Education funding.

(1) Existing law establishes various categorical education programs and appropriates the funding for those programs in the annual Budget Act. Existing law requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction, for the 2008–09 to 2014–15 fiscal years, inclusive, to apportion from the amounts provided in the annual Budget Act for specified categorical education programs an amount based on the same relative proportion that the local educational agency received in the 2008–09 fiscal year for those programs and authorizes school districts, for those fiscal years, to use these funds, with specified exceptions, for any educational purpose, to the extent permitted by federal law. Existing law requires, as a condition of receipt of the above-described funds for any educational purpose, the governing board of a school district or county office of education, as appropriate, to discuss, approve, or disapprove the proposed use of funding and to make explicit the purposes for which each item of appropriation for specified categorical education programs will be used at a regularly scheduled open public hearing. This bill would require that public hearing to be held prior to and independent of a meeting where the governing board of a school district or county office of education adopts a budget. The bill would also require the governing board to identify the program or programs to be closed before the public hearing, as specified. (2) Existing law authorizes the governing board of a school district maintaining an adult class to require an adult enrolled in the class to pay a fee and prohibits the governing board from imposing a charge for a class in English and citizenship for foreigners or a class in an elementary subject, except as specified. This bill would authorize the governing board of a school district to charge a fee for a class in English and citizenship until July 1, 2015.