Inside the Local Control Funding Formula

California is in its second year of using the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) to fund K-12 education.

This change was considered by many to be revolutionary in that it streamlined the state’s funding formula to allow school districts to exercise greater discretion in deciding how funding should be used to serve local needs and better support the neediest students.

With LCFF, the allocation has changed from the state’s former flat, per-student allocation to one that has equity at its core. Now, California school districts that have higher concentrations of students with greater needs, such as low-income students, English learners, and foster youth (referred to as “focus” students in San Diego Unified), receive proportionately more funding to support those students. And, although there are some important guidelines with this funding model, the state does not dictate how the funds must be spent; that decision is left up to local districts. Under LCFF, the number of categorical funds – those with ‘strings’ attached for their use – was cut from 30 to 14, allowing districts far greater flexibility in determining how to support their respective student populations most effectively.

Under LCFF, districts receive two types of allocations per student. One is called “base funding” and is received for all students. The second type of funding, “supplemental and concentration funding,” is allocated based on the concentration of focus students (low income, English learners and foster youth) at each school.

As required by LCFF, extensive community engagement is conducted to ensure transparency in the process and to help all stakeholders more fully understand the new model. In addition to presentations conducted throughout the year, the Board of Education conducted a special workshop focused on LCFF on May 6, 2015. Superintendent Cindy Marten, Chief Financial Officer Jenny Salkeld, and other district leaders presented information to explain how the district receives and spends LCFF dollars.

Superintendent Marten emphasized that the LCFF supports a district focus on equity that began several years ago.

“Our Vision 2020, developed in 2009 with its 12 indicators for quality schools in all neighborhoods, reflects a moral imperative that one’s zip code should not dictate a student’s access to or success in a rigorous college- and career-ready education,” she said.

The superintendent also stressed that LCFF funding supports strategies and actions that are prioritized by data analysis and community feedback. Given that over 63 percent of district students are considered focus students, many supports are provided districtwide; however, they are designed to principally benefit focus students.

Some strategies —ones that emerged as top priorities from community feedback— not only benefit focus students but all students. These include lowering class sizes and increased counselor support. In addition to these districtwide strategies that provide additional resources at each school campus, schools also receive funds to implement site-specific strategies.

During discussion, board trustees emphasized the need for clear communication to continue reaching out to all stakeholders in the San Diego Unified community. Vice President John Lee Evans suggested including “equity” in the name for the new funding model, thereby coining a new acronym, LCEFF. Trustees noted that there are positive trends for some of our metrics (e.g., improving graduation rate and decreasing dropout rate); however, continual data analysis is needed to understand where some student groups need additional support.

Superintendent Marten indicated that this year’s data analysis has identified three student groups (English learners, students with disabilities, and African American students) for which specific, focused supports need to be implemented. Trustee Richard Barrera stressed that our core belief in equity will only be realized with a corresponding investment in equity.

More information about LCFF is available on the district website at www.sandi.net/lcff. All of the LCFF workshop materials are available at the Board Docs meeting site at http://www.boarddocs.com/ca/sandi/Board.nsf/goto?open&id=9MHQLS5EA307. The video of the meeting is available at http://www.sandi.net/cms/lib/CA01001235/Centricity/domain/431/reports/2015/0506/video.html.

Local Control and Accountability Plan implementation continues

As the development of the 2015-16 budget begins, San Diego Unified continues to implement its Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) that aligns with Vision 2020 and the 12 indicators of a quality school in every neighborhood.

Through this first year, district staff has been monitoring the implementation of the actions and strategies included in the LCAP, as well as gathering data on outcomes. Superintendent Marten has been reporting monthly to the Board of Education and the public on the progress of the LCAP implementation. The reports have included the following:

Month	LCAP Goal	Metric
September	Safe & Well Maintained Facilities	2013 Suspension and Expulsion Data
October	Broad & Challenging Curriculum	A-G Data
November	Broad & Challenging Curriculum	Advanced Placement and College, Career & Technical Education (CCTE) Course Completion
December	Professional Learning for All and Supportive Environments that Value Diversity	Professional Development and Cultural Proficiency Training

Following Supt. Marten's reports at Board meetings, input and feedback from the community is sought at cluster meetings, the District Advisory Council, the District English Learner Advisory Committee, other advisory committees, and the San Diego Unified Council PTA. Individuals may also view the monthly superintendent presentation updates and submit feedback online or find additional information about the district’s LCAP by visiting www.sandi.net/lcap .

This month, the district held the first in a series of LCAP planning team meetings for the 2015-2016 budget process. Additional updates will be provided in the months ahead.

If you have questions or want to give feedback, please email lcap@sandi.net .

2014-15 signals first year of Local Control and Accountability Plan implementation

In June 2013 a new era of school finance in California was signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown. The new funding model, known as the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF), represented the biggest change to funding K-12 public education in California in decades.

“It reshapes school funding, with the promise of additional funding, trying to return to the funding levels of six or seven years ago, and provides us more flexibility in determining how state funding will be used to achieve our academic priorities,” said Jenny Salkeld, Chief Financial Officer.

The LCFF ensures that more money is attached to meet the needs of school districts’ most at-risk students. The three categories of students requiring greater resources include students who qualify for free or reduced priced meals, students who are English Learners, and foster youth.

As part of the LCFF, school districts, county offices of education and charter schools are required to develop, adopt, and annually update a three-year Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP). The LCAP is required to identify annual goals, specific actions, and measure progress for student subgroups across multiple performance indicators, including student academic achievement, school climate, student access to a broad curriculum, and parent engagement. The academic priorities must be aligned to the district’s spending plan.

As part of the district’s focus on transparent communications on the LCFF and LCAP, Superintendent Cindy Marten will provide monthly LCAP Implementation Reports to the Board of Education that include the alignment of Vision 2020, the 12 indicators of a quality school in every neighborhood, and which details LCAP Year 1 activities. The reports will include actions, services, and baseline data. These reports will then be shared with cluster and advisory groups to provide an opportunity to provide input and feedback on the current implementation and suggested next steps.

