BILL NUMBER: SB 233 CHAPTERED 10/11/01 CHAPTER 722 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE OCTOBER 11, 2001 APPROVED BY GOVERNOR OCTOBER 10, 2001 PASSED THE SENATE SEPTEMBER 14, 2001 PASSED THE ASSEMBLY SEPTEMBER 13, 2001 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY SEPTEMBER 10, 2001 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JULY 23, 2001 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JULY 2, 2001 AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 4, 2001 AMENDED IN SENATE MAY 2, 2001 AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 19, 2001 INTRODUCED BY Senator Alpert FEBRUARY 14, 2001 An act to amend Sections 60601, 60605, 60607, 60630, 60641, 60642, 60642.5, 60643, 60643.5, and 60650 of, to add Sections 60605.6 and 60653 to, and to repeal Sections 60609 and 60640.1 of, the Education Code, relating to pupil testing. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SB 233, Alpert. Pupil testing. (1) Existing law repeals the provisions of the Leroy Greene California Assessment of Academic Achievement Act which consists in part of the Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) Program on January 1, 2002. This bill would extend the repeal date to January 1, 2005. The bill would delete obsolete provisions regarding the assessment of applied academic skills that is no longer a part of the Leroy Greene California Assessment of Academic Achievement Act. (2) Existing law, the Standardized Testing and Reporting Program, requires each school district, charter school, and county office of education to administer to each of its pupils in grades 2 to 11, inclusive, a designated achievement test and a standards-based achievement test. Existing law requires the State Board of Education to ensure that the achievement test for grades 9 to 11, inclusive, contain core curriculum areas consisting of reading, writing, mathematics, history/social science, and science. This bill would instead require the achievement test to contain English and language arts, mathematics, and science and would also make other conforming changes. The bill would require the board to minimize the amount of testing time for content areas for which there already exists a standards-based examination, as specified. (3) Existing law requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction, with approval of the State Board of Education, to provide for the development of an assessment instrument that measures the degree to which pupils are achieving the academically rigorous content standards and performance standards, to the extent standards have been adopted by the State Board of Education. Existing law requires the standards-based achievement test to include, at a minimum, a direct writing assessment once in elementary school and once in middle or junior high school and other items of applied academic skills if deemed valid and reliable. This bill would name the standards-based achievement test the California Standards Tests and would require them to also include an assessment in history/social science in at least one elementary or middle school grade level selected by the State Board of Education and in science in at least one elementary or middle school grade level selected by the State Board of Education. (4) Existing law requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to prepare and submit to the Legislature, the State Board of Education, and each school district in the state an annual report containing an analysis, on a school-by-school basis, of the results and test scores of the assessment of applied academic skills and the achievement test. This bill would delete the requirements that the report be submitted to each school district in the state and that the analysis be prepared on a school-by-school basis. (5) Existing law established the Golden State Examination Program to administer the Golden State Examination to measure pupil achievement under statewide standards of competency in academic subjects. This bill would instead require the examination to measure advanced pupil achievement on the academically rigorous content standards adopted by the State Board of Education and would require the examination to be administered in augmentation of standards-based achievement tests, as specified. The bill would require the State Department of Education, with approval of the State Board of Education, to contract for a study of the Golden State Examination to be completed by December 15, 2003, as specified. The bill would require a Golden State Examination to consist of some portion of the California Standards Test and additional Golden State Examination items in order to reduce testing time and in subjects for which a California Standards Test and a Golden State Examination exist. (6) Existing law authorizes a school district to receive reimbursement for the costs of the STAR Program tests, as specified, for the 1997-98 fiscal year. This bill would repeal this provision. (7) Existing law requires the establishment of a high school exit examination and requires each pupil to successfully complete the examination as a condition of receiving a high school diploma. This bill would require the State Board of Education to consider, to the extent feasible, the extent to which any exams authorized by the state can be consolidated, as specified. (8) This bill would, subject to the availability of funds in the annual Budget Act for this purpose, require the Superintendent of Public Instruction, upon approval of the State Board of Education, to contract for the development and distribution of a workbook to be distributed to all pupils in the 10th grade that would contain information on the proficiency levels that must be demonstrated by pupils on the high school exit examination, and separate workbooks for each of grades 2 to 11, inclusive, for each pupil in grades 2 to 11, inclusive, who is required to take the STAR Program achievement tests. (9) Existing law requires test publishers to agree to meet certain requirements in order to be eligible for consideration to contract with the state with regard to the statewide achievement test and the standards-based achievement test. Existing law requires the costs associated with test item development to be provided as a separate amount in the written contract between test publishers and the State Department of Education and prohibits the amortization of those costs across the number of tests to be administered. This bill would delete the provisions regarding the costs of test item development. The bill would authorize the State Department of Education, with the approval of the State Board of Education, to enter into a separate contract for the administration of any test that is part of the Leroy Greene California Assessment of Academic Achievement Act, including coordination of tests, assemblage of tests or test items, scoring, or reporting. