Existing law authorizes the governing board of a school district to provide for the transportation of pupils to and from school whenever in the judgment of the board the transportation is advisable and good reasons exist to do so.

This bill would require a pupil entitled to free or reduced-price meals, or who attends a school that participates in the Community Eligibility Option, to be entitled to free transportation to and from school provided by the local educational agency, if certain conditions are met. The bill would require the local educational agency to designate a liaison to implement a plan, in consultation with specified stakeholders, to ensure that all entitled pupils receive free transportation in a timely manner.

By requiring new duties on a local educational agency, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.

(1)The After School Education and Safety Program Act of 2002, enacted by initiative statute, establishes the After School Education and Safety Program to serve pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 9, inclusive, at participating public elementary, middle, junior high, and charter schools. The act gives priority enrollment in both after school and before school programs to pupils in middle school or junior high school who attend daily.

This bill would instead give first priority enrollment to homeless youth, as defined, 2nd priority enrollment to pupils in CalWORKs assistance units, as described, and 3rd priority enrollment, for programs serving middle and junior high school pupils, to pupils who attend the program daily.

The act provides that an after school and before school program is not required to charge family fees or conduct individual eligibility determination based on need or income.

This bill would prohibit a program that charges family fees from charging a fee to a family with a homeless youth or a family who is part of a CalWORKs assistance unit.

(2)Existing law authorizes the governing board of a school district to provide for the transportation of pupils to and from school whenever in the judgment of the board the transportation is advisable and good reasons exist to do so.

This bill would require a pupil entitled to free or reduced-price meals, or who attends a school that participates in the Community Eligibility Option, to be entitled to free transportation to and from school provided by the local educational agency, if certain conditions are met. The bill would require the local educational agency to designate a liaison to implement a plan, in consultation with specified stakeholders, to ensure that all entitled pupils receive free transportation in a timely manner.

By requiring new duties on a local educational agency, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

(3)Existing law requires each county to provide cash assistance and other social services to needy families through the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program using federal Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) block grant program, state, and county funds. Existing law specifies the amounts of cash aid to be paid each month to CalWORKs recipients.

This bill would require that a $200 supplement to the amount of cash aid provided under the program be paid to a CalWORKs recipient 19 years of age and under, upon verification that the recipient has obtained a high school diploma or its equivalent.

The bill would also, among other things, require the State Department of Social Services, in coordination with the State Department of Education, to identify a method and to use that method to track the high school completion rates of children in an assistance unit, and to make publicly available an aggregate report of these high school completion rates tracked by the department.

The bill would require the State Department of Social Services to, in consultation with specified entities, design a youth subsidized employment program for youth 15 to 19 years of age, inclusive, who are eligible for benefits under this bill and needy youth, as defined, and would require the program to provide paid employment, occupational skills training, and other relevant services.

The bill would require a child in an assistance unit to receive, in advance, a transportation service supplement to the amount of cash aid provided under the program to pay for transportation services in order for the child to participate in an After School Education and Safety Program (ASES) program. (ASES).

By increasing county administrative duties, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The bill would authorize the State Department of Social Services to implement the above provisions by all-county letters or similar instructions until regulations are adopted and would require the department to adopt regulations on or before January 1, 2018.

(4)Existing law continuously appropriates moneys from the General Fund to defray a portion of county costs under the CalWORKs program.

This bill would instead provide that the continuous appropriation would not be made for purposes of implementing the bill.

(5)The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.

(1)The After School Education and Safety Program Act of 2002, enacted by initiative statute, establishes the After School Education and Safety Program to serve pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 9, inclusive, at participating public elementary, middle, junior high, and charter schools. The act gives priority enrollment in both after school and before school programs to pupils in middle school or junior high school who attend daily.

This bill would instead give first priority enrollment to homeless youth, as defined, 2nd priority enrollment to pupils in CalWORKs assistance units, as described, and 3rd priority enrollment to pupils who attend the program daily.

The act provides that an after school and before school program is not required to charge family fees or conduct individual eligibility determination based on need or income.

This bill would prohibit a program that charges family fees from charging a fee to a family with a homeless youth or a family who is part of a CalWORKs assistance unit.

(2)Existing law authorizes the governing board of a school district to provide for the transportation of pupils to and from school whenever in the judgment of the board the transportation is advisable and good reasons exist to do so.

This bill would require a pupil entitled to free or reduced-price meals, or who attends a school that participates in the Community Eligibility Option, to be entitled to free transportation to and from school provided by the local educational agency, if certain conditions are met. The bill would require the local educational agency to designate a liaison to implement a plan, in consultation with specified stakeholders, to ensure that all entitled pupils receive free transportation in a timely manner.

By requiring new duties on a local educational agency, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

(3)Existing law requires each county to provide cash assistance and other social services to needy families through the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program using federal Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) block grant program, state, and county funds. Existing law specifies the amounts of cash aid to be paid each month to CalWORKs recipients.

