Amended in Assembly May 27, 2016

Amended in Assembly March 18, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 2656


Introduced by Assembly Member O'Donnell

February 19, 2016


An act to amend Sections 48412 and 51421.5 of the Education Code, relating to pupils.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2656, as amended, O'Donnell. Pupils: diploma alternatives: fee waiver: foster youth.

Existing law authorizes certain persons, including, among others, any person 16 years of age or older, to have his or her proficiency in basic skills taught in public high schools verified according to criteria established by the State Department of Education. Existing law requires the State Board of Education to award a certificate of proficiency to persons who demonstrate that proficiency. Existing law requires the department to develop standards of competency in basic skills taught in public high schools and to provide for the administration of examinations prepared by, or with the approval of, the department to verify competency. Existing law authorizes the department to charge a fee for each examination application in an amount sufficient to recover the costs of administering the requirements of these provisions but prohibits the fee from exceeding an amount equal to the cost of test renewal and administration per examination application. Existing law prohibits the department from charging the fee to an examinee who qualifies as a homeless child or youth and meets other specified criteria.

This bill would additionally prohibit the department from charging the fee to a fosterbegin delete youth or former foster youthend deletebegin insert youth, as defined,end insert who is under 25 years of age.

Existing law separately requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to issue a high school equivalency certificate and an official score report, or an official score report only, to a person who has not completed high school and who meets specified requirements, including, among others, having taken all or a portion of a general education development test that has been approved by the state board and administered by a testing center approved by the department, with a score determined by the state board to be equal to the standard of performance expected from high school graduates. Existing law authorizes the Superintendent to charge an examinee a one-time fee to pay costs related to administering these provisions and issuing a certificate, as specified. Existing law limits the amount of the fee to $20 per person and requires each scoring contractor to forward that fee to the Superintendent. Existing law prohibits a scoring contractor or testing center that charges its own separate fee from charging that separate fee to an examinee who qualifies as a homeless child or youth, is under 25 years of age, and can verify his or her status as a homeless child or youth.

This bill would additionally prohibit the scoring contractor or testing center from charging the fee to a fosterbegin delete youth or former foster youthend deletebegin insert youth, as defined,end insert who is under 25 years of age.

Existing law requires the Superintendent, on or before December 1, 2018, to submit 2 reports to the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature, one relating to high school proficiency tests, and one relating to high school equivalency tests, that each include, among other things, the number of homeless youth that took a high school proficiency or equivalency test in each of the 2016, 2017, and 2018 calendar years, and the impact of the opportunity to take a high school proficiency or equivalency test at no cost on the number and percentage of homeless youth taking a high school proficiency or equivalency test.

This bill would require the Superintendent to also incorporate data on high school proficiency or equivalency test examinees who are fosterbegin delete youth or former foster youthend deletebegin insert youth, as defined,end insert into each report.

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

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

P3    1

SECTION 1.  

Section 48412 of the Education Code is amended
2to read:

3

48412.  

(a) (1) A person 16 years of age or older, or who has
4been enrolled in the 10th grade for one academic year or longer,
5or who will complete one academic year of enrollment in the 10th
6grade at the end of the semester during which the next regular
7examination will be conducted, may have his or her proficiency
8in basic skills taught in public high schools verified according to
9criteria established by the department.

10(2) The state board shall award a “certificate of proficiency” to
11persons who demonstrate that proficiency. The certificate of
12proficiency shall be equivalent to a high school diploma, and the
13department shall keep a permanent record of the issuance of all
14certificates.

15(b) (1) The department shall develop standards of competency
16in basic skills taught in public high schools and shall provide for
17the administration of examinations prepared by or with the approval
18of the department to verify competency. Regular examinations
19shall be held once in the fall semester and once in the spring
20semester of every academic year on a date, as determined by the
21 department, that will enable notification of examinees and the
22schools they attend, if any, of the results thereof not later than two
23weeks before the date on which that semester ends in a majority
24of school districts that maintain high schools.