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. (a) It is the intent of the Legislature to provide a system of individual pupil assessments that meets the different needs of the state, school administrators, teachers, parents and guardians, and pupils. (b) It is the further intent of the Legislature that the pupil assessment system do each of the following: (1) Emphasize standards-based tests that measure the achievement of pupils on the state's academic content and performance standards relative to nationally normed tests. (2) Minimize the amount of instructional time spent on statewide testing by eliminating redundant tests and consolidating different state testing programs if the consolidated examination can achieve the purpose of the original examinations with equal rigor, reliability, and validity. (3) Provide accountability in the elementary grades in history/social science and science with the addition of a standards-based test in each of these core areas in at least one upper elementary grade. (4) Use a nationally normed test in high school science until a standards-based test can be developed that is appropriate for the range of science classes offered in California high schools for which there are no standards-based end-of-course examinations. (5) Create a standards-based mathematics test available to pupils in grades 8 and 9 who have not yet completed coursework that would prepare them to take the Algebra I or Integrated I standards-based mathematics test. (6) Decrease the amount of time in the statewide testing system dedicated to the nationally normed test by using shortened test forms where appropriate; by 2003, eliminates the history/social science nationally normed test in grades 9 to 11, inclusive, and uses a short form of a nationally normed mathematics test in grades 2 to 11, inclusive. No later than 2005, the State Board of Education shall make a finding regarding the feasibility of using a short form of a nationally normed test in English/language arts in grades 2 to 11, inclusive. (7) Restructure the Golden State Examination to increase the potential use of this examination. Possible additional uses include determining college placement, credit, and admission. To reduce testing time and in subjects for which a California Standards Test and a Golden State Examination exist, a Golden State Examination should consist of some portion of a California Standards Test and additional Golden State Examination items. It is further the intent of the Legislature that the Golden State Examination program be continued only to the extent that the examination meets the same psychometric standards of other nationally accepted examinations used to measure advanced academic achievement. (8) Allow the Superintendent of Public Instruction to recommend, and the State Board of Education to approve, a statewide master contract to execute the state testing system. (9) Conduct a series of technical evaluations to ensure system coordination and coherency as well as technical validity and reliability. These evaluations shall include analyses regarding how well each of the components of the state testing system provide information about the degree to which pupils are learning the content of the state standards. SEC. 2. Section 60601 of the Education Code is amended to read: 60601. This chapter shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2005, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, which is enacted before January 1, 2005, deletes or extends that date. SEC. 3. Section 60605 of the Education Code is amended to read: 60605. (a) (1) (A) Not later than January 1, 1998, the State Board of Education shall adopt statewide academically rigorous content standards, pursuant to the recommendations of the Commission for the Establishment of Academic Content and Performance Standards, in the core curriculum areas of reading, writing, and mathematics to serve as the basis for assessing the academic achievement of individual pupils and of schools, school districts, and the California education system. Not later than November 1, 1998, the State Board of Education shall adopt these standards in the core curriculum areas of history/social science and science. (B) The board shall adopt statewide performance standards in the core curriculum areas of reading, writing, mathematics, history/social science, and science based on the recommendations made by the Superintendent of Public Instruction and a contractor or contractors. (C) The State Board of Education shall require the contractor or contractors to submit performance standards to the Superintendent of Public Instruction and the board not later than a specified date that allows sufficient opportunity for the Superintendent of Public Instruction to make a recommendation to the board and for the board to conduct regional hearings prior to the adoption of the performance standards. (2) (A) The State Board of Education may modify any proposed content standards or performance standards prior to adoption and may adopt content and performance standards in individual core curriculum areas as those standards are submitted to the board. The performance standards shall be established against specific grade level benchmarks of academic achievement for each subject area tested and shall be based on the knowledge and skills that pupils will need in order to succeed in the information-based, global economy of the 21st century. These skills shall not include personal behavioral standards or skills, including, but not limited to, honesty, sociability, ethics, or self-esteem. The standards adopted