BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 2656|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 2656
Author: O'Donnell (D), et al.
Amended: 6/9/16 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE: 9-0, 6/22/16
AYES: Liu, Block, Hancock, Huff, Leyva, Mendoza, Monning, Pan,
Vidak
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 7-0, 8/11/16
AYES: Lara, Bates, Beall, Hill, McGuire, Mendoza, Nielsen
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 80-0, 6/2/16 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT: Pupils: diploma alternatives: fee waiver: foster
youth
SOURCE: Author
DIGEST: This bill extends to foster youth the fee waivers for
the California High School Proficiency Exam and the high school
equivalency exam that are currently provided to students who are
homeless.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
Fee waivers
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1)Prohibits the California Department of Education (CDE) from
charging the fee for the high school proficiency exam and the
high school equivalency tests to a homeless child or youth
under the age of 25 years who can verify his or her status as
a homeless child or youth.
2)Prohibits a scoring contractor or testing center for the
general educational development test from charging the fee to
a homeless child or youth who is under age 25 years and can
verify his or her status as a homeless child or youth.
3)Requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to submit a
report, by December 1, 2018, to the appropriate policy and
fiscal committees of the Legislature that includes specified
information relative to these fee waivers.
High school proficiency exam
4)Requires the following people to be permitted to have his or
her proficiency in basic skills verified according to criteria
established by the CDE:
a) Any person who is at least 16 years of age.
b) Any person who has been enrolled in grade 10 for one
academic year or longer.
c) Any person who will complete one academic year of
enrollment in grade 10 at the end of the semester during
which the next regular examination will be conducted.
5)Requires the State Board of Education (SBE) to award a
"certificate of proficiency" to people who achieve a passing
score on the proficiency exam. The certificate of proficiency
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is equivalent to a high school diploma. (Education Code §
48412)
The CDE has designated the California High School Proficiency
Examination (CHSPE) as the test by which students may verify
proficiency in basic skills. The Sacramento County Office of
Education administers the CHSPE program under contract with
the CDE.
High school equivalency tests
6)Requires the SPI to issue a California high school equivalency
certificate and an official score report to any person who has
not completed high school and who meets all of the following
requirements:
a) Is a resident of California or is a member of the armed
services assigned to duty in California.
b) Has taken all or a portion of a general educational
development test approved by the SBE and administered by a
test center approved by the CDE, with a score determined by
the SBE to be equal to the standard of performance expected
from high school graduates.
c) Meets one of the following:
i) Is at least 18 years of age.
ii) Would have graduated from high school had he or she
remained in school and followed the usual course of study
toward graduation.
iii) Is at least 17 years of age, has accumulated fewer
than 100 units of high school credit, and is confined to
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a state or county correctional agency.
iv) Is at least 17 years of age, has accumulated fewer
than 100 units of high school credit prior to enrollment
in a dropout recovery high school, and has successfully
completed the program offered by a dropout recovery high
school that provides the student with all of the
following:
(1) Instruction aligned to state academic content
standards.
(2) The opportunity to complete the requirements
for a high school diploma.
(3) At least one year of instruction or
instruction followed by services related to the
academic program.
7)Provides that a California high school equivalency certificate
is deemed to be a high school diploma for the purpose of
meeting the requirements of employment by all state and local
public agencies in California. (EC § 51420 and § 51425)
The SBE has approved the use of three high school equivalency
tests:
a) The General Educational Development Test (GED).
b) The High School Equivalency Test (HiSET).
c) The Test Assessing Secondary Completion (TASC).
This bill extends to foster youth the fee waivers for the CHSPE
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and the high school equivalency exam that are currently provided
to students who are homeless. Specifically, this bill:
1)Prohibits the CDE from charging the fee for the CHSPE to an
examinee who is a foster youth who is under the age of 25
years.
2)Prohibits a contractor or testing center from charging a fee
to an examinee who is a foster youth who is under the age of
25 years.
3)Expands the scope of the currently required report regarding
information relative to these fee waivers
4)Defines "foster youth" as any individual who is, or has ever
been, the subject of a petition before the juvenile court and
was removed from his or her home by the court.
Comments
Parity. The fee waivers proposed by this bill are currently
provided to individuals who are homeless and who are under the
age of 25 years. This bill extends fee waivers to foster youth.
Contract and Memorandum of Understanding. The CDE is currently
in contract with the Sacramento County Office of Education for
the administration of the CHSPE. This contract will expire on
June 30, 2016; the CDE issued a Request for Proposals in 2015
for a contract to begin July 1, 2016. According to the CDE, it
is not possible to amend the new contract at this point; CDE
would need to adopt regulations to waive test fees pursuant to
this bill.
The CDE has Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) with three
vendors for the high school equivalency tests: two were renewed
and effective January 1, 2016, and one expires on December 31,
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2016. According to the CDE, it is possible to amend the MOUs,
but CDE would first need to adopt regulations to waive test fees
pursuant to this bill.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: No
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
The CDE anticipates costs of $335,000 in the first year and
$343,000 in ongoing support to modify regulations for each
test, renegotiate four contracts that administer the test, and
develop data tracking mechanisms. Additional resources may be
necessary to complete the report on fee waivers for these
tests due December 1, 2018. (Special Deposit Fund Account)
Unknown revenue loss due to waived exam fees for foster youth.
Assuming 200 foster youth students take either exam, revenue
loss would be in the low tens of thousands. (Special Deposit
Fund Account)
The Special Deposit Fund Account surplus is an unlikely
sustainable funding source for the long term. Once it is
depleted, costs would have to be covered by either by testing
contractors or by other test-takers, thereby also creating a
General Fund cost pressure.
SUPPORT: (Verified8/12/16)
Aspiranet
Association of California School Administrators
California Coalition for Youth
California Teachers Association
National Center for Youth Law
School Employers Association of California
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OPPOSITION: (Verified8/12/16)
None received
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 80-0, 6/2/16
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, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez,
Salas, Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting,
Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Rendon
Prepared by:Lynn Lorber / ED. / (916) 651-4105
8/15/16 20:30:03
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