BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1593|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
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CONSENT
Bill No: AB 1593
Author: Obernolte (R) and Alejo (D), et al.
Amended: 3/29/16 in Assembly
Vote: 21
SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE: 9-0, 6/8/16
AYES: Liu, Block, Hancock, Huff, Leyva, Mendoza, Monning, Pan,
Vidak
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: Senate Rule 28.8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 79-0, 4/21/16 (Consent) - See last page for
vote
SUBJECT: Pupil attendance: excused absences: naturalization
ceremony
SOURCE: Author
DIGEST: This bill allows a pupil's attendance at his or her
naturalization ceremony to become a United States citizen to be
deemed an excused absence for purposes of computing average
daily attendance (ADA).
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1)Specifies that excused absences are deemed to be absences in
computing ADA and shall not generate state apportionment
payments. (Education Code § 48205)
AB 1593
Page 2
2)Provides that the absence of a student is to be excused when
the absence is:
a) Due to his or her illness, or quarantine under the
direction of a county or city health officer.
b) For the purpose of having medical, dental, optometric,
or chiropractic services rendered.
c) For the purpose of attending funeral services, as
specified.
d) For the purpose of attending jury duty.
e) Due to the illness or medical appointment of a child of
whom the student is the custodial parent.
f) For justifiable personal reasons, including an
appearance in court, observation of a religious holiday or
ceremony, or attendance at an employment or educational
conference, as specified.
g) For the purpose of serving as a member of a precinct
board for an election pursuant to Elections Code Section
12302.
h) For the purpose of spending time with an immediate
family member who is an active duty member of the military,
as specified. (Education Code § 48205)
3)Provides that any pupil subject to compulsory full-time
education or to compulsory continuation education who is
absent from school without a valid excuse on any day or is
tardy for more than 30 minutes, or any combination thereof,
for three days in a school year shall be classified as
"truant."
4)Provides that a valid excuse may include other reasons that
are within the discretion of school administrators and based
on the facts of the pupil's circumstances. (Education Code §
48260)
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Page 3
This bill adds a pupil's attendance at his or her naturalization
ceremony to become a United States citizen to the list of
excused absences in current law.
Comments
Need for the bill. According to the author's office, "under
existing law a school district is not required to excuse the
absence of a student who is attending his or her own
naturalization ceremony to become a U.S. citizen. If a student
is not granted an excused absence, the pupil may be subject to
potential consequences including a truancy sanction and the
inability to make up missed homework, tests, quizzes or
participation in extracurricular activities."
Compulsory education. The state's compulsory education law
requires every child between the ages of 6 through 18 to attend
school full-time and their parents and legal guardians to be
responsible for ensuring that children attend school.
Specifically, a student who is absent from school without a
valid excuse on any day or is tardy for more than 30 minutes, or
any combination thereof, for three days in a school year is
considered to be "truant." However, existing law provides
discretion for school administrators to designate an excuse as
"valid" based on the facts of the pupil's circumstances.
The author's office indicates that this bill will ensure that
students will not be punished for missing school for something
as important as becoming a citizen of this country.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: No
SUPPORT: (Verified6/20/16)
Secretary of State Alex Padilla
Asian Americans Advancing Justice
California Federation of Teachers
California Teachers Association
AB 1593
Page 4
Los Angeles County Office of Education
Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund
OPPOSITION: (Verified6/20/16)
None received
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 79-0, 4/21/16
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Arambula, Atkins, 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, Quirk, Rodriguez, Salas,
Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner,
Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Rendon
NO VOTE RECORDED: Ridley-Thomas
Prepared by:Lenin DelCastillo / ED. / (916) 651-4105
6/22/16 15:14:58
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