pursuant to this section shall be for the purpose of guiding state decisions regarding the development, adoption, and approval of assessment instruments pursuant to this chapter and shall not be construed to mandate any actions or activities by school districts. (B) Because these standards are models, the adoption of these standards is not subject to the Administrative Procedure Act. This subparagraph is declaratory of existing law. (3) Before adopting academic content and performance standards, the board shall hold regional hearings for the purpose of giving parents and other members of the public the opportunity to comment on the proposed standards. (b) (1) The State Board of Education shall require the State Department of Education to notify publishers of the opportunity to submit, for consideration by the State Board of Education pursuant to Section 60642, tests of achievement that include all of the basic academic skills identified in subdivision (c) of Section 60603 in grades 2 to 8, inclusive, and the core curriculum areas of English and language arts, mathematics, and science in grades 9 to 11, inclusive. (2) The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall recommend to the State Board of Education which achievement test to adopt pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 60642. (c) (1) The State Board of Education shall ensure that the statewide assessment system adopted pursuant to this chapter yields valid, reliable individual pupil scores and, where applicable, aggregate school scores, school district scores, and statewide scores of pupils and assesses basic academic skills and content standards, including the use of a direct writing assessment or other applied academic skills if deemed valid and reliable and if resources are made available for their use. (2) Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to prevent the State Board of Education from developing or adopting an assessment instrument that also contains assessments of basic academic skills. (d) To the extent feasible and as otherwise required, the State Board of Education shall ensure that assessments developed, or contracted for pursuant to Section 60642.5, by the state are aligned with the statewide content and performance standards adopted pursuant to subdivision (a). The State Department of Education, with the approval of the State Board of Education, shall periodically contract for a review of the achievement test for conformance with these standards. (e) After adopting statewide content and performance standards, the State Board of Education shall review the existing curriculum frameworks for conformity with the new statewide standards and shall modify the curriculum frameworks where appropriate to bring them into alignment with the standards. (f) The State Board of Education shall adopt regulations for the conduct and administration of the testing and assessment program. (g) The State Board of Education shall adopt a regulation for minimum security procedures that test and assessment publishers and school districts must follow to ensure the security and integrity of test and assessment questions and materials. SEC. 4. Section 60605.6 is added to the Education Code, to read: 60605.6. Subject to the availability of funds in the annual Budget Act for this purpose, the Superintendent of Public Instruction, upon approval of the State Board of Education, shall contract for the development and distribution of workbooks, as follows: (a) One workbook to be distributed to all pupils in the 10th grade. This workbook shall contain information on the proficiency levels that must be demonstrated by pupils on the high school exit examination described in Chapter 9 (commencing with Section 60850). The workbook also shall contain sample questions, with explanations describing how these sample questions test pupil knowledge of the language arts and mathematics content standards adopted by the State Board of Education pursuant to Section 60605. (b) Separate workbooks for each of grades 2 to 11, inclusive. Each pupil in grades 2 to 11, inclusive, who is required to take the achievement tests described in Section 60642 or Section 60642.5 shall receive a copy of the workbook designed for the same grade level in which the pupil is enrolled. These workbooks shall contain material to assist pupils and their parents with standards-based learning, including the grade appropriate academic content standards adopted by the State Board of Education pursuant to Section 60605 and sample questions that require knowledge of these standards to answer. The workbooks also shall describe how the sample questions test knowledge of the State Board of Education adopted academic content standards. SEC. 5. Section 60607 of the Education Code is amended to read: 60607. (a) Each pupil shall have an individual record of accomplishment by the end of grade 12 that includes the results of the achievement test required and administered annually as part of the standardized testing and reporting program established pursuant to Article 4 (commencing with Section 60640), results of end-of-course exams he or she has taken, and whatever vocational education certification exams he or she chose to take. (b) It is the intent of the Legislature that school districts and schools use the results of the academic achievement tests administered annually as part of the statewide pupil assessment program to provide support to pupils and parents or guardians in order to assist pupils in strengthening their development as learners, and thereby to improve their academic achievement and performance in subsequent assessments. (c) Any pupil results or record of achievement shall be private, and may not be released to any person, other than the pupil's parent or guardian and a teacher, counselor, or administrator directly involved with the pupil, without the express written consent of the parent or guardian of the pupil if the pupil is a minor or the pupil if the pupil has reached the age of majority or is emancipated. SEC. 6. Section 60609 of the Education Code is repealed. SEC. 7. Section 60630 of the Education Code is amended to read: 60630. (a) The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall prepare and submit an annual