Ed. Note: The following is a news release from the office of Assemblyman Scott Wilk

Assemblyman Scott Wilk introduced Assembly Bill 2587  last week which would allow a school district that reached an Average Daily Attendance of 94 percent or higher to collect reimbursement at the 100 percent level.

Under current law the state distributes funding to school districts based on their Average Daily Attendance (ADA) which is calculated by the total days of student attendance divided by the total days of instruction.

“ADA is a method to entice school districts to combat chronic truancy, and rightly so,” said Wilk.

“However, many students often come to school while infected with contagious illnesses due to pressures from the school. Sick kids don’t learn and should stay home.  Also schools have fixed costs that should be covered by the state as long as they are school districts are effectively addressing truancy issues by obtaining at least a 94% ADA rate.”

AB 2587 is meant to allow school districts some flexibility in order for them to promote sound public health practices. Removing some of the pressure for getting to a 100% ADA will allow districts to shift focus to making healthy decisions for their students and combatting chronic truancy issues.

The 38th Assembly District encompasses Simi Valley, the northwestern section of the San Fernando Valley and most of the Santa Clarita Valley.