The first report was provided to the Board at the September 23 meeting, and focused on Quality Indicator 12 – Safe and Well-maintained Facilities and how this indicator helps us achieve a goal of creating physical, social and academic environments worthy of our students.

“We have developed metrics to show what we are doing with the funding, how we allocated it, and what the results are,” said Superintendent Cindy Marten. “We have more than 30 measures to indicate how we’re doing for every funding allocation and every decision we’re making for our dollars.

“My monthly reports will allow me the opportunity to share where we are in implementing our LCAP so our community can hear each month how we’re doing and provide us feedback,” Marten said.

Video clips of the presentations, excerpted from the Board meetings, will be posted on the LCAP web page under the Resources section.

Welcome message from Superintendent Cindy Marten

Welcome to the 2014-15 School Year!

As a teacher, principal and now superintendent, those words carry a great deal of meaning for me. The opening of a new school year offers us amazing opportunities to make a difference in the lives of our students. I am looking forward to the year ahead.

I know the start of the new school year also brings a great deal of excitement to parents and students. Our principals, teachers and support staff have been working hard to make sure the excitement extends from Day One through Day 180. Our focus for the start of the year is developing academic, physical and social environments worthy of all students. This focus is fully aligned with our Vision 2020 of creating quality schools in every neighborhood.

Across the district, from bus drivers to custodians, food service associates to administrative support professionals, principals to teachers, we are all committed to making sure our students are on the pathway to success. We are ready!

The implementation of the Common Core State Standards is at the forefront of teaching and learning. Our principals and teachers have spent time over the summer fully engaged in professional development. The Common Core State Standards will help position all students for the future – THEIR future in which critical thinking, problem-solving, collaboration and creativity are essential. Students will be better prepared for post-secondary education and careers, and ultimately become actively literate contributing participating members of society.

In addition, we remain cautiously encouraged about the budget passed by the State’s legislators and the reinvestment in public education. Although we still face financial challenges and will continue to be prudent with our dollars, there is hope. The new Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) changed the structure of how school districts received funding from the state level. Our district’s Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP), which involved input from multiple stakeholders, has been approved and will provide a road map with clearly defined metrics that aligns academic priorities with our budget.

The start of a new school year gives us a renewed sense of anticipation, hope and enthusiasm as we work collaboratively to assure that each child in our district receives the best education possible. I look forward to working beside you as we continue making our Vision 2020 a reality.

Best,

Cindy Marten
Superintendent

Questions, answers about 2014-15 budget: Prop. 30 funding, strategic staffing, 3-year budget strategy

Proposition 30 turned the corner on education funding, but we still have a long way to go. It will take us three years after Prop 30 to have the state funding come up to the level of our current school operations. We are bridging the gap with property sales and an early retirement incentive. We will direct our limited funds to those budget lines that improve student achievement. Dr. John Lee Evans, Subdistrict A Trustee on the Board of Education, has prepared this information.
 
I understood that Proposition 30 would put a lot of money into our schools. Why do we still have budget problems?

Proposition 30 stopped the hemorrhaging of state budget cuts to education. But the current plan increases funding so slowly that we will take us until the year 2020 to reach the 2007 level of funding.

Doesn’t the Local Control Funding Formula give a lot more money to San Diego?

The LCFF addresses the issue of equity in funding across the state, but it does not address the issue of adequacy of funding. What does this mean? Governor Brown acknowledged that a district like Compton needs more resources than one like Beverly Hills to create a level playing field of opportunity. The formula does give us an additional grant for students from low income families, English Language Learners and foster children to meet all of their needs. So we are receiving more than some other districts, but the problem is that the base grant for all of the schools across San Diego and across the state is woefully inadequate. That’s why California has ranked between 46th and 49th place among states in per pupil funding for the past several years.

So where is this “extra money” that we have been hearing about?

There is no “extra” money. Last July we acknowledged that it would take three years to stabilize the budget to meet our current operations, staffing levels and class size. We adopted a three year budget plan (13-14, 14-15, and 15-16), which was the amount of time it would take for the income to catch up with our current expenses. If we could stabilize over these three years, we could begin to invest new revenue to improve our schools in the fourth year.

What is the shortfall and why are the numbers always changing?

When the preliminary budget was developed the shortfall was $115 million for 2014-2015 and the projected shortfall for 2015-16 was $69 million. The actual money the state gives us can change. It can go up or it can go down. If more revenues come to the state, our income can go up. On the other hand, it can get worse if the state decides to suddenly increase the district’s pension contribution. It can also go up or down depending on enrollment. These numbers are constantly updated, but the state would have to give us an extra amount equal to each of these shortfalls to begin to have extra money. That is not going to happen.

So how are we supposed to survive these three years?

The board adopted a School Stabilization Fund with proceeds from the sale of properties that the district is no longer using. This provides us money for these three years to avoid making harmful cuts. But it is not sustainable to continue selling properties that generate annual income for the district. This was a short term solution to bridge the gap.

How did we survive all of the state budget cuts the past five years?

We had concessions from all staff in terms of unpaid furlough days for a few years. At this point it’s not reasonable to ask our employees to make any more financial sacrifices. We had federal stimulus money paid to us over three years designed to avoid major layoffs. Of course, those funds are no longer offered. We used up reserve funds in every department to keep our schools successfully operating and there are no more reserve funds to tap.

Does the early retirement incentive for teachers help?

Yes. Because the state is not giving us enough money to employ all of our current staff, we save money by not replacing some of the teachers who retired. Of course, this cannot be done in every case, because we may lack the needed number of teachers with a particular subject credential. The board offered the early retirement incentive to avoid mass layoffs, which create instability in our schools for our students, especially in high poverty schools.

We had Vision 2020 forums to discuss how to spend LCFF funds, as required by the Local Control Accountability Plan (LCAP)? Weren’t we talking about how to spend all of the “new” money?

