Bill Text: CA AB498 | 2021-2022 | Regular Session | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

---

Bill Title: Medi-Cal: county organized health system: Orange County Health Authority.

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 7-3)

Status: (Passed) 2022-09-19 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 430, Statutes of 2022. [AB498 Detail]

Download: California-2021-AB498-Amended.html

---

Amended  IN  Senate  September 10, 2021

Amended  IN  Senate  June 22, 2021

Amended  IN  Assembly  April 14, 2021

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2021–2022 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 498

---

Introduced by Assembly Member Quirk-Silva
(Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Salas)

February 09, 2021

---

An act to add Article 15.5 (commencing with Section 44410) to Chapter 2 of Part 25 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Education Code, relating to teachers. amend Section 31461 of the Government Code, relating to retirement.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 498, as amended, Quirk-Silva. Teachers: Computer Science Access Initiative. County employees retirement: compensation earnable.

The County Employees Retirement Law of 1937 (CERL) authorizes counties to establish retirement systems pursuant to its provisions for the purpose of providing pension, disability, and other benefits to county and district employees. CERL defines compensation earnable for purposes of its provisions, with particular application to the calculation of final compensation and the determination of pension amounts and other benefits. In this regard, “compensation earnable” by a member means the average compensation as determined by the retirement board, for the period considered based on the average number of days ordinarily worked by persons in the same grade or class of positions during the period, as specified. Existing law, the California Public Employees’ Pension Reform Act of 2013, prescribes various limitations on public employees, employers, and retirement systems concerning, among other things, the types of remuneration that may be included in compensation that is applied to pensions.

This bill would delete the term “grade” and replace it with the term “group” for purposes of the definition of compensation earnable, as described above. The bill would define the phrase “group or class of positions” for purposes of this definition to mean a number of employees considered together because they share similarities in job duties, work location, collective bargaining unit, or other logical work-related grouping, and would specify that a single employee is not a group or class.

The bill would state that its changes are declaratory of existing law and would make a declaration of legislative intent in regards to its application.

Existing law establishes the Commission on Teacher Credentialing, and requires the commission to establish standards for the training of teachers and for the issuance and renewal of teachers’ credentials, certificates, and permits.

This bill would establish the Computer Science Access Initiative, to be administered by the commission. The bill would require the commission to award grants of up to $2,500 per participating teacher, on or before July 1, 2022, to eligible entities for the purpose of increasing the number of teachers authorized and trained to instruct pupils in computer science, as specified. The bill would require an entity, as defined to include a school district, county office of education, or charter school, or a consortium of a combination of the above, receiving a grant under the initiative to provide a 100% match of grant funding, as specified. The bill would require a grant recipient to submit to the commission, in a form and manner determined by the commission, a report containing certain information measuring the results of the use of grant funds.

The bill would provide that the operation of these provisions is contingent on an appropriation in the annual Budget Act or another statute for these purposes. The bill would express the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation that would provide $15,000,000 in one-time funding for purposes of the initiative.

Digest Key

Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YESNO   Local Program: NO  

---

Bill Text

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

 Section 31461 of the Government Code is amended to read:

31461.

 (a) “Compensation earnable” by a member means the average compensation compensation, as determined by the board, for the period under consideration upon the basis of the average number of days ordinarily worked by persons in the same grade group or class of positions during the period, and at the same rate of pay. The computation for any absence shall be based on the compensation of the position held by the member at the beginning of the absence. Compensation, as defined in Section 31460, that has been deferred shall be deemed “compensation earnable” when earned, rather than when paid.

(b) “Compensation earnable” does not include, in any case, the following:

(1) Any compensation determined by the board to have been paid to enhance a member’s retirement benefit under that system. That compensation may include:

(A) Compensation that had previously been provided in kind to the member by the employer or paid directly by the employer to a third party other than the retirement system for the benefit of the member, and which was converted to and received by the member in the form of a cash payment in the final average salary period.

(B) Any one-time or ad hoc payment made to a member, but not to all similarly situated members in the member’s grade or class.

(C) Any payment that is made solely due to the termination of the member’s employment, but is received by the member while employed, except those payments that do not exceed what is earned and payable in each 12-month period during the final average salary period regardless of when reported or paid.

