BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                  SB 963
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing: August 22, 2001

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                              Carole Migden, Chairwoman

                    SB 963 (Vincent) - As Amended:  July 18, 2001 

          Policy Committee:                               
          EducationVote:16-0

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program:  
          Yes    Reimbursable:              Yes

           SUMMARY  

          This bill authorizes, until January 1, 2005, probation officers  
          and social workers access to pupil records for purposes of  
          casework planning and for monitoring progress of wards of the  
          court, foster children, or youth on probation.  In addition, the  
          bill:

          1)Requires school districts to notify parents that probation  
            officers and social workers may access pupil records.

          2)Requires the probation officer and social workers to certify  
            in writing to the school district that the information will be  
            used only for the stated purposes.

          3)Requires school districts to make the information available at  
            the schoolsite within five working days.

           FISCAL EFFECT  

          Annual General Fund (Proposition 98) costs, probably in excess  
          of $200,000, to school districts to accommodate appropriate  
          schoolsite access to pupil records, as specified, within five  
          working days.  This assumes 100,000 children in foster care or  
          on probation and at least two schoolsite visits at a cost of  
          approximately $1 per pupil record.

           COMMENTS  

           1)Rationale  . According to the County of Los Angeles (co-sponsor  
            of the measure), without current pupil information, probation  
            officers and social workers cannot develop the best casework  








                                                                  SB 963
                                                                  Page  2

            plans or accurately monitor the academic progress of wards,  
            probationers or dependent minors.  Pupil information allows a  
            probation officer or social worker to know whether a casework  
            plan should focus resources on academic needs or if focus  
            should be on areas outside of the school.

           2)Current law  prohibits a school district from permitting access  
            to student records to any person without written parental  
            consent or under judicial order with certain exceptions.


           Analysis Prepared by  : Daniel Alvarez / APPR. / (916) 319-2081