This bill would require that a $200 supplement to the amount of cash aid provided under the program be paid to a CalWORKs recipient 19 years of age and under, upon verification that the recipient has obtained a high school diploma or its equivalent.

The bill would also, among other things, require the State Department of Social Services, in coordination with the State Department of Education, to identify a method and to use that method to track the high school completion rates of children in an assistance unit, and to make publicly available an aggregate report of these high school completion rates tracked by the department.

The bill would require the State Department of Social Services to, in consultation with specified entities, design a youth subsidized employment program for youth 15 to 19 years of age, inclusive, who are eligible for benefits under this bill and needy youth, as defined, and would require the program to provide paid employment, occupational skills training, and other relevant services.

The bill would require a child in an assistance unit to receive, in advance, a transportation service supplement to the amount of cash aid provided under the program to pay for transportation services in order for the child to participate in an After School Education and Safety Program (ASES) program.

By increasing county administrative duties, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The bill would authorize the State Department of Social Services to implement the above provisions by all-county letters or similar instructions until regulations are adopted and would require the department to adopt regulations on or before January 1, 2018.

(4)Existing law continuously appropriates moneys from the General Fund to defray a portion of county costs under the CalWORKs program.

This bill would instead provide that the continuous appropriation would not be made for purposes of implementing the bill.

(5)The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.

Date of Hearing: May 27, 2015

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS

Jimmy Gomez, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 891

Author:(Campos) – As Amended Ver:May 21, 2015

Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: Yes Reimbursable: Yes

SUMMARY:

This bill provides low income students free transportation to and from school, and requires each local education agency (LEA) to designate a liaison to address transportation issues. Specifically, this bill:

1. Provides each student eligible for free or reduced-price meals (FRPM), as specified, or who attends a school that participates in the Community Eligibility Option, free transportation to and from school as follows:

   1. If the student lives more than one-half mile from school, or

   2. The neighborhood through which the pupil must travel to get to school is unsafe because of stray dogs, no sidewalks, known gang activity, or another reason documented by stakeholders.

2. Requires an LEA to designate a liaison responsible for implementing a plan to ensure that students entitled to free transportation, as specified, receive that transportation in a timely manner.

3. Requires the LEA-designated liaison to be trained to identify and accommodate the special rights of homeless youth and students in a CalWORKs assistance unit where aid is provided only to the child, as specified.

4. Requires the transportation plan to be developed in consultation with stakeholders, as specified, and to address the ability of students in the LEA’s jurisdiction to make regular visits to the public library.

5. Requires the LEA to ensure free transportation is provided using its existing funds, should be free, dependable, and timely transportation not be available to students entitled to it.

FISCAL EFFECT:

1. Proposition 98/GF state mandated reimbursable costs to LEAs, potentially in the millions of dollars, to provide a liaison to implement a plan to provide free transportation to eligible pupils; including consultation with the Air Resources Board and the Department of Transportation. Actual costs will depend upon how each LEA chooses to implement the requirement. Some LEAs may need to create a new position. Other LEAs may be able to designate duties to an existing position; however, this would likely involve contract negotiations and increased compensation. The bill also requires staff training to ensure proper guidance and assistance is provided to this sensitive student population. There are 1,016 school districts in California. Assuming one-third of districts create a new position, costs could be in excess of $20 million.

2. Unknown Proposition 98/GF state mandated reimbursable costs to LEAs, in the millions of dollars, to provide free transportation to students, as specified. Approximately 3.7 million (60% of all students) qualify for FRPM. As a proxy for costs, a recent study found it would cost $172,048 per week for Los Angeles County to provide free public transit to all K-12 students living below 100 percent of the Federal Poverty Line. This translates to $8.9 million on an annual basis. Statewide costs could be offset to the extent pupils are already receiving transportation as a result of federal mandates for special education and homeless students.

COMMENTS:

1. Purpose. Western Center on Law and Poverty, Children's Defense Fund-California, 9 to 5, National Association of Working Women, California and Youth Justice Coalition are co-sponsoring this bill to promote student attendance and success in school for low income and poor students in California by guaranteeing transportation to school. They note the in ability to afford transportation to and from school is one of the most frequently cited barriers that low income youth face in attending school. The supporters also note, in Los Angeles County, the leading cause of ticketing for youth under the age of 18 – 10,000 tickets a year – is due to fair evasion on public transportation. This bill seeks to resolve these issues through the provision of free transportation.

2. Background. The primary dedicated source of funding for school transportation is the Home to School Transportation (HTST) program. The state currently provides $491 million Proposition 98/GF to school districts; however, the current funding formula is widely recognized as outdated and irrational. Districts’ funding levels have been locked in at the amounts they received in the early 1980s. Moreover, because the funding formula is based on historical participation, a few school districts and all charter schools in the state are excluded from receiving HTST funding.

The federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act requires districts to provide transportation for homeless students. The federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act requires that all districts take special steps to ensure students with disabilities receive a “free and appropriate public education.” If school officials determine transportation is necessary for a student to access his/her education, the district must provide it.

According to the sponsor, San Francisco provides free public transit passes to all children age 5-18 at a cost of approximately $3 million per year. The sponsors also note several states, including New Jersey, New York and Missouri guarantee transportation to students based on the distance to and from school.

Analysis Prepared by: Misty Feusahrens / APPR. / (916) 319-2081

Date of Hearing: April 28, 2015

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES

Kansen Chu, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 891

Author:(Campos) – As Amended Ver:April 20, 2015

SUBJECT: Low-income youth: educational attainment and success

SUMMARY: Provides for and expands a number of services and supports for homeless and low-income students related to before- and after-school programs, school transportation, high school graduation, and subsidized employment.

Specifically, this bill:

1. Makes certain legislative findings and declarations regarding the academic, health, and economic benefits of education and related activities.

2. Prohibits an After School Education and Safety (ASES) program from charging a family fee to a family with a child who is identified as a homeless youth, as specified, or to a family who is part of a CalWORKs assistance unit where aid is provided only to the child, as specified.

3. Deletes a provision in current law that gives before-school and after-school priority for enrollment for middle school or junior high school students to those who attend daily, and establishes priority enrollment for students in a before- or after-school program as follows:

1. First priority shall go to students who are defined as homeless youth, as specified;

2. Second priority shall go to students who are members of a CalWORKs assistance unit where aid is provided only to the child, as specified;

3. For programs serving middle school or junior high school students, third priority shall go to those who attend daily.

4. Entitles a student eligible for free or reduced-price meals, as specified, or who attends a school that participates in the Community Eligibility Option, to free transportation to and from school from the local educational agency (LEA), if the student either lives more than one-half mile from school, or the neighborhood through which the student must travel is deemed unsafe, as specified.

5. Requires an LEA to designate a liaison responsible for implementing a plan to ensure that students entitled to free transportation, as specified, receive that transportation in a timely manner.

6. Requires the LEA-designated liaison to be trained to identify and accommodate the special rights of homeless youth and students in a CalWORKs assistance unit where aid is provided only to the child, as specified.

7. Requires the transportation plan to be developed in consultation with stakeholders, as specified, and to address the ability of students in the LEA’s jurisdiction to make regular visits to the public library.

8. Requires the LEA to ensure free transportation is provided using its existing funds, should free, dependable, and timely transportation not be available to students entitled to it.

9. Requires the Department of Social Services (DSS), in coordination with the California Department of Education (CDE), to track high school completion rates of children in a CalWORKs assistance unit, using a method identified by the departments, and to report to the Legislature by July 1, 2016, if a change in statute is required to carry out this task.

10. Requires DSS to make publicly available an aggregate report of high school completion rates of children in CalWORKs assistance units.

11. Requires that recipients of CalWORKs who are not older than 19 and who have obtained a high school diploma or equivalent receive a $200 supplement to be paid directly to the recipient and disregarded as income for purposes of determining CalWORKs and CalFresh eligibility and benefits. Further provides that Cal-Learn participants who are already eligible for a similar incentive, as specified, are not eligible for this supplement.

12. Grants a child in a CalWORKs assistance unit a transportation service supplement, as specified, to pay for transportation services in order for a child to participate in an ASES program.

13. Requires DSS to coordinate with county human service agencies and the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) to annually inform assistance units of the need to have a child’s vision regularly examined and to offer information on how to schedule an appointment with an optometrist for children receiving Medi-Cal benefits.

14. Defines “needy youth” to mean individuals between the ages of 18 and 24 whose family income, which may include the youth living alone, is less than 200% of the federal poverty level.

15. Requires DSS, in consultation with specified entities, to design a subsidized employment program to provide paid employment, occupational skills training, and other relevant services for needy youth, as defined, and youth between the ages of 15 and 19 who are eligible for CalWORKs.

16. Requires all employers and caseworkers involved in the subsidized employment program to be trained in trauma-informed care and restorative justice practices.

17. Requires income earned through the subsidized employment program to be disregarded as income in determining eligibility for CalWORKs aid.

18. Permits DSS, until January 1, 2018, to implement the aforementioned subsidized employment program through all-county letters or similar instructions and thereafter requires DSS to adopt regulations to implement the provisions of this program.

19. Stipulates that no continuous appropriation, as specified, shall be made from the General Fund to counties in order to implement this act.

EXISTING LAW:

1. Establishes in federal law the McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Improvements Act of 2001 to ensure educational rights and protections for youth experiencing homelessness. (42 U.S.C. 11431 et seq.)

