BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 81
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Date of Hearing: January 31, 2012
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON BUDGET
Bob Blumenfield, Chair
SB 81 (Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review) - As Amended:
January 30, 2012
SENATE VOTE : Vote not relevant
SUBJECT : Home to School Transportation (HTST) program: Funding
SUMMARY : Restores a reduction of $248 million to the HTST
program for Fiscal Year (FY) 2011-12 and replaces this with a
reduction of $248 million to school district, county office of
education and charter school funding in the 2011-12 FY.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Increases the school district revenue limit deficit factor
from 19.754 percent to 20.404 percent for the 2011-12 FY.
This adjustment reduces school district and charter school
revenue limit funding in the current year in order to offset
restoration of funding for the HTST program for 2011-12.
2)Increases the county office of education revenue limit deficit
factor from 20.041 percent to 20.691 percent for the 2011-12
FY. This adjustment reduces county office of education
revenue limit funding in the current year in order to offset
restoration of funding for the HTST program for 2011-12.
3)Increases the reduction to categorical programs for Basic Aid
districts in 2011-12 from 8.92 percent to 9.57 percent. This
ensures a "fair share" reduction commensurate with the revenue
limit reduction for non-Basic Aid school districts in 2011-12.
Basic Aid districts are defined as districts that do not
receive state funding for revenue limits.
4)Makes an appropriation of $248,000,000 from the General Fund
to the State Department of Education, for transfer to Section
A of the State School Fund, to restore funding for
home-to-school transportation for the 2011-12 fiscal year.
5)Declares that it is to take effect immediately as a bill
providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.
EXISTING LAW
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1)Provides discretionary funding to school districts, county
offices of education and charter schools to support the
general costs of operating schools. These funds are provided
based on a formula that takes their average daily attendance
over the course of the year and multiplies it by their
individual funding rate (also known as a "revenue limit").
2)Requires, for the 2011-12 school year, that the revenue limit
for each school district, county office of education, and
charter school be reduced pursuant to a specified formula.
3)Provides categorical program funding for school district and
county office of education transportation costs based on the
amount received for that purpose in the prior year, or the
agencies' actual transportation costs, whichever is less.
Existing law also requires school districts to provide
transportation services for special education students if the
students' individualized education plans specify such need.
FISCAL EFFECT : No net fiscal effect. This bill replaces a
one-time $248 million General Fund (Proposition 98) reduction to
the HTST program in 2011-12 with a one-time $248 million General
Fund (Proposition 98) reduction to revenue limits and basic aid
school districts, as specified.
COMMENTS : The Home-to-School program provides funds to offset a
school district's cost to transport students to and from home
and school. Allocations are based on either a district's prior
year allocations or approved costs, whichever is less. In the
1992-93 fiscal year, school districts were required to establish
a base year of funding for both home-to-school and special
education transportation funding. All future allocations of
this funding are based on the amount districts received in
1992-93.
2011-12 Budget Act . The 2011-12 Budget Act provided a total of
$496 million in General Fund (Proposition 98) for the HTST
Program. Of the $496 million appropriated in the 2011-12 budget
$491 million is provided for Pupil Transportation, which
includes both allocations for home-to-school transportation and
allocations for some pupils with disabilities, specifically
"severely disabled and orthopedically impaired" pupils. $5
million is provided for Small Bus Replacement.
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AB 121 (Budget), Chapter 41, Statutes of 2011 authorized
additional reductions to school transportation appropriations in
the Budget Act that would be "triggered" if state revenues
revenue estimates fall below specified levels. In December
2011, the Department of Finance applied the trigger cut to the
HTST Program, which resulted in the elimination of the remaining
half year of funding for the program in 2011-12. A trigger cut
of $79.6 million was also applied to revenue limit funding
pursuant to AB 121. This bill would undo the trigger cut for
the HTST program and replace it with a comparable reduction to
school district, county office of education and charter school
revenue limit funding. Basic aid school districts would also
take a "fair share" reduction.
2012-13 Budget Proposes to Eliminate Home-to-School
Transportation. The Governor's 2012-13 Budget proposes to
eliminate all funding for the HTST program in 2012-13. The
Governor also proposes eliminating most other categorical
programs and instead would provide districts with a new weighted
pupil formula in an effort to make more funds discretionary for
school districts.
Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) Lawsuit . After
receiving notification of the $248 million "trigger" reduction,
LAUSD filed suit in the Los Angeles Superior Court to block the
mid-year cuts to HTST. LAUSD claims that they would receive a
$38 million reduction, and that they cannot cease to transport
their students due to a 1981 desegregation court-order and
special education transportation requirements. The district
argues that the cut would require them to choose between "two
illegal and unconstitutional outcomes": terminate transportation
services in violation of the court-order, or divert classroom
funds to pay for transportation (resulting in a
"disproportionately lower share of funding and educational
opportunities as compared to students in school districts
without those mandatory costs").
Problems with the existing program . The Bureau of State Audits
(BSA) released a report on HTST in 2007, acknowledging many
problems with the existing program funding formula.
Some of the findings include:
1) The current funding mechanism prevents some school
districts that did not receive Home-to-School program funds
in the immediately preceding fiscal year from receiving
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these funds because of the basis of allocation.
2) Allocation increases are not always consistent with
student population growth. Some school districts have
experienced dramatic increases in student population over
the years; however, their allocations have not always
increased at the same rate.
3) Most school districts had to use other funding sources
to pay for some transportation costs and many reported it
had varying levels of fiscal impact on other programs.
Arguments in support. According to the California School
Employees Association, "The current law $248 million mid-year
cut to school transportation has a devastating impact on school
transportation services across this state and will put the
safety and lives of public school children at risk. The cut
requires a small percentage of districts to shoulder a
disproportionate and unfair fiscal burden at the worst possible
time. If the mid-year school transportation reduction is
implemented, over 180 school districts will be required to take
a cut that is equal to or greater than $150 per ADA. Moreover,
the school districts that will take this large unequal and
unfair cut will have difficulty in implementing such a reduction
because the special education and home-to-school transportation
services provided cannot be reduced or eliminated without having
an impact on student attendance. In many rural areas, public
transportation is not an option and the roads are very
treacherous for them to walk alone on. Elsewhere, children will
have to walk through dangerous neighborhoods and on busy streets
to get to school. Parents may be forced to drop their children
off at school before it opens, with the children left on campus
unattended. Other children will not attend school at all. The
impact of these cuts will also stress our already fragile
economy and high unemployment rate with the mass layoff of bus
drivers, maintenance workers, and others who provide vital
services in ensuring school transportation programs run
smoothly. For all of these reasons, we urge you to sign Senate
Bill 81."
Oppose unless amended. According to the California Charter
Schools Association, "SB 81 would impose new and additional
mid-year cuts to K-12 education, including charter schools
contrary to the budget agreement reached last June.
Historically, charter schools have never been provided access to
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the Home-to-school Transportation categorical program yet this
bill seeks to take funds from charter schools to pay for the cut
faced by many school districts, which have had access to the
program. This bill is intended to improve fairness. However,
by including charter public schools the inequities of public
school funding would be further exacerbated since charter
schools were unable to participate in the program prior to the
cut. CCSA respectfully requests amendments to allocate the cuts
only among those school districts which have had access to this
program."
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employee
Atascadero Unified School District
Burrel Union Elementary School District
Butte Valley Unified School District
Caliente Union School District
California Association of School Transportation Officials
California Department of Education
California Labor Federation
California Nurses Association
California PTA
California School Boards Association
California School Employees Association
California Teachers Association
Central Union School District
Central Valley Education Coalition
Chatom Union School District
Coast Unified School District
Cottonwood Union School District
Cuyama Joint Unified School District
Education Coalition
Gold Trail Union School District
Golden Feather Union Elementary School District
Keppel Union School District
Kern County Superintendent of Schools
Kings Canyon Unified School District
Los Angeles Unified School District
Mariposa County Office of Education
Paso Robles Joint Union School District
Pierce Joint Unified School District
Placer Hills Union School District
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Redding School District
Sandy Bluffs Alternative Education Center
Sierra-Plumas Joint Unified School District
Sierra Unified School District
Small School Districts Association
Snowline Joint Unified School District
Sunnyvale School District
Trinidad Union School District
Twin Rivers Unified School District
Valley Center-Pauma Unified School District
Washington Unified School District
Wheatland School District
Opposition
California Charter Schools Association (unless amended)
School for Integrated Academics and Technologies (unless
amended)
Analysis Prepared by : Misty Feusahrens / BUDGET / (916)
319-2099