SACRAMENTO, CA – Today, Assemblyman Phillip Chen (R-Brea) introduced his first bill (AB 396) to extend the successful District of Choice (DOC) program, which is set to sunset on July 1, 2017, and extend it for an additional five years to July 1, 2022.
In a statement, Assemblyman Chen said the following:
“Today is a victory for ‘Parental Choice’ in California. Parents, not politicians, should have the right to be the ultimate decision maker on their child’s education.
It would be cruel to uproot students that are participating in a DOC program that have already established friendships and relationships with other students and teachers, and send them to a different school to finish their education.
AB 396 will allow the successful DOC program to be extended for an additional five years. This extra time allows both sides of the DOC to have the opportunity to sit down and find common ground.”
Established in 1993, DOC allows about 10,000 students across the state to enroll in 47 participating school districts without seeking permission of their home districts.
The state’s Legislative Analyst Office, a non-partisan fiscal and policy advisor, recommended that the program be extended an additional five years.
Assemblyman Chen is a small business owner and former educator. The 55th Assembly District is split between Orange, San Bernardino and Los Angeles Counties.
For more information, please visit https://ad55.asmrc.org/
