Bill Text: CA AB646 | 2013-2014 | Regular Session | Amended

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

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Bill Title: Public education governance: regional P-20 councils: advisory committee.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-02-03 - From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56. [AB646 Detail]

Download: California-2013-AB646-Amended.html

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BILL NUMBER: AB 646	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  SEPTEMBER 11, 2013

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Cooley

                        FEBRUARY 21, 2013

   An act to add Chapter 1.3 (commencing with Section 10050) to Part
7 of Division 1 of Title 1 of the Education Code, relating to public
education governance.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 646, as amended, Cooley. Public education governance: 
Regional   regional  P-20  councils.
  councils: advisory committee. 
   Existing law establishes a system of public elementary and
secondary schools in this state, and authorizes local educational
agencies throughout the state to operate schools and provide
instruction to pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive
(K-12). Existing law also establishes a system of public
postsecondary education in the state that consists of 3 segments: the
University of California, the California State University, and the
California Community Colleges.
   This bill would express the intent of the Legislature to affirm
the employer-education partnership model of a regional P-20 council
as a desired structure in California to help align preschool, K-12,
community college, 4-year college, and graduate and professional
education programs and funding to advance strategic educational and
economic outcomes.  The 
    The bill would require the Governor's Office of Business and
Economic Development, on or before July 1, 2015, to establish an
advisory committee on P-20 councils, with designated membership, to
serve as a clearinghouse for ideas of how these councils are working
and to identify key statewide education policies and goals that P-20
councils may seek to further. The  bill would authorize a school
district, community college district, or campus of the California
State University or University of California to establish or
participate in a regional P-20 council, and authorize a regional P-20
council to include representatives of private sector employers. The
bill would require a regional P-20 council established under the bill
to identify educational objectives that are consistent with the
objectives of council members and with statewide education policies
and goals.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.


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

  SECTION 1.  Chapter 1.3 (commencing with Section 10050) is added to
Part 7 of Division 1 of Title 1 of the Education Code, to read:
      CHAPTER 1.3.  REGIONAL P-20 COUNCILS


   10050.  (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following: 
   (1) The Federal Reserve has stated on its Internet Web site that "
 m]ost policymakers estimate the longer-run normal rate of
unemployment is between 5.2 and 6 percent." The current rate of
unemployment in the United States is 7.4 percent. The unemployment
rates in both the County of Sacramento and California are higher than
the national unemployment rate. According to a September 2013 brief
by the California Budget Project, "i]f California's job market
continues to grow as it has over the past year, the state will not
recover the jobs lost due to the Great Recession until January 2016,"
but that this also "understates how long it will actually take for
the job market to reach pre-recession strength" due to California's
increased working-age population since 2007.  
   (1) 
    (   2)  P-16 councils were first established in
several states in the 1990s to convene state leaders representing
early learning (the "P" stands for preschool) through the first four
years of college (the "16"). More recently, some states have extended
the scope of these councils to include doctoral and professional
schools (the "20"). 
   (2) 
    (   3)  According to a 2008 report of the
Education Commission of the States, 38 states had established a P-16
or P-20 council and 11 states had regional P-16 or P-20 councils.

   (4) It is increasingly recognized that regions are the units of
economic competition and an essential ingredient of economic
competitiveness is for regions to align educational assets to prepare
students for critical careers within key economic clusters. The
Sacramento region's Next Economy initiative is one example of a
regional economic development strategy advancing these objectives.
 
   (5) Recent research affirms that aligning regional assets is a key
to advancing economic competitiveness; a Brookings Institution
Metropolitan Policy Program study has noted that "r]egional economies
are differentiated, complex, and dynamic; improving their
performance entails customized and integrated strategies." An
educated and suitably prepared workforce is a key element in private
sector job creation and job-related capital investment.  
   (6) Several examples of effective P-20 councils can be found in
California, including the Alliance for Education in San Bernardino
County, which is the Inland Empire's premier partnership between the
business and education communities. Its objective is "to achieve the
goal of producing an educated and skilled workforce that ensures the
economic well-being for San Bernardino County."  
   (7) Recent state policy and funding priorities are intended to
promote the development and sustainability of pathways preparing
students across the P-20 spectrum for critical careers in the 21st
century economy.  
   (8) During hearings of the Assembly Select Committee on Community
and Neighborhood Development in July 2013, witnesses stated that
California's future economic growth would benefit from a concentrated
effort aimed at establishing the preconditions that support growth
in jobs and private sector investment in California communities. Such
an approach would be analogous to the high degree of regional
coordination that is typical for prioritizing and funding
transportation improvements. State and federal governments already
require regional coordination among local governments to prioritize
transportation funding.  
   (3) 
    (   9)  California will benefit from a system
of regional P-20 councils, composed of both employers and educational
leaders of educational entities that provide instruction for all
levels from early childhood learning to doctoral and professional
programs, to help align educational programs, policies, and funding
to meet strategic educational and economic objectives.
   (b) Therefore, it is the intent of the Legislature to affirm the
employer-education partnership model of a regional P-20 council as a
desired structure in California to help align preschool, K-12,
community college, four-year college, and graduate and professional
education programs and funding to advance strategic educational and
economic outcomes. 
   10051.  The Governor's Office of Business and Economic
Development, on or before July 1, 2015, shall establish an advisory
committee on P-20 councils to serve as a clearinghouse for ideas of
how these councils are working and to identify key statewide
education policies and goals that P-20 councils may seek to further.
The advisory committee shall include representatives of the offices
of the President of the University of California, the Chancellor of
the California State University, the Chancellor of the California
Community Colleges, the Employment Development Department, the State
Department of Education, the Department of Industrial Relations, and
representatives of no more than three employer advisory councils.

    10051.   10052.    (a)  
 A school district, community college district, or campus of the
California State University or University of California may
establish or participate in a regional P-20 council, which may
include representatives of regional private sector employers as well
as public educational entities.  A 
    (b)     A  regional P-20 council
established under this section shall identify educational objectives
that are consistent with the objectives of council members and with
statewide education policies and goals.  A 
    (c)     A  regional P-20 council shall
be aligned, as much as feasible, with the regional structures in the
State Department of Education, the California Community Colleges,
and the Department of Industrial Relations.  A 
    (d)     A  school district or
community college district that participates in a regional P-20
council may establish eligibility for funding under the Career
Technical Education Pathways Program (Part 52 (commencing with
Section 88530) of Division 7 of Title 3), contingent on the district'
s conformity with the standards of that program and the availability
of funds.