The LCAP is a method for the district to work with the community to set priorities for improving student achievement across the district and we must also show how the supplemental and concentration grants will be used to help the students with the highest needs. The district must show how our budget aligns with our goals for student achievement across the district with the limited funds that we receive. The Superintendent must creatively work with her staff to improve educational outcomes while living within our means. Just as a family must live within its budget, so too must the district. The only difference is that we cannot get a credit card for our operating budget that would allow us to borrow money this year and pay it back in future years. In spite of the budget limitations we will continue to improve student achievement, as we have successfully done for the past five years.

What has the board asked the Superintendent to do in developing our budget?

1. Complete a budget for all three years of the original plan that is balanced and demonstrates that there will be no shortfall by the following year.
   
2. Develop a budget that is student-centric, a budget that places the highest priority on student needs in the classroom.
   
3. Following the official adoption of the 2014-15 budget enter into a joint advocacy plan with the Board of Education calling for our state to address the inadequacy of public education funding in California, so that we can again become a national leader.
   

Board Member Evans discusses school funding in extended interview

IN THE NEWS: New Local Control Funding Formula, Local Control and Accountability Plan discussed by Dr. John Lee Evans, Sub-District A Board of Education representative. Watch video from NBC 7»

School funding for 2014-15 and beyond with Board Member Evans

IN THE NEWS: What parents, community members and taxpayers need to know about changes in California school funding. Watch video from Fox 5 San Diego»

Community members help prioritize school district budget

State Supt. Tom Torlakson, second from left, discusses budget issues with Supt. Cindy Marten, fourth from left, and attendees.

IN THE NEWS: The state superintendent talked with community members who weigh in on San Diego Unified's funding. Watch video from NBC 7»

Stakeholder engagement guides development of district's draft Local Control and Accountability Plan

Since January, San Diego Unified has been actively engaged in the development of our three-year Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP). The LCAP is a new requirement by the state of California, in which district’s identify annual goals, specific actions, and measure progress for student subgroups across eight performance indicators. This document implements the new Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF), which reduced the number of requirements tied to state funding and put more control in the hands of local school boards. LCAPs must be adopted by districts by July 1, 2014.

San Diego Unified has held more than two-dozen public meetings to gather input to create the LCAP. Parents, students, staff, community members and other stakeholders have had the opportunity to give feedback at the Vision2020 Forums and Cluster LCAP Workshops as well as through surveys conducted by the District Advisory Committee on Compensatory Education (DAC), School Site Councils, and the San Diego Unified Council of PTAs.

This robust stakeholder engagement has helped inform the process for developing the draft LCAP. The meetings and surveys have provided a great deal of input and helped to refine what each of our communities has set as priorities. The development of the plan has provided the opportunity for the district and stakeholders to work together to focus on what is best for students. This teamwork is vital to the implementation of our Vision 2020 long-term plan.

The draft of the district’s LCAP will begin its required 30-day public review period on Thursday, May 1. For more information, visit at www.sandi.net/lcap .

Message from Supt. Marten about Vision 2020, upcoming important decisions

Dear San Diego Unified Community:

In recent months, students, parents,employees, and community members have provided valuable input and feedback in our mission to accomplish our Vision 2020. We have come together to discuss what we believe is working, what we feel should be improved and how we will work together to accomplish the implementation of our vision, all with the common goal of creating quality schools in every neighborhood. We have heard from hundreds of you, our stakeholders, and I personally am appreciative, honored and energized by your commitment to our students and our schools that this input demonstrates.

The feedback collected is now being used to shape the draft of our Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP), our 2014-15 and beyond budget solutions, our legislative priorities and our collective bargaining proposals with employee groups. Several of those proposals will be considered by the Board next week.

The district’s focus in the development of the initial collective bargaining proposals is to continue to implement our Vision 2020, support student learning and propel our path towards quality schools in every neighborhood.

At the Board meeting on April 29, you will have the opportunity to provide further input into the district's initial collective bargaining proposals. (To read the proposals, check the April 29 Agenda, which will be posted at 5 p.m. Friday, April 25.) These negotiations provide an opportunity for the district and the employee organizations to come together in an environment of mutual respect, collegiality, and a focus towards developing a world-class school system for all of our students. We look forward to substantive discussions at the bargaining table with our employee organizations, who we value as important partners in our shared efforts to serve all students.

Sincerely,

Cindy Marten
Superintendent
Work Hard. Be Kind. Dream Big! No Excuses.

School funding reforms spark push to get parent input

IN THE NEWS: The San Diego Unified School District, with over 120,000 students, is the state’s second-largest districtRead more from EdSource»

after the Los Angeles Unified School District. San Diego Unified is hosting 16 “LCAP workshops” in March and April at different schools in each of the district’s 16 “clusters,” which consist of a high school, and the middle and elementary schools feeding students into it.

2014-15 budget solutions include teachers’ early retirement incentive

San Diego Unified has agreed to a Supplemental Early Retirement Program (SERP) for teachers and other members of the San Diego Education Association bargaining unit as a budget solution for the 2014-15 fiscal year.

On March 11, the Board of Education approved the resolution to initiate the SERP. Final Board approval will take place at their May 13 meeting. The program is an incentive for eligible employees to retire from the district at the end of this school year.

