SB 63 Senate Bill - Bill Analysis

BILL ANALYSIS �

SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Carol Liu, Chair
2013-2014 Regular Session

BILL NO: SB 63
AUTHOR: Wolk
INTRODUCED: January 9, 2013
FISCAL COMM: Yes HEARING DATE: May 1, 2013
URGENCY: No CONSULTANT:Daniel Alvarez

SUBJECT : School attendance: high schools.

SUMMARY

This bill provides funding to a basic aid school district that
enrolls students, who do not reside in an area that includes
either a unified or high school district. The level of funding
provided would be equivalent to 70 percent of the statewide
revenue limit for high schools for each unit of average daily
attendance (ADA) generated.

BACKGROUND

Current law states that any person who is eligible to attend
high school and who does not reside in a high school district or
in a unified school district may attend high school in any high
school district or unified school district in the county where
he/she resides or in another county. (Education Code � 48031).

Current law authorizes inter-district transfers known as the
"school districts of choice" authorization in which the
governing board of a school district may declare the district to
be a "district of choice" willing to accept a specified number
of inter-district transfers. A "district of choice" is not
required to admit pupils but those pupils that it does elect to
admit must be selected through a random process that prohibits
enrollment based on academic or athletic performance. School
districts of choice must give priority for attendance to
siblings of children already in attendance in that district. (EC
� 48300 et seq.)

Finally, current law specifies that for any school district of
choice that is a basic aid district, the apportionment (state
funding) for any ADA credited as a result of district of choice,
shall be 70 percent of the district revenue limit that would

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have been apportioned to the district of residence. (EC �
48310(c)).

ANALYSIS

1) Requires the State Superintendent of Public Instruction
(SPI) to compute an allowance, for a basic aid school, that
provides 70 percent of the statewide average high school
revenue limit per unit of average daily attendance, as
specified.

2) Specifies for the purpose of this measure, a basic aid
school district means a school district that does not
receive revenue limit funding from the state, for any
fiscal year in which the measure is applied.

3) Requires the apportionment allowance, computed under this
measure, be computed only with respect to school districts
that accept pupils residing in the territory, or within an
elementary school district, that was not within the
territory of either a high school district or a unified
school district during the 2012-13 fiscal year.

STAFF COMMENTS

1) Need for the bill . According to the author, two school
districts in Napa County, Howell Mountain Elementary and
Pope Valley Elementary school districts are the only two
school districts in the state that are not incorporated
into the boundaries of a high school or unified school
district. This means there is no natural "neighborhood"
high school in which the matriculating 8th graders from
those districts are enrolled. Those students are
authorized to enroll in any district (with a high school)
of their choice. At present, most if not all pupils
matriculate from the two elementary school districts to St.
Helena Unified School District.

2) A little history, a lawsuit and a dilemma . Initially, St.
Helena USD was able to accommodate the flow of students

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from the elementary school districts, however, over time,
approximately 20 percent (100 students) of the student body
attending St. Helena High School are from the two
elementary school districts, making it too difficult for
the St. Helena USD to continue "absorbing" the students
without harming existing educational opportunities for St.
Helena resident high school students.

In addition, modest residential growth in the two
elementary districts makes it highly likely that St. Helena
USD could continue to see in an increase, in the
foreseeable future, of students wanting to attend St.
Helena High School. Adding complexity to the issue is the
fact that St. Helena USD has recently passed two general
obligation bonds - the payment of the bond debt is being
absorbed by the residents of the St. Helena USD, without
any assistance from residents of the two elementary school
districts.

In 2009, St. Helena Unified School District sued the Napa
County Office of Education (NCOE) claiming that the NCOE
was improperly receiving property tax revenue from the K-8
Howell Mountain and Pope Valley school districts that was
supposed to be going to the St. Helena USD to fund the
education of students from those districts who attend St.
Helena High School.

In 2010, the St. Helena USD dropped its lawsuit against the
Napa County Office of Education (NCOE) over the
apportionment of tax revenue in order to pursue a
legislative remedy. The underlying issue seems to have
been created with the passage of Proposition 13 in 1978;
that according to the NCOE, in 1978 the residents of two
school districts - Howell Mountain Elementary and Pope
Valley Elementary school districts paid a high school
tuition tax to fund their children's high school education,
because the students had to attend high school in a
different school district. The tax was eliminated after
passage of Proposition 13, but the students continue to
attend high school in another district (in this case St.
Helena USD), without any funding following them.

3) In the absence of this measure, what happens? Since, the
students that graduate from the two elementary districts do
not reside in either a unified or high school district,
they are eligible to attend high school in any district in
the county in which he or she resides - in this case Napa

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County. There are numerous high schools in Napa County
that the students from the elementary school districts may
attend, but the proximity to St. Helena High School and the
educational relationship between the districts have been
historically ingrained. In addition, if the elementary
students were to attend a non-basic aid high school in the
county, the state would provide a full unified ($6,748/ADA)
or high school ($7,747/ADA) revenue limit. Under this
measure, a student wishing to attend St. Helena High school
would generate only 70 percent of a high school revenue
limit, or approximately $5,422, which is significantly less
than either a unified or high school revenue limit.

4) All school districts involved are basic aid districts.
According to information on the State Department of
Education website, the two elementary school districts
(Howell Mountain Elementary and Pope Valley Elementary) and
the high school district (St. Helena Unified School
District) in question are basic aid districts.

What is a basic aid district? These are districts where the
amount of property taxes exceeds their revenue limit.
Historically, these districts keep all of their property
tax revenues and received approximately $120 per pupil or a
minimum of $2,400 per district consistent with the State
Constitution. Over the years, the state funding portion
for basic aid districts came from funding they were
eligible for through categorical program funding.

5) According to information provided by supporters of this
measure, this bill would result in annual costs
(Proposition 98) of approximately $280,000.

SUPPORT

Napa County Office of Education
Small School District Association
St. Helena Unified School District

OPPOSITION

None on file.