BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Senator Carol Liu, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: SB 1457
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|Author: |Morrell |
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|Version: |April 19, 2016 |
| |Hearing Date: April 20, 2016 |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |No |
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|Consultant:|Lenin Del Castillo |
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Subject: Pupil instruction: high school graduation
requirements: credit for released time instruction
NOTE : This bill was previously heard by this Committee on March
30, 2016, failed passage by a vote of 4-4, and was granted
reconsideration. The bill has subsequently been amended as
follows:
1) Specifies that pupils participating in released time
instruction must attend school for no less than the minimum
school day on each day of released time instruction.
2) Specifies that a school district electing to authorize
released time instruction may allow a pupil to receive up
to two elective credits, clarifying that a program may be
offered regardless of whether a pupil receives credit.
3) Provides that the secular criteria for determining
whether to authorize credit may include a review of the
course syllabus that reflects a clear learning objective.
The analysis has been updated to reflect these amendments.
SUMMARY
This bill expands the authority of school districts to authorize
a student to be excused from school to receive moral and
religious instruction by authorizing a local governing board to
adopt a policy, as specified, to allow pupils to earn up to two
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elective credits towards high school graduation requirements for
the completion of "released time instruction," excluding any cap
on the number of excused absences for this purpose.
BACKGROUND
Existing law:
1) Provides for pupils, with the written consent of their
parents or guardians, to be excused from school in order to
participate in religious exercise or to receive moral and
religious instruction at their respective places of worship
or at other suitable places away from school property
designated by the religious group, church, or denomination,
which shall be in addition and supplementary to the
instruction in manners and morals required elsewhere.
2) Provides that such absences shall not be deemed absences
in computing ADA, if all of the following conditions are
complied with:
a) The governing board of the school district
adopts a resolution permitting pupils to be absent
from school for such exercises or instruction.
b) The governing board of the school district
adopts regulations governing the attendance of pupils
at such exercises or instruction and the reporting
thereof.
c) Each pupil so excused shall attend school at
least the minimum school day for his grade for
elementary schools, and as provided by the relevant
provisions for secondary schools, as specified.
d) No pupil shall be excused from school for such
purpose on more than four days per school month.
(Education Code § 46014)
ANALYSIS
This bill:
1) Provides various legislative findings and declarations,
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including the finding and declaration that private
religious education is a legitimate and complimentary part
of the American school system, and that parents have a
recognized constitutional right to educate their children
at religious private schools.
2) Defines "released time instruction" as the instruction
received by a pupil for the purposes and under the
conditions of Education Code § 46014 which allows pupils,
with the consent of their parents, to be excused from
school in order to participate in religious exercises or to
receive moral and religious instruction, as specified.
3) Provides that Education Code § 46014 shall be construed to
additionally permit a pupil to be excused from school to
participate in instruction in nonsectarian morals and
systems of belief by a nonsectarian entity.
4) Defines "sponsoring entity" as the entity that provides
released time instruction to a pupil pursuant to this
chapter.
5) Provides that the governing board of a school district may
adopt a policy authorizing a pupil in high school to
participate in released time instruction.
6) Requires the policy to include the following conditions:
a) The pupil's parent or guardian makes a
written request.
b) The released time instruction is
conducted off school district property.
c) No public funds are expended and no
public school personnel are involved in providing the
instruction.
d) The sponsoring entity maintains
attendance records and makes those records available
to the school district the pupil attends.
e) Transportation to and from the place of
released time instruction, including transportation
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for pupils with disabilities, is the complete
responsibility of the sponsoring entity, parent,
guardian, or pupil.
f) The sponsoring entity makes provisions
for and assumes liability for the pupil.
g) The pupil assumes responsibility for
any missed schoolwork.
h) The pupil does not miss any core
curriculum subject courses to attend released time
instruction.
i) The pupil attends school for no less
than the minimum school day applicable to that pupil
on each day of released time instruction.
7) Provides that a policy may allow a pupil to receive up to
two elective credits toward that pupil's high school
graduation requirements for the completion of released time
instruction.
8) Requires the policy to include secular criteria for
determining whether to authorize a pupil to earn credit for
the completion of released time instruction. Requires the
criteria to be substantially the same criteria used to
evaluate a similar nonpublic high school course for the
purpose of determining whether to award credit for that
course to a pupil transferring from a nonpublic high school
to a public high school.
9) Provides that the secular criteria may include, but not be
limited to the following:
a) The number of hours of classroom
instruction time.
b) A review of the course syllabus that
reflects course requirements, materials used, and a
clear learning objective.
c) The methods of assessment used in the
course.
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d) The qualifications of the course
instructor, which shall be similar to the
qualifications of other teachers in the school
district.
10) Provides that there shall be no criteria requiring that
released time instruction be completed only at a nonpublic
school.
11) Provides that a decision to award credit for released time
instruction shall be neutral to, and shall not involve any
test for religious content or denominational affiliation.
12) Prohibits school district staff and faculty from
encouraging or discouraging participation by pupils in
released time instruction.
13) Provides that an absence for released time instruction
shall not be deemed an absence in computing average daily
attendance.
