2023 California Code › Education Code - EDC › TITLE 1 - GENERAL EDUCATION CODE PROVISIONS › DIVISION 1 - GENERAL EDUCATION CODE PROVISIONS › PART 19.6 - Covid-19 Emergency Appropriations for Education › Section 32527.

32527. (a) (1) (A) For the 2022–23 fiscal year, the sum of six hundred fifty million dollars ($650,000,000) is hereby appropriated from the General Fund to the office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges for transfer to the Learning Recovery Emergency Fund created in Section 32525. The chancellor’s office shall allocate available moneys in the Learning Recovery Emergency Fund deposited pursuant to this section to community college districts in the manner, and for the purposes, set forth in this section. This allocation shall be known as the California Community College COVID-19 Recovery Block Grant.
(B) The Legislature finds and declares that, on March 4, 2020, the Governor proclaimed a state of emergency in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
(2) The chancellor’s office shall allocate the funds described in paragraph (1) to community college districts on the basis of actual reported full-time equivalent students, as those numbers of students are reported at the time of the second principal apportionment for the 2021–22 fiscal year.
(3) The funds appropriated in this section may be expended for any of the following purposes:
(A) Supports to address other barriers to learning as a result of disruption caused by COVID-19, such as access to basic needs and mental health services needed to support students impacted by COVID-19.
(B) Reengagement strategies for students who received an incomplete or failing grade in the spring 2022 term due to COVID-19 and engagement strategies with high schools and local communities to restore broader access.
(C) Grants to faculty to develop online, accelerated learning modules that allow students who received an incomplete or failing grade in the spring 2022 term due to COVID-19 to continue to make progress toward their degree rather than retaking courses in the fall 2022 term.
(D) Professional development opportunities for faculty and student services professionals needed to continue educational instruction due to COVID-19, including supporting students impacted by learning loss related to COVID-19 and preparing and supporting faculty to develop online instructional capabilities in response to COVID-19.
(E) Investments to close the digital divide, including investments in information technology infrastructure, facilitating student access to technology to be able to access online coursework, and technology, software, or other electronic instruments and materials for faculty to support courses that are difficult to teach online.
(F) Cleaning supplies and personal protective equipment.
(G) To discharge unpaid fees due or owed by a student to a community college in the district.
(H) The purposes and activities identified in subdivisions (b) and (c) of Section 55 of Chapter 54 of the Statutes of 2022 and subdivision (a) of Provision 2 of Item 6870-121-0001 of Section 2.00 of the Budget Act of 2022.
(4) As a condition of receiving funds provided in paragraph (1), community college districts shall perform both of the following:
(A) Report, on or before March 1, 2023, to the chancellor’s office metrics on the provision of employer-sponsored health insurance for part-time faculty in the 2021–22 academic year, including, but not limited to, all of the following:
(i) If the community college district offers health insurance to its part-time faculty, and if so, the minimum conditions for obtaining employer-sponsored coverage.
(ii) The total number of qualifying part-time faculty and the number of participants in the Part-Time Community College Faculty Health Insurance program pursuant to Article 9 (commencing with Section 87860) of Chapter 3 of Part 51 of Division 7 of Title 3.
(iii) The total number of part-time faculty who do not qualify for the Part-Time Community College Faculty Health Insurance program pursuant to Article 9 (commencing with Section 87860) of Chapter 3 of Part 51 of Division 7 of Title 3, but whose total cumulative teaching assignments at two or more community college districts equals or exceeds 40 percent of the cumulative equivalent of a minimum full-time teaching assignment.
(iv) The source of health insurance by the number of part-time faculty in each category or type, which may include, but is not limited to, a community college district, a pooled health benefit plan, a spouse or domestic partner’s employer, another employer, private insurance, Covered California, Medi-Cal, or no health insurance.
(B) Report, on or before March 1, 2026, metrics on the provision of employer-sponsored health insurance to part-time faculty in the 2024–25 academic year, including, but not limited to, the metrics referenced in subparagraph (A).
(5) The chancellor’s office shall submit a report, consistent with Section 9795 of the Government Code, on the use of funds on or before March 1, 2024, to the Legislature, Legislative Analyst’s Office, and the Department of Finance that includes the amount of funds provided for each community college, a description of how funds were used for each of the purposes reflected in paragraph (3), a statement of reasons describing how the funds prioritized services for underrepresented students, and an explanation of the effectiveness of services or supports provided by these funds.
(6) It is the intent of the Legislature that funds shall be used on activities that directly support community college students and mitigate community college student learning loss related to COVID-19 impacts, and that community college districts prioritize the use of these one-time funds for purposes, including, but not limited to, professional development, technology infrastructure, developing open education resources and zero-textbook-cost degrees, and supporting the mental health and wellness needs of students and staff.
(b) For purposes of making the computations required by Section 8 of Article XVI of the California Constitution, the appropriations made pursuant to subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) shall be deemed to be “General Fund revenues appropriated for community college districts,” as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 41202, for the 2021–22 fiscal year, and included within the “total allocations to school districts and community college districts from General Fund proceeds of taxes appropriated pursuant to Article XIII B,” as defined in subdivision (e) of Section 41202, for the 2021–22 fiscal year.
(Amended by Stats. 2023, Ch. 50, Sec. 2. (SB 117) Effective July 10, 2023.)