BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1068
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Date of Hearing: April 17, 2013
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Mike Gatto, Chair
AB 1068 (Bloom) - As Amended: April 1, 2013
Policy Committee: Education
Vote:7-0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
Yes Reimbursable: Yes
SUMMARY
This bill establishes the following policies related to the
release of directory and record information of homeless
children:
1)Prohibits directory information from being released for
children identified as homeless, unless a parent, or pupil
accorded parental rights (as identified under federal privacy
law), has provides written consent that directory information
may be released.
2)Requires access to pupil records relevant to legitimate
educational interests of the requester to be provided to the
following:
a) A pupil 14 years or older who meets both of the
following criteria:
i) The pupil is a homeless child or youth as defined
under the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act.
ii) The pupil is an unaccompanied youth as defined under
the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act.
b) An individual who completes specified information on the
Caregiver's Authorization Affidavit and signs the affidavit
for the purpose of enrolling a minor in school.
FISCAL EFFECT
GF/98 state reimbursable mandated costs, between $250,000 and
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$500,000, to local education agencies to comply with this
measure. These costs are associated with staff time necessary
to revise directory and pupil record procedures and to ensure
proper documentation is received regarding the release of pupil
information, as specified.
COMMENTS
1)Background . Homeless youth generally refers to unaccompanied
minors ages 12 through 17 who are living apart from their
parents or legal guardians, and young adults ages 18 through
24 who are economically and/or emotionally detached from their
families and are experiencing homelessness or living in
unstable living situations. This definition also includes
children sharing housing due to economic hardships (e.g., in
shelters, motels, etc.). An unaccompanied homeless youth is a
youth not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian.
According to the California Homeless Youth Project, "Based on
the national survey estimates and California's youth
population, it is likely that 200,000 youth under the age of
18, and thousands of 18-24 year olds, are homeless for one or
more days during a year."
Existing law defines directory information as including the
names, addresses, telephone numbers, date of birth, email
addresses of enrolled pupils. Statute further requires a
school district to adopt a policy identifying those categories
of directory information that may be released, including who
is able to receive this information. Furthermore, a pupil's
parent or guardian can notify the district that his or her
child's directory information not be released.
Current law prohibits a school district from permitting access
to pupil records to a person without written parental consent
or judicial order, except as specified. Exceptions to this
prohibition include school employees for the purpose of a
legitimate educational purpose, federal and state agencies for
the purposes of auditing or evaluating an educational program,
and a district attorney for the purpose of specified actions
against a pupil, as specified.
2)Purpose . According to the author, "Unaccompanied homeless
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youth need all of the help they can get navigating their
situation, including support from a variety of providers who
can offer them tutoring services, legal advice, and other
enrichment programs. In order to best help these youth, these
support services need to have access to the youth's
educational records. However, current law does not allow for
the unaccompanied homeless youth to consent to the disclosure
of their records. This bill would allow these youth or their
caregivers to access their educational records and consent to
their disclosure to these organizations who may be able to
help them."
The author further states: "Another issue that homeless youth
face is that their directory information (such as their
address or photograph) can be released without their consent.
In many cases, this can have harmful results, particularly
when that youth has left an abusive situation, or their
homelessness becomes known to their classmates and can result
in stigmatization. This bill would also ensure that a homeless
youth's directory information would not be released without
their or their parent's consent."
3)The federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act ,
reauthorized in January 2002, protects the educational rights
of children and youths experiencing homelessness. The Act
applies to all local educational agencies (LEAs) and includes
a supplemental, competitive grant program of additional
funding for LEAs.
The intent of the law is to make certain homeless students
have equal access to the same free, appropriate public
education-including a public preschool education-that is
provided to other students. Homeless students have the right
to enroll in and attend school, participate fully in the
school program, and have the opportunity to meet the same
challenging academic achievement standards to which all
students are held. The law requires every LEA to designate an
appropriate staff member as a liaison for students in homeless
situations. These liaisons are required to ensure the rights
of homeless children and youths are protected.
The 2012 Budget Act allocated $7.3 million in federal funds
for this program.
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Analysis Prepared by : Kimberly Rodriguez / APPR. / (916)
319-2081