If fully subscribed, it will save the district $8.3 million in 2014-15, helping to close the $115.6 million projected shortfall. Read more from UT San Diego»

Cluster meetings provide setting for community input on the district's LCAP

Thanks to the hundreds of parents, students,administrators, teachers, support staff and community members who participated in the district’s five Vision 2020 forums, centered around creating quality schools in every neighborhood. Your input was vital to the future of our schools as well to the development of the district's Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP).  Looking ahead, LCAP workshops have now been scheduled at the Cluster level. This is a next phase in the opportunity for students, parents, staff, and community members to provide input. Please join us at one of the upcoming workshops: 

 

Cluster	Date	Time	Location
Clairemont	3/20	5:30 p.m.	Marston Middle School Media Center
Crawford	3/17	5:30 p.m.	Mann Middle School
Henry	3/20	4:30 p.m.	Henry High School
Hoover	3/24	5 p.m.	Clark Middle School
Kearny	3/20	4:30 p.m.	Kearny High Complex, Rm. 301
La Jolla	3/20	4 p.m.	Muirlands Middle School
Lincoln	3/24	6 p.m.	Porter Elementary School
Madison	3/17	4 p.m.	Madison High School Library
Mira Mesa	3/24	5:30 p.m.	Mira Mesa High School
Mission Bay	4/10	6 p.m.	Pacific Beach Middle School
Morse	3/17	5:30 p.m.	Zamorano Elementary
Point Loma	4/7	4:30 p.m.	Correia Middle School
San Diego	3/10	5:30 p.m.	SD High Complex Library
Scripps Ranch	3/19	4:30 p.m.	Marshall Middle School
Serra	3/17	4:30 p.m.	Farb Middle School
University City	3/24	4:30 p.m.	UC High School Media Center

 

As the district continues to develop the Vision 2020 and Quality Schools in Every Neighborhood model of school reform, it continues to engage stakeholders in partnership. If you have a question about the cluster engagement process regarding LCAP, contact the Office of District Relations at 619-725-7505 or visit the website at www.sandi.net/lcff.

Cluster meetings provide setting for community input on the district's LCAP

As San Diego Unified prepares to conclude the Vision 2020 – Dream Big Together Forums, the focus will turn to engaging school communities through the regularly scheduled monthly cluster meetings. This engagement will provide students, parents, teachers, administrators, support staff and interested community members with the opportunity to provide input towards the development of the Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) at the cluster level. All 16 clusters will have the LCAP discussion at an upcoming meeting. Here is the schedule:

Cluster	Date	Time	Location
Clairemont	3/20	5:30 p.m.	Marston Middle School
Crawford	3/17	5:30 p.m.	Mann Middle School
Henry	3/20	4:30 p.m.	Henry High School
Hoover	3/24	5 p.m.	Clark Middle School
Kearny	3/20	4:30 p.m.	Kearny High Complex, Rm. 301
La Jolla	3/20	4 p.m.	Muirlands Middle School
Lincoln	3/24	6 p.m.	Porter Elementary School
Madison	TBD	5 p.m.	Madison High School
Mira Mesa	3/24	5:30 p.m.	Mira Mesa High School
Mission Bay	4/10	6 p.m.	Pacific Beach Middle School
Morse	3/17	5:30 p.m.	Zamorano Elementary
Point Loma	4/7	4:30 p.m.	Correia Middle School
San Diego	3/10	5:30 p.m.	SD High Complex library
Scripps Ranch	3/19	4:30 p.m.	Marshall Middle School
Serra	3/17	4:30 p.m.	Farb Middle School
University City	3/24	4:30 p.m.	UC High School Media Center

As the district continues to develop the Vision 2020 and Quality Schools in Every Neighborhood model of school reform, it continues to engage stakeholders in partnership. If you have a question about the cluster engagement process regarding the LCAP, contact the Office of District Relations at 619-725-7505 or visit the website at www.sandi.net/lcff.

Board of Education, Superintendent Invite San Diego to Vision 2020 Forums

The Board of Education and Superintendent Cindy Marten invite all stakeholders to a series of neighborhood meetings to Dream Big together for the future of our schools over the next few weeks.

"We are committed to having clear, long-term priorities based on our Vision 2020," said Kevin Beiser, Board of Education President. "We believe that when our priorities are inspired and informed by our parents, students, employees and community members, we will have important information for long-range planning with students at the center."


The "Vision 2020 Forums: What Kinds of Schools Do We Want" series offer parents, staff, students, and community members an opportunity to give input to the superintendent and the board members on priorities for our students and schools.


"These forums will yield a clear and collective sense of our district-wide long-term priorities," said Superintendent Cindy Marten. “We look forward to continued stakeholder engagement beyond these forums as we work together to create quality schools in every neighborhood.”


San Diegans are encouraged to attend the meeting in their Sub-district but can attend any of the meetings listed below.

• Sub-District D, Trustee Richard Barrera (See list of schools)
  Friday, Feb. 7,  5-7 p.m.
  Memorial Preparatory for Scholars and Athletes
  2850 Logan Ave. (92113)
  
• Sub-District B, Board President Kevin Beiser (See of schools)
  Tuesday, Feb. 18, 5:30-7:30 p.m.
  Patrick Henry High School
  6702 Wandermere Dr. (92120)
  
• Sub-District C, Trustee Scott Barnett (See  list of schools)
  Monday, Feb. 24, 7-9 p.m.
  Mission Bay High School
  2475 Grand Ave. (92109)
  
• Sub-District A, Trustee John Lee Evans (See list of schools)
  Monday, Mar. 3, 7-9 p.m.
  Mira Mesa High School
  10510 Reagan Rd. (92126)
  
• Sub-District E, Board Vice President Marne Foster (See list of schools)
  Monday, March 10, 7-9 p.m.
  Crawford High School
  4191 Colts Way (92115)
  

Child care and Spanish translation services will be provided.

 

Please RSVP.

 

 

 

For further information or questions, email vision2020forums@sandi.net.

 

Working Together for Quality Neighborhood Schools

The Board of Education and Superintendent Cindy Marten invite all stakeholders to a series of neighborhood meetings to Dream Big together for the future of our schools.  We are committed to having clear, long-term priorities based on our Vision 2020.  We believe that when our priorities are inspired and informed by our parents, students, and teachers, we will have important information for long-range planning with students at the center.  These forums will yield a clear and collective sense of our District-wide long-term priorities.

The "Vision 2020 Forums: What Kinds of Schools Do We Want" series offer parents, staff, students, and community members an opportunity to give input to the superintendent and the board members on priorities for our students and schools.

