The Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law allow various credits against the taxes imposed by those laws, including, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2012, and before January 1, 2017, a credit for qualified taxpayers, defined as the person responsible for planting a crop, managing the crop, and harvesting the crop from the land, in an amount equal to 10% of the cost that would otherwise be included in, or required to be included in, inventory costs, as specified under federal law, with respect to the donation of fresh fruits or fresh vegetables to a food bank located in California.

This bill would extend the operation of those credits to taxable years beginning before January 1, 2024. The bill would also make other conforming and nonsubstantive changes.

This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.

Date of Hearing: July 19, 2017

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS

Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher, Chair

SBPCA Bill Id:SB 140

Author:(Allen) – As Amended Ver:March 21, 2017

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

SUMMARY:

This bill expands priority for the selection of local educational agencies (LEA’s) to receive a grant from the Learning Communities for School Success Program to include recipients of the federal Promise Neighborhoods Program.

FISCAL EFFECT:

Unknown cost pressures, but likely in the millions of dollars to continue to fund the grant program. The grant program established by this bill is contingent upon funding provided in the budget act. The 2016-17 budget provided a total of $27.9 million. Specifically, the budget included $9.9 million in Proposition 47 savings and an additional $18 million in one-time Proposition 98 funds.

By adding recipients of the federal grant Promise Neighborhoods Program as priority criteria, the number of LEA’s that receive priority will increase and create pressures to award more grants and increase the number of appeals the California Department of Education (CDE) must process. Under the current priority criteria, the CDE received 150 eligible applications and 34 grants were awarded. An increase in eligible LEA applicants will require more staff time to provide technical assistance, collect and analyze data, more grant readers who receive per diem and more staff time to respond to appeals.

COMMENTS:

1. Background. Existing law establishes the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act (SNSA), through passage of Proposition 47 in November 2014, which reduced the penalties for certain non-violent, non-serious drug and property crimes. The proposition requires 25 percent of the resulting savings to be deposited in the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Fund to fund a grant program administered by the CDE to reduce truancy and support students who are at risk of dropping out of school or who are victims of crime. In 2016-17, 34 LEAs received SNSA grants. The LEA’s will receive $50 per student enrolled in the LEA, with a minimum of $15,000 and a maximum of $2 million per LEA per three-year grant period.
   
   SNSA funds can be utilized for activities that include but are not limited to: establish a community school; implement activities or programs to improve attendance and reduce chronic absenteeism; implement restorative practices, restorative justice models, or other programs to improve retention rates, reduce suspensions and other school removals, and reduce the referral of students to law enforcement agencies; implement activities that advance social-emotional learning, positive behavior interventions and supports, culturally responsive practices, and trauma-informed strategies; establish partnerships with community-based organizations or other relevant entities to support the implementation of evidence-based, non-punitive approaches to further the goals of the program; and add or increase staff within a LEA whose primary purpose is to address ongoing chronic attendance problems.

In selecting grant recipients, CDE is authorized to give priority to an LEA that meets any of the following criteria: (a) has a high rate of chronic absenteeism, out-of-school suspension, or school dropouts for the general pupil population or for a numerically significant pupil subgroup, as identified in a local control and accountability plan pursuant; (b) is located in a community with a high crime rate; or (c) as a significant representation of foster youth among its pupil enrollment.

The bill intends to add Promise Neighborhoods as an additional priority category for SNSA selection criteria. The Promise Neighborhood communities received federal grant funds to support eligible entities, including (1) nonprofit organizations, which may include faith-based nonprofit organizations, (2) institutions of higher education, and (3) Indian tribes. Funding for the Promise Neighborhood Program will not be continued under the new federal Administration. The following communities in California received Promise Neighborhood grants: Corning, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chula Vista, Hayward, and Fresno.

