BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 891
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Date of Hearing: May 27, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Jimmy Gomez, Chair
AB
891 (Campos) - As Amended May 21, 2015
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| |Human Services | |5 - 2 |
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: YesReimbursable:
Yes
SUMMARY:
This bill provides low income students free transportation to
and from school, and requires each local education agency (LEA)
to designate a liaison to address transportation issues.
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Specifically, this bill:
1)Provides each student eligible for free or reduced-price meals
(FRPM), as specified, or who attends a school that
participates in the Community Eligibility Option, free
transportation to and from school as follows:
a) If the student lives more than one-half mile from
school, or
b) The neighborhood through which the pupil must travel to
get to school is unsafe because of stray dogs, no
sidewalks, known gang activity, or another reason
documented by stakeholders.
2)Requires an LEA to designate a liaison responsible for
implementing a plan to ensure that students entitled to free
transportation, as specified, receive that transportation in a
timely manner.
3)Requires the LEA-designated liaison to be trained to identify
and accommodate the special rights of homeless youth and
students in a CalWORKs assistance unit where aid is provided
only to the child, as specified.
4)Requires the transportation plan to be developed in
consultation with stakeholders, as specified, and to address
the ability of students in the LEA's jurisdiction to make
regular visits to the public library.
5)Requires the LEA to ensure free transportation is provided
using its existing funds, should be free, dependable, and
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timely transportation not be available to students entitled to
it.
FISCAL EFFECT:
1)Proposition 98/GF state mandated reimbursable costs to LEAs,
potentially in the millions of dollars, to provide a liaison
to implement a plan to provide free transportation to eligible
pupils; including consultation with the Air Resources Board
and the Department of Transportation. Actual costs will
depend upon how each LEA chooses to implement the requirement.
Some LEAs may need to create a new position. Other LEAs may
be able to designate duties to an existing position; however,
this would likely involve contract negotiations and increased
compensation. The bill also requires staff training to ensure
proper guidance and assistance is provided to this sensitive
student population. There are 1,016 school districts in
California. Assuming one-third of districts create a new
position, costs could be in excess of $20 million.
2)Unknown Proposition 98/GF state mandated reimbursable costs to
LEAs, in the millions of dollars, to provide free
transportation to students, as specified. Approximately 3.7
million (60% of all students) qualify for FRPM. As a proxy
for costs, a recent study found it would cost $172,048 per
week for Los Angeles County to provide free public transit to
all K-12 students living below 100 percent of the Federal
Poverty Line. This translates to $8.9 million on an annual
basis. Statewide costs could be offset to the extent pupils
are already receiving transportation as a result of federal
mandates for special education and homeless students.
COMMENTS:
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1)Purpose. Western Center on Law and Poverty, Children's
Defense Fund-California, 9 to 5, National Association of
Working Women, California and Youth Justice Coalition are
co-sponsoring this bill to promote student attendance and
success in school for low income and poor students in
California by guaranteeing transportation to school. They note
the in ability to afford transportation to and from school is
one of the most frequently cited barriers that low income
youth face in attending school. The supporters also note, in
Los Angeles County, the leading cause of ticketing for youth
under the age of 18 - 10,000 tickets a year - is due to fair
evasion on public transportation. This bill seeks to resolve
these issues through the provision of free transportation.
2)Background. The primary dedicated source of funding for
school transportation is the Home to School Transportation
(HTST) program. The state currently provides $491 million
Proposition 98/GF to school districts; however, the current
funding formula is widely recognized as outdated and
irrational. Districts' funding levels have been locked in at
the amounts they received in the early 1980s. Moreover,
because the funding formula is based on historical
participation, a few school districts and all charter schools
in the state are excluded from receiving HTST funding.
The federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act requires
districts to provide transportation for homeless students. The
federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act requires
that all districts take special steps to ensure students with
disabilities receive a "free and appropriate public
education." If school officials determine transportation is
necessary for a student to access his/her education, the
district must provide it.
According to the sponsor, San Francisco provides free public
transit passes to all children age 5-18 at a cost of
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approximately $3 million per year. The sponsors also note
several states, including New Jersey, New York and Missouri
guarantee transportation to students based on the distance to
and from school.
Analysis Prepared by:Misty Feusahrens / APPR. / (916)
319-2081