Meeting schedule

• Friday, Feb. 7, 5-7 p.m., Sub-District D, Memorial Preparatory for Scholars and Athletes, 2850 Logan Ave. (92113)
• Tuesday, Feb. 18, 5:30-7:30 p.m., Sub-District B, Patrick Henry High School, 6702 Wandermere Dr. (92120)
• Monday, Feb. 24, 7-9 p.m., Sub-District C, Mission Bay High School, 2475 Grand Ave. (92109).
•  Monday, Mar. 3, 7-9 p.m., Sub-District A, Mira Mesa High School, 10510 Reagan Rd. (92126).
• Event in Sub-District E is yet to be scheduled.

For more information, follow the district's daily news feed and website front page calendar and the Vision 2020 Forums website, as well as the district Twitter and Facebook pages.

Please RSVP.



For further information or questions, email vision2020forums@sandi.net.

New laws affect education in 2014

Here's a rundown on new laws that affect education in California.

SB 73 (Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review, Chapter 29) Energy: Proposition 39 Implementation. Effective immediately.

This is the budget vehicle for the allocation of Proposition 39 energy efficiency funds for local educational agencies and community college districts. Stipulates the minimum required information the recipients of the funds must submit in order to receive the funds. Makes LEAs subject to front-end verification and back-end public tracking and reporting.

AB 86 (Committee on Budget, Chapter 48) Education Finance: Education Omnibus Trailer Bill. Effective immediately.

Implements various statutory changes needed to implement the 2013-14 Budget package for the states public schools and community colleges, including reduces outstanding K-14 inter-year payment deferrals by $4.3 billion in 2012-13 and 2013-14; allocates $1.25 billion in one-time Proposition 98 funding in 2013-14 to assist K-12 schools in implementing the new Common Core standards; allocates $250 million on a one-time basis in 2013-14 to establish the California Career Pathways Trust for competitive grants to support K-14 education career pathways programs; and makes various changes to the special education funding formula. Extends provisions of existing law another two years to allow school districts to use proceeds from selling surplus properties for one-time operating expenses, and extends provisions of existing law another three years that requires school districts to first offer surplus instructional property for lease or sale to charter schools prior to any other entity. Contains other related provisions and laws.

SB 91/AB 97 (Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review, Chapter 49) School Finance and the Local Control Funding Formula. Effective immediately.

Replaces the old revenue limit and categorical funding structure with LCFF beginning in the 2013-14 fiscal year. LCFF is comprised of a base grant, supplemental grant and concentration grant. Provides an additional 2.6% base grant augmentation to be used on students enrolled in grades 9 to 12 for any purposes or programs that support a school district or charter school in achieving its goals for college and career readiness, and a 10.4% base grant augmentation for K-3 grade class size reduction. Legislation describes all components of LCFF and role of the state in supporting and intervening.

SB 97 (Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review, Chapter 357) School Finance: Local Control Funding Formula Education Budget Clean-Up Bill. Effective immediately.

Makes various technical and clarifying changes to the education budget trailer bills related to the new LCFF adopted as part of the 2013-14 Budget package. It clarifies that a budget cannot be approved for a school district or county office of education before a LCAP is adopted and clarifies terms under which a budget review committee shall be formed, requires school districts to ensure that all written notifications related to the LCAP are available to parents in languages other than English, and adds local bargaining units to the groups that school districts must consult in the development of the LCAP.

AB 110 (Blumenfield, Chapter 20) Budget Act of 2013. Effective immediately.

Contains the 2013-14 Budget Act as reported out by the 2013 Conference Committee on the Budget. The 2013-14 Budget Act authorizes General Fund expenditures of $96.3 billion, and assumes nearly $98 billion in total General Fund resources and a $1.1 billion reserve.

ASSESSMENTS, CURRICULUM AND STANDARDS

SB 247 (Liu, Chapter 479) Pupil Assessment: Grade 2 Diagnostic Assessments

Requires the California Department of Education, by November 1, 2014, to identify and make available to school districts information regarding existing assessments in language arts and mathematics aligned to the adopted Common Core academic content standards for pupils in grade 2 for diagnostic use by classroom teachers. The savings realized from the elimination of the grade 2 testing would be used by school districts for the administration of diagnostic assessments for identifying students' knowledge or skills, but the assessments would not be valid measures for purposes of accountability.

SB 490 (Jackson, Chapter 482) Early Assessment Program: Common Core Academic Content Standards

Existing law recognizes the establishment of the Early Assessment Program (EAP) at the California State University to enable pupils to learn about their readiness for college-level English and mathematics before their senior year of high school. This bill would instead encourage those courses to be sequenced to the common core academic content standards for language arts and mathematics.

AB 484 (Bonilla, Chapter 489) Pupil Assessments: Measurement of Academic Performance and Progress

Suspends nearly all STAR tests and provides districts the option to participate in one portion of the field/practice test of the new Smarter Balanced computer-adaptive assessments. The only STAR tests that will be administered in Spring 2014 are the science tests at grades 5, 8 and 10, CAPA at grades 2-11, and ELA and mathematics tests at grade 11 to support the voluntary participation in the Early Assessment Program. AB 484 has no impact on CAHSEE, CELDT, or the Physical Fitness Test. In addition, the calculation of API scores would be suspended for two years. It is not yet completely clear how these changes will affect federal accountability (AYP).

AB 123 (Bonta, Chapter 476) Instruction: Social Sciences: Farm Labor Movement

Requires that the State Board of Education ensure that the state curriculum and framework, where appropriate, include instruction on the role of immigrants, including Filipino Americans, on the farm labor movement in CA. Provides that it shall not be implemented unless funds are appropriated by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act.

AB 137 (Buchanan, Chapter 225) Pupil Instruction: Civics

Requires the Instructional Quality Commission, when revising the history-social science framework, to ensure that these course requirements are included in all history and social science course and grade levels, as appropriate.