STAFF COMMENTS
1) Rationale for the bill. According to the author the
purpose of this bill is to enable school boards to take
action to authorize more time than is allowed under current
law for students to participate in religious exercise or
religious and moral instruction and to receive elective
credit toward high school graduation for this activity.
According to the author, both Ohio and South Carolina have
passed similar legislation allowing students to receive two
elective credits for "released time instruction."
2) Why is existing law a problem? As noted in the background
of this analysis, current law already allows for students
to be excused to participate in religious exercise or to
receive religious or moral instruction as long as specified
conditions are met. Such absences are currently limited
to no more than four days per school month and a school
district may generate average daily attendance (ADA) for
these absences, as long as all statutory requirements are
met.
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The committee may wish to clarify why the current statutory
authority is insufficient.
3) Clarification of the bill's effect. As noted, students are
already permitted to be excused from school to participate
in religious exercise and receive religious or moral
instruction. This bill redefines these activities as
"released time instruction" and expands existing authority
in three ways:
a) It allows school districts to adopt policies
authorizing high school students to earn up to two
elective credits towards their graduation requirements
for the completion of religious exercise or moral and
religious instruction.
b) It authorizes such instruction and specifically
eliminates the cap on the number of allowable excused
days for this purpose.
c) It expands the ability of school districts to
generate ADA for these absences (current law caps
these absences at four days per month). While the
bill requires students to meet the minimum day
requirement in current law for a school district to
receive full ADA (which is typically four hours) on
each day of released time instruction, it does not
limit the frequency for which students may participate
each month.
4) Blurring the lines between the separation of church and
state? This bill provides that elective credit may be
provided to students for religious exercise and religious
or moral instruction if, among other things, no public
funds are expended and no public personnel are involved in
providing the instruction. However, while no funds are
being provided directly to the entity providing the
instruction, this bill would expand the ability of school
districts to receive public funding (ADA) for students who
are receiving religious instruction from non-school
personnel and away from the schoolsite during the regular
school day.
While current law allows for some accommodation of
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religious instruction during the school day, should this
committee further expand the ability of students attending
public schools receiving public dollars via ADA to be
excused from the regular school day to receive religious
instruction? An argument can be made that because a
student would have to meet the minimum day requirement for
each day of released time instruction, a district would
receive full ADA for that student regardless of whether he
or she is excused from school. However, the bill does not
place any limits on the frequency or number of times each
month that students may be excused from school for this
purpose.
5) Average Daily Attendance. This bill expands the ability of
a school district to generate ADA for absences due to
religious and moral instruction beyond the four days
currently allowed under law. The committee may wish to
consider:
a) How much public funding should reasonably be
generated by a school district for religious or moral
instruction by an entity other than a public school?
b) Are the conditions outlined in the bill
sufficient to ensure that absences for this purpose
would not be excessive?
c) Are additional limitations or time restrictions
necessary to ensure that these absences are not
frequent or excessive?
d) Under current law, the generation of average
daily attendance (ADA) generally requires that a
student be under the direct supervision of school
personnel. How much ADA should be generated for
instruction that is not directly provided or overseen
by the school district?
e) While this bill defers decisions on expansion of
release time to local governing boards, what
responsibility does the state have to ensure the use
of public funds for public purposes and a clear
separation of church and state in a publicly funded
school system?
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6) Elective Credit. This bill would authorize local boards to
provide up to two elective credits toward graduation for
religious and moral instruction delivered outside the
public school system. It authorizes, but does not require,
consideration of the number of hours of instruction, a
review of a course syllabus that reflects a clear learning
objective, methods of assessment, and the qualifications of
the instructor in determining whether to authorize course
credit. It also prohibits the decision to award credit from
involving any test for religious content or denominational
affiliation. The committee may wish to consider:
a) Should instruction outside of the school setting
be eligible for elective credit towards graduation
without prescribing any criteria or requirements for
the coursework or the personnel that would be
responsible for the instruction?
b) Should course credit be offered for instruction
that may not be under the direct supervision of a
certificated teacher?
c) How much "released time instruction" for the
generation of two credits is necessary or reasonable?
d) Why is it necessary that students be granted
credit toward graduation for religious and moral
instruction? Why are the existing means by which
students could receive course credit for these
activities insufficient?
7) High school graduation requirements. Students are required
to complete a minimum set of courses to meet state
requirements to graduate from high school and receive a
diploma. Specifically, current law requires students to
complete three courses in English, two courses in
mathematics, two courses in science, three courses in
social studies, one course in visual or performing arts,
and two courses in physical education.
School district governing boards also have the authority to
supplement the state minimum requirements at the local
level with additional course work, which may include
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elective courses. High school electives are typically
courses that fall outside of the core academic subject
areas and may represent a student's personal interests,
introduce new skills, or serve as training for a future
career.
This bill provides an alternative for earning elective
credits through the completion of religious exercise and
religious and moral instruction at a student's respective
place of worship or other suitable places away from school
property.
SUPPORT
None received on current version of the bill.
OPPOSITION
None received on current version of the bill.
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