2. Defines in federal law “homeless children and youth” to mean individuals who lack a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence, as specified, including children and youth who are:

1. Sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or similar reason;

2. Living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to the lack of alternative adequate accommodations;

3. Living in emergency or transitional shelters;

4. Abandoned in hospitals;

5. Awaiting foster care placement;

6. Inhabiting a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation, as specified;

7. Living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings; and

8. Migratory, as defined, and who otherwise qualify as homeless per this definition. (42 U.S.C. 11434(a)(2))

3. Establishes in federal law the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, which provides block grants to states to develop and implement their own state welfare-to-work programs designed to provide cash assistance and other supports and services to low-income families. (42 USC § 601 et seq.)

4. Establishes the state’s TANF program, the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program, which provides cash assistance and other supports and services to low-income families and is administered by the counties. (WIC 11200 et seq.)

5. Establishes the Cal-Learn program to provide services and supports for pregnant and parenting teens aimed at assisting them with graduating from high school, becoming independent, and forming healthy families. Requires eligible pregnant and parenting teens who are receiving CalWORKs to participate in the program, as specified. (WIC 11331 et seq.)

6. Establishes the ASES program per Proposition 49 (2002) to provide for before- and after-school education and enrichment programs for students in kindergarten through ninth grade, as specified. (EDC 8482 et seq.)

7. Requires priority for enrollment in before- and after-school middle school and junior high ASES programs to be given to students who attend daily. (EDC 8483 and 8483.1)

8. Allows the governing board of any school district to provide for the transportation of students to and from school, in manners as specified, whenever, in the judgment of the board, the transportation is advisable and good reasons exist to do so. (EDC 39800 et seq.)

9. Defines “home-to-school” transportation to include, among other things: the transportation of pupils between their homes and the regular full-time day school they attend, as provided by a school district or county superintendent of schools; the payment of moneys by a school district or county superintendent of school to parents or guardians of pupils made in lieu of providing such transportation; and the payment of moneys by a school district or county superintendent of schools for the replacement or acquisition of school buses. (EDC 41850(b))

10. Provides for state funding for home-to-school transportation and special education transportation, as specified. (EDC 41850)

11. Provides in federal law for universal meal services in high poverty areas, as specified, whereby schools that predominantly serve low-income children can offer school lunches to all students in lieu of collecting individual applications for free or reduced price meals. This is commonly referred to as the “Community Eligibility Provision.” (42 U.S.C. 1759a(a)(1))

FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown

COMMENTS:

Homeless children and youth: One commonly used definition of “homeless children and youths” comes from the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act of 2001. It defines homeless children and youths as individuals who “lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence,” and it includes children and youths who: have to share housing with others due to loss of housing or economic hardship; are living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camp grounds because they lack other accommodations; are living in emergency or transitional shelters; are awaiting foster placement; or have a primary nighttime residence that is not designed as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings.

Over 520,000 children in the state were estimated to be homeless in 2012-13, prompting the National Center on Family Homelessness at American Institutes for Research to rank California the 48^th worst in the nation with regards to the extent of child homelessness (adjusted for state population). Nationally, it is estimated that approximately 51% of all homeless children in the United States are under the age of 6, 34% are between the ages of 6 and 12, and 15% are between 13 and 17.

After School Education and Safety Program (ASES): In 2002, voters approved Proposition 49, which established the ASES program, expanding and renaming the former Before and After School Learning and Safe Neighborhood Partnerships Program. The ASES program funds the development of local after-school programs created through partnerships between schools and local community resources for students in kindergarten through the ninth grade. These after-school programs are designed to provide academic enrichment and literacy activities and a safe, constructive after-school alternative for students.

According to CDE, “The ASES program involves collaboration among parents, youth, representatives from schools and governmental agencies, such as local law enforcement and local parks and recreation departments, and individuals from community-based organizations and the private sector. …The ASES program must be aligned with, and not be a repeat of, the content of regular school day and other extended learning opportunities. A safe physical and emotional environment, as well as opportunities for relationship building, must be provided.”

Transportation for students: While some states require school districts to transport students who don’t live within certain proximity of their school, California does not. In general, the state allows school districts discretion to determine which students they will transport, and how many bus routes they will operate. Various federal laws require transportation to be provided to students with disabilities (per the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act), students attending federally-sanctioned schools (per the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001), and students who are homeless (per the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act).

According to a 2013 report on truancy in California released by the state Office of Attorney General:

“Several parents reported that transportation issues made it difficult for them to get their child to school, and many district officials noted that transportation to and from school was a significant obstacle for some families.

In some rural districts, students have to travel many miles by bus to attend school. But some districts – like Yucaipa-Calimesa Joint Unified, which serves San Bernardino and Riverside counties – have been forced to cut bus services due to budgetary issues.

