AB 129 — Education finance.

Summary

(1) Existing law, the Child Care and Development Services Act, requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to administer child care and development programs that offer a full range of services to eligible children from infancy to 13 years of age. The act, and regulations adopted pursuant to the act, set forth eligibility requirements for families to receive federal and state subsidized child development services, including income eligibility requirements, and impose various time limits for receipt of services and recertification for continued services. Existing law requires the Department of Finance to calculate the state median income for various family sizes, as provided, for purposes of establishing income eligibility for services under the act and requires the Department of Finance to update those calculations and provide them to the State Department of Education no later than May 1 of each fiscal year. Existing law requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to establish a fee schedule for families using preschool and child care and development services, as specified, and requires family fees to be assessed at initial enrollment and reassessed at update of certification or recertification. Existing law, commencing with the 2014–15 fiscal year, requires the adopted family fee schedule that was in effect on July 1, 2014, to remain in effect. This bill would instead require the Department of Finance to update its calculations of the state median income for various family sizes and provide the updated data to the State Department of Education no later than March 1 of each fiscal year. The bill would instead require the Superintendent to design the family fee schedule based on the most recent census data available on state median family income in the past 12 months, adjusted for family size. The bill would repeal the provision requiring, commencing with the 2014–15 fiscal year, the adopted family fee schedule that was in effect on July 1, 2014, to remain in effect. (2) Under existing law, the Middle Class Scholarship Program provides that an undergraduate student enrolled at the University of California or the California State University, or enrolled in upper division coursework in a community college baccalaureate program, and meeting certain requirements, is eligible for a scholarship award that, combined with other federal, state, and institutionally administered grants and fee waivers, totals up to 40% of the systemwide tuition and fees. Under existing law, to receive an award under the Middle Class Scholarship Program, a student is required to have an annual household income that does not exceed $150,000 as adjusted to reflect changes in the cost of living, satisfy specified requirements for a Cal Grant award, be a California resident or exempt from paying nonresident tuition, file specified financial aid forms, timely apply for publicly funded student financial aid for which he or she is eligible, maintain at least a 2.0 grade point average, be pursuing his or her first undergraduate baccalaureate degree or be enrolled in a specified professional teacher preparation program, and be enrolled at least part time. Existing law transfers $117,000,000 from the General Fund to the Middle Class Scholarship Fund, and appropriates that sum to the Student Aid Commission for purposes of the scholarship program, for the 2017–18 fiscal year and each fiscal year thereafter. The bill would reduce the existing appropriation for the 2017–18 fiscal year only from $117,000,000 to $96,000,000. (3) Existing law, commencing with the 2017–18 academic year, establishes the Community College Completion Grant Program, which would require participating community colleges to award grants to their students who meet specified requirements. The maximum annual grant award under the program is $2,000. This bill would expand eligibility of the program to include students meeting the other requirements under the program who enroll in a sufficient number of units per semester, quarterly equivalent, or summer term, as determined by the community college, to be considered on track to receive a baccalaureate degree under the Baccalaureate Degree Pilot Program, as specified. The bill would make the maximum grant award per semester, or quarterly equivalent, under the Community College Completion Grant Program $1,000. (4) Existing law requires the University of California, from certain funds appropriated in the Budget Act of 2016, to make one-time expenditures totaling $2,200,000 per campus for activities to expand or accelerate economic development in the state. Existing law provides that a campus of the University of California may not expend the funds unless an external advisory body designated by the Regents of the University of California certifies that the chancellor of the campus has demonstrated that the funds will only be used for the cost of activities that support the expansion or acceleration of economic development in the state, including providing certain benefits to entrepreneurs. This bill, subject to that certification by the advisory body, would additionally authorize the use of these funds for activities associated with research and development of new energy technologies and storage. (5) Existing law establishes the Every Kid Counts (EKC) Act that would, upon appropriation by the Legislature, provide for a one-time dollar-for-dollar matching grant of up to $200 to accounts opened under the Golden State Scholarshare Trust Act. The act provides a one-time matching grant in the amount of $25 to a Scholarshare account if the qualifying family establishes an automatic contribution plan of $25 or more per month. The act requires a participating designated beneficiary and his or her parent or legal guardian who opened the Scholarshare account to meet specified requirements in order to participate in the matching grant program. The act only allows an individual to be the designated beneficiary on one account under the program. The act authorizes the Scholarshare Investment Board to obtain remedies against the designated beneficiary or his or her parent or legal guardian if any of the matching grant funds are not used for qualified higher education expenses or if the matching grant program participant or designated beneficiary otherwise fails to meet the act's requirements. This bill would revise and recast the act to instead require the board to implement and administer a college savings program that incentivizes families to participate in a qualified tuition program established under the Golden State Scholarshare Trust Act or other college savings programs. Before implementing the program, the bill would require the board to make specified considerations, including how best to incentivize low-income families to participate in these college savings programs and whether and how proposed actions allow for rigorous evaluation of the effects of the Every Kid Counts (EKC) Act. The bill would require the Scholarshare Investment Board and the Franchise Tax Board to exchange prescribed information in order to verify financial eligibility under college savings programs administered by the Scholarshare Investment Board. (6) The Administrative Procedure Act governs the procedure for the adoption, amendment, or repeal of regulations by state agencies and for the review of those regulatory actions by the Office of Administrative Law. The California Clean Energy Jobs Act, an initiative approved by the voters as Proposition 39 at the November 6, 2012, statewide general election, made changes to corporate income taxes and, except as specified, provides for the transfer of $550,000,000 annually from the General Fund to the Clean Energy Job Creation Fund for 5 fiscal years beginning with the 2013–14 fiscal year. Moneys in the fund are available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for purposes of funding eligible projects that create jobs in California improving energy efficiency and expanding clean energy generation. Existing law exempts from the Administrative Procedure Act the adoption or revision of certain guidelines implementing the California Clean Energy Jobs Act. Existing law provides for the allocation of moneys remaining in the fund after the 2017–18 fiscal year and, commencing with the 2018–19 fiscal year, establishes the Clean Energy Job Creation Program to fund projects that create jobs in California improving energy efficiency and expanding clean energy generation, and provides for the allocation of moneys appropriated by the Legislature to community college districts and local educational agencies for purposes of the program. Existing law authorizes the Energy Commission to adopt guidelines implementing these provisions consistent with the duties of the Citizens Oversight Board, which is established by the California Clean Energy Jobs Act, to, among other things, oversee expenditures from the fund. This bill would provide that the adoption or revision of the guidelines implementing any of the above provisions is exempt from the Administrative Procedure Act. The bill would repeal the language explicitly requiring that those guidelines be consistent with the provisions establishing and assigning the duties of the Citizens Oversight Board. (7) Existing law, the California Healthcare, Research, and Prevention Tobacco Tax Act of 2016, or Proposition 56, which was approved by voters at the November 8, 2016, statewide general election, increases taxes imposed on distributors of cigarettes and tobacco products and allocates 15% of the revenue to the State Department of Education to be used for school programs to prevent and reduce the use of tobacco and nicotine products by young people, as provided. Existing law requires those funds to be allocated to support programs that prevent and reduce the use of tobacco and nicotine products by young people pursuant to other legislation enacted in the 2017–18 Regular Session that is consistent with Proposition 56, or, if no legislation regarding the use of those funds is chaptered by October 15, 2017, requires those funds to be allocated to the department to be used for school programs to prevent and reduce the use of tobacco and nicotine products by young people, as provided. This bill would repeal the latter provisions. (8) Existing law establishes the California-Grown Fresh School Meals Grant Program as a one-time program for purposes of incentivizing the purchase of California-grown food by schools and expanding the number of freshly prepared school meals offered within the state that use California-grown ingredients. The bill requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to provide grants to school districts, county offices of education, and charter schools for these purposes. Existing law establishes the California-Grown Fresh School Meals Account in the Special Deposit Fund, a continuously appropriated fund, and authorizes the deposit of funds donated from public and private sources into the account for allocation by the Superintendent for purposes of the program. Existing law requires the Superintendent to report to the Department of Finance by September 30, 2017, on the funds received and grants awarded from the account. Existing law requires any funds received or unallocated after July 1, 2018, or after such time as the 2017–18 grants have been fully allocated, whichever is later, to be transferred to the General Fund and the account to be closed. This bill would instead require the Superintendent to annually report to the Department of Finance by September 30 of each year, through September 30, 2020, on the funds received and grants awarded from the account. The bill would require any funds received for deposit in, or unallocated from, the account after July 1, 2020, to be transferred to the General Fund and the account to be closed. By extending the term for which an existing appropriation is available, the bill would make an appropriation. (9) This bill would correct and update cross-references, make conforming changes, and make other nonsubstantive changes. (10) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.