1. Purpose. According to the author, Promise Neighborhood Program and SNSA serve the same general purposes and population; it is the author's intent that this bill will help ensure the continuation of programs and activities that have been started under the Promise Neighborhood Program with SNSA funds after the federal funding runs out. The author's office states, "While Promise Neighborhoods are able to meet any of the Learning Communities for School Success Program grant funding priorities, they are not explicitly named as a funding priority. By explicitly stating that funding should be prioritized for applicants that are part of the Promise Neighborhoods program, the state can ensure that the existing gains and improvements made will not be lost."
2. Staff Comments: The grant awardees are completely different entities. Specifically, the federal grant is awarded to nonprofit organizations, institutions of higher education, and tribes, but not LEAs. By contrast, the Learning Communities for School Success Program grantees are only LEAs. Adding the federal grant program as a criteria is problematic for two key reasons: first, the purpose of the federal grant does not align with the legislature's intent to fund the Learning Communities for School Success Program; and two, this bill makes any Promise Neighborhood eligible for priority without specific attention to whether the federal grant was renewed, the length of time the designation was held by the community or whether any positive outcomes were made by the federal grant recipient.
3. Related Legislation. Assembly Bill 1014 (Thurmond), Chapter 397, Statutes of 2016 and Senate Bill 527 (Liu) Chapter 533, Statutes of 2016, established the Learning Communities for School Success Program, a competitive grant program to expend the K-12 share of the SNSA savings.

Analysis Prepared by: Daisy Gonzales / APPR. / (916) 319-2081

Date of Hearing: June 21, 2017

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Patrick O'Donnell, Chair

SBPCA Bill Id:SB 140

Author:(Allen) – As Amended Ver:March 21, 2017

SENATE VOTE: 39-0

SUBJECT: Education finance: Learning Communities for School Success Program

SUMMARY: Expands priority for the selection of local educational agencies to receive a grant from the Learning Communities for School Success Program to include Promise Neighborhoods.

EXISTING LAW:

1. Establishes the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act (SNSA), through passage of Proposition 47 in November 2014, which reduces the penalties for certain non-violent, non-serious drug and property crimes.
2. Requires 25 percent of the resulting savings to be deposited in the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Fund to fund a grant program administered by the California Department of Education (CDE) to reduce truancy and support students who are at risk of dropping out of school or who are victims of crime.
   
3. Establishes a grant program, the Learning Communities for School Success Program, to be administered by the CDE that furthers the purpose of Proposition 47 in reducing truancy and supporting students who are at risk of dropping out of school or who are victims of crime.
4. Authorizes grant funds to be utilized for activities that include but are not limited to, all of the following:
   1. Establishing a community school, as defined;
   2. Implementing activities or programs to improve attendance and reduce chronic absenteeism, including but not limited to, early warning systems or early intervention programs;
   3. Implementing restorative practices, restorative justice models, or other programs to improve retention rates, reduce suspensions and other school removals, and reduce the referral of students to law enforcement agencies;
   4. Implementing activities that advance social-emotional learning, positive behavior interventions and supports, culturally responsive practices, and trauma-informed strategies;
   5. Establishing partnerships with community-based organizations or other relevant entities to support the implementation of evidence-based, non-punitive approaches to further the goals of the program; and
   6. Adding or increasing staff within a local educational agency (LEA) whose primary purpose is to address ongoing chronic attendance problems, including but not limited to, conducting outreach to families and children currently, or at risk of becoming, chronically truant.
5. Requires the CDE, in selecting grant recipients, to give priority to an LEA that meets any of the following criteria:
   1. Has a high rate of chronic absenteeism, out-of-school suspension, or school dropouts for the general pupil population or for a numerically significant pupil subgroup, as identified in a local control and accountability plan pursuant;
   2. Is located in a community with a high crime rate; or
   3. Has a significant representation of foster youth among its pupil enrollment.

FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Senate Appropriations Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8, negligible state costs.

COMMENTS:

Safe Neighborhood and Schools Act. California voters passed Proposition 47, the SNSA, in November 2014. The SNSA reduced the penalties for certain non-violent, non-serious drug and property crimes. State savings resulting from these changes are to be spent on mental health and drug programs, kindergarten through twelfth-grade students, and crime victims.

