BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                     AB 854


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          Date of Hearing:  May 13, 2015


                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS


                                 Jimmy Gomez, Chair


          AB  
          854 (Weber) - As Amended May 4, 2015


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          Urgency:  No  State Mandated Local Program:  YesReimbursable:   
          Yes


          SUMMARY:


          This bill expands use of the existing Foster Youth Services  
          (FYS) grant funding, provided to certain county offices of  
          education (COEs), to support students in all foster care  








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          placements and continues to provide a separate annual allocation  
          to six specific sites that administer an FYS program.  
          Specifically, this bill:  


          1)Continues funding for the following six foster youth services  
            program sites: Elk Grove, Mount Diablo, Sacramento City, San  
            Juan, Paramount, and the Placer Nevada consortium. This  
            funding is in addition to their local control funding formula  
            apportionment, adjusted annually for cost of living. 


          2)Expands the use of existing grant funding for the FYS program  
            to be used for all foster youth, including kin-care. (Current  
            law limits the program to foster youth in licensed home care  
            or a juvenile detention facility.)


          3)Authorizes, a FYS program, in consultation with local  
            educational agencies (LEAs), the county social services  
            agency, and the county probation department, to prescribe the  
            methodology for designing specific supports for pupils in  
            foster care. 


          4)Encourages FYS programs to first provide services for pupils  
            in foster care who reside in group homes, institutional  
            settings, or other placements with pupils with high academic  
            needs, as determined by the local Executive Advisory Council. 


          5)Requires the plans to document how FYS programs will provide a  
            number of services to foster youth, including, tutoring,  
            mentoring, counseling, transition, school-based social work,  
            and emancipation services. Further, requires the plan to  
            maintain information related to available K-12 and  
            postsecondary educational programs (e.g. linked learning,  
            special education, English learner programs, after school,  
            career programs, financial aid, etc.) as well as assistance  








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            with transition from high school to postsecondary  
            institutions. 


          6)Requires the plan developed by each FYS program to collaborate  
            with LEAs, county child welfare agencies, juvenile courts,  
            county probation departments, and special education local plan  
            areas (SELPAs). 


          7)Requires each FYS program to establish an Executive Advisory  
            Council to regularly review the recommendations to the FYS  
            plan.


          8)Requires each school district or charter school receiving  
            funding through the Local Control Funding Formula to designate  
            a schoolsite-based staff person to serve as a liaison to  
            students in foster care, if the site has one or more students  
            in foster care.  Requires school districts to provide contact  
            information for each site liaison to the school district  
            liaison and to the county FYS coordinator.  





          9)Requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) to  
            identify a state FYS director within the California Department  
            of Education (CDE) to, among other duties, monitor provisions  
            of this bill, facilitate data sharing, provide technical  
            support and assistance to LEAs  and implement reporting  
            requirements. Authorizes the director to form an advisory  
            committee to assist with responsibilities and authorizes the  
            SPI to provide funding to one or more LEAs to work with the  
            state FYS director to provide assistance to LEAs, as  
            prescribed. 
          FISCAL EFFECT:









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          1)Ongoing Proposition 98/GF cost pressures of approximately $20  
            to $30 million to expand the FYS program to serve all foster  
            youth.  For several years, the existing FYS program has  
            received $15.2 million (Proposition 98/GF) to serve  
            approximately one-third of foster youth in California.  This  
            bill expands services to the remaining two-thirds  
            (approximately 40,000 foster youth) but does not provide  
            additional funding.  It is estimated that the costs to fully  
            fund the program to provide the same level of services for all  
            foster youth is approximately $35 million to $45 million. 





          2)Ongoing Proposition 98/GF state mandated reimbursable costs to  
            school districts and COEs, in the millions, for each LEA to  
            designate a school-site based staff person to serve as a  
            liaison to foster youth. Actual costs will depend upon how  
            each LEA chooses to implement the requirement.  For example,  
            an LEA may choose to hire centrally located staff to cover  
            several sites.  Other LEAs may choose to hire an individual to  
            serve at each site. If existing staff assumed this role, it is  
            likely to involve contract negotiations and increased  
            compensation.  Staff training may also be needed to ensure  
            proper guidance and assistance is provided to this sensitive  
            student population.  There are 9,919 school sites in  
            California. Assuming LEAs hire staff at one-third of these  
            sites, costs could exceed $200 million.



          3)Ongoing General Fund administrative costs, in the range of  
            $540,000 to $700,000. Expanded program activities would  
            require CDE staff to provide technical assistance to  
            coordinate resources; collect, manage and report data and  
            other program oversight requirements.  The bill also requires  
            the CDE to identify a State FYS Director.  CDE indicates the  








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            costs associated with a new position is in the range of  
            $130,000 to $160,000. CDE currently has an administrator that  
            oversees the FYS program.  This position may be able to assume  
            these duties, resulting in no additional state costs. 
          COMMENTS:


          1)Purpose. According to the author's office, an estimated 67% of  
            California's foster youth are not eligible to receive FYS  
            support because the programs are not authorized or funded to  
            serve foster youth in relative foster care settings (also  
            known as kin-care). 


            This bill proposes to expand the FYS program to serve all  
            foster youth.  The bill also includes program updates so that  
            COEs can better support the effective implementation of LCFF  
            requirements for foster youth and facilitate collaboration  
            between school districts and the county agencies collectively  
            responsible for the educational success of students in foster  
            care. 


          2)FYS funding history.  The FYS program was established in 1973  
            as a pilot program operated by four school districts:  San Juan  
            Unified School District, Mount Diablo Unified School District,  
            Sacramento City Unified School District, and Elk Grove Unified  
            School District.  It has evolved over the years to include six  
            school districts and 49 COEs. 



            AB 1808 (Steinberg, Chapter 75, Statutes of 2006) expanded  
            eligible students to include foster youth residing in Foster  
            Homes, Foster Family Agencies, Court Specified Placements, and  
            Juvenile Detention Facilities and the budget increased the  
            appropriation for this program from $6 million to $18.3  
            million.  Budget reductions during the recession reduced the  
            appropriation to $15.1 million.








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            In 2013, the Local Control Funding Formula eliminated  
            approximately three-quarters of all K-12 education categorical  
            programs, but the FYS program is one of the few programs that  
            remained "outside" as a dedicated funding source.





          3)Related budget request.  A coalition of organizations and LEAs  
            has submitted a budget request for an augmentation of $20 to  
            $30 million for FYS program in the 2015-16 budget. This amount  
            is estimated to provide enough funding to serve all students in  
            foster care.  



          Analysis Prepared by:Misty Feusahrens / APPR. / (916)  
          319-2081