BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 833|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 833
Author: Bonta (D)
Amended: 6/16/15 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE: 9-0, 6/24/15
AYES: Liu, Runner, Block, Hancock, Leyva, Mendoza, Monning,
Pan, Vidak
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 7-0, 8/27/15
AYES: Lara, Bates, Beall, Hill, Leyva, Mendoza, Nielsen
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 80-0, 6/1/15 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT: Child care and development services: individualized
county child care subsidy plan: County of Alameda
SOURCE: Author
DIGEST: This bill authorizes the County of Alameda to establish
a pilot program for purposes of developing and implementing an
individualized county child care subsidy plan that meets the
particular needs of families in the community until January 1,
2021.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
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1)Establishes the Child Care and Developmental Services Act to
provide child care and development services as part of a
coordinated, comprehensive, and cost-effective system serving
children from birth to 13 years old and their parents
including a full range of supervision, health, and support
services through full- and part-time programs. (Education
Code § 8200, et seq.)
2)States legislative intent that all families have access to
child care and development services, regardless of demographic
background or special needs, that families are provided the
opportunity to attain financial stability through employment,
while maximizing growth and development of their children, and
enhancing their parenting skills through participation in
child care and development programs, among other things. (EC
§ 8202)
3)Establishes several programs providing subsidized child care
and development services that service low-income families who
are working, seeking work, in training, or providing community
service. These programs are administered by the California
Department of Education (CDE) and require the Superintendent
of Public Instruction (SPI) to adopt rules and regulations on
eligibility, enrollment, family fees, provider rates, and
priority services. (EC § 8235 and 8263)
4)Authorizes a pilot project in San Mateo County (since 2004)
and San Francisco City and County (since 2006) that allows the
counties to develop and implement an individualized county
child care subsidy plan in recognition of the high-cost of
living in those counties. (EC § 8235 and 8263)
This bill:
1)Authorizes the County of Alameda to establish a 5-year pilot
program for purposes of developing and implementing an
individualized county child care subsidy plan that meets the
particular needs of families in the county, as specified, to
include the following:
a) An assessment to identify the county's goal for
its subsidized child care system, as specified.
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b) A local policy to eliminate state-imposed
regulatory barriers that constrain the county from meeting
its desired outcomes for subsidized child care, as
specified.
c) Recognition that funding sources utilized by
direct child care service contractors in the county are
eligible to be included in the county's plan.
d) Measurable outcomes to evaluate the success of
the plan in achieving county and state child care goals.
2)Requires the plan to be submitted to the specified local planning
council, and upon approval the county board of supervisors
shall do all of the following:
a) Hold at least one public hearing before voting on the
plan.
b) Submit an approved plan to Early Education and
Support Division (EESD) for review provided that board
votes in its favor.
3)Requires the CDE's EESD to review and either approve or
disapprove any modification of the plan within 30 days of
receiving it. Specifies that the EESD may only disapprove
those portions of the plan that are not in conformance with
the provisions of this bill or that are in conflict with
federal law.
4)Requires the county to prepare and submit a report summarizing
the success of the county's plan, as specified, to the
Legislature, the Department of Social Services (DSS), and the
CDE each year.
5)Requires a participating contractor to receive any increases or
decrease in funding that the contractor would have received
had the contractor not participated in the plan.
6)Makes various legislative findings and declarations related to
the unique circumstances in the County of Alameda that
condition a special law including the high-cost of living.
7)Defines county to mean County of Alameda for the purposes of this
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bill.
Comments
1)Need for bill? According to the author, families seeking quality
child care are adversely affected by the high cost of living
in Alameda County. The author further notes that families who
earn just enough to meet housing costs are deemed ineligible
for subsidized child care, at the same time agencies receiving
insufficient state reimbursement rates are unable to cover
programing and operational costs. As a result, child care
subsidy funds allocated to the county are not fully expended
thereby reducing access to quality child care. This bill
seeks to maximize state allocated funding and efficiently use
child care subsidy funds to meet local conditions.
