BILL ANALYSIS
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair
2463 (Brownley)
Hearing Date: 08/09/2010 Amended: 08/03/2010
Consultant: Dan Troy Policy Vote: ED 6-2
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BILL SUMMARY: AB 2463 would codify and update the activities
and responsibilities of child care resource and referral
programs.
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Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 Fund
Child Care R&Rs Pressure in the millions
to continue funding General*
*Counts toward meeting the Proposition 98 minimum funding
guarantee
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STAFF COMMENTS: This bill meets the criteria for referral to the
Suspense File.
Child care resource and referral programs (R&Rs) help parents
find child care by identifying the full range of existing public
and private, licensed and license-exempt, subsidized or
fee-based, child care services. Located in every county in the
state, R&Rs give parents information such as types of programs
that are available, the hours of service, ages of children
served, and fees and eligibility for services. R&Rs also
develop and provide training on a variety of topics for
providers and work with community resources and public agencies
to help develop local child care plans. The roles and
responsibilities of R&Rs are dispersed throughout the Education
and Health & Safety Codes, regulations, and in the Funding Terms
and Conditions developed by the Department of Education. A
total of $19.4 million was appropriated for R&R activities in
the 2009 Budget Act.
This bill would codify and update many of the roles and
responsibilities of R&Rs in the Education Code. The bill would:
Replace language that established a fixed funding rate
for R&Rs with a general funding allocation statement.
Require that the referral process be described in
writing and available to all parents and providers on
request, regardless of income level or eligibility
requirements.
Cross reference provisions in the Health and Safety Code
that the distribution of lists of small family day care
homes, except as specified.
Expands methods of referral access to include e-mail and
other appropriate technology.
Expand required documentation of requests to include
inquiries about child care supply information (number of
licensed child programs, licensed family day care
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AB 2463 (Brownley)
homes, etc.), and any other requests for child care
information not otherwise enumerated.
Expand required technical assistance activities,
including the provision of training and workshops on health
and safety and child development, the dissemination of
information concerning community resources, child care
statistics, the provision of local planning assistance, and
the facilitation of efforts to expand local services.
Require the development and implementation of a written
complaint process, as specified.
Specify that certain types of information must be
provided free of charge to parents providers while fees may
be charged for the provision of enhanced referral and
specified activities (e.g., professional development).
Clarify that there are state and local distinctions to
the California Child Care Initiative Project.
Require R&Rs to provide professional development to
support the development of new child care services and
improve program quality.
Require the maximization of parental choice through the
provision of information detailing specified options and
alternatives.
Add new responsibilities regarding the implementation of
the trustline registry program.
While most of these activities appear to be authorized through
regulations or other means, the committee views codification as
a cost pressure for the specified activities. Codifying
activities in statute make activities an ongoing obligation
whereas regulations can be more easily amended or deleted. The
pressure to continue funding the R&R activities is likely in the
millions. Staff also notes that the fee-for-service authority
lacks detail that would help discern which activities must be
provided without charge and which may be fee-based.