report to the Legislature and the State Board of Education containing an analysis of the results and test scores of the assessment of applied academic skills adopted pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 60605 and the achievement test designated pursuant to Section 60642. The report simultaneously shall be made available in an electronic medium on the Internet. The analysis may include, but need not be limited to, the following factors: (1) Financial characteristics, including specially funded programs. (2) Pupil and parent characteristics. (3) Staff characteristics. (4) Instructional methodologies and materials. (b) School districts shall submit to the State Department of Education whatever information the department deems necessary to carry out this section. SEC. 8. Section 60640.1 of the Education Code is repealed. SEC. 9. Section 60641 of the Education Code is amended to read: 60641. (a) The State Department of Education shall ensure that school districts comply with each of the following requirements: (1) The achievement test designated pursuant to Section 60642 and the standards-based achievement test provided for in Section 60642.5 are scheduled to be administered to all pupils during the period prescribed in subdivision (b) of Section 60640. (2) The individual results of each pupil test administered pursuant to Section 60640 shall be reported, in writing, to the pupil' s parent or guardian. The written report shall include a clear explanation of the purpose of the test, the pupil's score, and its intended use by the school district. Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to require teachers to prepare individualized explanations of each pupil's test score. (3) The individual results of each pupil test administered pursuant to Section 60640 shall also be reported to the pupil's school and teachers. The school district shall include the pupil's test results in his or her pupil records. However, except as provided in this section, individual pupil test results may only be released with the permission of the pupil's parent or guardian. (4) The districtwide, school-level, and grade-level results of the STAR Program in each of the grades designated pursuant to Section 60640, but not the score or relative position of any individually ascertainable pupil, shall be reported to the governing board of the school district at a regularly scheduled meeting, and the countywide, school-level, and grade-level results for classes and programs under the jurisdiction of the county office of education shall be similarly reported to the county board of education at a regularly scheduled meeting. (b) The publisher designated pursuant to Section 60642 and the publisher of the standards-based achievement tests provided for in Section 60642.5 shall make the individual pupil, grade, school, school district, and state results available to the State Department of Education pursuant to paragraph (9) of subdivision (a) of Section 60643 by August 8 of each year in which the achievement test is administered for those schools for which the last day of test administration, including makeup days, is on or before June 25. The State Department of Education shall make the grade, school, school district, and state results available on the Internet by August 15 of each year in which the achievement test is administered for those schools for which the last day of test administration, including makeup days, is on or before June 25. (c) The department shall take all reasonable steps to ensure that the results of the test for all pupils who take the test by June 25 are made available on the Internet by August 15, as set forth in subdivision (b). SEC. 10. Section 60642 of the Education Code is amended to read: 60642. (a) The Superintendent of Public Instruction and the State Board of Education may consider any evaluations of independent experts who have not been employed by a test publisher in the preceding 12 months regarding the suitability of the achievement tests submitted by publishers as required by subdivision (b) of Section 60605 for use as part of the STAR Program established by this article. (b) Based upon a review of the achievement tests submitted and the recommendation made by the Superintendent of Public Instruction pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 60605, the State Board of Education, in its sole discretion, based on the considerations set forth in Section 60644, shall designate for use as part of the STAR Program a single test in grades 2 to 11, inclusive. (c) The State Board of Education shall ensure that the achievement test designated pursuant to subdivision (b) contains the subject areas specified in subdivision (c) of Section 60603 for grades 2 to 8, inclusive, and the core curriculum areas of English and language arts, mathematics, and science for grades 9 to 11, inclusive. (d) The State Board of Education is hereby authorized to designate the achievement test to be administered pursuant to this article for more than one academic year subject to the availability of funds. (e) The board shall minimize, to the extent it deems feasible, the amount of testing time required by the assessment in subdivision (b) for those content areas for which there also exists a standards-based examination as provided for pursuant to Section 60642.5. SEC. 11. Section 60642.5 of the Education Code is amended to read: 60642.5. (a) The Superintendent of Public Instruction, with approval of the State Board of Education, shall provide for the development of an assessment instrument, to be called the California Standards Tests, that measures the degree to which pupils are achieving the academically rigorous content standards and performance standards, to the extent standards have been adopted by the State Board of Education. This standards-based achievement test shall contain the subject areas specified in subdivision (c) of Section 60603 for grades 2 to 8, inclusive, and shall include an assessment in history/social science in at least one elementary or middle school grade level selected by the State Board of Education and science in at least one elementary or middle school grade level selected by the State Board of Education, and the core curriculum areas specified in subdivision (e) of Section 60603 for grades 9 to 11, inclusive, and shall include, at a minimum, a direct writing assessment once in elementary school and once in middle or junior high school and other items of applied academic skill if deemed valid and reliable and if resources are made available for their use. (b) In approving a contract for the development or administration of the California Standards Tests, the State Board of Education shall consider each of the following criteria: (1) The ability of the contractor to produce valid, reliable individual pupil scores. (2) The ability of the contractor to report results pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 60643 by August 8. (3) The ability of the contractor to ensure alignment between the standards-based achievement test and the academically rigorous content and performance standards as those standards are adopted by the State Board of Education. This criterion shall include the ability of the contractor to implement a process to establish and maintain alignment between the test items and the standards. (4) The per pupil cost estimates of developing, and, if appropriate, administering the proposed assessment with a system to facilitate the determination of future per pupil cost determinations. (5) The contractor's procedures to ensuring the security and integrity of test questions and materials. (6) The contractor's experience in successfully conducting testing programs adopted and administered by other states. For experience to be considered, the number of grades and pupils tested shall be provided. (c) The standards-based achievement tests may use items from other tests including items from the achievement test designated pursuant to Section 60642. SEC. 12. Section 60643 of the Education Code is amended to read: 60643. (a) To be eligible for consideration under Section 60642 or 60642.5 by the State Board of Education, test publishers shall agree in writing each year to meet the following requirements, as applicable, if selected: (1) Enter into an agreement, pursuant to subdivision (e) or (f), with the State Department of Education by October 15. (2) With respect to selection under Section 60642.5, align the standards-based achievement test provided for in Section 60642.5 to the academically rigorous content and performance standards adopted by the State Board of Education. (3) Comply with subdivisions (c) and (d) of Section 60645. (4) Provide valid and reliable individual pupil scores only in the content areas specified in subdivision (c) of Section 60642 to parents or guardians, teachers, and school administrators. (5) Provide valid and reliable aggregate scores only in the content areas specified in subdivision (c) of Section 60642 to school districts and county boards of education in all of the following forms and formats: (A) Grade level. (B) School level. (C) District level. (D) Countywide. (E) Statewide. (F) Comparison of statewide scores relative to other states. (6) Provide disaggregated scores, based on limited-English-proficient status and nonlimited-English-proficient status. For purposes of this section, pupils with "nonlimited-English-proficient status" shall include the total of those pupils who are English-only pupils, fluent-English-proficient pupils, and redesignated fluent-English-proficient pupils. These scores shall be provided to school districts and county boards of education in the same forms and formats listed in paragraph (5). (7) Provide disaggregated scores by pupil gender and provide disaggregated scores based on whether pupils are economically disadvantaged or not. These disaggregated scores shall be in the same forms and formats as listed in paragraph (5). In any one year, the disaggregation shall entail information already being collected by school districts, county offices of education, or charter schools. (8) Provide disaggregated scores for pupils who have individualized education programs and have enrolled in special education, to the extent required by federal law. These scores shall be provided in the same forms and formats listed in paragraph (5). This section may not be construed to exclude the scores of special education pupils from any state or federal accountability system. (9) Provide information listed in paragraphs (5), (6), (7), and (8) to the State Board of Education and the State Department of Education in the medium requested by each entity, respectively. (b) It is the intent of the Legislature that the publisher work with the Superintendent of Public Instruction and the State Board of Education in developing a methodology to disaggregate statewide scores as required in paragraphs (6) and (7) of subdivision (a), and in determining which variable indicated on the STAR testing document shall serve as a proxy for "economically disadvantaged" status pursuant to paragraph (7). (c) Access to any information about individual pupils or their families shall be granted to the publisher only for purposes of correctly associating test results with the pupils who produced those results or for reporting and disaggregating test results as required by this section. School districts are prohibited from excluding a pupil from the test if a parent or parents decline to disclose income. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to abridge or deny rights to confidentiality contained in the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1232g) or other applicable provisions of state and federal law that protect the confidentiality of information collected by educational institutions. (d) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the publisher of the achievement test designated pursuant to Section 60642, the publisher of the standards-based achievement test provided for in Section 60642.5, or any contractor under subdivision (f) shall comply with all of the conditions and requirements enumerated in subdivision (a), as applicable, to the satisfaction of the State Board of Education. (e) (1) A publisher may not provide a test described in Section 60642, 60642.5, or 60650 or in subdivision (f) of Section 60640 for use in California public schools unless the publisher enters into a written contract with the State Department of Education as set forth in this subdivision. (2) The State Department of Education shall develop, and the State Board of Education shall approve, a contract to be entered into with any publisher pursuant to paragraph (1). The department may develop the contract through negotiations with the publisher. (3) For purposes of the contracts authorized pursuant to this subdivision, the State Department of Education is exempt from the requirements of Part 2 (commencing with Section 10100) of Division 2 of the Public Contract Code and from the requirements of Article 6 (commencing with Section 999) of Chapter 6 of Division 4 of the Military and Veterans Code. (4) The contracts shall include provisions for progress payments to the publisher for work performed or costs incurred in the performance of the contract. Not less than 10 percent of the amount budgeted for each separate and distinct component task provided for in each contract shall be withheld pending final completion of all component tasks by that publisher. The total amount withheld pending final completion shall not exceed 10 percent of the total contract price. (5) The contracts shall require liquidated damages to be paid by the publisher in the amount of up to 10 percent of the total cost of the contract for any component task that the publisher through its own fault or that of its subcontractors fails to substantially perform by the date specified in the agreement. (6) The contracts shall establish the process and criteria by which the successful completion of each component task shall be recommended by the State Department of Education and approved by the State Board of Education. (7) The publishers shall submit, as part of the contract negotiation process, a proposed budget and invoice schedule, that includes a detailed listing of the costs for each component task and the expected date of the invoice for each completed component task. (8) The contracts shall specify the following component tasks, as applicable, that are separate and distinct: (A) Development of new tests or test items as required by paragraph (2) of subdivision (a). (B) Test materials production or publication. (C) Delivery of test materials to school districts. (D) Test processing, scoring, and analyses. (E) Reporting of test results to the school districts, including, but not limited to, all reports specified in this section. (F) Reporting of test results to the State Department of Education, including, but not limited to, the electronic files required pursuant to this section. (G) All other analyses or reports required by the Superintendent of Public Instruction to meet the requirements of state and federal law and set forth in the agreement. (9) The contracts shall specify the specific reports and data files, if any, that are to be provided to school districts by the publisher and the number of copies of each report or file to be provided. (10) The contracts shall specify the means by which any delivery date for materials to each school district shall be verified by the publisher and the school district. (11) School districts may negotiate a separate agreement with the publisher for any additional materials or services not within the contracts specified in this subdivision, including, but not limited to, the administration of the tests to pupils in grade levels other than grades 2 to 11, inclusive. Any separate agreement is not within the scope of the contract specified in this subdivision. (f) The State Department of Education, with approval of the State Board of Education, may enter into a separate contract for the development or administration of any test authorized pursuant to this part, including, but not limited to, item development, coordination of tests, assemblage of tests or test items, scoring, or reporting. The liquidated damages provision set forth in paragraph (5) of subdivision (e) shall apply to any contract entered into pursuant to this subdivision. SEC. 13. Section 60643.5 of the Education Code is amended to read: 60643.5. (a) A school shall be reimbursed by the test publisher selected pursuant to this article for any unexpected expenses incurred due to scheduling changes that resulted from the late delivery of testing materials in connection with the STAR Program. (b) The State Department of Education shall monitor and report to the State Board of Education regarding the publisher's production, processing, and delivery system to ensure that a timely delivery of testing materials to all schools occurs during the 1999-2000 testing cycle. SEC. 14. Section 60653 is added to the Education Code, to read: 60653. To reduce testing time and in subjects for which a California Standards Test and a Golden State Examination exist, a Golden State Examination shall consist of some portion of the California Standards Test and additional Golden State Examination items. SEC. 15. Section 60650 of the Education Code is amended to read: 60650. There is hereby established the Golden State Examination Program for the purpose of administering the Golden State Examination to pupils enrolled in public high schools. The Golden State Examination shall measure advanced pupil achievement on the academically rigorous content standards adopted by the State Board of Education and shall be administered as an augmentation to the standards test provided in Section 60642.5 unless there is no standards test in the subject area being tested. With the approval of the State Board of Education, the State Department of Education shall, in consultation with the California State University System and the University of California, contract for a study to determine if Golden State Examinations meet the same psychometric standards of nationally accepted examinations used for determining college placement, credit, or admission. The study shall be completed by December 15, 2003. A special honors designation and insignia shall be adopted on a high school diploma for qualifying pupils. Participation in the Golden State Examination Program shall be voluntary on the part of each school district maintaining a high school. The governing board of each participating school district shall determine the extent to which pupils of the district shall be required to participate in the Golden State Examination.