BILL ANALYSIS �
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1806
Author: Bloom (D)
Amended: As introduced
Vote: 21
SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE : 6-0, 6/4/14
AYES: Liu, Wyland, Block, Hancock, Huff, Monning
NO VOTE RECORDED: Correa
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 6-0, 8/14/14
AYES: De Le�n, Gaines, Hill, Lara, Padilla, Steinberg
NO VOTE RECORDED: Walters
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 75-0, 4/24/14 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Homeless students
SOURCE : National Association for the Education of Homeless
Children andYouth
DIGEST : This bill extends policies and procedures for
suspension, expulsion, graduation requirements and completed
coursework to students who are homeless that are currently
provided to students who are in foster care.
ANALYSIS :
Homeless Children and Youth
Existing law:
CONTINUED
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1.The federal McKinney-Vento Act defines "homeless children and
youths" as children and youths who lack a fixed, regular, and
adequate nighttime residence, and includes children and youths
who, among other situations, are sharing the housing of other
persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a
similar reason; are living in motels, hotels, trailer parks,
or camping grounds due to the lack of alternative adequate
accommodations.
2.The federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Children and Youths
Program requires state educational agencies to ensure that
homeless children and youth have equal access to the same free
public education as is provided to other children and youth.
States are required to review and undertake steps to revise
any laws, regulations, practices, or policies that may act as
barriers to the enrollment, attendance, or success in school
of homeless children and youth.
3.The McKinney-Vento Act requires each local educational agency
to designate a staff person as a liaison for homeless children
and youth, and carry out specific duties, such as ensuring
immediate enrollment, access to educational opportunities
offered to other students, and providing notice of the rights
of homeless youth.
Expulsion
Existing law:
1.Authorizes schools to suspend and recommend expulsion for
various acts, and requires schools to immediately suspend and
recommend expulsion for certain acts.
2.Entitles students to a hearing to determine whether the
student should be expelled, to be held within 30 schooldays
after the date the principal or superintendent recommended
expulsion. Written notice of the hearing must be sent to the
student at least 10 calendar days prior to the hearing, and
include specific information.
3.Requires school districts that use discretion to recommend
expulsion (rather than mandatory recommendation for expulsion)
of a student with exceptional needs who is also a foster youth
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to invite the youth's attorney and a representative of the
county child welfare agency to the individualized education
program (IEP) team meeting that makes a manifestation
determination.
4.If the decision to recommend expulsion is discretionary and
the student is a foster youth, requires school districts to
provide notice of the expulsion hearing to the student's
attorney and representative of the county child welfare agency
at least 10 calendar days before the date of the hearing.
School districts are authorized to provide this notification
if a recommendation for expulsion is required.
Graduation Requirements
Existing law:
1.Requires a student to pass both the English language arts and
mathematics portions of the California High School Exit Exam
and complete the following courses as a condition of
graduating from high school:
Three years of English.
Two years of mathematics.
Two years of science, including biological and physical
sciences.
Three years of social studies, including United States
history and geography; world history, culture, and
geography; one semester of American government and civics,
and one semester of economics.
One year of visual or performing arts, foreign language,
or until July 1, 2017, career technical education.
Two years of physical education.
1.Requires one of the two years of mathematics to meet or exceed
the rigor of the content standards for Algebra I.
2.Authorizes school districts to impose additional coursework
requirements as a condition of graduation from high school.
3.Requires school districts to exempt a student in foster care
from district graduation requirements that exceed state
requirements if the student transfers schools any time after
the completion of the student's second year of high school,
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unless the district makes a finding that the student is
reasonably able to complete the additional requirements in
time to graduate from high school by the end of the student's
fourth year of high school.
Credit for Coursework Completed
Existing law requires school districts to accept coursework
satisfactorily completed by a student in foster care while
attending another public school, a juvenile court school, or a
non-public school or agency even if the student did not complete
the entire course. School districts are required to issue full
or partial credit for the coursework completed.