AB 166 (Hernandez, Chapter 166) Pupil Instruction: Financial Literacy

Requires the State Board of Education to integrate financial literacy, including, but not limited to, budgeting and managing credit, student loans, consumer debt, and identity theft security with specified academic areas.

AB 424 (Donnelly, Chapter 484) Pupil Instruction: Social Sciences: State and Federal Constitutions

Requires the Instructional Quality Commission, when revising the history/social science framework, to do so based on the subject matter of the course in addition to appropriateness, to consider incorporating the Magna Carta, the Articles of Confederation, and the California Constitution, and to encourage instruction that promotes an understanding of the governments of California and the United States.

SB 330 (Padilla, Chapter 481) Instruction: Health Framework: Mental Health Instruction

Incorporates, upon the next revision, instruction on mental health into the Health Curriculum Framework. Requires the Instructional Quality Commission to consider developing, and recommending for adoption by the State Board, a distinct category on mental health instruction to educate pupils about all aspects of mental health.

SB 552 (Calderon, Chapter 497) Pupil Instruction: Social Sciences: Violence Awareness

Allows all required areas of study, as deemed appropriate by the governing board, to include grade-level appropriate instruction on violence awareness and prevention, including personal testimony in the form of oral or video histories.

AB 700 (Gomez, Chapter 483) Social Sciences: Voter Education

Requires the Instructional Quality Commission, when the history-social science framework is revised, to ensure that voter education information is included in the American government and civics curriculum at the high school level, including, but not limited to, information on the importance of registering to vote in local, state, and federal elections, and where and how to access the voter information pamphlet and other materials to become an informed voter.

AB 547 (Salas, Chapter 703) 21st Century High School After School Safety and Enrichment for Teens Program

Expands the academic assistance component of the 21st Century High School After School Safety and Enrichment for Teens (ASSETs) program to include career exploration and also authorizes the California Department of Education to consider other criteria that CDE may identify as critical for a high-quality program when awarding grants.

INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS

AB 133 (Hagman, Chapter 157) Instructional Materials: Digital Format

Requires publishers and manufacturers submitting printed instructional materials to the state board or local governing board for adoption, or on after January 1, 2014, to ensure that the printed instructional material is also available in an equivalent digital format during the entire term of the adoption.

SB 185 (Walters, Chapter 174) Instructional Materials: Digital Format

Authorizes school districts and county offices of education to negotiate the price of standards-aligned instructional materials and supplemental materials in a printed or digital format if the negotiated price complies with certain requirements. Requires instructional materials to be offered by a publisher or manufacturer as unbundled elements. Authorizes a school district to use instructional materials in digital format that were purchased by the school district to create a districtwide online digital database for classroom use.

SB 300 (Hancock, Chapter 480) Instructional Materials: Revised Curriculum Framework: Science and English Language Arts

Requires the State Board of Education to consider the adoption of a revised curriculum framework and evaluation criteria for instructional materials in science on or before January 31, 2016, and requires the revised curriculum framework to be based on specified science content standards and to include English language development strategies, as specified, and strategies to address the needs of pupils with disabilities. Extends the deadline for the State Board to adopt revised curriculum frameworks and evaluation criteria for English language arts until July 30, 2014.

ENGLISH LEARNERS

SB 201 (Liu, Chapter 478) Instructional Materials: Academic Content Standards: English Learners

Current law requires the California Department of Education, with the approval of the State Board of Education, to establish procedures for conducting the assessment and for the reclassification of a pupil from English learner to English proficient. Current law requires a school district to annually conduct the assessment during a period that commences on the day upon which 55% of the instructional year is completed through July 1 of that calendar year. This bill applies the above requirements to initial and summative assessments. Authorizes the State Board of Education to adopt, by November 30, 2015, K-8 instructional materials that are aligned to the Common Core English Language Arts Standards and the Common Core-aligned English Language Development Standards.

AB 899 (Weber, Chapter 709) Academic Content Standards: English Language Development Standards

Requires that the standards for English language development for pupils whose primary language is a language other than English be comparable in rigor and specificity to the academic content standards to which they are aligned, including specified standards for English language arts and mathematics and specified science content standards. Requires the Superintendent, on or before January 1, 2015, to recommend modifications to the English language development standards to align with the state board-approved academic content standards for math and science.

CHARTER SCHOOLS

SB 379 (Hancock, Chapter 372) School Attendance: Early/Middle College High Schools

For the purposes of calculating average daily attendance apportionment at an early college or middle college high school operated by a charter school, this bill will require that at least 80% of the instructional time be at the school site. Requires that the charter school require the attendance of the pupil in grades 11 and 12 for a minimum of 50% of the required instructional time. These requirements will be added to annual audits.

AB 588 (Fox, Chapter 423) School Athletics: Concussions

Current law requires, on a yearly basis, a concussion and head injury information sheet to be signed and returned by the athlete and athlete's parent or guardian before the athlete's initiating practice or competition. This bill would apply these provisions to athletes attending charter schools and private schools.

SCHOOL FACILITIES

AB 182 (Buchanan, Chapter 477) – School Districts and Community College Bonds

Limits Capital Appreciation Bonds (CABs) to 25 years and establishes other requirements for CABs: maximum interest of 8 percent; limits debt device to principal ratio of 4 to 1; bonds longer than 10 years must be allowed to be refinanced; and additional public disclosures will be required in Board agendas. Current Interest Bonds will be allowed for up to 40 years as long as the governing Board makes a finding that the useful life of the facility will be equal or exceeds the maturity date of the CIBs between 30 and 40 years.

SB 581 (Wyland, Chapter 91) School Bonds: Bond Accountability

Requires the Proposition 39 annual, independent financial and performance audits to be submitted to the citizens’ oversight committee at the same time they are submitted to the school district or community college district. Requires the governing board of the district to provide the citizens’ oversight committee with responses to any and all findings, recommendations, and concerns addressed in the annual, independent financial and performance audits within three months of receiving the audits.

