BILL NUMBER: SB 1777 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY AUGUST 7, 2006
AMENDED IN SENATE MAY 26, 2006
AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 17, 2006
INTRODUCED BY Senator Alarcon
FEBRUARY 24, 2006
An act to add and repeal Section 42926 of the Education Code,
relating to pupils.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 1777, as amended, Alarcon Juvenile court schools: foster
children: educational services funding.
(1) Existing law requires
the county board of education to provide for the administration and
operation of juvenile court schools, as defined.
This bill, until January 1, 2012, would require the Superintendent
of Public Instruction to establish a process to accept and review
applications from county offices of education and school districts
for funding under the bill and would require the Superintendent to
approve an application for funding only if the applicant agrees to
comply with specified requirements and is either (1) a county office
of education that provides educational services through a juvenile
court school to a foster child, as specified, or (2) a school
district or county office of education that provides educational
services to a pupil who is a foster child transferring to the school
district or county office of education from a juvenile detention hall
or probation camp and has received educational services through a
juvenile court school.
This bill, until January 1, 2012, would require each county office
of education operating a juvenile court school to designate staff
persons as transition counselors to provide specified services to
foster children being released from a juvenile detention facility and
transferring to public school, thereby imposing a state-mandated
local program. The bill, commencing with the 2006-07 fiscal year,
until and including the 2010-11 fiscal year, would require each
county office of education that provides educational services, as
specified, through a juvenile court school to pupils identified as
foster children, as provided, to receive an allowance, as specified.
The bill , commencing with the 2006-07 fiscal year, until
and including the 2010-11 fiscal year, would require each school
district or county office of education that provides educational
services to a pupil who is a foster child transferring to the school
district or county office of education from a juvenile detention hall
or probation camp and has received educational services through a
juvenile court school to receive the same funding described above for
a period of at least 6 months, but not greater than one year, after
the pupil's enrollment in the school district or county office of
education. The bill would prohibit a school district from
receiving the specified allowance funding
for pupils for whom it has received funding pursuant to
specified provisions of existing law authorizing funding of school
district educational services provided to foster children.
The bill would limit funding to county offices of
education and school districts for purposes of the bill to
amounts specifically appropriated in the annual Budget Act.
The bill would authorize county offices of education and school
districts to apply to the Superintendent of Public Instruction for
funding for providing educational services to foster children.
The bill would require the Superintendent, on or before
November 1 of each year, to provide the Governor with a proposed
amount to be included in the Governor's proposed budget for the
ensuing fiscal year for allocation to school districts and county
offices of education that decide to provide educational services to
foster children.
The bill would specify the total funding for these provisions to
be an amount of not more than $5,000,000, to be allocated in the
amount of not more than $1,000,000 per fiscal year during the
2006-07, 2007-08, 2008-09, 2009 -10, and 2010-11 fiscal years.
The bill would require the State Department of Education, on or
before January 1, 2012, to submit a report to the Legislature
evaluating the effectiveness of the additional funding provided under
the bill in accomplishing the purposes of the bill.
(2) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse
local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates
determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state,
reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these
statutory provisions.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes no .
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 42926 is added to the Education Code, to read:
42926. (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(1) It is essential to recognize, identify, and plan for the
critical and unique needs of foster children residing in juvenile
halls, camps, and ranches, and other settings served by juvenile
court schools.
(2) A high percentage of these foster children are performing
substantially below grade level, are being retained at least one year
in the same grade level, and become school dropouts.
(3) The provision of effective and potentially cost-saving
instruction, counseling, tutoring, and related services for foster
children must be a state priority.
(b) Accordingly, it is the intent of the Legislature, in enacting
this section, to provide additional funding to county offices of
education and school districts that provide educational services to
these pupils. It is also the intent of the Legislature that the
per-pupil funding limit for foster children enrolled in juvenile
court schools be removed after January 1, 2010, and be adjusted to
reflect the appropriate per-pupil funding for the number of foster
children enrolled in juvenile court schools.
(c) (1) The Superintendent shall establish a process to accept and
review applications from county offices of education and school
districts requesting funding under this section.
(2) The Superintendent shall approve an application for funding
only if the applicant agrees to comply with subdivision (d), as
applicable, and is either of the following:
(A) A county office of education that provides educational
services through a juvenile court school to a foster child who has
been removed from his or her home under Section 309 of the Welfare
and Institutions Code, or is the subject of a petition filed under
Section 300 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, or has been removed
from his or her home and is the subject of a petition filed under
Section 300 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
(B) A school district or county office of education that provides
educational services to a pupil who is a foster child transferring to
the school district or county office of education from a juvenile
detention hall or probation camp and has received educational
services through a juvenile court school.
(c)
(d) Each county office of education operating
that r eceives funding under this section
and operates a juvenile court school shall designate staff
persons as transition counselors who shall do all of the following:
(1) Encourage foster children to continue their education after
release from the juvenile detention facility.
(2) Assist foster children when transferring from juvenile court
school to a public school that would be in the best interests of the
foster child.
(3) Coordinate with the educational liaison of the school district
to ensure and facilitate proper educational placement and enrollment
in the public school.
(d)
(e) The educational services provided to foster
children pursuant to subdivision (b) (d)
shall include tutoring, education counseling, and assistance
when transitioning from juvenile court school to public school.
(e)
(f) Commencing with the 2006-07 fiscal year, until and
including the 2010-11 fiscal year, each county office of
education that provides educational services through a juvenile court
school to pupils who were previously identified as foster children
pursuant to Section 300 of the Welfare and Institutions Code shall
receive, in addition to the education that is selected
for funding under this section shall receive, in addition to the
base revenue limit, an allowance from the amount annually
transferred to Section A of the State School Fund.
(f)
(g) Commencing with the 2006-07 fiscal year, until and
including the 2010-11 fiscal year, each school district or county
office of education that provides educational services to a
pupil who is a foster child transferring to the school district or
county office of education from a juvenile detention hall or
probation camp and has received educational services through a
juvenile court school office of education that is
selected for funding under this section shall receive the same
funding provided under subdivision (e) (f)
for a period of at least six months, but not greater than one
year, after the enrollment of the pupil in the school district or
county office of education. A school district shall not receive funds
under this subdivision for pupils for whom it has received funding
pursuant to Section 42920.5 or 42922.
(g)
(h) A school district or county office of education
that provides educational services to foster children who transition
to public school pursuant to this section , and is selected for
funding under this section, shall receive funding in any fiscal
year for those services only from amounts that may specifically be
appropriated by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act for that
fiscal year for the support of those school centered foster children
services that provide program effectiveness and potential cost
savings to the state.
(h) A school district or county office of education that provides
educational services to foster children pursuant to this section may
apply to the Superintendent for funding for those services.
(i) On or before November 1 of each year, the Superintendent shall
provide the Governor with a proposed amount to be included in the
proposed budget of the Governor for the ensuing fiscal year for
allocation to school districts and county offices of education that
decide to provide educational services to foster children pursuant to
this section.
(j) Total funding authorized pursuant to this section shall be
limited to an amount of not more than five million dollars
($5,000,000), to be allocated in the amount of not more than one
million dollars ($1,000,000) per fiscal year during the 2006-07,
2007-08, 2008-09, 2009-10, and 2010-11 fiscal years.
(k) On or before January 1, 2012, the department shall submit a
report to the Legislature evaluating the effectiveness of the
additional funding provided under this section in accomplishing the
purposes of this section.
(l) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1,
2012, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted
statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2012, deletes or extends
that date.
SEC. 2. If the Commission on State Mandates
determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state,
reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs
shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of
Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.
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