BILL ANALYSIS
AB 2463
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Date of Hearing: April 28, 2010
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Felipe Fuentes, Chair
AB 2463 (Brownley) - As Introduced: February 19, 2010
Policy Committee: Human Services
Vote: 6 - 0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
No Reimbursable:
SUMMARY
This bill codifies the responsibilities of the statewide child
care resource and referral network. Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires resource and referral agencies (R & Rs) to provide
the following services:
a) Training and workshops on health and safety, child
development, special needs and other topics related to the
professional development of child care providers.
b) Collaborate with community partners to increase
awareness of child care issues and maximize federal, state,
and local resources.
c) Assist community and public agencies in planning,
coordinating, and improving child care in the area.
d) Facilitate efforts to expand child care services in the
local community based on demonstrated demand for services.
2)Requires the child care R & R program to develop and implement
written complaint procedures.
3)Requires the Superintendent of Public Education to allocate
state and federal funds from the Child Care and Development
Block Grant (CCDBG) quality set-aside for the California Child
Care Initiative Project - Quality Plan Program.
4)Codifies the Growing, Learning, Caring Project in order to
improve quality child care in all settings, including child
care exempt from state licensing requirements, and requires
the Superintendent of Public Education to allocate state and
federal funds for the project.
AB 2463
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FISCAL EFFECT
1)Annual funding for the California Child Care Initiative
Project - Quality Plan Program is $2.8 million annually.
Requiring the Superintendent to continue to allocate CCDBG
funds for the project creates an on-going $2.8 million cost
pressure.
2)Annual funding for the Growing, Learning, Caring Project is
$2.5 million (state and federal child care quality set-aside
funding). Requiring the Superintendent to continue to
allocate state and federal funds for the project creates an
on-going $2.5 million cost pressure.
COMMENTS
1)Purpose . The intent of AB 2463 is to clarify the role and
expertise of child care R & R programs at the state level and
the county levels to accomplish the following::
a) Ensure all families have access to information to make
the best child care choices;
b) Support and develop the child care profession through
training, education, outreach and resources;
c) Document and analyze the child care supply and demand at
local and statewide levels;
d) Educate and inform the community about child care needs,
parent needs and available resources; and
e) Ensure the integration of child care resource and
referral services in the development and implementation of
any quality improvement system.
The sponsor, the California Child Care Resource and Referral
Network (CCRRN), states that AB 2463 updates and clarifies
tasks performed by R&R programs many of which are required in
the contract Funding Terms & Conditions under Section IV
Community Assistance. CCRRN has been working with its members
over a two-year period to codify their current
responsibilities and this bill is the product of that effort.
2)Background . According to the author, CCRRN is at the forefront
of the oldest, most well-established system of child care R&R
agencies in the United States. The Network combines practical
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knowledge at the local level with extensive experience in
working on state and national child care policy.
Over the past thirty years, California's R&R services have
evolved from a grassroots effort helping parents find child
care, to a system that supports parents, providers, and local
communities in finding, planning for, and providing
affordable, quality child care. R&Rs are the only state and
federally-funded programs that serve all parents regardless of
income and all types of child care providers. Every county in
California is served by at least one R&R agency.
The Child Development Division of the California Department of
Education administers the R&Rs' state contracts. California
has allocated state funds for the local R&Rs to provide
services since 1976. The R&R funding has grown from $900,000
in 1976 to a current budget in FY 2009-2010 of $19,438,000, a
mixture of state and federal funds ($3.6 million in federal
funding).
Analysis Prepared by : Julie Salley-Gray / APPR. / (916)
319-2081