2)Provider Reimbursement Rates. California has established two
methodologies for determining the reimbursement rates for
child care and development services:
a) The Regional Market Rate (RMR) is determined by the RMR
survey and varies depending on the geographical location of
the provider. The RMR is based on a survey of licensed
centers and family child care homes measuring child care
rates of similar socio-economic conditions. Rate ceilings
are established for each county according to estimates of
the 85th percentile of rates for the various types of child
care settings. The county rate ceilings are differentiated
by the age of the child (infant, preschool, school age),
full-day or part-day care, and frequency of care (days per
week). Families may choose a child care provider that
charges a rate above the RMR, but the provider would only
be reimbursed at the RMR. Current law requires the RMR
survey to be updated every two years. The Budget Act of
2014 based the RMR on the 2009 survey, thereby providing a
lower rate than if based on the most recent survey.
b) Standard Reimbursement Rate (SRR). Child care and
development providers that contract directly with the
California Department of Education (CDE) must meet Title 5
requirements in addition to those of Title 22 (have units
in Early Childhood Education, provide an educational
component to child care). Title 5 providers are reimbursed
using the SRR, which is a specific rate established in
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statute. The SRR is $36.10 per child per day for full-day
care and $21.22 per child per day for part-day care, or a
maximum of $9,025 per year based on 250 days of operation.
1)Why Alameda County? According to the author, provider
reimbursement rates do not cover a reasonable amount of the
actual cost of care. Child care costs vary based on the age
of a child, with infant care representing the highest amount.
In Alameda, the average cost for full-time infant care in a
child care center is $13,330 per year. The cost of living in
Alameda is reported to be well above the state median. A
family of three in Alameda County would need more than $67,000
for minimal housing, child care, food, transportation and
health care compared to state median of about $42,000 per year
for a family of three. Subsequently, to be eligible for
subsidized child care and development services state
regulations require a family's adjusted monthly income to be
at or below 75% of the state median income. The author asserts
that this pilot project will help to address the unintended
consequences that impact families living in a high cost
county. As such, this bill seeks to provide Alameda County
limited local flexibility to assess and address local
conditions of working families in the county through a child
care subsidy pilot plan.
To note, current law has authorized two other Bay Area pilot
projects in recognition of the high-cost of living in those
counties. This pilot project seeks similar recognition with
the increased state oversight, as specified in the bill.
2)Unspent Allocation. According to the Assembly Appropriations
Fiscal Effect, "this bill would allow Alameda County to retain
unspent child care funds that otherwise would revert to the
General Fund. Between 2011-12 and 2013-14, The County was
unable to spend approximately 5% of its contracted amounts
each year, and returned over $10 million in unspent child care
funding to the state. That funding is a combination of GF,
Prop 98 funding and federal funds. Historically, such
reversions have been redistributed for child care purposes in
subsequent budget years."
Related Legislation
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SB 311 (Beall, 2015) authorizes a pilot project at Alum Rock
Union Elementary School District, located in Santa Clara County
that allows the district to create a part-day pre-school subsidy
plan until January 1, 2022. SB 311 was approved by the Senate,
and is currently in the Assembly Education Committee.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: No
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee, this bill
would have the following fiscal impact:
Alameda County individualized subsidy plan: Potential loss of
savings in the low millions to the extent the plan allows more
of the county's funding allocation to be expended.
State Department of Education indicates minor and absorbable
costs to review and approve contract amendments and other
related activities.
SUPPORT: (Verified8/27/15)
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees
BANANAS
Bay Area Council
California School Employees Association
Early Edge California
East Bay Association for the Education of Young Children
East Bay Community Foundation
First 5 Alameda County
Kidango
National Association of Social Workers
Via Nova Children's School
OPPOSITION: (Verified8/27/15)
None received
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 80-0, 6/1/15
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Page 7
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Bloom,
Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Campos, Chang,
Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle,
Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines, Gallagher, Cristina
Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez,
Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Roger Hernández, Holden,
Irwin, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Linder,
Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina,
Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Olsen,
Patterson, Perea, Quirk, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez,
Salas, Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting,
Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Atkins
Prepared by:Olgalilia Ramirez / ED. / (916) 651-4105
8/31/15 10:15:17
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