SB 584 (Wyland, Chapter 167) School Facilities: Financial and Performance Audits

Requires the Controller, by January 1, 2015, and in consultation with the State Allocation Board, the Department of Finance, and Department of Education, to submit content to the Education Audits Appeal Panel to be included in the audit guide, Standards and Procedures for Audits of California K-12 LEAs beginning in the 2015-16 fiscal year, that is related to financial and performance audits required for specified school facility projects.

AB 308 (Hagman, Chapter 496) Sale or Lease of Surplus Real Property: Return of State School Facilities Funding Program Funds
Authorizes the State Allocation Board to establish a program to require a school district that sells or leases real property that was purchased with or modernized with, or on which improvements were constructed that were funded with any moneys from a state school facilities funding program, to return to SAB the moneys the district received from the state school facilities funding program for the purchase, modernization, or construction.
AB 56 (Weber, Chapter 475) School Facilities: Carbon Monoxide Devices

Requires, by July 1, 2015, the State Fire Marshal to propose for adoption by the California Building Standards Commission, appropriate standards for the installation of carbon monoxide devices in public and private school buildings.

AB 120 (Committee on Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials, Chapter 632) Underground storage tanks: school districts

Requires the State Water Resources Control Board to waive the underground storage tank permit requirement for claims reimbursed from the School District Account in the Underground Storage Tank Cleanup Fund if the Superintendent of the school district receiving the reimbursement certifies to the Board that petroleum was not delivered on or after January 1, 2003.

EMPLOYEES

AB 10 (Alejo, Chapter 351) Minimum Wage: Annual Adjustment

Increases the minimum wage, on and after July 1, 2014, to not less than $9.00 per hour. Increases the minimum wage, on January 1, 2016, to not less than $10 per hour.

AB 226 (Atkins, Chapter 73) Classified Employees: School Police Workweek

Authorizes the governing board of a school district or county superintendent of schools to establish a “3/12” workweek schedule (12-hour-per-day, 80-hour-per-2-weeks) for school police departments, subject to a collective bargaining agreement. Requires the payment of overtime compensation for hours worked in excess of the required workday.

SB 590 (De Leon, Chapter 723) Professional Development for Classified Employees

Requires a LEA, if it expends funds for professional development, to consider the needs of its classified school employees to update their skills and to learn best practices in various optional areas, including pupil learning and achievement, campus safety, and special education.

SB 5 (Padilla, Chapter 171) Teacher Credentialing

Authorizes inclusion of up to 2 years (currently 1 year) of professional preparation within credentialing programs. Allows for BA degrees in education for credential candidates.

SB 368 (Pavley, Chapter 717) Teachers: Added Authorization in Special Education

Current law authorizes the Commission on Teacher Credentialing to grant an added or supplementary authorization to a credentialholder who has met the requirements and standards of the Commission for the added or supplementary authorization. This bill authorizes program sponsors to offer comparability and equivalency for a special education credentialholder seeking to add a special education authorization to his or her special education credential in accordance with specified guidelines and criteria.

AB 449 (Muratsuchi, Chapter 232) Certificated School Employees: School Superintendent Reports to Commission on Teacher Credentialing

Requires the Superintendent of a school district or county office of education, or the administrator of a charter school, to report to the Commission on Teacher Credentialing any change in the employment status of a credentialholder working in a position requiring a credential not later than 30 days after the credentialholder's employment status changes in one of specified ways as a result of an allegation of misconduct or while an allegation of misconduct is pending. Makes the Superintendent’s failure to make the report of unprofessional conduct a misdemeanor.

SB 546 (Wright, Chapter 90) Education Employment: Termination: Hearing

Renames several forms required by school districts to use during certificated layoff proceedings. Changes the names of the following documents: (1) "Notice of Defense" to "Notice of Participation in Reduction in Force Hearing" (2) "Accusation" to "District Statement of Reduction in Force."

AB 267 (Chau, Chapter 123) Lawyer Referral Service-Client Evidentiary Privileges

Provides that a person who consults a lawyer referral service for the purpose of retaining a lawyer or securing legal advice has a privilege to refuse to disclose, and to prevent another from disclosing, a confidential communication between the client and the lawyer referral service if the privilege is claimed by a specified person or entity. Establishes the circumstances in which the privilege does not apply.

AB 1381 (Committee on Public Employees, Retirement and Social Security, Chapter 559) State Teacher’s Retirement Law: Pension Reform

Makes various changes in the Teachers’ Retirement Law to conform with the provisions of PEPRA. Revises the definition of creditable compensation and salary, and specifies exclusions from the definition of creditable compensation and salary for purposes of the Defined Benefit Program and the Cash Balance Benefit Program. Defines a member subject to PEPRA and excepts from that definition a member who is also a member in certain other retirement systems prior to January 1, 2013. Revises provisions prescribing the amounts that members are required to contribute to the retirement fund for the Defined Benefit Program, and that participants in the Cash Balance Benefit Program contribute to reflect the requirements of PEPRA. Makes other changes.

SB 13 (Beall, Chapter 528) Public Employees’ Retirement Benefits

This bill serves to "clean up" the California Public Employees' Pension Reform Act of 2012 (PEPRA) (AB 340, Chapter 296). Excepts from PEPRA certain multiemployer plans authorized under, and regulated by, specified federal law. Excepts from PEPRA public employees whose collective bargaining rights are subject to specified provisions of federal law until a specified federal district court decision on certification by the United States Secretary of Labor or until January 1, 2015, whichever is sooner. Provides that if a federal district court upholds the determination of the United States Secretary of Labor, that application of PEPRA to those public employees precludes certification, those employees are excepted from PEPRA. Clarifies the application of PEPRA to employees who were employed prior to January 1, 2013, who have service credit in a different retirement system or who change positions for the same employer without a break in service, as specified. Authorizes a public retirement system to adopt regulations and resolutions in order to modify its retirement plan or plans to conform with PEPRA.