This bill extends policies and procedures for expulsion,
graduation requirements and completed coursework to students who
are homeless that are currently provided to students who are in
foster care. Specifically, this bill:
Expulsion
1.Requires school districts to provide notice to the district's
liaison for homeless students at least 10 calendar days prior
to a hearing when the decision to expel a homeless student is
discretionary.
2.Authorizes school districts to provide notice to the
district's liaison for homeless students at least 10 calendar
days prior to a hearing when the decision to expel a homeless
student is mandatory.
3.Requires school districts to invite the district's liaison for
homeless students to the individualized education program team
meeting that makes a manifestation determination prior to the
expulsion of a student with exceptional needs and who is
homeless.
Graduation Requirements
1.Requires school districts to exempt homeless students who
transfer schools any time after the completion of the
student's second year of high school from all coursework and
other requirements adopted by the school district that are in
addition to the statewide coursework requirements, unless the
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district finds that the student is reasonably able to complete
the additional coursework in time to graduate by the end of
the student's fourth year of high school.
2.Requires school districts to take specified action relative to
the exempting homeless students from additional graduation
requirements that districts currently undertake with regard to
exempting foster youth from additional graduation
requirements, such as:
Notification to the student, person holding the right to
make educational decisions, and district liaison of the
availability of the exemption and whether the student
qualifies. Notification is required within 30 calendar
days of the date that a homeless student may qualify for
the exemption transfer into a school.
Inform the student of the option to remain in school for
a fifth year to complete the additional coursework, permit
the student to stay in school for a fifth year to complete
the additional coursework, not require the student to
accept the exemption, and not require or request the
student to graduate before the end of the fourth year of
high school.
Notify the student and the person holding the right to
make educational decisions for the student how any of the
requirements that are waived will affect the student's
ability to gain admission to a postsecondary educational
institution and provide information about transfer
opportunities available through the California Community
Colleges.
Exempt an eligible student at any time, not revoke the
exemption, not require or request a student to transfer
school in order to qualify for the exemption.
Completed coursework
1.Requires school districts and county offices of education to
accept coursework satisfactorily completed by a homeless
student even if the entire course was not completed, and
requires the issuance of full or partial credit for the
coursework completed.
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2.Prohibits school districts and county offices of education
from requiring homeless students to retake a course if the
student has satisfactorily completed the entire course, and
prohibits the student to be required to retake any portion of
the course that the student satisfactorily completed.
3.Requires a homeless student to be enrolled in the same or
equivalent course when partial credit is awarded, and
prohibits a homeless student from being prevented from
retaking a course to meet eligibility for admission to
postsecondary educational institutions.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee, potentially
significant costs to expand a statutory mandate on local
educational agencies (LEAs). Costs would likely be minor for
each LEA, but would likely exceed $100,000 (General Fund)
statewide.
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/18/14)
National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and
Youth (source)
California Alliance of Child and Family Services
California Coalition for Youth
Disability Rights California
John Burton Foundation
Junior League of Orange County
Los Angeles County Office of Education
National Association of Social Workers, California Chapter
Public Counsel
Sacramento Regional Coalition to End Homelessness
South Bay Community Services
StudentsFirst
The Salvation Army
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 75-0, 4/24/14
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Bigelow, Bloom,
Bocanegra, Bonilla, Bonta, Bradford, Brown, Buchanan, Ian
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Calderon, Campos, Chau, Ch�vez, Chesbro, Conway, Cooley,
Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dickinson, Donnelly, Eggman, Fong, Fox,
Frazier, Beth Gaines, Garcia, Gatto, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon,
Gorell, Grove, Hagman, Hall, Roger Hern�ndez, Holden, Jones,
Jones-Sawyer, Levine, Linder, Logue, Lowenthal, Maienschein,
Medina, Melendez, Mullin, Muratsuchi, Nestande, Olsen, Pan,
Patterson, Perea, V. Manuel P�rez, Quirk, Quirk-Silva, Rendon,
Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Skinner, Stone, Ting, Wagner,
Waldron, Weber, Wieckowski, Wilk, Williams, Yamada, John A.
P�rez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Gray, Harkey, Mansoor, Nazarian, Vacancy
PQ:nl 8/19/14 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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