BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 224
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Date of Hearing: April 15, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Jimmy Gomez, Chair
AB
224 (Jones-Sawyer) - As Amended April 7, 2015
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: YesReimbursable:
Yes
SUMMARY: This bill requires the creation of a standardized
notice of the rights specific to youth in foster care.
Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires the California Department of Education (CDE), in
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collaboration with the Foster Youth Education Task Force, to
develop a standardized notice of existing educational and
non-educational rights. The CDE shall consult with the Office
of State Foster Care Ombudsperson regarding these
non-educational rights. Further, requires the notice to
include complaint process information, as applicable.
2)Requires the CDE to post the notice on its website and make
copies of the notice available to educational liaisons for
foster children for dissemination.
3)Requires the education liaisons for foster children to ensure
that public notice of the educational rights of foster
children is disseminated or posted in a public area at schools
where pupils that are foster children are in attendance.
Further requires the liaison, by the most cost efficient and
effective means possible, to provide the notice to the parent,
guardian, or educational rights holder for the foster child
whenever a foster child seeks enrollment in a school.
FISCAL EFFECT:
1)Minor administrative costs to CDE to create a standardized
notice, post the notice online and provide technical
assistance to Local Education Agencies (LEAs).
2)Proposition 98 (General Fund) state mandated costs, likely in
the low tens of thousands, for the education liaisons for
homeless youth to disseminate and post notice of rights. There
are 9,919 schools and approximately 60,000 foster youth in
California.
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COMMENTS:
1)Purpose. Public Counsel is sponsoring this bill with the goal
of ensuring foster youth, who must often advocate for
themselves in the education setting, are provided notice about
their basic educational rights at the time of enrollment and
also in a public area at their school site. Such public
notice would also help educate school staff about the needs
and rights of foster youth and increase their likelihood of
school success.
2)Background. Existing law requires all LEAs to designate a
staff person as the educational liaison for foster children,
and requires that person to ensure and facilitate the proper
educational placement, enrollment in school, and checkout from
school of foster children, and to ensure proper transfer of
credits, records, and grades when students change schools or
school districts. Existing law also requires that public
notice of the educational rights of students who are homeless
to be disseminated in schools. This bill extends duties of
the educational liaison.
Analysis Prepared by:Misty Feusahrens / APPR. / (916)
319-2081
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