Amended in Assembly March 29, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 1567

Introduced by Assembly Member Campos

January 4, 2016

An act to amend Sections 8482.6 and 8483 of, and to add Section 8483.95 to, the Education Code, relating to after school programs.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1567, as amended, Campos. After school programs: enrollment: begin delete fees. end delete begin insert fees: homeless youth: snacks or meals. end insert

The After School Education and Safety Program Act of 2002, enacted by initiative statute, establishes the After School Education and Safety Program to serve pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 9, inclusive, at participating public elementary, middle, junior high, and charter schools. The act gives priority enrollment in after school programs to pupils in middle school or junior high school who attend daily.

This bill would instead give first priority enrollment to homeless youth, as defined, begin delete 2nd priority enrollment to pupils in CalWORKs assistance units, as described, end delete begin insert and pupils who are in foster care, end insert and begin delete 3rd end delete begin insert 2nd end insert priority enrollment, for programs serving middle and junior high school pupils, to pupils who attend the program daily. begin insert The bill would require an after school program to inform the parent or caregiver of a pupil of the right of homeless children and foster children to receive priority enrollment and how to request priority enrollment. The bill would authorize the administrators of a program to verify the homeless status of a pupil through the school district liaison designated for homeless children, as specified, and, if that information is not available through the school district, would require the program to allow the parent or caregiver of a pupil to verify the pupil’s homeless status. The bill would authorize the administrators of a program to verify that a pupil is in foster care through the school district, if that information is available, or through the foster parent of the pupil. end insert

The act provides that an after school and before school program is not required to charge family fees or conduct individual eligibility begin delete determination end delete begin insert determinations end insert based on need or income.

This bill would prohibit a program that charges family fees from charging a fee to a family for a child who is a homeless begin delete youth or who is a member of a CalWORKs assistance unit. end delete begin insert youth or for a child who is in foster care. end insert

The act authorizes the Legislature to amend certain of its provisions to further its purposes by majority vote of each house.

The bill would set forth a legislative finding and declaration that it furthers the purposes of the act.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

begin insert

begin insert SECTION 1. end insert   

end insert begin insert

The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:

end insert begin insert

(a) The After School Education and Safety (ASES) Program
offers quality after school learning and development opportunities
that can make a difference for all of the children they serve, but
especially for low-income children.

end insert begin insert

(b) There is strong evidence that access to after school and
summer programs increases the likelihood that a child will succeed
in school and graduate from high school.

end insert begin insert

(c) Research shows that children, especially girls, benefit from
improved health and academic outcomes when they participate in
after school programs.

end insert begin insert

(d) The most significant academic gains for children enrolled
in the ASES Program occur among those who face the most
challenges.

end insert begin insert

(e) Due to significant underfunding of the ASES Program, more
than half of the program site coordinators recently reported that
they could not enroll all interested children and had resorted to
the use of a waiting list.

end insert begin insert

(f) The federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42
U.S.C. Sec. 11301 et seq.) ensures the educational rights and
protections of homeless children, defined by the act as individuals
who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence.

end insert begin insert

(g) Until the ASES Program is funded for every child seeking
to be enrolled, children who are homeless might not benefit from
the program without priority access and waivers of fees.

end insert begin insert

(h) In order to ensure that participating children receive
adequate nutrition and to reduce the cost-per-child expenses of
ASES programs, it is important to encourage collaboration between
local educational agencies and other community-based
organizations sponsoring federally funded after school snack and
meal programs.

end insert

begin delete SECTION 1. end delete

begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

Section 8482.6 of the Education Code is amended to
read:

8482.6.  

