mutually agreed upon by a public school employer and the exclusive representative of the employees. Public school employers and exclusive representatives of credentialed teachers are encouraged to recognize teacher contributions to improving pupil achievement, provide incentives to teachers to accept teaching assignments in areas of highest need, and recognize relevant professional experience on the salary schedule in lieu of units and degrees or in lieu of teaching experience. Existing law establishes the professional development block grant, and requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to apportion block grant funds to a school district in the same relative statewide proportion that the school district received in the 2003-04 fiscal year for specified staff development programs. A school district may expend these funds for any purpose authorized by those programs. Among the purposes for which these funds may be expended are staff development instructional methods, including teaching strategies, classroom management and other training designed to improve pupil performance, conflict resolution, intolerance and hatred prevention, and academic content in the core curriculum areas. This bill would authorize a school district to use funds received pursuant to the professional development block grant to compensate new and existing mathematics, science, and special education teachers in schools ranking, in the 2008-09 school year or any subsequent school year, in decile 1, 2, or 3 of the Academic Performance Index, in a manner separate from the uniform allowance for years of training and years of service, as permitted pursuant to the exception described above. The bill would require a school district to submit an annual educational report to specified government officials of the amount of funds used pursuant to this provision to compensate mathematics, science, and special education teachers. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following: (a) California's public schools face an existing and projected severe shortage of mathematics and science teachers. (b) Recent reports on the shortage reveal a shortfall of approximately 33,000 new mathematics and science teachers over the next decade. (c) Mathematics and science classrooms, particularly in low-performing schools, are increasingly being staffed by educators who are underprepared to teach the academic content in the state's rigorous content standards and to prepare pupils to receive a high-quality mathematics and science education so that they can participate in the state's science, technology, engineering, and mathematics workforce. (d) Addressing the mathematics and science teacher shortage requires multiple strategies, including, but not necessarily limited to, an expansion and strengthening of pathways to encourage talented individuals to become mathematics and science teachers, as well as new incentives and ongoing support to new and existing mathematics and science teachers so that they will choose to stay in California's public elementary and secondary education classrooms. (e) Recent legislative efforts have focused on improving educational achievement in schools, especially those in the lowest deciles. In order to assist school districts to narrow the achievement gap among the lowest performing subgroups of pupils and those who consistently meet university admissions requirements, other strategies are needed. SEC. 2. Section 41530 of the Education Code is amended to read: 41530. (a) There is hereby established the professional development block grant. Commencing with the 2005-06 fiscal year, the Superintendent shall apportion block grant funds to a school district in the same relative statewide proportion that the school district received in the 2003-04 fiscal year for the programs listed in Section 41531. (b) A school district may expend funds received pursuant to this article for either of the following: (1) Any purpose authorized by the programs listed in Section 41531, as the statutes governing those programs read on January 1, 2004. (2) (A) To compensate new and existing mathematics, science, and special education teachers in schools ranked, in the 2008-09 school year or any subsequent school year, in decile 1, 2, or 3 of the Academic Performance Index, in a manner separate from the uniform allowance for years of training and years of service, as permitted pursuant to the exception described in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 45028. (B) A school district that utilizes the authority granted in this subdivision shall submit an annual report to the Superintendent, the chairperson of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee, the chairperson and vice chairpersons of the education policy committees of each house of the Legislature, and the Director of Finance of the amount of funds used pursuant to this paragraph to compensate mathematics, science, and special education teachers. (c) For the purposes of this article, "school district" includes a county office of education if county offices of education are eligible to receive funds for the programs that are listed in Section 41531. The block grant of a county office of education shall be based only on those programs for which it was eligible to receive funds in the 2003-04 fiscal year.