BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Gloria Romero, Chair
2009-2010 Regular Session
BILL NO: AB 2089
AUTHOR: Coto
AMENDED: June 14, 2010
FISCAL COMM: Yes HEARING DATE: June 30, 2010
URGENCY: No CONSULTANT:Lynn Lorber
SUBJECT : American Indian Education Centers
KEY POLICY ISSUES
Should the sunset on the California American Indian Education
Center program be extended by five years to January 1, 2017?
Should the California Department of Education (CDE) be
required to submit a report by January 1, 2016, considering
that the CDE will not complete the evaluation required by
January 1, 2011?
Will the Centers report data to the CDE and will CDE complete
the report and evaluation considering the requirement to do
so is not enforceable due to categorical flexibility?
SUMMARY
This bill extends the sunset date of the California American
Indian Education Center (Centers) program by five years to
January 1, 2017, and requires the California Department of
Education (CDE) to conduct an evaluation of the Centers by
January 1, 2016.
BACKGROUND
Current law:
1) Establishes the Center program to serve as
community-based educational resource centers to American
Indian pupils, parents, guardians, and public schools in
order to promote the academic and cultural achievement
of American Indian pupils. (Education Code 33381)
2) Requires the CDE, by January 1, 2011, to conduct an
evaluation of the Centers to determine whether to renew
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the application of each existing center or instead to
approve a new center. The Centers are required to
annually report data determined by the CDE to measure
program performance. (EC 33370)
3) Requires each Center to annually submit a report to the
CDE that includes appropriate data that reflects each
Center's ability to meet its stated objectives, measure
pupil academic performance, and meets the continued
educational and cultural needs of the community that the
Center serves.
(EC 62000.14)
4) Requires the CDE, by January 1, 2011, to report
consolidated results for all Centers and supply
information that is required for a comprehensive
evaluation of those results, and make recommendations
for program improvement. (EC 62000.14)
5) Requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI),
with input from existing Center directors, to appoint an
American Indian Education Oversight Committee (oversight
committee) by January 30, 2007, for the purpose of
providing input and advice to the SPI on all aspects of
American Indian education programs established by the
state. The membership of the oversight committee is to
include at least seven educators, four of whom must be
Center directors, and requires all members to have
proven knowledge of current educational policies
relating to, and issues faced by, American Indian
communities in California. (EC 33370)
6) Sunsets the Center program on January 1, 2012. (EC
62000.14)
ANALYSIS
This bill extends the sunset date of the California American
Indian Education Center program by five years, and requires
the California Department of Education to conduct an
evaluation of the Centers. Specifically, this bill:
1) Requires the CDE, by January 1, 2016, to conduct an
evaluation of the Centers to determine whether to renew
the application of each existing Center or instead to
approve an application to establish a new Center.
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2) Requires the CDE, by January 1, 2016, to report
consolidated results for all Centers and supply
information that is required for a comprehensive
evaluation of those results, and make recommendations
for program improvement.
3) Sunsets the Centers on January 1, 2017.
4) Authorizes the Superintendent of Public Instruction
(SPI) to appoint to the American Indian Education
Oversight Committee an educator that is not a Center
director to fill a vacancy in one of the four positions
designated for Center directors, if the SPI is unable to
find a qualified individual to fill a vacancy within 30
days of the vacancy arising.
5) Moves provisions relative to the annual report,
technical assistance, and the sunset date from the
Evaluation and Sunsetting of Programs section of the
Education Code to sections relating to California Indian
Education Centers.
STAFF COMMENTS
1) Need for the bill . According to the author, "American
Indian Education Centers provide a vital link between
American Indian education and the California Department
of Education. In 2007, with input from existing center
directors, the SPI appointed 11 members to serve on the
American Indian Education Oversight Committee. Since
2008, two of the positions to be held only by American
Indian education center directors have been vacant. The
inability to fill the two vacancies has made it
difficult to obtain a quorum for the oversight committee
and hampered its ability to conduct business on a
regular basis."
2) Effect of categorical flexibility . SB 4 of the Third
Extraordinary Session (Ducheny, Ch. 12, February 2009),
provided school districts with fiscal and policy
flexibility related to over 40 categorical programs
between the 2008-09 fiscal year to the 2012-13 fiscal
year, which allows districts to use categorical funding
for any educational purpose. This flexibility also
means that Centers no longer have to comply with
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statutes relative to the program, including the
requirements to report outcome data to the California
Department of Education (CDE). Current law requires the
CDE to conduct an evaluation of the Centers by January
1, 2011, but CDE indicates it will not be conducting
this evaluation because categorical flexibility granted
relief from program requirements. Will adding another
due date for the evaluation compel the CDE to complete
this evaluation? (Education Code 42605)
3) Oversight committee . When the American Indian Education
Oversight Committee (oversight committee) was first
convened in 2007, the membership was in compliance with
statute requiring that four of the seven members of the
committee had to be Center directors. However,
according to information provided by the CDE, two of the
members that were Center directors resigned during the
summer of 2008. The Superintendent of Public
Instruction (SPI) conducted a search and tried to fill
the vacancies with Center directors but was
unsuccessful. Questions emerged as to whether the
committee should continue to meet given that the
membership of the oversight committee was out of
compliance with the statute, as a result of the two
Center director vacancies. Per the advice of the CDE's
legal office, the SPI suspended the meetings of the
committee for about a year. Concerned that the
oversight committee was not meeting and considering that
the SPI had conducted a thorough effort to fill the
vacancies, the CDE legal office advised that the
oversight committee resume their meetings in 2009. At a
meeting of the oversight committee, the membership
considered recommending legislation to allow for
flexibility in filling vacancies. The recommendation
from the oversight committee is embodied in this bill.
4) Fiscal impact . According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, this bill would impose annual General
Fund/Proposition 98 costs of approximately $3.6 million
to extend the authorization of the 27 Center programs
until 2017.
SUPPORT
Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians
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Barona Band of Mission Indians
Big Sandy Rancheria Band of Western Mono Indians
California Nations Indian Gaming Association
California School Boards Association
California Valley Miwok Tribe
Greenville Rancheria
National Indian Education Association
Rincon Band of Luise?o Indians
San Manuel Band of Mission Indians
Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians
Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians
Smith River Rancheria
OPPOSITION
None received.