(2) Payments for unused vacation, annual leave, personal leave, sick leave, or compensatory time off, however denominated, whether paid in a lump sum or otherwise, in an amount that exceeds that which may be earned and payable in each 12-month period during the final average salary period, regardless of when reported or paid.

(3) Payments for additional services rendered outside of normal working hours, whether paid in a lump sum or otherwise.

(4) Payments made at the termination of employment, except those payments that do not exceed what is earned and payable in each 12-month period during the final average salary period, regardless of when reported or paid.

(c) The terms of subdivision (b) are intended to be consistent with and not in conflict with the holdings in Salus v. San Diego County Employees Retirement Association (2004) 117 Cal.App.4th 734 and In re Retirement Cases (2003)110 (2003) 110 Cal.App.4th 426.

(d) For purposes of this section, “group or class of positions” means a number of employees considered together because they share similarities in job duties, work location, collective bargaining unit, or other logical work-related grouping. A single employee is not a group or class.

SEC. 2.

 (a) The amendment of Section 31461 of the Government Code made by this act does not constitute a change in, but is declaratory of, existing law.

(b) Because the change made by the amendment of Section 31461 of the Government Code made by this act clarifies and does not change existing law, it is the intent of the Legislature that this amendment apply to all causes of action that are not final on its effective date.

SECTION 1.Article 15.5 (commencing with Section 44410) is added to Chapter 2 of Part 25 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Education Code, to read:

15.5.Computer Science Access Initiative

44410.

(a)This article shall be known, and may be cited, as the Computer Science Access Initiative.

(b)The purpose of this initiative is to increase California pupils’ access to instruction in computer science by increasing the number of teachers who are authorized and trained to provide computer science instruction in California public schools.

44411.

(a)The Computer Science Access Initiative shall be administered by the commission.

(b)On or before July 1, 2022, the commission shall award grants under this initiative for the purpose of increasing the number of teachers authorized and trained to instruct pupils in computer science. Grants awarded by the commission through this initiative shall be used to increase the number of single subject credentialholders who obtain supplemental authorizations to teach computer science. An applicant is eligible to receive up to two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) per participating teacher for the purpose of paying the teacher’s costs of coursework, books, fees, and tuition, as applicable.

(c)An entity receiving a grant under the initiative shall provide a 100-percent match of grant funding in the form of one or both of the following:

(1)One dollar for each dollar of grant funding received that is to be used in a manner consistent with grant activities that are allowable under subdivision (b).

(2)An in-kind match of release time or substitute teacher costs for the participating teacher.

(d)The following entities shall be eligible to apply for a grant under this initiative:

(1)A school district.

(2)A county office of education.

(3)A charter school.

(4)A consortium made up of any combination of the above entities.

(e)An applicant for a grant under this initiative shall be required to submit an application in a form and manner determined by the commission that includes, but is not necessarily limited to, all of the following:

(1)A demonstration of the applicant’s capacity to carry out the activities necessary to meet the objectives of the initiative.

(2)A plan detailing how the applicant will meet the purpose specified in subdivision (b).

(3)An estimate of the number of computer science supplemental authorizations the grant is expected to produce through the use of grant funding.

(4)Identification of matching funds, as specified in subdivision (c).

(f)The commission shall give priority to applications that seek to improve the availability of computer science instruction to pupils who at the time of the application have limited opportunity to study computer science, who are traditionally underrepresented in the study of computer science, or who live in geographic areas that have limited access to the study of computer science.

(g)A grant recipient shall submit to the commission, in a form and manner determined by the commission, a report on all of the following:

(1)The number of authorizations in computer science produced as a result of the grant.

(2)The number of additional classes or amount of instruction planned as a result of the grant.

(3)The demographics of the pupils served or expected to be served by the teachers who have earned an authorization in computer science or who have received training as a result of the grant.

44414.

The operation of this article is contingent upon an appropriation in the annual Budget Act or another statute for purposes of this article. It is the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation that would provide fifteen million dollars ($15,000,000) in one-time funding for purposes of this article.