25(2) In addition to regular examinations, the department may, at
26the discretion of the Superintendent, conduct examinations for all
27eligible persons once during each summer recess and may conduct
28examinations at any other time that the Superintendent deems
29necessary to accommodate eligible persons whose religious
30convictions or physical handicaps prevent their attending one of
31the regular examinations.

32(c) (1) The department may charge a fee for each examination
33application in an amount sufficient to recover the costs of
34administering the requirements of this section. However, the fee
35 shall not exceed an amount equal to the cost of test renewal and
36administration per examination application. All fees levied and
37collected pursuant to this section shall be deposited in the State
38Treasury for remittance to the current support appropriation of the
P4    1department as reimbursement for costs of administering this
2section. Any reimbursements collected in excess of actual costs
3of administration of this section shall be transferred to the
4unappropriated surplus of the General Fund by order of the Director
5of Finance.

6(2) The department shall not charge the fee to an examinee who
7meets all of the following criteria:

8(A) The examinee qualifies as a homeless child or youth, as
9defined in paragraph (2) of Section 725 of the federal
10McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. Sec.
1111434a(2)), or as a fosterbegin delete youth or former foster youth.end deletebegin insert youth, as
12defined in subdivision (h).end insert

13(B) The examinee has not attained 25 years of age as of the date
14of the scheduled examination.

15(C) For an examinee who qualifies as a homeless child or youth
16pursuant to subparagraph (A), the examinee can verify his or her
17status as a homeless child or youth. A homeless services provider
18that has knowledge of the examinee’s housing status may verify
19the examinee’s status for purposes of this subparagraph.

20(3) For purposes of this subdivision, a “homeless services
21provider” includes either of the following:

22(A) A homeless services provider listed in paragraph (3) of
23subdivision (d) of Section 103577 of the Health and Safety Code.

24(B) Any other person or entity that is qualified to verify an
25individual’s housing status, as determined by the department.

26(4) The loss of fees pursuant to paragraph (2), if any, shall be
27deemed to be a cost of administering this section for purposes of
28paragraph (1).

29(d) (1) The state board shall adopt rules and regulations as are
30necessary for implementation of this section.

31(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the state board shall adopt
32emergency regulations, as necessary, to implement the provisions
33of subdivision (c), as amended by the act that added this paragraph.
34The adoption of these regulations shall be deemed to be an
35emergency and necessary for the immediate preservation of the
36public peace, health, and safety, or general welfare.

37(e) The department shall periodically review the effectiveness
38of the examinations administered pursuant to this section. The
39costs of this review may be recovered through the fees levied
40pursuant to subdivision (c).

P5    1(f) (1) On or before December 1, 2018, the Superintendent shall
2submit a report to the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of
3the Legislature that includes, but is not limited to, all of the
4following:

5(A) The number of homelessbegin delete youth, foster youth, and formerend delete
6begin insert youth andend insert foster youth that took a high school proficiency test in
7each of the 2016, 2017, and 2018 calendar years.

8(B) The impact of the opportunity to take a high school
9proficiency test at no cost on the number and percentage of
10homelessbegin delete youth, foster youth, and formerend deletebegin insert youth andend insert foster youth
11taking a high school proficiency test.

12(C) The estimated number of homelessbegin delete youth, foster youth, and
13formerend delete
begin insert youth andend insert foster youth who may take a high school
14proficiency test in future years.

15(D) Recommendations for a permanent funding source to cover
16the cost of the waived fees.

17(E) The annual and projected administrative cost to the
18department.

19(F) The annual and projected reimbursement to contractors
20pursuant to this section.

21(2) The requirement for submitting a report imposed under
22paragraph (1) is inoperative on January 1, 2020, pursuant to Section
2310231.5 of the Government Code.

