BILL ANALYSIS
AB 167
Page A
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 167 (Adams)
As Amended June 17, 2009
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |79-0 |(May 4, 2009) |SENATE: |32-0 |(September 2, |
| | | | | |2009) |
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Original Committee Reference: ED.
SUMMARY : Requires school districts to exempt a pupil in foster
care from district graduation requirements that exceed state
requirements if the pupil transfers to the district, or
transfers from one high school to another within a district, in
the 11th or 12th grade, unless the district makes a finding that
the pupil is reasonably able to complete the additional
requirements in time to graduate from high school while he or
she remains eligible for foster care benefits pursuant to state
law, and requires the district to notify and provide specified
information to the pupil if the exemption granted would affect
the pupil's ability to gain admission to a postsecondary
institution.
The Senate amendments:
1)Specify that a pupil in foster care shall be exempted from
coursework and other requirements adopted by the governing
board that are in addition to the statewide coursework
requirements.
2)Clarify that the exemption applies to pupils in foster care
that transfer between high schools within the district.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Prescribes the course of study a pupil is required to complete
while in grades 9 to 12, inclusive, to receive a diploma of
graduation, including additional coursework the governing
board of a school district is authorized to specify by rule.
2)Requires school districts and county offices of education to
accept for credit full or partial coursework satisfactorily
completed by a pupil while attending a public school, juvenile
AB 167
Page B
court school or nonpublic, nonsectarian school or agency.
3)Allows a child who is in foster care and who is attending high
school or the equivalent level of vocational or technical
training on a full-time basis, or is in the process of
pursuing a high school equivalency certificate, prior to
his/her 18th birthday, to continue to receive foster care aid
following his/her 18th birthday so long as the child continues
to reside in a foster care placement, and continues to attend
high school or the equivalent on a full-time basis, and the
child is reasonably expected to complete the educational or
training program or to receive a high school equivalency
certificate, before his/her 19th birthday.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY, this bill was substantially similar
to the version passed by the Senate.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, assuming 2,500 to 5,000 annual notifications are
necessitated by this bill, this bill would result in state
reimbursable mandated costs of $75,000 to $150,000.
COMMENTS : As of January 2009, there are 71,590 children in
California's foster care system. Children in the foster care
system often experience multiple residential placements and
multiple school changes. The frequent changes in the lives of
foster youth can have detrimental effects on their academic
achievement.
According to a report from the California Education
Collaborative for Children in Foster Care, about 50% of foster
youth have been held back in school, 46% will not complete high
school, and fewer than 3% will go on to a four-year college.
The report further points out that most children who enter the
foster care system are already a full academic year behind their
peers.<1>
AB 490 (Steinberg), Chapter 862, Statutes of 2003, created
several protections to provide school stability for children in
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<1> "Ready to Succeed: Changing Systems to Give California's
Foster Children the Opportunities They Deserve to be Ready for
and Succeed in School." Recommendations to Improve School
Readiness, School Success, and Data Sharing. The Collaborative
for Children in Foster Care. January 2008.
AB 167
Page C
foster care by allowing them to remain in their school of origin
for the duration of the school year when their residential
placement changes and when remaining in the same school is in
the child's best interest. The protections in AB 490 also
included a requirement for school districts to calculate and
accept credit for full or partial coursework satisfactorily
completed by the student and earned during attendance at a
public school, juvenile court, or nonpublic, nonsectarian
school.
This bill grants an automatic exemption to eligible students in
foster care from having to meet local coursework graduation
requirements in addition to the state required courses which a
pupil in foster care may not be able to complete due to the
frequent residential and/or school changes.
Arguments in support: The San Bernardino County Board of
Supervisors writes, "A foster child who is in high school who
has taken the required classes in their previous school district
may find that their new high school requires additional classes,
over and beyond those they have already taken to graduate.
Completing these new classes would likely not present a problem
to a freshman, who would have the time to take the required
classes before they graduate. These additional requirements
could present a real problem to a foster child who is a junior
or a senior, and who may not have the time to complete these
additional classes."
Related legislation: AB 12 (Beall) requires the state to
exercise its option under specified federal law to establish a
kinship guardianship assistance payment program, and requires
the Department of Social Services to amend its foster care state
plan required under specified federal law, to extend foster care
benefits to specified individuals up to 21 years of age, in
accordance federal law. AB 12 is a two-year bill pending in the
Assembly Appropriations Committee.
Prior legislation: An identical measure AB 2138 (Adams) of
2008, requires school districts to exempt a pupil in foster care
who transfers to the district in grade 11 or 12 and would not be
able to graduate from high school by his/her 19th birthday from
the additional graduation coursework requirements the governing
board has adopted, and requires districts to provide
notification to such pupils, as specified. AB 2138 was vetoed
by Governor Schwarzenegger.
AB 167
Page D
The veto message read, "This bill attempts to create a statewide
policy of exempting certain foster care students from
district-specific graduation requirements. In doing so, this
bill would usurp the authority of local school boards to
determine the conditions under which students should be granted
diplomas. Beyond the current minimum statewide requirements,
local school boards have the ability to waive their own local
graduation requirements based on the merit of each student's
case. This bill would undermine their ability to judge each
individual student's particular circumstances."
Analysis Prepared by : Marisol Avi?a / ED. / (916) 319-2087
FN: 0002625