§ 10320. — 10320. (Amended by Stats. 2025, Ch. 268, Sec. 1.)

(a)
The Early Childhood Policy Council is hereby established to advise the Governor, the Legislature, and the department on statewide early learning and care policy, including the planning for, and the implementation and evaluation of, the state’s Master Plan for Early Learning and Care and the 2019 California Assembly Blue Ribbon Commission on Early Childhood Education Final Report.
(b)
(1)
The council shall maintain at least two ongoing standing advisory committees: a parent advisory committee appointed pursuant to subdivision (e) and a workforce advisory committee appointed pursuant to subdivision (f).
(2)
The council shall include 27 members who shall serve at the pleasure of their appointing authority as follows:
(A)
Fourteen members appointed by the Governor, including those required pursuant to Section 9837b of Title 42 of the United States Code. One of the Governor’s appointees shall be the chairperson of the council.
(B)
Four members appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly.
(C)
Four members appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules.
(D)
One member appointed by the Superintendent of Public Instruction.
(E)
Two members of the parent advisory committee, appointed by that
committee.
(F)
Two members of the workforce advisory committee, appointed by that committee.
(3)
Members of the council shall include stakeholder representatives reflecting the comprehensive childcare system; represent the ethnic, racial, and language diversity of the state; and represent geographic diversity and those communities separated from opportunity due to poverty, racial bias, language, geographic isolation, disability, and other factors.
(4)
Members of the council shall serve no longer than six years.
(5)
To the extent funding for the council is provided in the annual Budget Act, language interpretation services shall be provided at convenings of the council and its committees to ensure language access and meaningful participation.
(6)
To the extent funding for the council is provided in the annual Budget Act, members of the council or its committees who are provider participants or parent representatives shall be reimbursed as necessary for their reasonable expenses, including travel, a stipend to cover childcare costs, lost wages, and expenses for substitutes for attending council meetings.
(c)
The council shall do all of the following:
(1)
Convene at least four public meetings per year. These meetings shall provide access for participants throughout the state.
(2)
Advise the Governor and perform activities required pursuant to Section 9837b of Title 42 of the United States Code.
(3)
(A)
Prepare a formal public annual report on the work of the
council that includes, at a minimum, the successes, challenges, and gaps in the state’s early childhood education systems and recommendations to facilitate advancing the state’s vision for children, families, and communities.
(B)
The council shall annually submit the report described in subparagraph (A) to the appropriate fiscal and policy committees of the Legislature in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
(4)
Provide specific recommendations directly to the Governor, the Legislature, and the department on all aspects of the state’s early childhood education system, including on the following topics:
(A)
Equity,
with consideration for demographic, geographic, and economic diversity, and with a focus on family-centered two-generation approaches.
(B)
Opportunities to incorporate a support model of accountability, as opposed to a compliance model of accountability, into the state’s early childhood education system.
(C)
Ways that the state’s Master Plan for Early Learning and Care and the 2019 California Assembly Blue Ribbon Commission on Early Childhood Education Final Report can be updated and improved.
(5)
Develop policy proposals and budget requests for the Legislature to consider related to facility needs, workforce needs, and family access.
(d)
Staff for the council and its committees shall be provided by the California Health and Human Services Agency. From funding appropriated for purposes of this section, up to three hundred thousand dollars ($300,000) may be used by the California Health and Human Services Agency for the costs to provide staff for the council and its committees.
(e)
(1)
The parent advisory committee shall be a standing committee of the council.
(2)
The parent advisory committee shall include nine members who shall serve at the pleasure of their appointing
authority as follows:
(A)
Three members appointed by the Governor, including one consumer who receives services from a childcare center provider, one consumer who is on a subsidy waiting list at the time of the appointment, and one consumer who is a parent of a child with exceptional needs, as defined in Section 10213.5, who receives services from a childcare provider.
(B)
Three members appointed by the Speaker of the
Assembly, including one consumer who receives services from a family childcare home provider or a family, friend, or neighbor provider, one consumer who is a current or former CalWORKs childcare recipient, and one consumer who is connected to the child welfare system.
(C)
Three members appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules, including one consumer who receives services from a transitional kindergarten provider, one consumer who represents a tribal organization who
receives services from a
childcare provider, and one consumer who pays privately for childcare.
(3)
The Governor shall designate the chairperson of the parent advisory committee.
(4)
If a person cannot be found to satisfy the requirements of paragraph (2), the appointing authority may designate an alternate committee member.
(5)
The parent advisory committee shall provide recommendations to the council and other entities on all aspects of early childhood education, including all of the following:
(A)
Equity, access, and best practices for engaging families.
(B)
Creating warm and welcoming care environments.
(C)
How to develop local and state partnerships to support the best outcomes for families that interact with the state’s early childhood education system.
(f)
(1)
The workforce advisory committee shall be a standing committee of the council.
(2)
The workforce advisory committee shall include nine members who shall serve at the pleasure of their appointing authority as follows:
(A)
Three members appointed
by the Governor, including one licensed family
childcare home provider, one center-based childcare director from a subsidized childcare program, and one representative from a statewide organization representing childcare providers.
(B)
Three members appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly, including one
family, friend, or neighbor childcare provider, one representative from a Head Start program provider, and one representative from a community college that operates a program that provides early
childcare education coursework and laboratory school experience.
(C)
Three members appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules, including one representative from a childcare provider experienced in providing services to children with exceptional needs, as defined in Section 10213.5, in a full-inclusion environment, one center-based childcare teacher from a subsidized
childcare program, and one provider who provides services to children from a tribal organization.
(3)
The Governor shall designate the chairperson of the workforce advisory committee.
(4)
If a person cannot be found to satisfy the requirements of paragraph (2), the appointing authority may designate an alternate committee member.
(5)
The workforce advisory committee shall provide recommendations to the council and other entities on all aspects of early childhood education on an ongoing basis.

Legislative History

Amended by Stats. 2025, Ch. 268, Sec. 1. (AB 563) Effective January 1, 2026.