BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 4X|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 4X
Author: Evans (D)
Amended: 12/18/08
Vote: 21
WITHOUT REFERENCE TO COMMITTEE
SUBJECT : Budget Act of 2008
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill implements funding reductions to the
2008 Budget for K-12 programs, including child care, and
community colleges and makes related statutory changes.
ANALYSIS :
This bill makes the following changes to the 2008 Budget:
1. Revenue Limit Deficit Factors . Increases the 2008-09
county office of education revenue limit deficit factor
from 4.396 percent to 5.050 percent and increases the
2008-09 school district revenue limit deficit factor
from 4.713 percent to 5.357 percent to reflect the
withdrawal of the 0.68 percent cost of living allowance
(COLA) provided in the 2008 budget. (Sections 2 & 10)
2. Instructional Materials . Suspends the statutory
requirement that local educational agencies (LEAs) buy
newly-adopted instructional materials in 2008-09 and
CONTINUED
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2009-10 to conform to funding reductions. For 2008-09
and 2009-10 only, suspends the requirement that local
educational agencies purchase newly-adopted textbooks
for students to use. (Sections 1 & 15)
3. Routine Maintenance Reserves . For 2008-09 only, reduces
the amount that school districts are required to set
aside in "routine restricted maintenance accounts" from
three percent to one percent of their General Fund
budgets.
(Section 3)
4. Deferred Maintenance . Eliminates the requirement in
2008-09 that school districts that fail to set at least
a half percent of their "current-year revenue limit
average daily attendance" funding for maintenance of
facilities must submit a related report to the
Legislature. This requirement becomes operative again
in 2009-10. (Sections 4-5)
5. Funding for Emergency Repair Program . Eliminates the
$100 million appropriation made in the 2008-09 Budget
Act for the Emergency Repair Program and redirects all
$100 million to Regional Occupational Centers and
Programs to achieve budget savings. Suspends any
transfer of funds from the Proposition 98 Reversion
Account into the School Facilities Emergency Repair
Account for 2008-09 and 2009-10. Prohibits school
districts from using School Facilities Emergency Repair
Account funds to supplant state funds provided for
deferred maintenance and from depositing these funds
into district deferred maintenance accounts. (Sections
6, 7, 22)
6. Proposition 98 Settle-Up Payments . Specifies that $1.1
billion in 2008-09 funding appropriated above the
Proposition 98 minimum guarantee shall be scored in
satisfaction of Proposition 98 "settle-up" obligations,
replacing annual payments of $150 million that would
otherwise be made in 2009-10 and future years.
(Sections 8 & 17)
7. Pupil Retention Block Grant . Restricts apportionment of
2008-09 pupil retention block grant funds to districts
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operating continuation high schools to conform to
funding reductions. (Section 9)
8. Charter School Categorical Block Grant . Reduces the
2008-09 per-student allocation made from the charter
school categorical block grant from $500 to $400 to
match categorical program reductions for K-12 schools.
(Section 11)
9. Suspend Oral Health Assessment Mandate . Suspends the
oral health assessment record-keeping mandate in 2008-09
and 2009-10 to conform to funding reductions for this
program. (Section 12)
10. Program Improvement Schools . Suspends the requirement
that schools identified for federal Program Improvement
must participate in the Math and Reading Professional
Development (MRPD) Program or the Administrator Training
Program in 2008-09 and 2009-10. These changes conform
to funding reductions for the MRPD program. (Section
13)
11. High Priority Schools . Suspends the requirement that
schools participating in the High Priority Schools Grant
Program must participate in the MRPD Program or the
Administrator Training Program in 2008-09 and 2009-10.
These changes conform to funding reductions for the High
Priority Schools program. (Section 14)
12. K-14 Categorical Program Savings . Captures
approximately $99 million in unspent past-year funds and
expected current year savings for K-14 programs. These
funds are reappropriated to ROC/Ps in 2008-09, reducing
that program by the same amount in order to achieve
budget savings. (Sections 18 & 23)
13. Child Care . Reduces 2008-09 Proposition 98
appropriations for child care by nearly $95 million.
This includes $76 million in anticipated program savings
and $19 million in federal fund offsets. (Sections 19 &
20)
14. Teacher Credentialing Block Grant . Reduces 2008-09
Proposition 98 support for the Teacher Credentialing
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Block Grant by $36 million and specifies that
individuals' participation in the program is limited to
two years. (Section 21)
15. Community College Savings and Reductions :
A. Captures approximately $3.6 million in unspent
current and prior year savings. (Section 23)
B. Cuts approximately $153 million in Community
College programmatic spending in 2008-09 including:
eliminating funding for the 0.68 percent COLA,
physical plant and instructional support, and
reimbursable state mandates. Reduces funding for
enrollment growth, Career Technical Education and
most categorical programs. Maintains 2008-09
Budget Act funding levels for Basic Skills,
Services to Disabled Students, Services to
California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to
Kids Students, Educational Opportunity Programs,
Matriculation, and Financial Aid Administration.
(Sections 16, 25, 26)
C. Authorizes the Community Colleges to use unspent
prior-year Puente Project funds to fully offset a
reduction for this program and achieve budget
savings. (Sections 27 & 29)
16. Teacher Preparation Programs . Makes various changes to
conform to reductions for the Alternative Certification
Program and the Paraprofessional Teacher Training
Program administered by the Commission on Teacher
Credentialing. (Section 24)
17.Control Section 12.40. Deletes home-to-school
transportation from the list of categorical programs
that LEA may shift to other categorical programs.
(Section 28)
18. Various K-12 Categorical Program Reductions . Reduces
2008-09 Proposition 98 appropriations for various
categorical programs by approximately $1.8 billion in
order to achieve budget savings. (Section 29)
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19. Ending Fund Balances for Restricted K-12 Programs .
Authorizes LEAs to use ending fund balances as of June
30, 2008, in most restricted, categorical program
accounts, to backfill approximately $1.8 billion in
categorical program reductions made in this bill.
Districts will not be able to access ending balances for
Economic Impact Aid, Targeted Instructional Improvement
Grants, Instructional Materials, Special Education,
Quality Education Investment Act, California High School
Exit Exam Supplemental Instruction, and Home-to-School
Transportation. Requires LEAs who elect to use this
authority to submit a related report to the
Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI), and requires
the SPI to compile those reports and submit the
information to the Legislature by October 31, 2009.
(Section 30)
20. SPI Implementation of K-12 Program Reductions . Gives
the SPI the authority to reduce principal apportionments
to school districts and community colleges to implement
program reductions enacted by this bill if: (a) the
State Controller has already disbursed funds for
programs reduced; and (b) the SPI has determined there
is no other way to recover these disbursed funds.
(Section 31)
This bill will only become operative if either AB 2 or SB 2
and either AB 9 or SB 9 of the First Extraordinary Session
are enacted and become operative on or before January 1,
2009.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
DLW:do 12/18/08 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: NONE RECEIVED
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