Transportation to and from school can be especially difficult for families on a tight budget. One parent identified a problem with gas and parking money. Several other parents cited a lack of bus money or the fact that they did not have their own car as a challenge to getting their children to school. In Los Angeles County, for example, the cost of a student bus/metro pass is $24 a month. For a low-income parent or guardian with several children, this transportation cost can be a formidable obstacle.”

Need for this bill: Obtaining a college education can have significant impacts on an individual’s earnings and economic wellbeing. U.S. Census Bureau data from 2013 on the poverty status of Californians ages 25 and older indicate that over 25% of individuals with less than a high school degree were living below the federal poverty level. Graduating from high school can reduce the chances of poverty: for those with a high school degree or equivalent, 15% were living below the poverty level. This rate fell to about 10% for individuals who had attended some college or obtained an associate’s degree. Those with a bachelor’s degree or higher faced the lowest rate of poverty, at just over 5%. For homeless youth, support in overcoming barriers to high school graduation and higher education may be particularly impactful on their futures, offering opportunities to achieve economic mobility.

The author states that this bill “takes a multifaceted approach to address the disturbing fact that roughly 70% of children born into poverty will remain in poverty. It does this by: Providing free public transportation to school for low income students, by increasing availability and access to afterschool activities, and increasing support programs for low-income students.”

According to the sponsors of this bill (the Western Center on Law and Poverty, the Children’s Defense Fund – California, the Youth Justice Coalition, and 9to5, National Association of Working Women, California):

“A robust body of research demonstrates that chronic absenteeism is associated with lower academic performance at the elementary, middle and high school levels, and greater likelihood of dropping out. Research also suggests that going to school regularly is especially critical for children from families living in poverty who are less likely to have the resources to help children make up for lost time in the classroom.

…There is strong evidence that access to afterschool and summer programs increases the likelihood of success in school and high school graduation. Research shows that students, especially girls, benefit from improved health and academic outcomes when they participate in afterschool programs. Still, low income youth face many challenges in participating in these programs. These barriers include lack of transportation, long waiting lists and program enrollment fees, but often have more to do with the child’s precarious economic situation. [This bill] would require these programs to better accommodate children with high barriers to participation: homeless children and children living below 50 percent of the federal poverty line….Not only will very vulnerable youth benefit from being enrolled in these afterschool programs, but so will their parents and the state’s bottom line. Parents are more likely to secure employment and to stay employed when they have a safe place for their child to be while they are at work. This means that California’s investments in low-income families and their parents’ employment through the CalWORKs welfare-to-work program are enhanced when children are enrolled in afterschool programs.

[This bill] gives us several more tools to improve school attendance and success and the promise of economic mobility for our state’s poorest children.”

Staff comments: This bill seeks to adopt a number of changes in order to remove barriers to school attendance – and, ultimately, high school graduation, college, and employment – for low-income and homeless youth. It also proposes to have DSS and CDE collect and report data on the high school completion rates of children in a CalWORKs assistance unit. In order to obtain data that are the most useful to state decision-makers, it may be useful to broaden the scope of this research to include specific variables such as length of time, and ages at which, students were on aid, and whether or not any adults in a student’s assistance unit were ever on aid for any period of time. Additionally, it may also be useful to collect data related to other programs referenced by this bill, such as regular attendance of ASES programs and access to school-provided transportation. If the author is considering broadening the report’s scope, it may also be beneficial to request DSS and CDE to consult stakeholders in the design of any data-collection methods.

SECOND COMMITTEE OF REFERENCE. This bill was previously heard in the Assembly Committee on Education, on April 8, 2015 and was approved on a 7-0 vote.

REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:

Support

Western Center on Law & Poverty, Sponsor

9to5, National Association of Working Women – CA - co-sponsor

Youth Justice Coalition – co-sponsor

Children’s Defense Fund – CA -co-sponsor

Building Healthy Communities: Long Beach

California Catholic Conference

California Pan-Ethnic Health Network

California School-Based Health Alliance

California State PTA

Coalition of California Welfare Rights Organizations, Inc.

Courage Campaign

Downtown Associated Youth Services

Friends Committee on Legislation of California

InnerCity Struggle

Khmer Girls in Action

Labor/Community Strategy Center’s (LCSC) Community Rights Campaign

Lynwood Unified School District

National Association of Social Workers

Our Family Coalition

PolicyLink

River City Food Bank

Success in Challenges

Opposition

None on file.

Analysis Prepared by: Daphne Hunt / HUM. S. / (916) 319-2089

Date of Hearing: April 8, 2015

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Patrick O'Donnell, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 891

Author:(Campos) – As Introduced Ver:February 26, 2015

[Note: This bill is doubled referred to the Assembly Human Services Committee and will be heard by that Committee as it relates to issues under its jurisdiction.]

