BILL ANALYSIS Ó
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 2791|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
|327-4478 | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
CONSENT
Bill No: AB 2791
Author: Medina (D)
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: 78-0, 5/12/16 (Consent) - See last page for
vote
SUBJECT: Community colleges: Disability Services Program
SOURCE: Author
DIGEST: This bill expands the definition of "disabled
students," for purposes of apportionments to community college
districts to provide educational and support services for these
students, to include students who have applied to a community
college and who have exceptional needs due to a verified
disability.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1)Requires the Board of Governors of the California Community
AB 2791
Page 2
Colleges (CCC) to adopt rules and regulations for the
administration and funding of educational programs and support
services to be provided to disabled students by community
college districts. These regulations are required to provide
for the apportionment of funding to districts to offset the
direct excess cost of providing specialized support services
or instruction, or both, to disabled students enrolled in
state supported educational programs or courses.
2)Defines "direct excess costs" as those which exceed the
combined total of the average cost to the district of
providing services to non-disabled students times the number
of students served in the disabled students program, the
indirect cost of providing facilities and administrative
support, the revenue from average daily attendance in special
classes, and other funds received from federal, state or local
sources. (Education Code § 84850)
This bill:
1)Expands the definition of disabled students beyond enrolled
students with exceptional needs to include students with
exceptional needs who have applied to a community college.
2)Authorizes the provisions of funding to districts to offset
the direct excess costs of providing specialized support
services or instruction, or both, for students who have
applied to a community college.
3)Makes technical cross reference corrections.
Comments
1)Need for the bill. According to the author, this bill
clarifies what was, until recently the longstanding practice
AB 2791
Page 3
at the CCC to provide Disability Services and Programs for
Students (DSPS) services to students who have applied to a
college DSPS program even though they may not yet have begun
attending college courses.
In January 2016, the Chancellor's Office issued revised
guidelines for implementing Title 5 DSPS regulations. Although
consistent with the language of the applicable statutes,
proponents are concerned that the new guidance results in
districts being unable to provide services to students who
have applied, but not yet enrolled in courses.
This bill aligns the statutory definition of a disabled
student with the current practices of DSPS offices throughout
the CCC.
2)Chancellor's Office revised guidelines. According to the
Chancellor's Office, in its recent review and revision of
guidelines, it was determined that existing law requires that
a disabled student be enrolled in a class for a district to
receive DSPS funding. The recent update to DSPS
implementation guidelines reflects this requirement by having
districts document verification of enrollment via submission
of specified information in the state management information
system. In some cases, this means students would be required
to have attended for at least two weeks of one or more courses
in order to be reported as "enrolled."
According to the Chancellor's Office, these students often
need services before they are enrolled in a class. The
enactment of this bill ensures that colleges can continue to
provide vital services like registration assistance, pre-term
counseling, specialized orientation, and outreach to high
schools, easing the transition into college for these
students.
AB 2791
Page 4
3)DSPS. DSPS provide support services and educational
accommodations to students with disabilities so that they can
have full and equal access to the community college
experience. In addition, many colleges provide specialized
instruction as part of their DSPS program. Examples of these
services include: test-proctoring; assessment for learning
disabilities; specialized counseling; interpreter or
captioning services for hearing-impaired or deaf students;
mobility assistance; note-taker services; reader services;
speech services; transcription services; on-campus
transportation; specialized tutoring; access to adaptive
equipment; job development/placement; registration assistance;
and special parking and specialized instruction.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: No
SUPPORT: (Verified6/27/16)
Board of Governors, California Community Colleges
California Association for Postsecondary Education and
Disability
North Orange Community College District
The Arc and United Cerebral Palsy California Collaboration
OPPOSITION: (Verified6/27/16)
None received
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 5/12/16
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Arambula, Atkins, Baker,
Bigelow, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Calderon,
Campos, Chang, Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper,
Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines,
AB 2791
Page 5
Gallagher, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson,
Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Roger
Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones, 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
NO VOTE RECORDED: Burke, Jones-Sawyer
Prepared by:Kathleen Chavira / ED. / (916) 651-4105
6/29/16 15:50:53
**** END ****