BILL ANALYSIS ------------------------------------------------------------ |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 640| |Office of Senate Floor Analyses | | |1020 N Street, Suite 524 | | |(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | | |327-4478 | | ------------------------------------------------------------ THIRD READING Bill No: SB 640 Author: Hancock (D) Amended: 5/4/09 Vote: 21 SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE : 9-0, 5/6/09 AYES: Romero, Huff, Alquist, Hancock, Liu, Maldonado, Padilla, Simitian, Wyland SUBJECT : Regional occupational centers and programs SOURCE : Author DIGEST : This bill requires Regional Occupational Centers and Program employer advisory boards to recommend appropriate methods for evaluating pupils enrolled in the program and allows centers and programs under corrective action a longer timeline to reduce adult average daily attendance (ADA). ANALYSIS : Existing law establishes various state technical education programs for public schools including Regional Occupational Centers and Programs (ROC/Ps) for the purpose of enabling students from multiple schools or districts to attend career technical training programs regardless of the geographic location of their residence in a county or region. Existing law provides for the phased reduction of adult pupils in ROC/Ps by limiting the funding for ROC/P CONTINUED SB 640 Page 2 attendance that is not generated by pupils who are enrolled in grades 9-12: 1.For the 2008-09 fiscal year, no more than 50 percent of ADA may be generated by pupils who are not enrolled in grades 9-12. 2.For the 2009-10 fiscal year, no more than 30 percent of ADA may be generated by pupils who are not enrolled in grades 9-12. 3.For the 2011-12 fiscal year and every year thereafter, no more than 10 percent of ADA may be generated by pupils who are not enrolled in grades 9-12. Existing law requires the governing board of each ROC/P to establish and maintain an employer advisory board or boards to evaluate the program curriculum, validate whether there are employment opportunities in the training area, and make suggestions regarding program operation. This bill: 1.Specifies that ROC/P advisory boards shall recommend, rather than approve, measures, criteria, and methods to evaluate whether pupils in the program have met the skills and knowledge goals established for the program. 2.Requires ROC/P advisory boards to assist in the identification and creation of college scholarships for pupils in the program. 3.Allows an ROC/P that has a high adult student population to continue to receive adult ADA provided the program is working under a corrective action plan to achieve the threshold established by AB 2448 (Hancock), Chapter 572, Statutes of 2006 (see comments below). Comments Earlier reform . According to the Department of Education, there are 74 ROC/Ps serving approximately 460,000 K-12 pupils and adult students through 100 career pathways and programs. AB 2448 (Hancock, Chapter 572, Statutes of 2006) CONTINUED SB 640 Page 3 established high school students as the primary population to be served in ROC/Ps. The legislation implemented clear timeframes for reducing the adult population to 10 percent by July 1, 2011, allowing an additional five percent for programs whose adult students are CalWorks, Job Corps, or Workforce Investment Act participants. A program may claim more than 15 percent adult ADA if all of the adult students are enrolled in those assistance programs and the program develops a plan to transition these students to community college or adult education programs so that the ROC/P can become in compliance with the minimum threshold established by AB 2448. Programs that claim more than 40 percent of its students as adults were given until July 1, 2013 to reduce their adult ADA. Corrective action . Programs that fail to meet the minimum threshold by the deadlines specified in AB 2448 are required to enter into a corrective action agreement with the Department of Education that identifies alternative means of meeting the needs of adult students and specifies a timeframe for coming into compliance with the adult enrollment limits. This bill essentially clarifies the intent of AB 2448 to allow a program that is under corrective action to continue to receive funding for its adult students as long as the program is making a good faith effort to meet the secondary participation goals. FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No Local: No SUPPORT : (Verified 5/8/09) California Association of Regional Occupational Centers and Programs California Teachers Association Metro Ed ROC DLW:nl 5/8/09 Senate Floor Analyses SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE **** END **** CONTINUED