SUBJECT: Low-income youth: educational attainment and success

SUMMARY: Provides homeless and low-income youth with priority for enrollment in before and after school programs and free transportation to and from school, and requires the Department of Social Services (DSS) to provide youth in families receiving benefits through the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program additional assistance for specified purposes. Specifically, this bill:

After School Education and Safety Program (ASES):

1. Prohibits a before school or after school program funded by the ASES Program from charging family fees to a family with a child who is identified as a homeless youth or whose family is part of a CalWORKs assistance unit, if the program charges a fee.

2. Strikes the provision specifying that priority for enrollment of pupils in middle school or junior high school shall be given to pupils who attend daily, and instead establishes the following priorities for enrollment:

   1. First priority shall go to pupils who are identified as homeless youth, as defined in the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act;

   2. Second priority shall go to pupils who are members of a CalWORKs assistance unit, as described in the Welfare and Institutions Code (WIC) Section 11265.45(a).

   3. Third priority shall go to pupils who attend daily.

Transportation:

3. Specifies that a pupil entitled to free or reduced-price meals or who attends a school that participates in the Community Eligibility Option shall be entitled to free transportation from the local educational agency (LEA) to and from school if either of the following conditions are met:

   1. The pupil resides more than one-half mile from the school; or,

   2. The neighborhood through which the pupil must travel to get to school is unsafe because of stray dogs, no sidewalks, known gang activity, or another reason documented by stakeholders .

4. Requires a LEA to designate a liaison that shall be responsible for implementing a plan to ensure that all pupils entitled to free transportation receive the transportation in a timely manner.

5. Requires the liaison to be trained to identify and accommodate the special rights of homeless youth and pupils in a CalWORKs assistance unit. Requires the liaison to facilitate access to school services, including, but not limited to, transportation services.

6. Requires the plan to be developed in consultation with teachers, school administrators, regional local transit authorities, the Air Resources Board, the Department of Transportation, parents, pupils, and other stakeholders.

7. Requires the plan to address the ability of pupils in the LEA's jurisdiction to make regular visits to the public library.

8. Specifies that if no dependable and timely transportation is available for pupils entitled to transportation services, the LEA shall ensure that free transportation be provided using existing funds.

CalWORKs:

9. Requires the DSS to, in coordination with the California Department of Education (CDE), identify a method to track the high school completion rates of children in an assistance unit. Requires DSS to report to the Legislature no later than July 1, 2016, if a change in statute is required in order to track high school completion rates of children in an assistance unit. Requires the DSS to make publicly available an aggregate report of the high school completion rates tracked by the DSS.

10. Specifies that to incentivize completion of high school or the equivalent for recipients of aid 19 years of age and under, those recipients shall, upon verification that the recipient has obtained a high school diploma or its equivalent, receive a $200 supplement to the amount of aid. Requires the supplement to be paid directly to the recipient and be disregarded as income in determining the income of the assistance unit and the income of the CalFresh household if the recipient is receiving CalFresh. Specifies that Cal-Learn participants who are already eligible for a similar incentive are not eligible for the supplement established by this bill.

11. Specifies that to support educational outcomes and physical fitness of children in an assistance unit, a child in an assistance unit shall receive, in advance, a transportation service supplement to the amount of aid paid, as determined by the DSS, to pay for transportation services in order for the child to participate in an ASES program.

12. Specifies that to support educational outcomes of children in an assistance unit, the DSS shall coordinate with county human services agencies and the State Department of Health Care Services to annually inform assistance units of the need to have a child’s vision regularly examined and how to schedule an appointment with an optometrist for children receiving Medi-Cal benefits.

13. Requires the DSS to, in consultation with county human services agencies, programs created under the federal Workforce Investment and Opportunity Act, State Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) offices, and local CSBG entities, design a youth subsidized employment program for youth 15 to 19 years of age, inclusive, who are eligible for benefits, and needy youth. Requires the program to provide paid employment, occupational skills training, and other relevant services. Requires the payment for employment and services to be subject to the same financial participation as payment under WIC Section 11450 (a).

14. Specifies that for the purposes of this bill, “needy youth” means an individual 18 to 24 years of age, inclusive, whose family income, which may include the youth living alone, is less than 200% of the federal poverty level.

15. Requires all employers and caseworkers involved in the employment program to be trained in trauma-informed care and restorative justice practices.

16. Specifies that income earned through the employment program shall be disregarded as income in determining eligibility for, or the amount of, aid.

17. Specifies that notwithstanding the rulemaking provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act, and until January 1, 2018, the DSS may implement the DSS provisions of this bill by all-county letters or similar instructions. Thereafter, the DSS shall adopt regulations to implement this bill on or before January 1, 2018.

18. Specifies that no appropriation pursuant to WIC Section 15200 shall be made for purposes of this bill.

EXISTING LAW:

1. Establishes the ASES program through the 2002 voter approved initiative, Proposition 49. The ASES program funds the establishment of local after school education and enrichment programs, which are created through partnerships between schools and local community resources to provide literacy, academic enrichment and safe constructive alternatives for students in kindergarten through ninth grade (Education Code (EC) Section 8482).

