Elementary and secondary education: Cal-Grant K-12 Award: certificated employee salaries: open enrollment: private school tax credit.

(1) Existing law, the Ortiz-Pacheco-Poochigian-Vasconcellos Cal Grant Program, under the administration of the Student Aid Commission, establishes specified grant awards for students of qualifying postsecondary educational institutions, and establishes eligibility requirements and maximum levels for those awards, as provided. This bill, contingent upon an appropriation made for this purpose, would establish the Cal Grant K-12 Award Program for the purpose of providing financial assistance on the basis of need for the cost of attendance of the private and public elementary and secondary schools of the state. The bill would set forth eligibility requirements for the program, and would require a Cal Grant K-12 Award to be based upon the financial need of an eligible pupil. The bill would require the department to promulgate regulations to determine how financial assistance provided under the program would be allocated to the parent or guardian of an eligible pupil, as provided. The bill would require a recipient of a Cal Grant K-12 Award to use the award for tuition assistance, or other costs relating to attendance, for any private or public elementary and secondary school in the state. (2) Existing law requires a teacher employed by a school district to be classified on a salary schedule based on uniform allowance for years of training and years of experience, except if a public school employer and the exclusive bargaining representative agree to a salary schedule based on other criteria pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement. This bill would repeal that provision, and would instead require a school district to use a market-based salary scale to determine the salary of the certificated employees of the school district. The bill would authorize a certificated employee to negotiate individually with the school district to determine the certificated employee's salary, except that the bill would authorize an employee organization to negotiate a minimum salary level for the certificated employees of the school district. (3) Under existing law, each person between the ages of 6 and 18 years who is not otherwise exempt is subject to compulsory full-time education. Existing law requires each person subject to compulsory full-time education to attend the public full-time day school and for the full time designated as the length of the schoolday by the governing board of the school district in which the residency of either the parent or legal guardian is located, except as specified. This bill would enact the Statewide Open Enrollment Act, which would require a person subject to compulsory education to be admitted to a school in any school district, without regard to residency or school district boundaries. The bill would prohibit a school district from restricting pupils residing within the school district's boundaries from enrollment in a school in another school district and would prohibit a school district from restricting pupils residing outside the school district's boundaries from enrollment in a school in the school district, except pursuant to specified exceptions. The bill would require a school district that restricts enrollment pursuant to an exception to give priority for admission to pupils who reside in the school district, children of military families, foster youth, and children living in poverty, as determined by the Superintendent of Public Instruction. To the extent this bill would impose additional duties on school districts, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (4) Existing law authorizes the governing boards of 2 or more school districts to enter into an agreement, for a term not to exceed 5 school years, for the interdistrict attendance of pupils who are residents of the school districts. Existing law also authorizes the governing board of a school district to accept pupils from other school districts by adopting a resolution to become a school district of choice, as defined, in accordance with specified procedural requirements and limitations. Existing law, the Open Enrollment Act, authorizes the parent of a pupil enrolled in a low-achieving school, as defined, to submit an application for the pupil to attend a school in a school district other than the school district in which the parent resides, as specified. This bill would repeal these provisions. (5) The Personal Income Tax Law allows various credits against the taxes imposed by that law. Existing law requires any bill authorizing a new personal income tax credit to contain, among other things, specific goals, purposes, and objectives that the tax credit will achieve, detailed performance indicators, and data collection requirements, as provided. This bill, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2019, and before January 1, 2024, would allow a credit in an amount equal to costs paid or incurred during the taxable year by a taxpayer for the qualified tuition expenses, as defined, of a qualified dependent. (6) This bill would repeal resulting obsolete provisions, update cross references, and make other clarifying and conforming changes. (7) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.