Every pupil attending a school operating a program
pursuant to this article is eligible to participate in the program,
subject to program capacity. A program established pursuant to
this article is not required to charge family fees or conduct
individual eligibility begin delete determination end delete begin insert determinations end insert based on need
or income. If a program established pursuant to this article does
charge family fees, the program shall not charge a fee to a family
for a child who is identified as a homeless youth, as defined by
the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.
Sec. begin delete 11301 et seq.), or is a member of a CalWORKs assistance
unit, as described in subdivision (a) of Section 11265.45 of the
Welfare and Institutions Code. end delete begin insert 11434a), end insert begin insert or for a child who is in
foster care. end insert

begin delete SEC. 2. end delete

begin insert SEC. 3. end insert   

Section 8483 of the Education Code is amended to
read:

8483.  

(a) (1) Every after school component of a program
established pursuant to this article shall commence immediately
upon the conclusion of the regular schoolday, and operate a
minimum of 15 hours per week, and at least until 6 p.m. on every
regular schoolday. Every after school component of the program
shall establish a policy regarding reasonable early daily release of
pupils from the program. For those programs or schoolsites
operating in a community where the early release policy does not
meet the unique needs of that community or school, or both,
documented evidence may be submitted to the department for an
exception and a request for approval of an alternative plan.

(2) It is the intent of the Legislature that elementary school
pupils participate in the full day of the program every day during
which pupils participate and that pupils in middle school or junior
high school attend a minimum of nine hours a week and three days
a week to accomplish program goals.

(3) In order to develop an age-appropriate after school program
for pupils in middle school or junior high school, programs
established pursuant to this article may implement a flexible
attendance schedule for those pupils.

(b) The administrators of a program established pursuant to this
article have the option of operating during any combination of
summer, intersession, or vacation periods for a minimum of three
hours per day for the regular school year pursuant to Section
8483.7.

(c) Priority for enrollment of pupils in an after school program
shall be as follows:

(1) First priority shall go to pupils who are identified as
homeless youth, as defined by the federal McKinney-Vento
Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. begin delete 11301 et seq.). end delete begin insert 11434a),
at the time that they apply for enrollment or at any time during
the school year, and to pupils who are in foster care. end insert

begin delete

(2) Second priority shall go to pupils who are members of a
CalWORKs assistance unit, as described in subdivision (a) of
Section 11265.45 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

end delete begin delete

(3)

end delete

begin insert (2) end insert  For programs serving middle and junior high school pupils,
begin delete third end delete begin insert second end insert priority shall go to pupils who attend daily.

begin insert

(d) A program shall inform the parent or caregiver of a pupil
of the right of homeless children and foster children to receive
priority enrollment and how to request priority enrollment.

end insert begin insert

(e) For purposes of identifying a pupil who is eligible for priority
enrollment on the basis of being homeless, the administrators of
a program may verify the homeless status of a pupil through the
school district liaison designated for homeless children, provided
that the school district has a waiver on file allowing for the release
of this information. If that information is not available through
the school district, the program shall allow the parent or caregiver
of the pupil who is enrolling in the program or requesting
placement on a program waiting list to verify the homeless status
of the pupil.

end insert begin insert

(f) For purposes of identifying a pupil who is eligible for priority
enrollment on the basis of being in foster care, the administrators
of a program may verify that a pupil is in foster care through the
school district, if that information is available, or through the
foster parent of the pupil who is enrolling in the program or
requesting placement on a program waiting list.

end insert

begin delete SEC. 3. end delete

begin insert SEC. 4. end insert   

Section 8483.95 is added to the Education Code, to
read:

8483.95.  

It is the intent of the Legislature that a program
established pursuant to this article shall not use its begin delete program funding
for food, other than food-related curriculum, unless it applies for,
and is rejected from receiving, federal money for purposes of
providing food to pupils in the program. end delete begin insert core operating funds for
mandatory snacks or meals, but shall instead seek to qualify
program sites as approved distribution sites for federally funded
after school snacks or meals provided for by the National School
Lunch Program, the Summer Food Service Program, or the Child
and Adult Care Food Program. end insert

begin delete SEC. 4. end delete

begin insert SEC. 5. end insert   

The Legislature finds and declares that this act furthers
the purpose of the After School Education and Safety Program
Act of 2002.