2. Provides state funding for school district and county office of education transportation costs based on the amount received for that purpose in the prior year, or the agencies’ actual transportation costs, whichever is less. Existing law also requires school districts to provide transportation services for special education students if the students’ individualized education plans specify such need. (EC Section 41850)

FISCAL EFFECT: The Legislative Counsel has keyed this bill as a state-mandated local program.

COMMENTS: This bill has three parts, related to services and support for homeless youth and low-income kids. This Committee will review the provisions relating to the ASES program and transportation to and from school.

Definition of "homeless youth". The federal McKinney-Vento Act defines “homeless children and youth” as individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, including children who are sharing the housing of other people, living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camp grounds, emergency or transitional shelters, abandoned in hospitals or awaiting foster care placement, a place not generally used for sleeping, cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, and migratory children living in the circumstances above.

ASES. The ASES program, passed by voters as Proposition 49 in 2002, provides almost $550 million annually for before and after school programs for approximately 405,000 kindergarten through grade 9 students. After school programs must commence right after school and at least until 6 p.m. for 15 hours per week. Priority for funding goes to schools where at least 50% of the pupils are eligible for free or reduced-price meals. Each program is required to provide a match equal to not less than one-third of the total grant. Facilities may count towards 25% of the local contribution.

Participating after-school programs are required to have an educational and literacy component in which tutoring or homework assistance is provided in one or more of the following areas: language arts, mathematics, history and social science, computer training, or sciences; and an educational enrichment component, which may include, but is not limited to, fine arts, career technical education, career exploration, recreation, physical fitness and prevention activities.

The program requires before school programs to operate one and a half hours a day and after school programs to operate after school until 6 p.m. for a minimum of 15 hours per week.

What does this bill do? This bill requires priority for enrollment in before and after school programs to be given first to homeless youth, second to pupils who are receiving CalWORKs benefits, and third to pupils who attend daily. The author states that research shows that access to after school and summer programs improves students' health and academic outcomes, but low-income youth are unable to access these programs due to lack of transportation, long wait lists and program enrollment fees.

Priority for enrollment. Current law stipulates that priority for funding should go to programs located at schools where a minimum of 50% of the pupils are eligible for free or reduced-price meals. However, according to the CDE, ASES funds are currently allocated to programs that have an average of 82% of kids eligible for free and reduced-price meals. It is possible that homeless youth and pupils receiving CalWORKs benefits already make up a large portion of the pupils enrolled in ASES. If homeless youth and other low-income kids are unable to access the programs, the reason may be that there are not enough slots. Enrollment decisions are made at the local level between program administrators and the school to accommodate the needs of different communities.

Under current law, the priority regarding pupils who attend on a daily basis applies only to pupils in middle or junior high schools. This provision was established to maximize the benefits of the program for older kids who will commit to attending on a regular basis. This bill would apply this priority for all programs. Staff recommends restoring this provision as a third priority only for pupils in middle or junior high schools.

Fees. This bill also prohibits programs from collecting fees from homeless youth or youth on CalWORKs. ASES programs are authorized to charge fees, but data is not available because this information is not required to be reported to the CDE. According to the CDE, some programs may charge a nominal enrollment fee, while others may charge fees in order to expand access to the program.

The sponsors, the Western Center on Law and Poverty, the Children's Defense Fund and 9to5, National Association of Working Women, state, "Children who are homeless and living in deep poverty are less likely to be able to participate than children who are not experiencing these significant challenges even when compared to other children who are low-income. This is because children who are homeless or living in deep poverty are less likely to attend the same school from year-to-year and less likely to afford registration fees required by some afterschool programs. This means that children who could benefit most from having a safe and supportive place to learn, exercise, and benefit from afterschool snacks are less likely to be able to participate."

Transportation. Until the enactment of the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF), home-to-school transportation was a categorical program that reimbursed school districts and county offices of education (COEs) for prior year approved transportation costs. Funding for transportation is one of the few funding streams that did not get rolled into the LCFF. Instead, districts and COEs continue to receive, outside of their LCFF funding, the same amount of transportation funding they received in the year immediately preceding the enactment of the LCFF, 2012-13. Districts and COEs receiving those funds must continue to spend them on transportation.

The amount received by districts and COEs varies widely. Some get more than 90% of their approved costs reimbursed with state funding. Others get no state funding at all, even though they have approved costs. The statewide average reimbursement is about 35% of approved costs.

Because the amount received by districts is held flat, transportation funding does not keep pace with inflation and, over time, becomes less related to actual workload. Some urban districts provide home-to-school transportation. Others do not, and rely instead on public transit.