24(g) Additional state funds shall not be appropriated for purposes
25of implementing paragraph (2) of subdivision (c).

begin insert

26
(h) For purposes of this section, a “foster youth” means any
27individual who meets or has ever met one of the following criteria:

end insert
begin insert

28
(1) A child who was the subject of a petition filed pursuant to
29Section 300 of the Welfare and Institutions Code and removed
30from his or her home by the juvenile court pursuant to Section 319
31or 361 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

end insert
begin insert

32
(2) A child who was the subject of a petition filed pursuant to
33Section 602 of the Welfare and Institutions Code and removed
34from his or her home by the juvenile court pursuant to Section 727
35of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

end insert
36

SEC. 2.  

Section 51421.5 of the Education Code, as added by
37Section 3 of Chapter 384 of the Statutes of 2015, is amended to
38read:

39

51421.5.  

(a) If, for purposes of this article, a contractor or
40testing center charges an examinee its own separate fee, the
P6    1contractor or testing center shall not charge that fee to an examinee
2who meets all of the following criteria:

3(1) The examinee qualifies as a homeless child or youth, as
4defined in paragraph (2) of Section 725 of the federal
5McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. Sec.
611434a(2)), or as a fosterbegin delete youth or former foster youth.end deletebegin insert youth, as
7defined in subdivision (h).end insert

8(2) The examinee has not attained 25 years of age as of the date
9of the scheduled examination.

10(3) For an examinee who qualifies as a homeless child or youth
11pursuant to paragraph (1), the examinee can verify his or her status
12as a homeless child or youth. A homeless services provider that
13has knowledge of the examinee’s housing status may verify the
14examinee’s status for purposes of this paragraph.

15(b) For purposes of this section, a “homeless services provider”
16includes either of the following:

17(1) A homeless services provider listed in paragraph (3) of
18subdivision (d) of Section 103577 of the Health and Safety Code.

19(2) Any other person or entity that is qualified to verify an
20individual’s housing status, as determined by the department.

21(c) Additional state funds shall not be appropriated for purposes
22of implementing this section.

23(d) Notwithstanding subdivision (c), the Superintendent may
24use surplus funds in the Special Deposit Fund Account, established
25pursuant to Section 51427, to reimburse contractors for the loss
26of fees, if any, pursuant to this section. A contract executed by the
27department for the provision of examinations pursuant to Section
2851421 or this section shall require that any contracting party accept
29all examinees, including those entitled to a fee waiver pursuant to
30this section. For purposes of this subdivision, “surplus funds” are
31funds remaining after the costs permitted by subdivision (a) of
32Section 51421 are paid.

33(e) On or before December 1, 2018, the Superintendent shall
34submit a report to the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of
35the Legislature that includes, but is not limited to, all of the
36following:

begin delete

37(A)

end delete

38begin insert(1)end insert The number of homelessbegin delete youth, foster youth, and formerend delete
39begin insert youth andend insert foster youth that took a high school equivalency test in
40each of the 2016, 2017, and 2018 calendar years.

begin delete

P7    1(B)

end delete

2begin insert(2)end insert The impact of the opportunity to take a high school
3equivalency test at no cost on the number and percentage of
4homelessbegin delete youth, foster youth, and formerend deletebegin insert youth andend insert foster youth
5taking a high school equivalency test.

begin delete

6(C)

end delete

7begin insert(3)end insert The estimated number of homelessbegin delete youth, foster youth, and
8formerend delete
begin insert youth andend insert foster youth who may take a high school
9equivalency test in future years.

begin delete

10(D)

end delete

11begin insert(4)end insert Recommendations for a permanent funding source to cover
12the cost of the waived fees.

begin delete

13(E)

end delete

14begin insert(5)end insert The annual and projected administrative cost to the
15department.

begin delete

16(F)

end delete

17begin insert(6)end insert The annual and projected reimbursement to the contractor
18pursuant to this section.

