BILL ANALYSIS Ó Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations Ted W. Lieu, Chair Date of Hearing: April 25, 2012 20011-2012 Regular Session Consultant: Andrew Chen Fiscal:Yes Urgency: No Bill No: SB 1291 Author: Evans As Introduced/Amended: April 9, 2012 SUBJECT Unemployment benefits: training: teacher credentialing KEY ISSUE Should the State of California automatically extend unemployment insurance benefits to teachers training to receive credentials in math, science, and special education? PURPOSE To help unemployed teachers increase their employment opportunities by easing the financial burden of re-credentialing in math, science, and special education through the California Training Benefits program. ANALYSIS Existing law provides that in order to begin or continue to receive unemployment benefits, an individual must be a) actively looking for work, b) available to work and c) ready to accept suitable work if it arises. (Unemployment Insurance Code § 1253.) Existing law provides for the establishment and maintenance of the California Training Benefits program (CTB). This program allows eligible unemployed individuals, who may lack competitive job skills to find stable employment, to receive benefits while attending training or retraining programs. (Unemployment Insurance Code §1266. - 1274.20.) Existing law stipulates that in order to qualify for unemployment benefits under the CTB program, the training must meet certain requirements. Specifically: 1. The training must be authorized and veriable by one of the following State or federal program sponsors: i. Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA) ii. Employment Training Panel (ETP) iii. Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) iv. California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) 2. The individual must be an active journey level union member taking industry-related training approved by his/her union. 3. The training program and provider must be listed on California's Eligible Training Provider List (ETPL). (Unemployment Insurance Code, § 1269.) Existing law provides for the creation and maintenance of the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, an independent agency comprised of 15 voting members, 14 of whom are appointed by the governor. This Commission is comprised of the Superintendent or a designee, college, high school, and elementary school teachers, and representatives of the public. (Education Code § 44210.) Existing law endows this Commission with the power to develop and implement professional standards, assessments, and examinations for entry and advancement in the education profession in the form of teaching credentials. (Education Code Hearing Date: April 25, 2012 SB 1291 Consultant: Andrew Chen Page 2 Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations § 44225.) This bill would add credential preparation programs or other teacher training programs in math, science, and special education to the existing list of programs that would automatically qualify an individual for unemployment benefits. These programs would need to be approved or accredited by the Commission on Teacher Credentialing, and the teacher would need to have had their employment terminated due to a determination of a decline in student enrollment in that district. This bill would also remove a sunset clause that repeals the CTB program on January 1, 2015. COMMENTS 1. Background and Need for this bill? In January 2012, the Commerce Department released a report on the future of the American economy, entitled "The Competitiveness and Innovative Capacity of the United States." This study cited government investment in research, infrastructure, and education as the three "pillars" behind the rapid development of the United States economy in the 20th century. In particular, the report noted that the U.S. educational system in the 20th century produced more high school and college graduates than any other nation in the world, creating a highly skilled workforce that boosted marketplace competitiveness and innovation. However, the report also noted that recently, the percentage of college and high school graduates has become stagnant, and that "poor preparation in math and science" is one of the main factors restricting the continued development of this highly educated workforce. Additionally, teacher quality has been shown to be one of the Hearing Date: April 25, 2012 SB 1291 Consultant: Andrew Chen Page 3 Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations primary determinants of student success in these areas - a 2000 study from Stanford University conducted a 50-state survey of teacher performance, concluding that "measures of teacher preparation and certification are by far the strongest correlates of student achievement," and that "policy investments in the quality of teachers may be related to improvements in student performance." Yet, while California has the largest teacher workforce in the country, with over 305,000 teachers, only 40,000 of these are specialized in mathematics or science. In addition, maintaining an adequate number of special education teachers has been historically challenging. The California teacher credentialing system has a tiered structure: in order to become a science, mathematics, or special education teacher, an employee must demonstrate competency through exams and other assessment methods specific to the desired teaching specialty in addition to a general assessment on basic educational skills. As a result, the population of teachers who choose to specialize in a particular subject is scarce relative to those who are only generally credentialed. In the wake of the Great Recession, fiscal conditions have required school districts across the state to dismiss 32,000 teachers since 2007-2008, according to the LAO. These layoffs have exacerbated the scarcity of specialized teachers: according to a 2007 study from The Center for the Future of Teaching and Learning, California will face a deficit of 33,000 science and math teachers over the next ten years due to attrition and retirement. The same study also found that California's current rate of teacher production, particularly in specialized areas, is insufficient to bridge this gap. The CTB program addresses problems with persons undergoing job training or retraining being made ineligible to receive unemployment benefits by virtue of their enrollment. For example, if a training program takes up a significant amount of time each day for several weeks, that person could be considered "unavailable to work" and thus ineligible for unemployment compensation benefits. By providing unemployment benefits during training, the CTB program is intended to Hearing Date: April 25, 2012 SB 1291 Consultant: Andrew Chen Page 4 Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations incentivize the advancement and diversification of workforce skills. However, under existing law, teacher re-credentialing programs, unlike other workforce development programs, do not qualify their enrollees for automatic eligibility for unemployment benefits. For these teachers, the short-term risk of losing benefits may make re-credentialing an unacceptable financial risk. As a result, unemployed teachers may refrain from seeking increased specialization in high-demand subjects such as math, science, and special education. This bill would allow teachers to qualify for unemployment benefits while they participate in these types of credential preparation programs or other teacher training programs, as specified. 2. Proponent Arguments : Citing the dismissal of 13,000 teachers between 2009-10 and 2010-11, proponents, including the California Teachers Association, assert that these layoffs have been detrimental to the quality of K-12 education in California. They argue that SB 1291 would help California retain thousands of certificated teaching professionals in its education workforce. Proponents also assert that there is a significant negative relationship between the percentage of teachers on emergency permits and student achievement at the school level in California. They argue that SB 1291 will decrease over time the need for short term staffing permits and ensure that those hired in emergency circumstances have the support to become credentialed educators. 4. Prior Legislation : AB 2058 (Block) of 2009: Chaptered This bill modified the requirements for participating in the California Training Benefits Program in order to allow unemployed individuals to receive unemployment insurance (UI) benefits while enrolled in a training program on a full-time basis. Prior to AB 2058, applications for unemployment Hearing Date: April 25, 2012 SB 1291 Consultant: Andrew Chen Page 5 Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations benefits during a period of training or retraining would be reviewed and approved by EDD on a case-by-case basis. SUPPORT California Teachers Association - Co-Sponsor California Labor Federation OPPOSITION None received Hearing Date: April 25, 2012 SB 1291 Consultant: Andrew Chen Page 6 Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations