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AB-1351 • 2026

Pupils: school attendance: residency requirements.

Pupils: school attendance: residency requirements.

Children Education Parental Rights
Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
Ahrens
Last action
2026-02-02
Official status
From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56.
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The candidate explanation included details about the creation of a new online system that were consistent with the official source material, but it also contained speculative information about how schools and employers will adapt to this change which was not supported in the provided text.

Pupils: School Attendance and Work Permits

This law changes the rules for school attendance based on residency requirements and creates an online system to track work permits.

What This Bill Does

  • Defines 'foster youth' as a student who is in foster care and can stay at their original school even if they move.
  • Requires all new work permits given to students starting from the 2030-2031 school year to be put into an online system called Youth Employment System (YES).
  • The State Department of Education must create this online system by December 31, 2029.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Students between the ages of 6 and 18 who are required to go to school.
  • Foster youth who can stay at their original school even if they move.
  • People or companies that hire minors under 18 years old.

Terms To Know

foster youth
A student in foster care who is allowed to remain at their original school even after moving.
Youth Employment System (YES)
An online database where all work permits for students will be stored starting from the 2030-2031 school year.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not specify what happens to existing work permits before the new system is created.
  • It's unclear how schools and employers will adapt to using this new online database for tracking work permits.

Bill History

  1. 2026-02-02 California Legislative Information

    From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56.

  2. 2026-01-31 California Legislative Information

    Died pursuant to Art. IV, Sec. 10(c) of the Constitution.

  3. 2026-01-06 California Legislative Information

    Re-referred to Com. on ED.

  4. 2026-01-05 California Legislative Information

    From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on ED. Read second time and amended.

  5. 2026-01-05 California Legislative Information

    In committee: Set, first hearing. Hearing canceled at the request of author.

  6. 2025-03-24 California Legislative Information

    In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.

  7. 2025-03-13 California Legislative Information

    Referred to Com. on ED.

  8. 2025-02-24 California Legislative Information

    Read first time.

  9. 2025-02-22 California Legislative Information

    From printer. May be heard in committee March 24.

  10. 2025-02-21 California Legislative Information

    Introduced. To print.

Official Summary Text

AB 1351, as amended, Ahrens.
Pupils:
work permits: online database.
school attendance: residency requirements.
Under existing law, each person between 6 and 18 years of age, inclusive, who is not otherwise exempt is subject to compulsory full-time education. Existing law requires each person subject to compulsory full-time education to attend the public full-time day school and for the full time designated as the length of the schoolday by the governing board of the school district in which the residency of either the parent or legal guardian is located, except that a pupil is deemed to have complied with those residency requirements if the pupil meets specified criteria, including if the pupil is a foster child who remains in their school of origin, as provided.
This bill would expressly define the term “foster youth” for purposes of the latter provision.
Existing law authorizes certain educational officers to issue a work permit to a pupil upon receipt of a written request from a parent, guardian, foster parent, or other specified person, as provided. Existing law prohibits a person, firm, or corporation from employing, suffering, or permitting a minor under 18 years of age to work in or in connection with any establishment or occupation without a permit to employ, issued by the proper educational officers, as specified. Existing law provides that a permit to work issued during the school year expires 5 days after the opening of the next succeeding school year.
This bill would require, commencing with the 2030–31 school year, all active work permits issued to a pupil pursuant to the above-described provisions, and any work permits issued to a pupil thereafter, to be uploaded to an online database,
to be known as the Youth Employment System (YES), which the bill would require the State Department of Education to create on or before December 31, 2029, as provided.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
Download Bill PDF