BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    �



                                                                  SB 344
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          SENATE THIRD READING
          SB 344 (Padilla)
          As Amended  September 3, 2013
          Majority vote 

           SENATE VOTE  :Vote not relevant  
           
           EDUCATION           7-0         APPROPRIATIONS      12-0        
           
           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
          |Ayes:|Buchanan, Olsen, Ch�vez,  |Ayes:|Gatto, Bocanegra,         |
          |     |Gonzalez, Nazarian,       |     |Bradford,                 |
          |     |Weber, Williams           |     |an Calderon, Campos,      |
          |     |                          |     |Eggman, Gomez, Hall,      |
          |     |                          |     |Holden, Pan, Quirk, Weber |
          |-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
          |     |                          |     |                          |
           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
           SUMMARY  :  Establishes new requirements related to the Local  
          Control Accountability Plans (LCAPs) that local education  
          agencies (LEAs) are required to adopt beginning July 1, 2014.   
          Specifically,  this bill  :   

          1)Requires the annual external audit of LEAs to include a  
            determination of whether expenditures were in compliance with  
            regulations adopted by the State Board of Education (SBE)  
            governing the expenditure of funds apportioned based on the  
            number and concentration of English learners (ELs), low income  
            (LI) pupils, and pupils in foster care.

          2)Requires that, when county superintendents of school reviews  
            school district budgets and when the Superintendent of Public  
            Instruction (SPI) reviews county of education (COE) budgets,  
            they determine whether the proposed expenditures comply with  
            regulations adopted by the SBE governing the expenditure of  
            funds apportioned based on the number and concentration of  
            EL/LI pupils and pupils in foster care; and requires them to  
            disapprove a budget if it is not in compliance with the  
            regulations.

          3)Requires LEAs to spend unexpended funds received for the  
            Economic Aid Program only for purposes authorized by the  
            program as statutory and regulatory provisions read on June  
            30, 2013.








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          4)Adds reclassified English learners to the subgroups of pupils  
            whose academic achievement must be measured by the Academic  
            Performance Index (API) for accountability purposes and  
            provides that the inclusion of reclassified learners in the  
            API shall, at a minimum, be consistent with the manner in  
            which reclassified English learners are included in the  
            determination of adequate yearly progress, as required by  
            federal law.

          5)Adds the following elements to the Local Control  
            Accountability Plan (LCAP) that each LEA is required to adopt  
            by July 1, 2014:

             a)   A listing and description of the expenditures for the  
               initial fiscal year implementing the specific actions  
               included in the local control and accountability plan;

             b)   A listing and description of the expenditures for the  
               initial fiscal year that will serve EL/LI pupils, pupils in  
               foster care, and reclassified English learners. 


          6)Requires the LCAP to include a description of the extent to  
            which teachers, administrators, and staff receive professional  
            development or participate in induction programs.

          7)Requires that any notifications provided to parents be in the  
            primary language of the parent, in accordance with existing  
            law.

          8)Changes the conditions under which a district must establish  
            an English learner parent advisory committee from enrolling at  
            least 15% EL pupils and enrolling at least 50 EL pupils to  
            enrolling at least 15% EL pupils or enrolling at least 50 EL  
            pupils.

          9)Provides that the English learner parent advisory committee is  
            required as a condition of receiving supplemental grant funds  
            through the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF).

          10)Requires school district parent advisory committees to advise  
            the district governing board on the following:









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             a)   Establishing school district goals and objectives for  
               programs and services for EL pupils to ensure that the  
               academic and language proficiency needs of English  
               learners, including long-term English learners and English  
               learners at risk of becoming long-term English learners are  
               being met; 

             b)   Administering the home language survey; and 

             c)   School district reclassification procedures. 

          11)Clarifies that LEAs are not required to establish a new  
            districtwide English learner district or schoolsite parent  
            advisory committee if one already exists.

          12)Requires the LCAP template to be adopted by the SBE to meet  
            the requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind Act  
            related to the Single Plan for Pupil Achievement and to ensure  
            that LEAs that receive supplemental and concentration funds  
            include in their LCAPs information on the instructional  
            programs and services provided to EL/LI pupils, pupils in  
            foster care, and reclassified English learners to increase  
            their academic achievement.

           EXISTING LAW  

          1)Requires each LEA to adopt an LCAP by July 1, 2014, based on a  
            template to be adopted by the SBE by March 31, 2014.

