BILL NUMBER: AB 427	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MARCH 26, 2015

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Weber

                        FEBRUARY 19, 2015

   An act to  amend Section 8970 of   add
Section 8209.5 to  the Education Code, relating to early
childhood education.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 427, as amended, Weber. Early primary  programs.
  programs: child care services: eligibility: military
families.  
   The Child Care and Development Services Act has a purpose of
providing a comprehensive, coordinated, and cost-effective system of
child care and development services for children from infancy to 13
years of age and their parents, including a full range of
supervision, health, and support services through full- and part-time
programs.  
   This bill would exclude from income the amount of the basic
allowance for housing provided to an individual who is on federal
active duty, state active duty, active duty for special work, or
Active Guard and Reserve duty in the military that is equal to the
lowest rate of the allowance for the military housing area in which
the individual resides for purposes of determining eligibility for
child care and development services.  
   Existing law provides various legislative declarations concerning
early primary programs, including, among others, that it is the
Legislature's intent that school districts that establish an early
primary program coordinate that program, whenever possible, with the
Demonstration in Restructuring of Public Education program and, where
applicable, with the county interagency children's services
coordinating council.  
   This bill would make nonsubstantive changes to those provisions.

   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  no
  yes  . State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   SECTION 1.    (a) The Legislature finds and declares
all of the following:  
   (1) California is home to a large number of military personnel,
including 150,000 active duty personnel.  
   (2) Military families are a unique population with unique
circumstances. The children of military families face constant
transition, including family mobility and parental deployment. 

   (3) Military families move more than twice as often as civilian
families. Forty percent of officers and 60 percent of enlisted
personnel move during the school year. Thus, the lower the rank of
the military family member, the more often the family moves. 

   (4) During a time of war, military families endure the strains of
long-term separation as one or both parents may be deployed overseas.
 
   (5) During parental deployment children are often anxious,
stressed, and confused. Child care providers and preschools can be
places where stability and routine can provide security. The routine
helps to cushion the impact of parental deployment.  
   (6) Early education can be a determining factor in the early
academic success of a pupil from a military family by providing
educational enrichment, as well as a stable and nurturing learning
environment.  
   (b) Given these special circumstances, it is the intent of the
Legislature in enacting this act to ensure that military families
have access to the child care development services that their
children need. 
   SEC. 2.    Section 8209.5 is added to the  
Education Code   , to read:  
   8209.5.  For purposes of determining eligibility for services
offered pursuant to this chapter, the income of an individual who is
on federal active duty, state active duty, active duty for special
work, or Active Guard and Reserve duty in the military shall not
include the amount of the basic allowance for housing pursuant to
Section 403 of Title 37 of the United States Code provided to the
individual that is equal to the lowest rate of the allowance for the
military housing area in which the individual resides.  

  SECTION 1.   Section 8970 of the Education Code is
amended to read:
   8970.  The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the
following:
   (a) The Superintendent convened a Task Force on School Readiness
that prepared a report that included the following findings and
recommendations:
   (1) Preschool and kindergarten programs have become more
academically oriented with an emphasis on paper and pencil "seat work"
and a decreased emphasis on other essential age-appropriate
curricular elements such as language development; familiarity with
stories, music, and oral language experiences; artistic exploration;
social interaction; and large muscle development.
   (2) Assessment tests of questionable validity and reliability are
being used to delay children's entrance to kindergarten or to place
them in a two-year kindergarten.
   (3) An appropriate, integrated experiential curriculum should be
provided for children in preschool, kindergarten, and grades 1 to 3,
inclusive.
   (4) Programs should meet the special needs of our culturally and
linguistically diverse pupils as well as the needs of exceptional
children.
   (5) Classroom organization and teaching methods should reflect the
heterogeneous skills and abilities of children in early primary
programs.
   (6) School districts should be encouraged to develop communication
about linkages between programs for four-year-olds, early primary
programs, and the primary and intermediate grades of elementary
schools.
   (7) The staff of early primary programs should receive appropriate
education, training, and remuneration.
   (8) Programs should be offered full-day and also should provide
before- and after-school care.
   (9) Assessment methods of children in early primary programs
should be drastically altered.
   (10) Parental involvement should be encouraged.
   (11) A public awareness campaign should be launched describing
appropriate learning practices for children in preschool,
kindergarten, and grades 1 to 3, inclusive.
   (b) The Superintendent issued a Triennial Report on Publicly
Funded Child Development Programs that documents the increasing
numbers of low-income families eligible but unserved by limited
preschool and child care funds, and that presents policy implications
for staffing and funding issues.
   (c) National studies show future benefits of early intervention
programs to society and immediate advantages to California employers
in the form of reduced absenteeism, improved worker morale, and
increased productivity.
   (d) It is the intent of the Legislature that activities initiated
as a result of this chapter shall continue without regard to fiscal
year depending, when necessary, on continued funding.
   (e) It is the intent of the Legislature that school districts that
establish an early primary program coordinate that program, whenever
possible, with the Demonstration of Restructuring in Public
Education program, established pursuant to Chapter 9 (commencing with
Section 58900) of Part 31 and, where applicable, with the county
interagency children's services coordination council, established
pursuant to Article 2 (commencing with Section 18986.10) of Chapter
12.8 of Part 6 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.