SACRAMENTO, CA – Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo (D-Los Angeles) is proud to announce that today the State Legislature passed the 2019 State Budget, which includes $50 Million in funding for the After School Education and Safety Program (ASES). The 2019 State Budget is now pending a signature from the Governor.
“In California, ASES-funded after school and summer programs serve more than 400,000 students at 4,200 schools each day and serve some communities with the highest levels of poverty across California. In Assembly District 51 alone, around 9,000 children are served at 89 after school programs every day,” said Assemblymember Carrillo. “Not only do these programs encourage learning, but they also provide an after school care option for working parents, many who work tireless hours to support their children yet cannot afford traditional childcare. With significant increases in costs threatening the closure of some ASES programs, the additional $50 Million will help ensure that these programs continue operating to provide essential services for our youth. For these reasons, I strongly urge the Governor to sign this year’s budget.”
“This increase in ASES funding will help LA’s BEST and programs across the state keep our doors open and continue providing critical after school care to children and working families with the greatest needs,” said Eric Gurna, President & CEO of LA’s BEST Afterschool Enrichment Program serving 25,000 students. “While we know the fight to protect afterschool programs isn’t over, we’re grateful to Assemblymember Carrillo & her colleagues in the State Legislature for investing in programs with proven results across graduation rates, attendance rates, juvenile crime, and beyond. We encourage Governor Newsom to approve the increase in his final budget to prevent afterschool programs from closing next year.”
“On behalf of the California Afterschool Advocacy Alliance and thousands of supporters across the state, we thank Assemblymember Carrillo for leading the way to much-needed funding in this budget. This funding will help ASES programs serve students and working families this year, but it does not fix the problem. We are grateful for her commitment to a long-term solution to provide the high-quality programs that children, families, and schools need,” said Jen Dietrich of the Partnership for Children & Youth and the California Afterschool Advocacy Alliance. “We look forward to continuing this work with Assemblymember Carrillo and the Legislature to pass AB 1725.”
Approved by voters in 2002, Proposition 49 established the ASES program and provided ongoing funding for before and after school programs. Research shows that after school programs provide a variety of benefits to students including: improved school attendance and graduation rates, English fluency and social-emotional skill development. They also keep students safe and out of trouble during the peak hours for juvenile crime.
In the decade since ASES was implemented, costs to operate programs have risen significantly – primarily driven from increases in the state minimum wage. Since 2007, the California minimum wage has increased by 50%, the Consumer Price Index has increased by 30% and Proposition 98 K-12 Education Funding has increased by 45%. In comparison, ASES funding has only increased by 9% ($7.50 to $8.19 per student per day) since 2007. As a result, ASES programs across the state are struggling to stay open. Programs are already reducing student activities such as arts, sports and STEM. Without the additional $50 Million increase to ASES funding, nearly 1 in 4 programs were expected to close their doors in 2020, bringing California’s after school system to the brink of collapse and denying access to about 91,000 students and families.
Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo was elected as the representative of the 51st Assembly District in December of 2017. She is a member of the Health, Appropriations, Utilities & Energy, Labor and Rules Committees. Carrillo represents the people of East Los Angeles, Northeast Los Angeles, and the neighborhoods of El Sereno, Echo Park, Lincoln Heights, Chinatown and parts of Silver Lake.