BILL ANALYSIS
AB 184
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CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 184 (Block)
As Amended August 17, 2010
2/3 vote. Urgency
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|ASSEMBLY: | |(May 4, 2009) |SENATE: |34-0 |(August 18, |
| | | | | |2010) |
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(vote not relevant)
Original Committee Reference: BUDGET
SUMMARY : Extends the authority for the Superintendent of Public
Instruction (SPI) to allocate funds pursuant to the special
disabilities adjustment (SDA) formula for two additional years,
to the 2010-11 fiscal year, and makes the SDA formula
inoperative as of July 1, 2011 and repeals it as of July 1,
2012.
The Senate amendments delete the Assembly version of this bill,
and instead extend the special disabilities funding adjustment
by two additional years, and sunset the SDA formula on July 1,
2011.
EXISTING LAW requires the SPI through the 2008-09 fiscal year,
to perform a specified calculation to determine the adjusted
entitlement of each special education local plan area (SELPA)
for the incidence of special disabilities according to a
specified report.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill expressed the intent of the
Legislature to enact statutory changes relating to the Budget
Act of 2009.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, this bill prevents reversion of $69.9 million in SDA
funds appropriated in the 2009-10 Budget Act.
COMMENTS : AB 602 (Davis), Chapter 854, Statutes of 1997,
reformed special education funding by creating a system designed
to fund all Special Education Local Planning Areas (SELPAs)
based on the total number of average daily attendance (ADA) in
the area, regardless of the number of students receiving special
education services. This approach was intended to eliminate
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fiscal incentives for identifying students for special
education. However, some argued that the "one-size-fits-all" AB
602 formula failed to account for the fact that the need for
special education services might differ across SELPAs.
Based on the findings of an American Institutes for Research
(AIR) study, beginning in 1998 the Legislature provided an
additional SDA appropriation to certain SELPAs found to have
higher incidences of severe and/or "high-cost" special education
students residing in their attendance areas in 1997. An attempt
to update the study was made in 2004 however, because of
concerns with the data, the adjustment continues to be based on
1997 factors.
The 2009-10 Budget Act included funding for the SDA but did not
include the authority for California Department of Education
(CDE) to allocate the funds as had been the case in prior years.
However, the CDE has begun allocating these funds. Absent
further action from the Legislature, CDE would need to pull back
these funds or adjust funding going forward. However, because
the SDA payments have been counted toward the state's federally
required special education maintenance-of-effort level, the
funds likely need to continue to be spent for special education
purposes.
This bill is part of the Budget Conference Committee's
compromise relative to the SDA formula, and consistent with the
compromise, it provides for the continuation of the SDA funding
through the 2010-11 fiscal year and repeals the existing formula
on July 1, 2011. The compromise also provides federal funding
for a study to determine options for the replacement of the SDA
formula; however this bill does not address the issue of the
study.
This bill was substantially amended in the Senate, and the
subject matter was not heard in Assembly policy committee this
legislative session. The subject matter was however discussed
in the relevant Budget subcommittee and the Budget Conference
Committee.
Analysis Prepared by : Marisol Avina / ED. / (916) 319-2087
FN: 0006298
AB 184
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