Senate Bill No. 527

Introduced by Senator Liu

February 26, 2015

An act to add Article 14 (commencing with Section 33480) to Chapter 3 of Part 20 of Division 2 of Title 2 of the Education Code, relating to education finance.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 527, as introduced, Liu. Education finance: Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Fund Grant Program.

Existing law, the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act, enacted by Proposition 47, as approved by the voters at the November 4, 2014, statewide general election, among other things, established the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Fund, a continuously appropriated fund, which is funded by savings that accrue to the state from the implementation of the act. The act provides that, among other purposes, 25% of the funds shall be disbursed to the State Department of Education to administer a grant program to public agencies aimed at improving outcomes for public school pupils by reducing truancy and supporting pupils who are at risk of dropping out of school or are victims of crime.

This bill would express findings and declarations of the Legislature with respect to the purposes of the act. The bill would specify the administrative duties and responsibilities of the State Department of Education with respect to the administration, commencing with the 2016-17 fiscal year, of a Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Fund Grant Program, pursuant to which the department would issue a request for proposal to school districts each fiscal year and would make grants to applicant school districts. The bill would set forth criteria to guide the department in awarding grants under the program.

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

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

SECTION 1.  

The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:

(a) The Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Fund has been
established by Proposition 47, approved by the voters at the
November 4, 2014, statewide general election. The funds
transferred to the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Fund are to be
used exclusively for the purposes of the Safe Neighborhoods and
Schools Act.

(b) Twenty-five percent of the funds are disbursed to the State
Department of Education to administer a grant program to public
agencies aimed at improving outcomes for public school pupils in
kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive, by reducing truancy
and supporting pupils who are at risk of dropping out of school or
are victims of crime.

(c) Studies estimate that between 3.3 million and 10 million
children in the United States witness violence in their own homes
each year.

(d) Children who have experienced early, chronic trauma, such
as family or community violence, can develop emotional,
behavioral, cognitive, and relationship difficulties that can
adversely affect their ability to learn and function well in school.

(e) Exposure to trauma is associated with a higher risk for
dropping out of school, and in turn, dropping out of school
increases the risk of being imprisoned.

(f) Behavioral problems among schoolage youth are associated
with high rates of depression, experiencing a traumatic or violent
event, and other significant home-life stresses.

(g) Sixty-five percent of pupils with an emotional disturbance
drop out of school. This dropout rate is higher than all other
disability categories.

(h) For pupils with these mental health concerns, the American
Academy of Pediatrics has found that suspension can increase
stress and may predispose them to antisocial behavior and even
suicidal ideation. Psychologists have similarly found that
disciplinary exclusion policies can increase pupil shame, alienation,
rejection, and breaking of healthy adult bonds, thereby exacerbating
negative mental health outcomes for young people.

(i) Studies have shown that one suspension greatly increases
the likelihood that a pupil will drop out and become involved in
the juvenile justice system.

(j) Removing pupils from school through disciplinary exclusion
also increases the risk that they will become victims of violent
crime.

(k) Research has shown that coordinated alignment of integrated
pupil supports is an approach, well-grounded in theory, research,
and community experience that has been shown to reduce truancy
and chronic absence, and to improve academic outcomes, school
climate, and a pupil’s physical and mental health.

(l) Schools that address the “whole child” embrace youth
development principles and ensure the social-emotional health of
pupils, and create integrated and trauma-informed support systems
that have a stronger positive school culture, higher attendance,
higher graduation and achievement rates, and lower truancy rates.

(m) Pupils who attend schools where support systems are not
easily accessible by pupils and their families and where alignment
of support systems within the school and with community partners
is lacking are less likely to have access to programs that can address
the needs of vulnerable populations, thus exacerbating education
and health inequities.

(n) Schools that implement research-based, schoolwide
approaches to addressing social, emotional, and behavioral issues,
such as School-Wide Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports,
restorative justice, community schools strategies, and school-based
mental health and trauma-informed practices demonstrate strong
educational outcomes, including increases in attendance and
achievement, particularly for pupils of color and other at-risk
populations.

SEC. 2.  

Article 14 (commencing with Section 33480) is added
to Chapter 3 of Part 20 of Division 2 of Title 2 of the Education
Code, to read:

 

Article 14.  Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Fund Grant
Program

 

33480.  

(a) The Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Fund Grant
Program is hereby established under the administration of the
department. Grants shall be issued under this program commencing
with the 2016-17 fiscal year. Pursuant to the Safe Neighborhoods
and Schools Act, approved as Proposition 47 by the voters on
November 4, 2014, the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Fund has
been established under Section 7599 of the Government Code, and
funds are allocated to the department from that fund under Section
7599.2 of the Government Code. In administering the grant
program, the department shall comply with all of the following
requirements in order to improve outcomes for public school pupils
by reducing truancy and supporting pupils who are at risk of
dropping out of school or are victims of crime:

(1) All school districts in the state shall be eligible to apply for
the grant program.

(2) The grant program shall reward school districts that have
demonstrated a commitment to, and developed a comprehensive
plan for, utilizing research-based strategies to increase attendance
rates, to reduce school removals of all types and referrals to police,
to address trauma, mental health needs and other social and
emotional factors that impact pupil outcomes, to address and to
remedy school pushout and dropout rates, coordinate pupil support
programs with community and other public agencies at schoolsites
and across the school district, and create a strong and supportive
school culture that identifies and addresses the needs of pupils,
including victims of crime, abuse, and neglect.

(3) A school district receiving a grant under this article shall
show at a minimum that it has designed, and is committed to
implementing, all of the following:

(A) A three-year plan, developed through its local control and
accountability plan or otherwise to accomplish all of the following:

(i) Significantly reduce class and school removals, absences,
violent incidents on campus, and referrals to police.

(ii) Implement research-based, whole school approaches,
including, but not necessarily limited to, schoolwide positive
behavior intervention and supports, restorative justice, community
schools strategies, trauma-informed practices, cultural competency,
social-emotional learning, and approaches to reengage pupils who
have been pushed out.

(iii) Identify and address disparities in any of the aforementioned
areas with respect to subgroups addressed by the local control
funding formula, including, but not necessarily limited to, English
learners, foster youth, low-income pupils, and pupils of color.

(B) A robust data system to collect and disaggregate data related
to the subject matter referenced in subparagraph (A).

(C) A system for sharing this data on the aggregate level with
the school community on a regular basis and engaging all key
stakeholders, including, but not necessarily limited to, parents,
teachers, pupils, school administrators, and classified staff in the
process of pupil and school improvement.

(D) A teacher, principal, superintendent, and school board
evaluation system to assess effectiveness related to addressing the
social, emotional, and behavioral needs of pupils and developing
strong, supportive, and positive school climates.

(b) The department shall issue a request for proposal to all
school districts in the state for each fiscal year that there are funds
available from the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Fund. The
request for proposal shall be issued no later than in August of each
fiscal year, or earlier if funds become available sooner.

(c) The funds granted to school districts under this article shall
be utilized to further implementation of the three-year plan and
the other minimum commitments specified in paragraph (3) of
subdivision (a). Grants shall be awarded under this article no later
than March 31 of each fiscal year.

(d) The department shall convene a stakeholder group, which
shall include at least one parent of a public school pupil and at
least one public school pupil, to assist in making determinations
regarding the awarding of grants and in assessing whether grant
recipients are meeting the minimum requirements set forth in
paragraph (3) of subdivision (a).