CA SB1424

Establishes a grant program administered by the State Department of Education to provide resources to school districts for reducing chronic absenteeism among pupils

Defines chronic absenteeism as missing at least 10 percent of instructional days (approximately 18 days) that a pupil was enrolled to attend

Authorizes grant resources to fund hiring of outreach workers to conduct home visits with families of chronically absent pupils and to support attendance clerk tracking efforts

Finds that chronic absenteeism adversely affects academic outcomes, with chronically absent pupils less likely to read at grade level by 3rd grade and more likely to drop out of high school

Notes that chronic absenteeism rates are significantly higher for Native American, African American, and Pacific Islander students compared to California's statewide rate