BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 680 Page 1 ASSEMBLY THIRD READING AB 680 (Block) As Amended May 5, 2011 Majority vote HIGHER EDUCATION 8-0 ELECTIONS 6-0 ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Ayes:|Block, Achadjian, |Ayes:|Fong, Logue, Bonilla, | | |Brownley, Fong, Galgiani, | |Gatto, Swanson, Valadao | | |Lara, Miller, Portantino | | | | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- APPROPRIATIONS 17-0 ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Ayes:|Fuentes, Harkey, | | | | |Blumenfield, Bradford, | | | | |Charles Calderon, Campos, | | | | |Davis, Donnelly, Gatto, | | | | |Hall, Hill, Lara, | | | | |Mitchell, Nielsen, Smyth, | | | | |Solorio, Wagner | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY : Establishes provisions governing the number of members, the election of members, and the reapportionment of trustee areas for the Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District (GCCCD) governing board. Specifically, this bill : 1)Provides that candidates for the GCCCD governing board shall be nominated by a trustee area at a primary district election held on the date of the statewide direct primary election, the two candidates receiving the most votes in the primary shall move to the general election ("Top Two Primary") to be held on the same date as the statewide general election, and the candidate receiving a majority of votes in the general election shall be elected to represent that trustee area. 2)Requires candidates to file a declaration of candidacy, and provides that governing board terms shall be four years commencing on the first Friday in December following the election. Provides that members of the GCCCD governing board in office on the effective date of this bill shall remain in office AB 680 Page 2 until the first Friday in December of the year in which their terms of office would otherwise have terminated. 3)Provides that the GCCCD shall be divided into trustee areas and requires candidates for each trustee area to reside in, and be registered to vote in, the trustee area he/she seeks to represent. 4)Provides that the GCCCD governing board shall be composed of between five and nine members, determined by the governing board, and provides the governing board authority to adjust trustee areas accordingly. Provides that for increases in governing board membership, the additional members are to be elected at the next regular general election at least 123 days after the decision, and the GCCCD governing board is to stagger the terms and reelection dates for the new governing board seats. 5)Requires the GCCCD or the county committee on school district organization to adopt trustee area boundaries before January 1, 2012, to reflect the population changes enumerated in the 2010 decennial federal census, and requires these boundaries to be in effect when this bill becomes operative. Provides if the GCCCD fails to meet this deadline, the county committee on school district organization shall establish trustee area boundaries by April 30, 2012. Requires the boundaries to be nearly equal populations. Provides that the adjustment of district boundaries for subsequent decennial censuses shall be conducted in accordance with existing law. FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, negligible state costs, as this bill was requested by the GCCCD, who will bear any costs for its implementation, and potential significant one-time savings to the GCCCD in avoiding the costs of an election seeking approval to change from at-large to trustee area representation. COMMENTS : Background : Following each decennial federal census, community college districts (CCDs) in which governing board members are elected by a trustee area are required to redraw district lines to adjust for population changes. CCDs in which governing board members are elected at-large but are assigned to a particular area may adjust the boundaries of the areas with new census data. CCDs AB 680 Page 3 where governing board members may live anywhere in the district and are elected at-large, elected at-large for a designated non-geographic seat, or elected at-large for a designated seat in a primary and general are not required to adjust district boundaries. However, under the California Voting Rights Act (CVRA), ƯAB 976 (Polanco), Chapter 129, Statutes of 2002], CCDs must evaluate whether switching to a trustee area election system would enable a protected class to elect a member of that protected class. If the creation of trustee areas is likely to enable a protected class to elect a member of that class, CCDs are required to switch to trustee area elections. Existing law outlines several procedures for changing to a trustee area election method. These procedures require a vote of the electorate approving of the transition, prior to its implementation, unless a waiver of the election requirement can be obtained. Waivers can be filed with the State Board of Education, through the County Office of Education. GCCCD governing board elections : GCCCD governing board members are currently elected in at-large elections in which each governing board member is elected by the registered voters of the entire district. Resolution No. 11-016, approved by the GCCCD governing board on February 22, 2011, expresses concern that the current at-large system is subject to challenge, and related costly litigation, under the CVRA. Further, the Resolution expresses support for the "Top-Two Primary" system that was approved by voters in in June 2010 (Proposition 14). Existing law authorizes GCCCD to switch to trustee area and "Top-Two Primary" elections through a vote of the district; however, GCCCD is seeking legislation to authorize these changes due to the high cost and uncertainty of the outcome of submitting the matter to an election. Purpose of this bill : According to the author, the current system of election for GCCCD governing board elections has the potential for a concentration of members from one small area of the district, subverting geographic representation of district voters. The author notes that at-large elections are more costly than smaller trustee area elections, creating a higher barrier to entry for some candidates to successfully compete to win office. More importantly, at-large electoral systems are subject to challenge under the CVRA if it can be determined that the opportunity to suppress election of a minority candidate exists. The author points out that, of the last 20 board trustees elected, only three were persons of color. This bill is intended to strengthen the AB 680 Page 4 diversity of GCCCD, and provide an electoral process that mirrors that of neighboring San Diego CCD. Analysis Prepared by : Laura Metune / HIGHER ED. / (916) 319-3960 FN: 0000700