          2)Requires LEAs to update their LCAPs annually and renew them  
            every three years.

          3)Requires each LCAP to identify annual goals and the specific  
            actions the LEA will take to achieve those goals for all  
            pupils and each of the following pupils subgroups:

             a)   Ethnic subgroups;

             b)   Socioeconomically disadvantaged pupils;

             c)   English learners;

             d)   Pupils with disabilities; and









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             e)   Foster youth.

          4)Requires LEAs to establish an English learner parent advisory  
            committee if the enrollment of the LEA includes at least 15%  
            English learners and the LEA enrolls at least 50 pupils who  
            are English learners.

          5)Establishes several oversight, review, and audit requirements  
            to ensure LEA compliance with statutory and regulatory LCAP  
            requirements and that LEA budgets provide sufficient resources  
            to achieve LCAP goals.

          6)Requires, consistent with the English Learner and Immigrant  
            Pupil Federal Conformity Act and Title III of the federal No  
            Child Left Behind Act of 2001, an eligible local educational  
            agency desiring a subgrant under Title III to submit a plan  
            around English learners to the California Department of  
            Education (CDE) outlining programs, activities, accountability  
            measures, parental engagement and participation, assurances of  
            consultation with specified entities, and a description of how  
            language instruction education programs ensure that English  
            learners served by the programs will develop English  
            proficiency.

           FISCAL EFFECT  :  According to the Assembly Appropriations  
          Committee, "increased annual General Fund (GF)/98 state  
          reimbursable mandated costs, likely in excess of $500,000, to  
          LEAs to implement the requirements of this measure, including  
          providing EL specific information in each LEA's Local Control  
          Accountability Plan (LCAP) - expenditure, instructional, and  
          achievement information.  This cost may be offset if the  
          requirements of this measure are determined to be consistent  
          with federal law and therefore, are not eligible for  
          reimbursement.  The costs associated with this measure are in  
          addition to the annual GF/98 state reimbursable mandated costs  
          LEAs will incur for the accountability requirements under LCFF -  
          developing plans, reporting data, convening committees for  
          comment and input, etc. In the initial years of LCFF  
          implementation, the GF/98 state reimbursable mandated costs will  
          likely be in millions to tens of millions; however, these costs  
          will likely be reduced in future years as LEAs will only likely  
          be revising plans."

           COMMENTS  :  The LCAP requirements were adopted as part of the  








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          LCFF with the 2013-14 budget.  This bill clarifies and expands  
          upon existing LCAP requirements.

           Provision that clarifies LCAP  .  This bill provides that the  
          initial LCAP adopted by LEAs shall include program budgets and  
          expenditures necessary for implementing the actions included in  
          the LCAP.  This is consistent with the existing requirement that  
          each annual update of the LCAP include a listing and description  
          of expenditures necessary to carry out the plan.  

           Provisions that expand LCAP  .  This bill expands existing  
          provisions related to LCAP in the following ways:

          1)Expands the scope of the annual external audits and the review  
            of school district and COE budgets to include a determination  
            of whether funds have been spent (in the case of the audit) or  
            will be spent (in the case of the budget reviews) in  
            accordance with SBE-adopted regulations governing the  
            expenditure of funds on the basis of the number and  
            concentration of EL/LI pupils and pupils in foster care.

          2)Adds reclassified EL pupils to the subgroups of pupils whose  
            academic achievement must be measured by the API for  
            accountability purposes.

          3)Requires the LCAP to include a description of the extent to  
            which teachers, administrators, and staff receive professional  
            development or participate in induction programs.

          4)Changes the conditions under which a district must establish  
            an English learner parent advisory committee from enrolling at  
            least 15% EL pupils and enrolling at least 50 EL pupils to  
            enrolling at least 15% EL pupils or enrolling at least 50 EL  
            pupils.

          5)Adds specified elements to be included in the LCAP template to  
            be adopted by the SBE.

          In addition, existing law requires districts and COEs to  
          establish an English learner advisory council if specified  
          condition are met.  While existing law does not specify a  
          funding source for the council, this bill requires that it be  
          established as a condition of receiving LCFF supplemental grant  
          funds.








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          This bill also prohibits LEAs from spending unexpended funds  
          received for the Economic Aid Program for purposes other than  
          those authorized by the program.


           Analysis Prepared by  :    Rick Pratt / ED. / (916) 319-2087 


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