The SNSA requires that 25 percent of the monies available through criminal justice system savings are to be allocated to the California Department of Education (CDE) for administration of a grant program to reduce truancy and support pupils who are at risk of dropping out of school or who are victims of crime. Legislation in 2016, Assembly Bill 1014 (Thurmond, Chapter 397, Statutes of 2016) and Senate Bill 527 (Liu, Chapter 533, Statutes of 2016) established the Learning Communities for School Success Program, a competitive grant program to expend the K-12 share of the SNSA savings.

The CDE administers the Learning Communities for School Success Program. Fiscal Year 2016-17 is the first year of funding for the program's three-year local educational agency competitive grants. The grants are to be annually awarded using continuously appropriated funds identified by the California Department of Finance as the annual savings resulting from Proposition 47. In 2016-17, 34 LEAs received SNSA grants, including Los Angeles Unified School District and Hayward Unified School District, which serve Promise Neighborhood communities.

Promise Neighborhoods. Promise Neighborhoods is a federal program that provides funding to support eligible entities, including (1) nonprofit organizations, which may include faith-based nonprofit organizations, (2) institutions of higher education, and (3) Indian tribes. The vision of the program is that all children and youth growing up in Promise Neighborhoods have access to great schools and strong systems of family and community support that will prepare them to attain an excellent education and successfully transition to college and a career. The purpose of Promise Neighborhoods is to significantly improve the educational and developmental outcomes of children and youth in our most distressed communities, and to transform those communities by:

• Identifying and increasing the capacity of eligible entities that are focused on achieving results for children and youth throughout an entire neighborhood;
• Building a complete continuum of cradle-to-career solutions of both educational programs and family and community supports, with great schools at the center;
• Integrating programs and breaking down agency “silos” so that solutions are implemented effectively and efficiently across agencies;
• Developing the local infrastructure of systems and resources needed to sustain and scale up proven, effective solutions across the broader region beyond the initial neighborhood; and
• Learning about the overall impact of the Promise Neighborhoods program and about the relationship between particular strategies in Promise Neighborhoods and student outcomes, including through a rigorous evaluation of the program.

The following communities in California have received Promise Neighborhood grants:

• Corning
• Los Angeles*
• San Francisco
• Chula Vista
• Hayward*
• Fresno

*School districts serving these cities have also received SNSA grants.

Purpose of the bill. Funding for the Promise Neighborhood Program will not be continued under the new Administration, so new grants will not be awarded and existing grants will not be renewed. Because the Promise Neighborhood Program and SNSA serve the same general purposes and population, it is the author's intent that this bill will help ensure the continuation of programs and activities that have been started under the Promise Neighborhood Program with SNSA funds after the federal funding runs out. The author's office states, "While Promise Neighborhoods are able to meet any of the Learning Communities for School Success Program grant funding priorities, they are not explicitly named as a funding priority. By explicitly stating that funding should be prioritized for applicants that are part of the Promise Neighborhoods program, the state can ensure that the existing gains and improvements made will not be lost."

However, it is not clear how bill would ensure continued funding for existing Promise Neighborhood Programs, because Promise Neighborhood status would be just one of four criteria that are considered for funding priority. Moreover, school districts that are part of a Promise Neighborhood already meet at least one of the other three criteria for priority, as evidenced by the fact that two such districts have already received SNSA grants. Finally, the federal and state grants are awarded to different entities. Specifically, federal grants are awarded to nonprofit organizations, institutions of higher education, and Indian tribes, but not school LEAs. By contrast, state grants are awarded only to LEAs. It is not clear how awarding a grant to an LEA would ensure the continuation of programs and activities funded by different entities.

REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:

Support

Common Sense Kids Action

Opposition

None received

Analysis Prepared by: Rick Pratt / ED. / (916) 319-2087

 CONSENT  

Bill No: SB 140

Author:

:

Vote:

SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE: 7-0, 4/26/17

AYES: Allen, Wilk, Galgiani, Leyva, Mendoza, Pan, Vidak

SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: Senate Rule 28.8

SUBJECT:

SOURCE: Author

DIGEST:

This bill expands priority for the Learning Communities for School Success Program grant fund to include Promise Neighborhoods.

