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Legislative Information Alert
October 15, 2009
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PTA-supported bills signed into law
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California State PTA members across the state who dedicate themselves to grass-roots efforts, PTA commissioners who study the issues, and PTA advocates who walk the halls of the State Capitol have several reasons to be proud of their work today. Despite a rancorous legislative session, numerous PTA-supported bills were signed into law that will make a real difference in the lives of children and families.
Here is a brief summary of the key bills we advocated for that were signed into law this week:
Assistance for Foster Youth: California State PTA has had a strong commitment to provide support to young people transitioning out of the foster care system. These three PTA-supported bills will ensure that assistance is provided to young people who have no family support.
- AB 167 (Adams) - Requires school districts to exempt foster youth who transfer into a school district in grade 11 or 12 from any coursework requirements imposed by the district that exceed the minimum state graduation requirements if the foster youth cannot complete the additional requirements in time to graduate from high school while still eligible for foster care benefits.
- AB 719 (Lowenthal) - Requires the Department of Social Services to create a 12-month transitional food stamp program that youth enter automatically as they leave foster care at the age of 18.
- AB 1393 (Skinner) - Requires California public colleges and universities to give priority for campus housing to current and former foster youth to ensure stable housing.The first priority would provide housing for uninterrupted year-round occupation, and the next priority would provide housing for occupation most days during the calendar year.
Children's Health: These PTA-supported bills are important to the health of children and youth.
- SB 124 (Oropeza) - Increases the fines and penalties for school buses and other vehicles idling near schools, to protect children from air pollution.
- SB 249 (Cox) - Requires the California Department of Public Health to develop information about meningococcal disease (which can cause meningitis), including information pertaining to children between 11 and 18 years of age, and to authorize schools to add this information to any health education material sent home to parents.
Community Concerns: These PTA-supported bills improve the safety of children and youth.
- AB 870 (Huber) would make it a misdemeanor to bring or possess a razor blade or box cutter on school grounds, with certain exceptions.
- AB 1015 (Torlakson) would make it a misdemeanor to see or give away a device, canister, tank or receptacle containing nitrous oxide or a chemical compound with nitrous oxide to anyone under 19 years of age. (This does not apply to food products which use nitrous oxide as a propellant, or use by a medical or dental practitioner.)
Education Issues: This has been a terribly difficult year for schools due to the state budget deficit and legislative gridlock that have prevented finding solutions to protect education funding and make needed educational reforms.
On the bright side, the PTA-supported bill SB 19 (Simitian) was passed. The legislation enables California to clear one critically important hurdle to eligibility for the "Race to the Top" federal education reform funds, by allowing student data to be used as one input for evaluating teachers. The bill also makes changes needed to support continued development of the state's K-12 education data system, the California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System (CALPADS).
Of course, there is much work still to do on children's issues, including the following:
- preventing childhood obesity;
- protecting of personal information on the Internet;
- restructuring California's school finance system;
- improving ways of measuring academic achievement; and
- improving funding for education and services for children and families.
Many bills that we had supported in these areas were vetoed by the Governor. We will continue our efforts on these critical issues into the next legislative session. |
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CALIFORNIA STATE PTA
Legislation Information Alert
January 15, 2009
Action Needed
Please call or email your state assembly member, state senator and the governor right away and deliver the following messages:
- We must find a balanced approach to the budget crisis that includes sufficient new revenues to protect children and the future of California.
- Support continued funding for programs and services that help ensure that all children can succeed, such as smaller class sizes, arts and physical education, science, counselors, nurses, librarians, and health and social services for children.
- We cannot build a world class public education system by going backwards in funding for education and other children's services.
To find your legislators' contact information, click here. To contact the governor, click here.
Background
With a worsening economy, state legislators and the Governor are faced with difficult decisions to adopt a balanced state budget. The Governor's 2009-2010 budget proposal includes deep cuts to education, health and human services as well as tax increases and borrowing.
In releasing the proposed budget last week, the Governor stated:
"California, like the rest of the nation is in the midst of a severe economic downturn. The combined effect of the state's continuing structural budget deficit and the loss of revenues resulting from the economic downturn results in a budget gap of $41.6 billion, just under half of the revenues projected for 2009-10. This is the most challenging budget in the state's history. It demands quick action and calls for every type of solution possible, including major spending cuts, revenue increases, borrowing and cash management strategies."
California State PTA issued a press release yesterday in response to the latest budget proposal. In the release, Pam Brady, President, states:
"Don't think for a minute that we don't understand the magnitude of the current financial crisis. Families throughout California are living each day with the realities of the economic downturn. But families also understand that we have a responsibility to children and their future which cannot be compromised in bad economic times.
"We believe the smartest economic stimulus plan for California right now is to invest in the future by investing in the education, health and welfare of our state's children."
The Governor's latest budget proposal would cut an additional $6 billion to public schools over the next 18 months. When combined with cuts already made to our schools in the current year and proposed accounting maneuvers to delay other payments owed to schools, the total cuts are nearly $11 billion -- not including other cuts to vital children's services.
A recent national study revealed that California recently slipped from 46th to 47th in the nation in terms of per-student funding -- funding which goes to hire and train teachers, provide instructional programs and materials, ensure smaller class sizes, and provide all other aspects of a quality education to every student.
Next Steps
The Board of Managers of the California State PTA has voted to launch an aggressive campaign to protect children. In the coming weeks we will be providing additional information, resources and advice to help you communicate a strong message for a greater investment in children and against deeper budget cuts.
Budget Details on the Web
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