Categorical education funding: block grants.

(1) Existing law established the pupil retention block grant, school safety consolidated competitive grant, teacher credentialing block grant, professional development block grant, a new targeted instructional improvement block grant, and school library improvement block grant. Existing law authorizes a school district or county office of education to expend in a fiscal year up to 15% of the amount apportioned for the school safety consolidated competitive grant, professional development block grant, targeted instructional improvement block grant, or school library improvement block grant for any other programs for which the school district or county office is eligible for funding, not to exceed 120% of the amount of state funding allocated in a fiscal year to the school district or county office for purposes of the program to which funds are transferred. This bill would repeal those block grants and instead establish the following block grants, composed of funding for specified categorical education programs: the Supplemental Professional and Staff Development Block Grant, the Supplemental Academic Support for At-Risk Pupils Block Grant, the Supplemental Academic Support Block Grant, the Supplemental Operational Support Block Grant, the Supplemental Career Technical Education Block Grant, and the Supplemental Pupil Support Block Grant. Commencing with the 2009–10 fiscal year, the Superintendent of Public Instruction would be required to apportion funds from those block grants to school districts, as defined. The bill would authorize a school district or county office of education to expend in a fiscal year up to 50% of the amount apportioned for the block grants established by the bill for any other categorical program for which the school district or county office is eligible for funding, including programs whose funding is not included in any of the block grants established by the bill, not to exceed 155% of the amount of state funding allocated in a fiscal year to the school district or county office for purposes of the program to which funds are transferred. The bill also would repeal statutory provisions that established or are related to various programs included in the block grants established by the bill. (2) Existing law specifies the formula that the Superintendent of Public Instruction is required to use in order to calculate a categorical block grant for charter schools. Existing law authorizes charter schools that elect to receive their funding directly to apply individually for federal and state categorical programs, except as specified, to the extent that they are eligible for funding and meet the provisions of the programs. This bill would repeal those provisions and instead require the Superintendent to calculate a categorical block grant for charter schools using a formula based on the supplemental block grants established by the bill as described in (1) above. The bill also would prohibit charter schools from separately applying for funding pursuant to any of the categorical programs included in the supplemental block grants. This bill would make an appropriation by allowing funds that are continuously appropriated for purposes of the After School Education and Safety Program to be used for other categorical purposes.