ANALYSIS:

Existing law:

1. Establishes the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act, through passage of Proposition 47 in November 2014, which reduces the penalties for certain non-violent, non-serious drug and property crimes. Existing law requires 25 percent of the resulting savings to be deposited in the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Fund to fund a grant program administered by the California Department of Education (CDE) to reduce truancy and support students who are at risk of dropping out of school or who are victims of crime. (Government Code § 7599, et seq.)
   
2. Establishes a grant program, the Learning Communities for School Success Program, to be administered by the CDE that furthers the purpose of Proposition 47 in reducing truancy and supporting students who are at risk of dropping out of school or who are victims of crime. Existing law authorizes grant funds to be utilized for activities that include but are not limited to, all of the following:
   1. Establishing a community school, as defined.
   2. Implementing activities or programs to improve attendance and reduce chronic absenteeism, including but not limited to, early warning systems or early intervention programs.
   3. Implementing restorative practices, restorative justice models, or other programs to improve retention rates, reduce suspensions and other school removals, and reduce the referral of students to law enforcement agencies.
   4. Implementing activities that advance social-emotional learning, positive behavior interventions and supports, culturally responsive practices, and trauma-informed strategies.
   5. Establishing partnerships with community-based organizations or other relevant entities to support the implementation of evidence-based, non-punitive approaches to further the goals of the program.
   6. Adding or increasing staff within a local educational agency (LEA) whose primary purpose is to address ongoing chronic attendance problems, including but not limited to, conducting outreach to families and children currently, or at risk of becoming, chronically truant. (Education Code § 33430 et seq)

This bill expands priority for the Learning Communities for School Success Program grant fund to include Promise Neighborhoods.

Comments

1. Promise Neighborhoods. Promise Neighborhoods, established under the authority of the federal Fund for the Improvement of Education Program, provides federal funding to support eligible entities, including nonprofit organizations, institutions of higher education, and Indian tribes. The purpose of Promise Neighborhoods is to significantly improve the educational and developmental outcomes of children and youth in our most distressed communities, and to transform those communities. In 2010, the Promise Neighborhoods program awarded one-year grants to support the development of a plan to implement a Promise Neighborhood in 21 communities across the country. In 2011, the United States Department of Education awarded a second round of planning grants and a first round of implementation grants. The five implementation grants and 15 planning grants reached an additional 16 communities throughout the United States in order to help revitalize disadvantaged neighborhoods. In 2012, a third round of planning grants and a second round of implementation grants were awarded. The 7 implementation grants and 10 planning grants reached an additional 11 new communities throughout the country. Promise Neighborhoods in California that have received federal Promise Neighborhood funds include several areas of Los Angeles, Hayward, Campo, San Francisco, Fresno, Chula Vista, and Corning.
   
2. Existing grant program. The CDE administers a grant program, the Learning Communities for School Success Program, and coordinates assistance to LEAs in identifying and implementing evidence-based, non-punitive programs and practices that are aligned with the goals for students contained in each LEA's local control and accountability plan. Existing law requires a LEA that chooses to apply for funding to submit an application to the CDE, and requires the CDE to determine eligibility for grants and the distribution of grant funding based on all of specified factors. Existing law requires a LEA that receives a grant to use the grant funds for planning, implementation, and evaluation of activities in support of evidence-based, non-punitive programs and practices to keep the state’s most vulnerable students in school.
   
   Existing law authorizes the CDE, in selecting grant recipients, to give priority to a LEA that meets any of the following criteria:
   
   1. Has a high rate of chronic absenteeism, out-of-school suspension, or school dropout for the general student population or for a numerically significant student subgroup, as identified in the local control and accountability plan (LCAP). This bill defines "high rate" as a rate that exceeds the state average.
      
   2. Is located in a community with a high crime rate.
      
   3. Has a significant representation of foster youth among its student enrollment.
      

This bill adds Promise Neighborhoods to existing priority for state Learning Communities for School Success Program grant funds.

