BILL ANALYSIS �
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Carol Liu, Chair
2013-2014 Regular Session
BILL NO: AB 1944
AUTHOR: Garcia
INTRODUCED: February 19, 2014
FISCAL COMM: Yes HEARING DATE: June 25, 2014
URGENCY: No CONSULTANT:Lynn Lorber
SUBJECT : Subsidized child care: 11 and12-year olds.
SUMMARY
This bill deletes the requirement that a parent of an 11 or
12 year old student provide certification that a before or
after school program is not available, for the student to be
eligible for subsidized child care.
BACKGROUND
Current law:
1) Provides that the preferred child care placement for
students who are 11 or 12 years old and who are
otherwise eligible for subsidized child care is in a
before or after school program. Students who are 11 or
12 years old are eligible for subsidized child care only
for the portion of care needed that is not available in
a before or after school program. (Education Code �
8263.4)
2) Provides that a before or after school program is to be
considered not available when a parent certifies in
writing, on a form provided by the California Department
of Education (CDE), the reason(s) why the program would
not meet the child care needs of the family. The
reasons why a before or after school program is to be
considered not available includes, but not be limited
to, any of the following:
a) The program does not provide services when
needed during the year, such as during the summer,
school breaks, or intersession.
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b) The program does not provide services when
needed during the day, such as in the early
morning, evening, or weekend hours.
c) The program is too geographically distant from
the child's school of attendance, or from the
parents' residence.
d) Use of the program would create substantial
transportation obstacles for the family.
e) Any other reason that makes the use of before
or after school care inappropriate for the child or
burdensome on the family. (EC � 8263.4)
3) Provides that if an 11 or 12 year old who is enrolled in
a subsidized child care program becomes ineligible for
subsidized child care and is disenrolled from the before
or after school program, or if the before or after
school program no longer meets the child care needs of
the family, the student shall be given priority to
return to the subsidized child care program upon the
parent's notification of the contractor of the need for
child care. (EC � 8263.4)
4) Requires the savings generated each contract year to
remain with each alternative payment program, child
development center, or other contractor for the
provision of child care services, except for care
provided to CalWORKs recipients. Current law requires
each contractor to report annually to the CDE the amount
of savings, and requires the CDE to report annually to
the Legislature the amount of savings statewide
resulting from that implementation. (EC � 8263.4)
ANALYSIS
This bill deletes the requirement that a parent of an 11 or
12 year old student provide certification that a before or
after school program is not available, for the student to be
eligible for subsidized child care. Specifically, this bill:
1) Deletes the criteria for a before or after school
program to be considered unavailable when a parent
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certifies in writing, on a form provided by the
California Department of Education (CDE), the reason why
a before or after school program would not meet the
child care needs of the family.
2) Deletes the allowable reasons why a before or after
school program is considered unavailable, as described
in the Background section of this analysis.
3) Deletes the requirement that the child care contractor
report annually to the CDE the amount of savings
resulting from the placement of 11 and 12 year olds in
before or after school programs rather than in
subsidized child care. This bill also deletes the
requirement that CDE report annually to the Legislature
the amount of statewide savings.
STAFF COMMENTS
1) Eligibility . Families may be eligible for state and
federally subsidized child care through participation in
CalWORKs, or based on income and need for child care
services. Income eligibility for families that are not
current recipients of CalWORKs is established at 70% of
the state median income ($46,896 for a family of four)
or if they are recipients of child protective services
and if they can show need for child care services.
Enrollment in a before or after school program is not based
on income eligibility. All students are eligible to
attend a before or after school program.
2) Preferred placement of 11 or 12 year olds . The 2004
Budget Act included the policy statement that it is the
preference of the state to place 11- or 12-year olds in
after school programs prior to accessing subsidized
child care services. This provision was later amended
to also include before school programs. A parent who is
eligible for subsidized child care may seek child care
services if he or she is unable to obtain before or
after school program enrollment for his or her 11- or
12-year-old student, if the parent provides to the child
care provider a written certification that before or
after school programs are unavailable.
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3) How many students ?
The chart below is derived from the California Department
Education's (CDE) November 2013 report to the
Legislature:
------------------------------------------------------
| |
| Preferred Placement for Children Ages Eleven or |
| Twelve |
| |
------------------------------------------------------
|--------------------+---------------+----------------|
| | FY 2010-11 | FY 2011-12 |
|--------------------+---------------+----------------|
|Number of agencies | 104 | 107 |
|that reported | | |
|--------------------+---------------+----------------|
|Number of children | 813 | 436 |
|who were served by | | |
|before or after | | |
|school programs | | |
|instead of | | |
|CDE-subsidized | | |
|child care and | | |
|development | | |
|programs | | |
|--------------------+---------------+----------------|
|Estimated Savings | $484,318 |$258,233 |
|(EC �8263.4(g)) | | |
-----------------------------------------------------
Source: California Department of Education:
Report to the Legislature: Preferred
Placement for Children Ages Eleven or Twelve: Savings
Resulting from Implementation
The current certification process provides the
opportunity for CDE to sanction providers of subsidized
child care if the certification is not provided, is not
complete, or does not contain acceptable rationale for
the unavailability of before or after school programs.
It is not likely that families who do not provide the
certification would be disenrolled from subsidized child
care.
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4) Fiscal impact . According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, this bill would impose unknown annual General
Fund costs, not likely to exceed $250,000. This assumes
students are served by subsidized child care programs
instead of by before or after school programs.
SUPPORT
Bananas
Bay Area Family Child Care Providers Support Group
California Alternative Payment Program Association (CAPPA)
Californians for Quality Early Learning (CQEL)
CAPPA Children's Foundation
CDI/Choices for Children
CDR-Child Development Resources
Chicano Federation of San Diego County
Child Care Alliance Los Angeles
Child Care Coordinating Council of San Mateo
Child Care Links
Child Development Associates, Inc.
Children's Council of San Francisco
Choices for Children
Community Action Partnership of San Luis Obispo
Community Child Care Council (4C's) of Alameda County
Community Child Care Council (4C's) of Sonoma County
Community Child Care Council of Sonoma County
Community Resources for Children
Davis Street Family Resource Center
Del Norte Child Care Council
Family Resource and Referral Center
Go Kids, Inc.
Kids Kare Schools
Kinder Care
Knowledge Universe United States
Mexican American Opportunity Foundation (MAOF)
North Coast Opportunities (NCO)
Options
Santa Cruz County Parents Association
Sierra Nevada Children's Services
Siskiyou Child Care Council
Supportive Services, Inc.
Valley Oak Children's Services
WuYee Children's Services
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YMCA Childcare Resource Service
OPPOSITION
None on file.