BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 1455|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 1455
Author: Block (D)
Amended: 3/29/16
Vote: 21
SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE: 9-0, 4/13/16
AYES: Liu, Block, Hancock, Huff, Leyva, Mendoza, Monning, Pan,
Vidak
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 6-0, 4/25/16
AYES: Lara, Bates, Hill, McGuire, Mendoza, Nielsen
NO VOTE RECORDED: Beall
SUBJECT: Pupil enrollment: military dependents
SOURCE: Author
DIGEST: This bill provides that a student meets residency
requirements for school attendance if the student's parent is
transferred or is pending transfer to a military installation
that is within the boundaries of the school district.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1)Requires students to attend the public full-time day school or
continuation school or classes in which the residency of
either the parent or legal guardian is located. (Education
Code § 48200)
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2)Provides, until July 1, 2017, that a student complies with the
residency requirements for school attendance in a school
district if the student:
a) Is placed within the boundaries of the school district
in a licensed children's institution, licensed foster home,
or a foster family home.
b) Is a foster child who remains in his or her school of
origin.
c) Has been approved for interdistrict attendance.
d) Resides within the boundaries of the school districts
and whose parent or legal guardian is relieved of
responsibility, control, and authority through
emancipation.
e) Lives in the home of a caregiving adult that is located
within the boundaries of that school district.
f) Resides in a state hospital located within the
boundaries of the school district.
g) Is a child of a parent who is employed and lives at the
place of employment within the boundaries of the school
district for a minimum of three days during the school
week. (EC § 48204)
1)Authorizes, until July 1, 2017, school districts to deem a
student to have complied with the residency requirements for
school attendance in a school district if at least one parent
or the legal guardian is physically employed within the
boundaries of that district for a minimum of 10 hours during
the school week. (EC § 48204)
2)Requires reasonable evidence of residency to be established by
documentation showing the name and address of the parent or
legal guardian within the school district, including but not
limited to the following:
a) Property tax payment receipts.
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b) Rental property contract, lease, or payment receipts.
c) Utility service contract, statement, or payment
receipts.
d) Pay stubs.
e) Voter registration.
f) Correspondence from a government agency.
g) Declaration of residency executed by the parent or legal
guardian.
(EC § 48204.1)
3)Enacts the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for
Military Children. The Compact provides for the uniform
treatment of military children transferring between school
districts and states. Among other things, the Compact is meant
to address issues related to:
a) Records, enrollment, placement and attendance, including
the transfer of unofficial and official records, and
placement in comparable courses, programs, and the same
grade level regardless of age.
b) Granting of additional excused absences to a pupil whose
parent has been called to or returned from active duty.
c) Eligibility for enrollment and participation in
extracurricular activities, including allowing military
dependents to attend the same school and participation in
programs and extracurricular activities with the consent of
a non-custodial parent or other person who is caring for
that child (standing in loco parentis).
d) Graduation, including the use of best efforts to waive
required courses for pupils who successfully completed
similar coursework, and consider granting a diploma from
the sending school for pupils who transfer in their senior
year of high school.
e) Binding effect of the Compact, whereby all member
states' laws conflicting with the Compact are superseded by
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the Compact and all rules and bylaws developed by the
commission are binding upon member states. (EC § 49700, et
seq.)
This bill:
1)Provides that a student meets residency requirements for
school attendance if the student's parent is transferred or is
pending transfer to a military installation that is within the
boundaries of the district.
2)Authorizes the use of a military installation's billeting
office address instead of a residential address.
3)Requires a school district to accept applications by
electronic means for enrollment, including into a specific
school, program, and/or course.
4)Requires parents to provide proof of residence within 10 days
after the published arrival date provided on the military
order.
5)Makes the following definitions for the purpose of this
section:
a) "Active military duty," means full-time military duty
status in the active uniformed service of the United
States, including the National Guard and the State Reserve.
b) "Military installation" means a base, camp, post,
station, yard, center, homeport facility for any ship, or
other activity under the jurisdiction of the Department of
Defense.
c) "Parent" means the natural or adoptive parent or
guardian of a dependent child.
6)Establishes if the Commission on State Mandates determines
that this bill contains costs mandated by the state, the state
will reimburse applicable entities.
Comments
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1)Need for the bill. According to the author, children of
military service members transferring on official military
orders to California are not eligible to register in high
school courses, enroll in specialized academic programs or
enter random lotteries for consideration into a charter or
magnet school until they are physically located within the
district boundaries. As a result, these students often miss
course and program registration deadlines. This bill allows,
by electronic means, transferring military families to enroll
their children in a school, program or course prior to being
physically located within the boundaries of the school
district.
2)The Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military
Children. The Compact is an interstate agreement that
provides guidance as to how local school districts address the
transition needs of military children. With the passage of AB
343 (Saldana, Chapter 237, Statutes of 2009), California
ratified its participation in the Compact. Under the Compact,
districts are required to be flexible in applying their local
rules to students in order to facilitate enrollment,
placement, advancement, eligibility for extracurricular
activities, and on-time graduation. These provisions, however,
do not guarantee placement. It's not clear how districts
apply rules to application or program deadlines.
Separate from the Compact, this bill aims to provide military
families transferring to a California military installation
the ability to start the school enrollment process as soon as
a written military transfer order is given. School districts
are required to accept applications by electronic means for
enrollment in a specific school or program within the school
district and course registration for these students. Parents
must provide proof of residence within 10 days after the
published arrival date provided on the military order.
3)Affected school districts? The provisions in this bill apply
to students of active-duty members of the United States
uniformed services, National Guard and Reserve on active-duty
orders. California hosts more than 30 military installations
and 168 active-duty service members. Presumably, the
surrounding districts of those military installations may be
the most affected by the requirements outlined in this bill.
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FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: Yes
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee, there would be
no anticipated significant costs to the state. This bill may
result in a reimbursable state mandate but costs associated with
the requirement for a school district to accept electronic
applications for enrollment and course registration are expected
to be minor. In addition, because state funding is provided to
school districts for student attendance, this funding would
likely offset any additional costs related to this requirement.
SUPPORT: (Verified4/26/16)
Marine Corps Installations West-Marine Corps Base
OPPOSITION: (Verified4/26/16)
None received
Prepared by:Olgalilia Ramirez / ED. / (916) 651-4105
4/28/16 8:37:19
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