Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1500904
CTA Supports For AB 5 (Zbur) , see page 24. AB 938 (Muratsuchi): This bill proposes significant increases in school funding and educator sal- aries by increasing Local Control Funding Formula monies. Higher salaries would help attract and retain quality educators and encourage them to remain in the profession, supporting the success of students in California and ensuring they receive a quality education. AB 938 would also help close the wage gap between educa- tors and other professions with similar education and training. Status: Approved by Assembly Edu- cation Committee; awaiting hearing by Assembly Appropriations Committee. AB 1604 (Bonta): This bill gives the community a voice in how publicly funded facilities are used after a charter school closes. AB 1604 would require any process for selling such surplus property to mirror existing processes and give priority for educa- tion and public uses. These proposed reforms will promote transparency and the responsible use of public funds, helping eliminate the potential for waste, abuse or fraud. Status: Approved by the Assem- bly Education Committee; awaiting hearing by Assembly Appropriations Committee. CTA Opposes SB 426 (Niello): This bill seeks to rename non-class- room-based charter schools in an effort to rebrand them while a moratorium exists on establishing new such charter schools. AB 426 creates loopholes in existing law that names these schools "college-ready " or "personalized learn- ing" schools that could be universally applied. Rather than add clarity to existing law, these changes would cre- ate confusion. Status: Approved by Senate Edu- cation Committee; awaiting second reading before State Senate. SB 739 (Alvarado-Gil): This bill unravels the 2019 deal made to rewrite charter school law and tran- sition to using the California School Dashboard as the state accountability system for all public schools — district and charter. SB 739 would extend all charter school renewals by a year — this is in addition to the two-year extension all charters were granted when Dashboard data was unavailable (2020 and 2021). If charter expirations are extended by another year, most charter schools will have gone eight years without oversight of their student outcome data, finances and gover- nance system. Status: Approved by Senate Educa- tion Committee; awaiting hearing by Senate Appropriations Committee. SB 810 (Alvarado-Gil): This bill abandons local control and oversight and dilutes the quality of public education at a new category of charter schools that would be exempt from jurisdictional limitations. SB 810 would also exempt this new category of charters from the requirement that average daily attendance be generated by students who live in California. Ulti- mately, this bill would prevent charter school authorizers from ensuring that their charter schools are financially sta- ble and academically successful. Status: Schedule Senate Education Committee hearing cancelled at the request of the author. The Good and the Bad CTA members advocate on Lobby Day By Julian Peeples E D U C A T O R S W A L K E D the halls of the State Capitol in Sacramento in late April, advocating positions on six important bills making their way through the Legislative process. Legislative Update 27 J U N E / J U L Y 2 0 2 3 A