BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 2615 Page 1 Date of Hearing: May 4, 2016 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS Lorena Gonzalez, Chair AB 2615 (Wood) - As Amended April 25, 2016 ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Policy |Education |Vote:|7 - 0 | |Committee: | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No SUMMARY: This bill makes a number of changes to both the to the 21st Century High School After School Safety and Enrichment for Teens (ASSETs) program and the After School Education and Safety program (ASES), including allocating funds by geographical regions. Specifically, this bill: 1)Continues to authorize providers to charge a family fee, however, requires providers that choose to charge family fees to waive or reduce the cost of these fees for pupils who are eligible for free or reduced-price meals. 2)Authorizes a grantee who receives funds as part of a AB 2615 Page 2 partnership or consortium to restructure the partnership or consortium if certain conditions exist, including agreement with all involved and approval by the California Department of Education (CDE). 3)Authorizes an ASSETS grantee, consistent with existing policy for ASES programs, to request approval from the CDE to transfer program services to another schoolsite if there is a significant barrier to pupil participation (such as low participation rates or transportation barriers) in a program within the same local educational agency (LEA). Also allows ASSETs and ASES programs to transfer program services, contingent upon CDE approval, to address significant program operation barriers due to an opening of a new school site. 4)Requires, for ASES grantees, the CDE to allocate funds to each geographic region by the regional percentage of statewide pupils who are eligible for free or reduced-price meals, as specified. 5)Authorizes CDE, consistent with existing law for ASES programs, to withhold or terminate an ASSETs grant allocation of any site or program that does not comply with audit resolutions, fiscal reporting, attendance reporting, or outcomes reporting requirements required by the CDE. 6)Authorizes the CDE, consistent with existing law for the ASEs programs, to approve grantee requests for pupil attendance credits, as specified, in the event a program is temporarily prevented from operating due to natural disaster, civil unrest, or imminent danger to pupils or staff. 7)Authorizes an ASES program to determine the grades to be served at participating schools based on local needs. AB 2615 Page 3 FISCAL EFFECT: Minor/absorbable costs to the California Department of Education to update the Request for Application for new grant awards, calculate funding for each region, and provide program assistance and guidance to the field. Changes to the distribution of funds based on geographical regions may result in different funding amounts for certain grantees than they had received in prior years. CDE notes, however, that the changes proposed by this bill will be implemented with a new round of grant funding. The bill also does not result in overall increases to the program. COMMENTS: 1)Purpose. This bill is sponsored by the Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) to ensure a fair geographic distribution of expanded learning funds to more closely align with the federal requirements that govern the distribution of 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) and after School Safety and Enrichment for Teens (ASSETs) program funds. This bill implements recommendations made by a November 2015 strategic plan (A Vision for Expanded Learning in California) developed by the CDE and education stakeholders. 2)Background. There are approximately 4,490 after school AB 2615 Page 4 programs that serve roughly 400,000 kindergarten through grade 9 students. The state provides a continuous appropriation of $550 million for state ASES programs. The state also receives approximately $130 million annually in federal funds for the 21st CCLC program, which provides funding for before and after school activities to pupils in kindergarten through grade 12, and the ASSETs program for high school pupils. The state has chosen to implement these programs almost identical to the state's ASES program. According to the CDE, the federal government requires states to distribute funds equitably among geographic areas within the state, including urban and rural communities. Current law requires, to the extent possible, the equitable distribution of grant awards to applicants in northern, southern, and central California, and in urban, suburban and rural areas of the state. According to CDE, under the current structure, districts in some areas, particularly rural areas, are reluctant to submit applications because they do not believe they have the capacity to be competitive. Regional competition enables these districts to compete in a smaller pool. This bill proposes to modify this further by dividing the state into three regions utilizing the California County Superintendents Educational Services Association (CCSESA) regions. Analysis Prepared by:Misty Feusahrens / APPR. / (916) 319-2081 AB 2615 Page 5