1. Funding. The 2016-17 Budget provides a total of $27.9 for the purposes of the Learning Communities for School Success Program. Specifically, the budget includes $9.9 million in Proposition 47 savings and an additional $18 million in one-time Proposition 98 funds to implement the K-12 grant program required under Proposition 47. Fiscal Year 2016-17 is the first year of funding for the program's three-year LEA competitive grants. The grants are to be annually awarded using continuously appropriated funds identified by the California Department of Finance as the annual savings resulting from Proposition 47. The Request for Applications was released by the CDE in March 2017, and applications are due by May 10, 2017. Funded applicants will receive $50 per year per student enrolled in the LEA, with a minimum of $15,000 and a maximum of $2 million per LEA per three-year grant period. No grant funds have been awarded yet. [http://www.cde.ca.gov/fg/fo/r8/prop47rfa.asp]

This bill adds to priority for selection of grant recipients, thereby potentially expanding the pool of applicants for the grant funds. The total pool of grant funds and grant amounts are set, so more applicants could make the application process more competitive.

FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: Fiscal Com.: Local:

SUPPORT: (Verified 5/9/17)

Youth Policy Institute

OPPOSITION: (Verified 5/9/17)

None received

Prepared by:

5/9/17 16:30:28

**** END ****

SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Senator Benjamin Allen, Chair

2017 - 2018 Regular

Bill No: Hearing Date: April 26, 2017

Subject:

SUMMARY

This bill expands priority for the Learning Communities for School Success Program grant fund to include Promise Neighborhoods.

BACKGROUND

Existing law:

1. Establishes the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act, through passage of Proposition 47 in November 2014, which reduces the penalties for certain non-violent, non-serious drug and property crimes. Existing law requires 25 percent of the resulting savings to be deposited in the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Fund to fund a grant program administered by the California Department of Education (CDE) to reduce truancy and support students who are at risk of dropping out of school or who are victims of crime. (Government Code § 7599, et seq.)
   
2. Establishes a grant program, the Learning Communities for School Success Program, to be administered by the CDE that furthers the purpose of Proposition 47 in reducing truancy and supporting students who are at risk of dropping out of school or who are victims of crime. Existing law authorizes grant funds to be utilized for activities that include but are not limited to, all of the following:
   
   1. Establishing a community school, as defined.
      
   2. Implementing activities or programs to improve attendance and reduce chronic absenteeism, including but not limited to, early warning systems or early intervention programs.
      
   3. Implementing restorative practices, restorative justice models, or other programs to improve retention rates, reduce suspensions and other school removals, and reduce the referral of students to law enforcement agencies.
      
   4. Implementing activities that advance social-emotional learning, positive behavior interventions and supports, culturally responsive practices, and trauma-informed strategies.
      
   5. Establishing partnerships with community-based organizations or other relevant entities to support the implementation of evidence-based, non-punitive approaches to further the goals of the program.
      
3. Adding or increasing staff within a local educational agency (LEA) whose primary purpose is to address ongoing chronic attendance problems, including but not limited to, conducting outreach to families and children currently, or at risk of becoming, chronically truant. (Education Code § 33430 et seq)

ANALYSIS

This bill expands priority for the Learning Communities for School Success Program grant fund to include Promise Neighborhoods.

STAFF COMMENTS

1. Need for the bill. According to the author, “The Promise Neighborhoods program is a United States Department of Education initiative established by President Obama. The program designates distressed urban and rural areas as Promise Neighborhoods and provides grants to assist these areas in improving educational and health outcomes for students and youth. California has six federally-designated Promise Neighborhoods which have realized improvement in educational outcomes through this program. For example, the Hollywood/Pacoima Promise Neighborhood, established in 2010, made vast improvements in early education, K-12 services, and family and community support. In 2016, 11% of the graduates at STEM Academy in Hollywood were admitted to UCLA. This represents 15 students. Importantly, 35 seniors applied in 2016, whereas two years prior, only 5 students applied and none were admitted. Overall, 41 graduating seniors accepted admissions to a University of California campus, more acceptances in one year than in the entire prior history of the school. While Promise Neighborhoods are able to meet any of the Learning Communities for School Success Program grant funding priorities, they are not explicitly named as a funding priority. By explicitly stating that funding should be prioritized for applicants that are part of the Promise Neighborhoods program, the state can ensure that the existing gains and improvements made will not be lost. This emphasis will also help us create new, replicable, models for our state to reduce chronic absenteeism and help close opportunity and achievement gaps for all California students, the ultimate goal of the Prop 47 funding.”
   
