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