BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó






                         SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
                             Alan Lowenthal, Chair
                           2011-2012 Regular Session
                                        

          BILL NO:       AB 2202
          AUTHOR:        Block
          AMENDED:       June 12, 2012
          FISCAL COMM:   Yes            HEARING DATE:  June 27, 2012
          URGENCY:       No             CONSULTANT:Daniel Alvarez

          NOTE  :  This bill has been amended to replace its contents 
          and this is the first time the bill is being heard in its 
          current form.
           
          SUBJECT  :  Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for 
          Military Children: 
                    task force.
          
           SUMMARY  

          This bill extends the sunset from January 1, 2013 to 
          January 1, 2016, for provisions related to the 
          Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) reconvening a 
          task force to review the impact of the Interstate Compact 
          on Educational Opportunity for Military Children on 
          California, its school districts and its pupils, as 
          specified, and issue a final report to the Legislature by 
          December 1, 2012.

           BACKGROUND  

          AB 343, Statutes of 2009 (Chapter 237, Saldana) enacted the 
          Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military 
          Children.  The Compact provides for the uniform treatment 
          of military children transferring between school districts 
          and states. Among other things, the Compact is meant to 
          address issues related to: 

          1)   Records, enrollment, placement and attendance, 
          including the transfer of
               unofficial and official records, and placement in 
               comparable courses, programs, and the same grade level 
               regardless of age.

          2)   Granting of additional excused absences to a pupil 




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          whose parent has 
               been called to or returned from active duty.

          3)   Eligibility for enrollment and participation in 
          extracurricular activities, 
               including allowing military dependents to attend the 
               same school and participation in programs and 
               extracurricular activities with the consent of a 
               non-custodial parent or other person who is caring for 
               that child (standing in loco parentis).  




          4)   Graduation, including the use of best efforts to waive 
          required courses for 
               pupils who successfully completed similar coursework, 
               and consider granting a diploma from the sending 
               school for pupils who transfer in their senior year of 
               high school.

          5)   Binding effect of the Compact, whereby all member 
          states' laws conflicting 
               with the Compact are superseded by the Compact and all 
               rules and bylaws developed by the commission are 
               binding upon member states. 
               (Education Code § 49700 et. seq.) 

          In addition, AB 343 required the Superintendent of Public 
          instruction (SPI) to convene a task force, as specified, to 
          review and make recommendations about the Compact and 
          report to the Legislature by December 1, 2012.

           ANALYSIS
           
          This bill extends the sunset from January 1, 2013 to 
          January 1, 2016, for provisions related to the 
          Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) reconvening a 
          taskforce to review the impact of the Interstate Compact on 
          Educational Opportunity for Military Children on 
          California, its school districts and its pupils, as 
          specified, and issue a final report to the Legislature by 
          December 1, 2012.

           STAFF COMMENTS  





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           1)   Need for the bill  . According to the author's office, 
               '"The Compact has some state requirements, including 
               selection of a State Commissioner and establishing a 
               State Council. This state coordination is necessary in 
               order to assist school districts in implementing the 
               provisions of the Compact to facilitate student 
               transition and ensure compliance.  For several 
               reasons, these fundamental state requirements have 
               just been recently met. Some school districts are 
               unaware that the Compact even exists.  Existing law 
               requires the SPI to initiate the reconvening of a task 
               force for the purposes of issuing a final report of 
               findings and conclusions on prescribed topics to the 
               Legislature no later than December 1, 2012.  The 
               Compact also has some state requirements, including 
               naming a State Commissioner and establishing a State 
               Council. 

               The appointment by the SPI of a State Commissioner has 
               just recently occurred, as well as the formation of a 
               State Council, and there is little to report at this 
               time. This bill would extend the effective date of 
               provisions regarding the reconvening of the task force 
               and its duties to January 1, 2016, in order to allow 
               time for adequate implementation of the Compact."

           2)   The Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for 
               Military Children  provides guidance as to how local 
               school districts address the transition needs of 
               military children.  With the passage of AB 343, 
               California ratified its participation in the Compact.  
               According to the Military Interstate Compact 
               Commission as of March 2012, 43 states have ratified 
               the Compact.  Individual states are free to adopt or 
               decline to adopt any compact; states ratifying 
               compacts are bound to observe the terms of the 
               agreement until the compact is formally renounced by 
               the state.  Compact provisions take precedence over 
               conflicting state laws.  AB 343 required a prior task 
               force to reconvene to review and make recommendations 
               regarding the implementation of the compact in 
               California, including conflicts with state law, costs 
               to schools, and any unintended consequences.

               The Compact is only applicable to the children of 
               active duty members of the uniformed services, 




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               including members of the National Guard and reserve on 
               active duty orders, members or veterans of the 
               uniformed services who are severely injured and 
               medically discharged or retired for a period of one 
               year after medical discharge or retirement, and 
               members of the uniformed services who die on active 
               duty or as a result of injuries sustained on active 
               duty for a period of one year after death.

               Once ratified by a state, the provisions of the 
               Compact shall continue in force and remain binding 
               upon each and every member state; provided that a 
               member state may withdraw from the Compact by 
               specifically repealing the statute which enacted the 
               Compact into law.

           3)   According to the State Department of Education's task 
               force report  "Compact on Educational Opportunity for 
               Military Children," the State of California hosts the 
               third largest contingent of military children in the 
               United States. A significant element of the state's 
               economy remains related to military expenditures. In 
               San Diego County alone, the economic impact is $24.6 
               billion and 375,000 jobs. The number of school-aged 
               military children statewide ages 5-18 is 67,300 as of 
               2012. 
                
                The approximate length of assignment to a military 
               installation, slightly different for each branch of 
               the service, is two to three years. Therefore, every 
               year a significant number of these families are 
               transferred into or arrive from another state or 
               overseas, to fulfill military obligations. Although 
               our civilian workforce is increasingly mobile, 
               military families are unique in that they do not 
               generally choose when or where they will move next in 
               serving the nation. School transition issues that 
               result from this dynamic movement are well known. The 
               specific transition issues encountered by military 
               school children are addressed in the policy components 
               of the Compact, in an effort to ameliorate the issues 
               and to improve the military family quality of life.

           4)   Additional time for the required reporting seems 
               reasonable  , given that a State Commissioner and a 
               State Council are in their formative stages.  However 




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               this bill provides a three-year extension for the 
               provision of reconvening a task force that would 
               provide guidance for a report that originally was 
               envisioned to be completed by December 1, 2012.  
               Therefore staff recommends amendments that would 
               require the report to the Legislature no later than 
               December 1, 2013, and sunset the provisions relating 
               to reporting and the reconvening of the task force to 
               January 1, 2014, rather than 2016. 

          5)   This measure as it passed the Assembly required the 
               Legislative Analyst Office to conduct a study and make 
               recommendations regarding access to higher education 
               in underserved areas, as specified. 

           6)   Prior legislation  .  

               In 2009, AB 343 (Chapter 237, Saldana) enacted the 
               Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for 
               Military Children.  

               AB 2049, Saldana, Chapter 589, Statutes of 2008) 
               required the Superintendent of Public Instruction to 
               convene a task force to review and make 
               recommendations regarding the compact.  The task force 
               completed this review and released recommendations, 
               all of which were incorporated into AB 343. 

           SUPPORT  

          None on file.

          OPPOSITION

           None on file.