2. Promise Neighborhoods. Promise Neighborhoods, established under the authority of the federal Fund for the Improvement of Education Program, provides federal funding to support eligible entities, including nonprofit organizations, institutions of higher education, and Indian tribes. The purpose of Promise Neighborhoods is to significantly improve the educational and developmental outcomes of children and youth in our most distressed communities, and to transform those communities. In 2010, the Promise Neighborhoods program awarded one-year grants to support the development of a plan to implement a Promise Neighborhood in 21 communities across the country. In 2011, the United States Department of Education awarded a second round of planning grants and a first round of implementation grants. The five implementation grants and 15 planning grants reached an additional 16 communities throughout the United States in order to help revitalize disadvantaged neighborhoods. In 2012, a third round of planning grants and a second round of implementation grants were awarded. The 7 implementation grants and 10 planning grants reached an additional 11 new communities throughout the country. Promise Neighborhoods in California that have received federal Promise Neighborhood funds include several areas of Los Angeles, Hayward, Campo, San Francisco, Fresno, Chula Vista, and Corning.
   
3. Existing grant program. The California Department of Education (CDE) administers a grant program, the Learning Communities for School Success Program, and coordinates assistance to LEAs in identifying and implementing evidence-based, non-punitive programs and practices that are aligned with the goals for students contained in each LEA's local control and accountability plan. Existing law requires a LEA that chooses to apply for funding to submit an application to the CDE, and requires the CDE to determine eligibility for grants and the distribution of grant funding based on all of specified factors. Existing law requires a LEA that receives a grant to use the grant funds for planning, implementation, and evaluation of activities in support of evidence-based, non-punitive programs and practices to keep the state’s most vulnerable students in school.
   
   
   Existing law authorizes the California Department of Education (CDE), in selecting grant recipients, to give priority to a local educational agency (LEA) that meets any of the following criteria:
   
   1. Has a high rate of chronic absenteeism, out-of-school suspension, or school dropout for the general student population or for a numerically significant student subgroup, as identified in the local control and accountability plan (LCAP). This bill defines "high rate" as a rate that exceeds the state average.
      
   2. Is located in a community with a high crime rate.
      
   3. Has a significant representation of foster youth among its student enrollment.
      

This bill adds Promise Neighborhoods to existing priority for state Learning Communities for School Success Program grant funds.

1. Funding. The 2016-17 Budget provides a total of $27.9 for the purposes of the Learning Communities for School Success Program. Specifically, the budget includes $9.9 million in Proposition 47 savings and an additional $18 million in one-time Proposition 98 funds to implement the K-12 grant program required under Proposition 47. Fiscal Year 2016-17 is the first year of funding for the program's three-year LEA competitive grants. The grants are to be annually awarded using continuously appropriated funds identified by the California Department of Finance as the annual savings resulting from Proposition 47. The Request for Applications was released by the CDE in March 2017, and applications are due by May 10, 2017. Funded applicants will receive $50 per year per student enrolled in the LEA, with a minimum of $15,000 and a maximum of $2 million per LEA per three-year grant period. No grant funds have been awarded yet. http://www.cde.ca.gov/fg/fo/r8/prop47rfa.asp

This bill adds to priority for selection of grant recipients, thereby potentially expanding the pool of applicants for the grant funds. The total pool of grant funds and grant amounts are set, so more applicants could make the application process more competitive.

SUPPORT

Youth Policy Institute

OPPOSITION

None received

-- END --