Amended  IN  Assembly  March 07, 2022

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2021–2022 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 2121

Introduced by Assembly Member Eduardo Garcia

February 14, 2022

An act to repeal Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 420) of Part 1 of Division 1 of Title 1 of the Education Code, relating to English learners. amend Section 52073.2 of the Education Code, relating to special education.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 2121, as amended, Eduardo Garcia. English Language Learner Acquisition and Development Pilot Program: repeal. School accountability: California Collaborative for Educational Excellence: special education resource leads.
Existing law establishes the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence to advise and assist school districts, county superintendents of schools, and charter schools in achieving their local control and accountability plan goals. Existing law requires the department and the collaborative to establish a process, administered by the State Department of Education, to select, subject to approval by the executive director of the state board in consultation with the Department of Finance, special education local plan areas or consortia of special education local plan areas to serve as special education resource leads to work with the lead agencies and other county offices of education to improve pupil outcomes as part of the statewide system of support. Existing law requires at least 3 resource leads to be selected in a manner to ensure statewide representation and focus directly on building special education local plan area capacity, as specified.
This bill would authorize county offices of education and consortia of county offices of education to be eligible for selection to serve as special education resource leads under the above-described process. The bill would require at least 3 resource leads to instead be selected in a manner to ensure statewide representation and focus directly on building local and regional capacity. The bill would, subject to an appropriation, commencing with the grant cycle beginning July 1, 2023, require the collaborative and the department to select a partnership consisting of (1) a special education local plan area, county office of education, or consortia of special education local plan areas and county offices of education and (2) a family support organization, as defined, or coalition of family support organizations, from applications jointly submitted to the department, to serve as a special education resource lead to work with specified entities through capacity building, training, and technical assistance on specified topics relating to special education.

Existing law establishes the English Language Learner Acquisition and Development Pilot Program, under the administration of the State Department of Education, as a 3-year competitive grant pilot project of 25,000 or more English language learners to be conducted during the 2007–08 to 2009–10, inclusive, school years. Under the program, grants are made to local educational agencies, as defined, to identify existing best practices regarding topics including, but not limited to, curriculum, instruction, and staff development for teaching English language learners and promoting English language acquisition and development. The program requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to establish a 13-to-20 member advisory committee, with specified responsibilities.

This bill would repeal the statutes that establish the program.

Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: NOYES   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 schools and families deserve a comprehensive, efficient, and equitable continuum of special education dispute prevention and resolution practices, which is grounded in the common goal of success for all pupils and supports and maintains positive relationships between families and schools.
(2) According to the Center for Appropriate Dispute Resolution in Special Education, a full continuum of dispute prevention and resolution begins with robust family support which prevents conflict by ensuring that families are able to participate fully in the education of their children. This continuum also supports families and schools in the use of practices like proactive communication and collaborative problem solving. When conflicts arise, this continuum also includes the availability of voluntary alternative dispute resolution processes when appropriate.
(3) California has begun to build this continuum of special education dispute prevention and resolution through investments in family support, alternative dispute resolution, and the design of a statewide individualized education program facilitation network.
(4) However, more investments are needed in order to build this continuum. California families and schools need a statewide resource, jointly operated by schools and family support organizations, to provide professional development and technical assistance on family support, conflict prevention, and alternative dispute resolution in special education.
(b) It is therefore the intent of the Legislature to establish a statewide resource to assist families and schools through capacity building within the state’s system of support, training, and technical assistance. It is the intent of the Legislature that this resource provide some of this support to collaborative teams of families and schools seeking to improve family support, dispute resolution processes, and pupil outcomes.

SEC. 2.

 Section 52073.2 of the Education Code is amended to read:

52073.2.
 (a) The California Collaborative for Educational Excellence and the department shall establish a process, administered by the department, to select, subject to approval by the executive director of the state board in consultation with the Department of Finance, special education local plan areas areas, county offices of education, or consortia of special education local plan areas and county offices of education to serve as special education resource leads to work with lead agencies selected pursuant to Sections 52073 and 52073.1, and other county offices of education, to improve pupil outcomes as part of the statewide system of support pursuant to this article.
(b) The process to select special education resource leads described in subdivision (a) shall ensure that no more than 10 special education resource leads are selected to provide specific expertise on special education issues within the statewide system of support. At least three resource leads shall be selected in a manner to ensure statewide representation and focus directly on building special education local plan area local and regional capacity to support local educational agencies in achieving the goals, actions, and services identified in their local control and accountability plans. Special education resource leads shall be selected for a term not to exceed five years.
(c) Subject to an appropriation in the annual Budget Act or another statute for this purpose, by the commencement of the grant cycle beginning July 1, 2023, the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence and the department shall select a partnership consisting of (1) a special education local plan area, county office of education, or consortia of special education local plan areas and county offices of education and (2) a family support organization or coalition of family support organizations, from applications jointly submitted to the department, to serve as a special education resource lead to work with lead agencies selected pursuant to Sections 52073 and 52073.1, other county offices of education, local educational agencies, and family support organizations, through capacity building, training, and technical assistance on both of the following:
(1) Family support for families of pupils with disabilities.
(2) Conflict prevention and alternative dispute resolution in special education.
(d) For purposes of this section, “family support organization” includes, but is not limited to, a state or federally funded organization that provides support to families of pupils with disabilities.

SECTION 1.Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 420) of Part 1 of Division 1 of Title 1 of the Education Code is repealed.