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Legislation

2008 BILLS TO WATCH

SB 1674, authored by Senator Tom Torlakson, creates a pilot program that would enable after school workers to access teacher training through the Paraprofessional Teacher Training Program. This bill would also make several important improvements to the After School Education and Safety program, including:

• Clarifying that ASES grantees may pay for weekend activities with their base grants
• Establishing a minimum grant for small schools
• Requiring grantees to pass along a reasonable amount of their administrative allowance to subcontractors

For an overview of the bill, click here. For a sample letter of support, click here. SB 1674 passed through the Senate Education Committee unanimously in April, and is being temporarily held in suspense by the Appropriations Committee.

REVIEW OF 2007 BILLS

To see the full text of any of the following bills, go to www.leginfo.ca.gov

SB 20 – Sustaining and Improving School Meals
Senate Bill 20 (Torlakson) increases the state reimbursement rate for free and reduced priced meals to $.21 per meal.  The bill also provides an additional $.09 per free and reduced price meal that meets increased standards as specified in the bill.  Click here to see a summary of the bill. 

AB 86 – Competitive School Food Nutrition Standards
AB 86 (Liu) would build upon current nutrition standards for food items sold to pupils on school campuses K-12 by prohibiting foods that contain partially hydrogenated or hydrogenated vegetable oils, unless these oils are naturally occurring.

AB 90 – School Food Nutrition Standards
AB 90 (Huffman) would prohibit a school or school district from making available to pupils, during school hours, any food containing artificial trans fat, as defined, and would prohibit the use of artificial trans fat in the preparation of a food item served to pupils.

AB 92 – School Breakfast Participation
AB 92 (Garcia) would require each school site that meets the qualification for federal severe need reimbursement to offer breakfast beginning with the 2008-09 school year unless granted a waiver by the California Department of Education. It would also require that schools offering the federal school breakfast program for the first time receive priority for funding through the startup and expansion grant program.

SB 288 – Comprehensive Learning Support Services
SB 288 (Yee) establishes a pilot for a Comprehensive Learning Support System (CPLSS) for 5 school districts.  This bill aims to enhance priority on learning supports such as health care, family resource information and more through building integrated infrastructure systems at district and school sites.

2006 REVIEW OF KEY CALIFORNIA BILLS IMPACTING AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS, SCHOOL NUTRITION AND SCHOOL-BASED HEALTH SERVICES

SB 638 – After School Funding Reform
SB 638, which was co-sponsored by The Bay Area Partnership and authored by Senator Torlakson, made sweeping and long-needed reforms to the After School Education and Safety (ASES) program and the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program. 

Some key changes include:

• A 50 percent increase in the daily student rate for after school grantees
• Funding based on “grants” rather than “reimbursement,” which will enable a more effective flow of resources from the state to local programs
• Increased funding for teen programs
• A new directive for program evaluation that moves beyond a simple examination of standardized test scores, and recognizes the unique role after school programs play in keeping children safe and engaged in a low-pressure, supportive and fun learning environment.

To see an overview of SB 638, click here.

To see the full text of SB 638, go to http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/05-06/bill/sen/sb_0601-0650/sb_638_bill_20060921_chaptered.html

AB 2560 – The School Health Centers Act of 2006
Sponsored by the California School Health Centers Association, AB 2560 (Ridley-Thomas) created a state school health center program, to be jointly administered by the Department of Health Services and the Department of Education.  This coordinated state program will strengthen current collaborative efforts between health and education, provide state level leadership and help California use resources more efficiently to reach the children and youth who are most in need.  

For an overview of AB 2560, go to http://www.schoolhealthcenters.org/policy.asp

To see the full text of AB 2560, go to http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/05-06/bill/asm/ab_2551-2600/ab_2560_bill_20060919_chaptered.html

AB 569
AB 569 (Garcia) set the stage for action to require that breakfast be served at schools with large percentages of low-income pupils.  To see the text of the bill, go to http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/05-06/bill/asm/ab_0551-0600/ab_569_bill_20060929_chaptered.html