MISCELLANEOUS

AB 643 (Stone, Chapter 80) Schools: Pupil Records: Confidentiality

Makes various changes to state provisions to conform to federal law. It creates an exemption to the general rule that a school district shall not permit access to pupil records without written parental consent or under judicial order. Allows caseworkers or a representative of a state or local child welfare agency, or tribal organization to access transcripts and report cards to avoid problems of inappropriate course placement and lost credits when a foster youth changes schools.

AB 1068 (Bloom, Chapter 713) Pupil Records: Homeless Youth

Prohibits the release of directory information for homeless students, and requires schools to permit access to pupil records to a pupil who is at least 14 years old, homeless and unaccompanied, and to an individual who has completed and signed a Caregiver’s Authorization Affidavit for purposes of enrolling a minor in school.

AB 216 (Stone, Chapter 324) High School Graduation Requirements: Foster Care Pupils

Requires a school district to exempt a pupil in foster care who transfers between schools any time after the completion of the pupils 2nd year of high school from all coursework and other requirements adopted by the governing board of the school district that are in addition to the statewide coursework requirements, unless the school district makes a finding that the pupil is reasonably able to complete the requirements in time to graduate from high school by the end of the pupil’s 4th year of high school.

SB 177 (Liu, SB 491) Homeless Youth Education Success Act

Among other things, expands current law which requires a foster child who changes residences, pursuant to a court order or decision of a child welfare worker, to be immediately deemed to have met all residency requirements for participation in interscholastic sports or other extracurricular activities to students who are homeless and meet that definition under federal law.

AB 1266 (Ammiano, Chapter 85) Sex-Segregated School Programs and Activities

Requires that students be permitted to participate in sex-segregated school programs and activities, including athletic teams and competitions, and use facilities consistent with his or her gender identity, irrespective of the gender listed on the pupil's records.

AB 570 (Jones-Sawyer, Chapter 365) Continuation Schools: Policies and Procedures for Voluntary Transfer

Requires school districts that choose to voluntarily enroll high school pupils in a continuation school to establish and adopt policies and procedures regarding the voluntary transfer of students including the identification, placement and intake procedures for these students. Requires approval for the voluntary transfer to be based on a finding that the placement will promote the educational interests of the pupil. Students have the right to return to their previous school if the transfer does not meet the pupil’s educational needs.

SCA 3 (Leno, Chapter 123) Public Information: Public Request Acts on 2014 Ballot

This measure will appear on the 2013 State Ballot to require each local agency to comply with the California Public Request Act and the Brown Act, or amending any successor act which contains findings demonstrating that the statutory enactment furthers the purposes of the people’s right of access to information concerning the conduct of the people’s business. If passed by the voters, this initiative would no longer require the state to reimburse local agencies, including school districts, from complying with PRA requests.

School Safety

AB 256 (Garcia-D, Chapter 700) Grounds for Suspension and Expulsion

Authorizes schools to suspend or recommend for expulsion a pupil for bullying by electronic means that originated off of school grounds. Modifies the definition of “electronic act,” related to the act of bullying, as the creation and transmission originated on or off the schoolsite, by means of an electronic device, including a telephone, wireless telephone, or other wireless communication device, computer, or pager.

AB 514 (Bonta, Chapter 702) The Safe Schools for Safe Learning Act of 2013

Would require the Superintendent to post on the California Department of Education's Internet Web site a list of statewide resources for youth who have been affected by gangs, gun violence, and psychological trauma at home, at school, and the community.

AB 549 (Jones-Sawyer, Chapter 422) Comprehensive School Safety Plans: Mental Health Professionals and Police Role on Campus Guidelines

Encourages schools to include in school safety plans, when plans are reviewed and updated, clear guidelines for the roles and responsibilities of mental health professionals, community intervention professionals, school counselors, school resource officers, and police officers on the school campus, if the school district uses these people. Specifies the guidelines may include primary strategies to create and maintain a positive school climate, promote school safety, and increase pupil achievement, and prioritize mental health and intervention services, restorative and transformative justice programs, and positive behavior interventions and support.

SB 326 (Beall, Chapter 279) Sex Offenders

Current law makes it a misdemeanor for any person who is required to register as a sex offender to come into any school building or any school ground without lawful business and written permission from the chief administrative official of the school. This bill requires that the written permission indicate the date or date range and time for which permission is granted. Authorizes the chief administrative official of the school to grant a registered sex offender who is not a family member of a pupil who attends that school, permission to come into a school building or the school grounds to volunteer at the school, provided that the chief administrative official notifies the parent or guardian of each child attending the school of the permission at least 14 days prior to the first date for which permission has been granted.

School Lunch Program

AB 422 (Nazarian, Chapter 440) School Lunch Program: Health Care Notice

Current law authorizes the sharing of the school lunch program application with the county agency administering the Medi-Cal program for use in making an accelerated Medi-Cal eligibility determination for pupils eligible for free meals. Current law provides for the sending of a Healthy Families Program application to pupils determined to be ineligible for Medi-Cal coverage. This bill would, commencing January 1, 2014, require the notices to include prescribed advisements about the availability of free or reduced-cost comprehensive health care coverage through Medi-Cal or the California Health Benefit Exchange.

AB 626 (Skinner, Chapter 706) School Nutrition

Requires an entity that applies to operate a program to agree that meals made available by the program conform to specified federal nutrition standards. Includes as an authorized expenditure of the cafeteria fund expenditures for the lease or purchase of additional equipment for the kitchen or central food processing plant. Authorizes governing boards to make expenditures from the cafeteria fund for the purchase and installation of additional preparation, cooking, or service equipment for a kitchen or central food processing plant, including necessary alterations as specified, and for the lease or purchase of vehicles used solely in connection with the kitchen or central food processing plant. Repeals the authority of the governing board to allow as an expenditure from that fund a share of money generated from the joint sale of items between the cafeteria and an associated student body store and to create one or more cafeteria revolving accounts. Makes other changes.