BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2656
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB
2656 (O'Donnell)
As Amended May 27, 2016
Majority vote
------------------------------------------------------------------
|Committee |Votes|Ayes |Noes |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------|
|Education |7-0 |O'Donnell, Olsen, | |
| | |Kim, McCarty, | |
| | |Santiago, Thurmond, | |
| | |Weber | |
| | | | |
|----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------|
|Appropriations |20-0 |Gonzalez, Bigelow, | |
| | |Bloom, Bonilla, | |
| | |Bonta, Calderon, | |
| | |Chang, Daly, Eggman, | |
| | |Gallagher, Eduardo | |
| | |Garcia, Roger | |
| | |Hernández, Holden, | |
| | |Jones, Obernolte, | |
| | |Quirk, Santiago, | |
| | |Wagner, Weber, Wood | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
------------------------------------------------------------------
AB 2656
Page 2
SUMMARY: Provides that a foster youth who has not attained the
age of 25 shall not be assessed a fee to take a high school
proficiency or high school equivalency exam. Specifically, this
bill:
1)Prohibits the California Department of Education (CDE) from
charging a fee for the high school proficiency exam to an
examinee who is a foster youth or former foster youth who is
younger than 25 years of age.
2)Prohibits a scoring contractor or testing center from charging
a fee for the high school equivalency exam to an examinee who
is a foster youth or former foster youth who is younger than
25 years of age.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee:
1)Unknown special fund costs, likely minor, to subsidize fees
for foster youth and former foster youth who choose to take
any of the high school equivalency tests or the California
High School Proficiency Exam (CHSPE).
It is difficult to predict the number of foster youth that
will take these tests. There are approximately 60,000 foster
youth in California. The author estimates there are
approximately 4,000 foster youth between the ages of 15-24
that do not receive a high school diploma. Approximately
0.15% of eligible homeless students took these tests last
AB 2656
Page 3
year. Assuming a similar percentage of foster youth take
these tests, the state would incur costs of approximately $980
for the equivalency exams and $770 for the CHSPE.
2)Special fund costs to the CDE of approximately $260,000 to
provide assistance and support to the foster youth community,
verify foster youth eligibility, adjust testing contracts and
report participation rates.
COMMENTS:
Background. The CHSPE and High School Equivalency Tests are
offered as alternatives to a high school diploma. The CHSPE is
available to pupils 16 and over, and measures basic skills in
English language arts and math. A Certificate of Proficiency is
accepted by federal agencies for purposes of employment, and all
persons and institutions subject to California law that require
a high school diploma are required to accept the certificate as
satisfying the requirement. The fee is $110 for those who
register by the deadline, $135 for late registration, and $160
for emergency registration. The CDE reports that there were
4,594 CHSPE test takers in 2013-14, with a pass rate of about
47%. Those who fail the test can retake it.
The State Board of Education has approved three high school
equivalency tests for use in California: the General
Educational Development Test (GED), published by the GED Testing
Service, which is owned by Pearson, a for-profit company; the
AB 2656
Page 4
High School Equivalency Test (HiSET), published by the
Educational Testing Service, a private not-for profit company;
and the Test Assessing Secondary Completion, published by
CTB/McGraw-Hill, a for-profit company. The fees vary from test
to test and from one test center to another, but are more than
$100. For example, the Los Angeles testing center for the HiSET
charges $150.
Related legislation. SB 252 (Leno), Chapter 384, Statutes of
2015, prohibits the assessment of fees to homeless youth.
Analysis Prepared by:
Rick Pratt / ED. / (916) 319-2087 FN: 0003245