19(f) The Superintendent shall adopt emergency regulations, as
20necessary, to implement this section. The adoption of these
21regulations shall be deemed to be an emergency and necessary for
22the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, and safety,
23or general welfare.

24(g) The department shall include a provision in all
25memorandums of understanding with contractors for purposes of
26providing a high school equivalency test, that if the surplus funds
27in the Special Deposit Fund Account are depleted, the ongoing
28costs of a fee waiver for an examinee deemed eligible for a waiver
29pursuant to this section shall be absorbed by the contractor.

begin insert

30
(h) For purposes of this section, a “foster youth” means any
31individual who meets or has ever met one of the following criteria:

end insert
begin insert

32
(1) A child who was the subject of a petition filed pursuant to
33Section 300 of the Welfare and Institutions Code and removed
34from his or her home by the juvenile court pursuant to Section 319
35or 361 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

end insert
begin insert

36
(2) A child who was the subject of a petition filed pursuant to
37Section 602 of the Welfare and Institutions Code and removed
38from his or her home by the juvenile court pursuant to Section 727
39of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

end insert
begin delete

40(h)

end delete

P8    1begin insert(i)end insert This section shall become inoperative on July 1, 2019, and,
2as of January 1, 2020, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute,
3that becomes operative on or before January 1, 2020, deletes or
4extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed.

5

SEC. 3.  

Section 51421.5 of the Education Code, as added by
6Section 4 of Chapter 384 of the Statutes of 2015, is amended to
7read:

8

51421.5.  

(a) If, for purposes of this article, a contractor or
9testing center charges an examinee its own separate fee, the
10contractor or testing center shall not charge that fee to an examinee
11who meets all of the following criteria:

12(1) The examinee qualifies as a homeless child or youth, as
13defined in paragraph (2) of Section 725 of the federal
14McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. Sec.
1511434a(2)), or as a fosterbegin delete youth or former foster youth.end deletebegin insert youth, as
16defined in subdivision (f).end insert

17(2) The examinee has not attained 25 years of age as of the date
18of the scheduled examination.

19(3) For an examinee who qualifies as a homeless child or youth
20pursuant to paragraph (1), the examinee can verify his or her status
21as a homeless child or youth. A homeless services provider that
22has knowledge of the examinee’s housing status may verify the
23examinee’s status for purposes of this paragraph.

24(b) For purposes of this section, a “homeless services provider”
25includes either of the following:

26(1) A homeless services provider listed in paragraph (3) of
27subdivision (d) of Section 103577 of the Health and Safety Code.

28(2) Any other person or entity that is qualified to verify an
29individual’s housing status, as determined by the department.

30(c) Additional state funds shall not be appropriated for purposes
31of implementing this section.

32(d) The Superintendent shall adopt emergency regulations, as
33necessary, to implement this section. The adoption of these
34regulations shall be deemed to be an emergency and necessary for
35the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, and safety,
36or general welfare.

37(e) The department shall include a provision in all
38memorandums of understanding with contractors for purposes of
39providing a high school equivalency test, that if the surplus funds
40in the Special Deposit Fund Account are depleted, the ongoing
P9    1costs of a fee waiver for an examinee deemed eligible for a waiver
2pursuant to this section shall be absorbed by the contractor.

begin insert

3
(f) For purposes of this section, a “foster youth” means any
4individual who meets or has ever met one of the following criteria:

end insert
begin insert

5
(1) A child who was the subject of a petition filed pursuant to
6Section 300 of the Welfare and Institutions Code and removed
7from his or her home by the juvenile court pursuant to Section 319
8or 361 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

end insert
begin insert

9
(2) A child who was the subject of a petition filed pursuant to
10Section 602 of the Welfare and Institutions Code and removed
11from his or her home by the juvenile court pursuant to Section 727
12of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

end insert
begin delete

13(f)

end delete

14begin insert(g)end insert This section shall become operative on July 1, 2019.



O

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