Bill Text

• Chaptered 09/16/17 - Chaptered Current pdf September 16, 2017
• Enrolled 09/15/17 - Enrolled pdf September 15, 2017
• Amended 09/11/17 - Amended Senate pdf September 11, 2017
• Amended 09/08/17 - Amended Senate pdf September 08, 2017
• Amended 09/06/17 - Amended Senate pdf September 06, 2017
• Introduced 01/10/17 - Introduced pdf January 10, 2017
• AB129 View text html

Action History

1. September 16, 2017

   Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 250, Statutes of 2017.

2. September 16, 2017

   Approved by the Governor.

3. September 15, 2017

   Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 4:30 p.m.

4. September 15, 2017

   Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 78. Noes 1. Page 3465.).

5. September 15, 2017

   Assembly Rule 63 suspended. (Ayes 54. Noes 25. Page 3462.)

6. September 15, 2017

   In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending.

7. September 15, 2017

   Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 28. Noes 11. Page 2946.).

8. September 14, 2017

   Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

9. September 13, 2017

   From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 12. Noes 5.) (September 13).

10. September 12, 2017

    In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.

11. September 11, 2017

    From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on B. & F.R.

12. September 11, 2017

    Joint Rule 62(a), file notice suspended. (Ayes 27. Noes 12. Page 2664.)

13. September 11, 2017

    Senate Rule 29.3(b) suspended. (Ayes 27. Noes 12. Page 2664.)

14. September 11, 2017

    In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.

15. September 08, 2017

    From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on B. & F.R.

16. September 06, 2017

    From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on B. & F.R.

17. August 31, 2017

    Joint Rule 61 suspended. (Ayes 27. Noes 11. Page 2293.)

18. May 18, 2017

    Referred to Com. on B. & F.R.

19. May 18, 2017

    In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.

20. May 18, 2017

    Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 45. Noes 25. Page 1607.)

21. May 15, 2017

    Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

22. May 15, 2017

    Ordered to second reading.

23. May 15, 2017

    Withdrawn from committee.

24. May 15, 2017

    Assembly Rule 96 suspended. (Ayes 52. Noes 25. Page 1511.)

25. January 19, 2017

    Referred to Com. on BUDGET.

26. January 11, 2017

    From printer. May be heard in committee February 10.

27. January 10, 2017

    Read first time. To print.

Sponsors

• Committee on Budget · Primary

Votes

Subjects