Kamala Harris: Truancy Measures

“…but none of them were put in jail.”

Truancy Measures

“Harris also championed state legislation under which parents whose children were found to be habitually truant in elementary school could be prosecuted, despite concerns that it would disproportionately affect low-income people of color.” ~ Lara Bazelon

In 2010, Harris introduced measures fining parents of truant elementary school aged children up to $2000 and potential jail time for failing to get their kids to class. Governor Schwarzenegger signed it in September. This set liberal hair on fire. In 2011, Harris addressed it directly in her inaugural:

“We know chronic truancy leads to dropping out, which dramatically increases the odds that a young person will become either a perpetrator or a victim of crime. Folks, it is time to get serious about the problem of chronic truancy in California. Last year we had 600,000 truant students in our elementary schools alone, which roughly matches the number of inmates in our state prisons. Is it a coincidence? Of course not.

And as unacceptable as this problem is — I know we can fix it. In San Francisco, we threatened the parents of truants with prosecution, and truancy dropped 32 percent. So, we are putting parents on notice. If you fail in your responsibility to your kids, we are going to work to make sure you face the full force and consequences of the law.”