What does this bill do? This bill requires a LEA to provide all students eligible for free or reduced-price meals, or who attends a school that participates in the Community Eligibility Option, free transportation to and from school if the pupil lives more than half a mile from school, or if the neighborhood the pupil must travel to get to and from school is unsafe due to stray dogs, lack of sidewalks, known gang activity, or another reason documented by stakeholders. According to the CDE, there are 3.7 million pupils (almost 60% of all pupils) eligible for free and reduced-price meals. The bill requires the LEA to appoint a liaison, who is trained to identify and accommodate the rights of homeless youth and pupils receiving CalWORKs benefits, to be responsible for developing a plan for implementation. The liaison is required to consult stakeholders, including teachers, school administrators, local transportation and environmental authorities, parents, pupils, and others. According to the sponsors, the inclusion of a wide range of stakeholders, including local agencies, will help to identify a range of resources to ensure transportation needs are met. For example, local transit authorities may be able to provide bus passes at no charge. Staff recommends an amendment to specify that the plan may include the identification of all options, including non-education resources.

The plan is also required to address the ability of pupils' to make regular visits to the public library, which the sponsors argue is important for a student's ability to complete school work (e.g., research reports). Requiring transportation for visits to the public library would result in a higher level of transportation service.

Implementation of this provision of the bill may be challenging. LEAs will be required to identify whether each student eligible for free or reduced-price meals lives more than one half mile from school, or investigate the route each student takes to school and determine whether stray dogs, lack of sidewalks or gang activities make the route unsafe. A school district will be required to make this determination for every pupil at a school if the school participates in the federal food program's Community Eligibility Option, which allows school districts to provide breakfast and lunch to all pupils at a school or district where at least 40% of the identified students were deemed eligible through eligibility for CalWORKs or CalFresh in the prior year. Districts located in rural areas will face unique challenges as students may live miles from a school and public transportation may not be readily available.

Can transportation issues be addressed through the Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP)? The Committee may wish to consider whether transportation issues can be addressed through a school district's LCAP. LCFF funds can be used for any purpose in accordance with the LCAP, which is developed locally to meet the needs of each district. The LCAP is required to meet eight state priorities. One of the priorities is "pupil engagement," as measured by factors such as school attendance rate and chronic absenteeism rate. School districts have an incentive to ensure that students are not absent in order to get average daily attendance (ADA). If transportation is identified as the barrier to attendance and the cause of chronic absenteeism, it could be funded through a district's LCFF allocation. The author may wish to consider strategies to encourage school districts to consider transportation barriers in the development of their LCAP.

The author states that the inability to afford transportation from school is one of the most frequently cited barriers that low-income youth face in attending school. According to the author, a survey of Oakland youth found that 61% of students reported they sometimes use their lunch money to ride the bus. The author further states that other states, including New Jersey, New York and Missouri, guarantee transportation for students who live beyond a certain distance from their school.

Technical and clarifying amendments:

1. Staff recommends striking, on page 7, lines 3 to 6 of the bill, "The liaison shall facilitate access to school services including, but not limited to, transportation services for the pupils described in this paragraph." This provision may be interpreted as requiring the liaison to be responsible for more than just transportation services. According to the sponsor, this is not the intent and was inadvertently left in the bill from an earlier draft.

2. The provision in Section 39800.1(d) is unclear. According to the sponsor, the provision is intended to specify that existing funds are to be used after determining that no free dependable and timely transportation is available. Staff recommends inserting "free" on line 15 after "no" on page 7.

Related legislation. AB 379 (Gordon), which passed this Committee on March 25, 2015, makes complaints alleging violations of certain educational rights afforded to students who are homeless subject to the Uniform Complaint Procedures.

AB 982 (Eggman), pending in the Assembly Human Services Committee, gives homeless children priority for enrollment in subsidized child care and development programs.

AB 1166 (Bloom), pending in this Committee, allows students in foster care and those who are homeless to be eligible for the exemption from local graduation requirements even if they are not notified of this right within 30 days of enrollment, and allows homeless students to be exempt even if they are no longer homeless or if they transfer to another school or district.

SB 445 (Liu), pending in the Senate Education Committee, requires a LEA to allow a homeless child to continue his or her education in his or her school of origin through the duration of his or her homelessness, and provides a right to immediate enrollment.

REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:

Support

Children's Defense Fund – CA (co-sponsor)

Western Center on Law & Poverty (co-sponsor)

9to5, National Association of Working Women (co-sponsor)

Building Healthy Communities: Long Beach

California Catholic Conference

California Pan-Ethnic Health Network

Courage Campaign

InnerCity Struggle

Khmer Girls in Action

Lynwood Unified School District

National Association of Social Workers

Our Family Coalition

PolicyLink

Success in Challenges

Youth Justice Coalition

Opposition

None on file

Analysis Prepared by: Sophia Kwong Kim / ED. / (916) 319-2087