SB 421, as amended, Hernandez. Pupil instruction: examination fees: International Baccalaureate Diploma Program and advanced placement courses.
Existing law authorizes a system of incentives to encourage high schools to operate International Baccalaureate Diploma Programs, and to encourage pupils in these schools to enroll in, attempt, and pass the International Baccalaureate course of study and examinations that lead to the International Baccalaureate Diploma. Existing law requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction, from funds appropriated for the purpose of the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program, to annually allocate to each school district, on behalf of each high school or middle school within the district that offers the program, up to $25,000 for each participating high school and middle school to cover the costs of professional development required by the program and to help pay the test fees for low- and middle-income pupils in need of financial assistance.
Existing law authorizes a school district receiving economic impact aid funds to expend any portion of those funds to pay for all or part of the costs of one or more advanced placement examinations that are charged to economically disadvantaged pupils, as defined.
This bill wouldbegin insert, to the extent federal funding is available,end insert establish a grant program, administered by the State Department of Education, for the purpose of awardingbegin delete grants, beginning in the 2015-16 fiscal year,end deletebegin insert
grantsend insert to cover the costs of advanced placement examination fees or International Baccalaureate examination fees, or both, for eligible economically disadvantaged high school pupils, as defined. The bill would authorize a school district to apply to the department for grant funding under the program based on the number of economically disadvantaged pupils in the school district who will take the next offered advanced placement examinations and would require that grants be expended only to pay the fees required of eligible economically disadvantaged high school pupils to take an advanced placement or International Baccalaureate examination, or both. The bill would require funding priority be given to advanced placement examination fees if there is insufficient funding allocated to the grant program in a given fiscal year.begin delete The bill would require the department to make every effort to obtain and allocate federal funding for purposes of
the program before expending any state funds and require all federal and state funds obtained by the department for the purpose of the program to be expended for those purposes only and prohibit those funds from being used to fund any other program.end delete
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 52244 is added to the Education Code,
2to read:
(a) begin deleteThere end deletebegin insertTo the extent federal funding is available,
4there end insertis hereby established a grant program for the purpose of
5awardingbegin delete grants, beginning in the 2015-16 fiscal year,end deletebegin insert grantsend insert to
6cover the costs ofbegin delete advanced placementend deletebegin insert Advanced Placement (AP)end insert
7
examination fees or International Baccalaureatebegin insert (IB)end insert examination
8fees, or both, for eligible economically disadvantaged high school
9pupils. The department shall administer this program.
P3 1(b) An “eligible economically disadvantaged high school pupil”
2means a pupil who is either from a family whose annual household
3income is below 200 percent of the federal poverty level or a pupil
4who is eligible for a federal free or reduced-price meal program.
5(c) A school district may apply to the department for grant
6funding pursuant to this section, based on the number of
7economically disadvantaged pupils in the school district enrolled
8in advanced placement courses who will take the next offered
9advanced placement examinations. A school district that applies
10to the department for this purpose shall designate school district
11staff to whom pupils may submit applications for grants and shall
12institute a plan to notify pupils of the availability of financial
13assistance pursuant to this section. Grants shall be expended only
14to pay the fees required of eligible economically disadvantaged
15high school pupils to take an advanced placement or International
16Baccalaureate examination, or both.
17(d) An eligible economically disadvantaged high school pupil
18who is enrolled in an advanced placement or International
19Baccalaureate course,
or both, may apply to the designated school
20district staff for a grant pursuant to this section. A pupil who
21receives a grant shall pay five dollars ($5) of the examination fee.
22(e) School districts and county superintendents of schools may
23join together and form collaboratives or consortia in order to
24participate in the grant program established by this section.
25(f) Grants provided pursuant to this section may not be used to
26supplant fee waivers available to low-income pupils who take
27advanced placement or International Baccalaureate examinations.
28(g) If the total school district applications exceed the total funds
29available pursuant to this section, the department shall prorate the
30grants based upon the ratio of the total amount requested to the
31total amountbegin delete budgeted by the stateend deletebegin insert
allocated in the annual Budget
32Act or another statuteend insert for this purpose. Funding priority shall be
33given to advanced placement examination fees if there is
34insufficient funding allocated for the grant program in a given
35fiscal year.
36(h) To facilitate program administration and school district
37reimbursement, the department may enter into a contract with the
38provider of advanced placement or International Baccalaureate
39examinations. For purposes of the contract authorized pursuant to
40this subdivision, the department is exempt from the requirements
P4 1of Part 2 (commencing with Section 10100) of Division 2 of the
2Public Contract Code and from the requirements of Article 6
3(commencing with Section 999) of Chapter 6 of Division 4 of the
4Military and Veterans Code.
5(i) The department shall make every effort to obtain and allocate
6federal funding for purposes of this program before expending any
7state funds. All state and federal funds obtained by the department
8for purposes of this program shall be expended for these purposes
9only and are prohibited from being used to fund any other program.
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