BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                      AB 680
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         ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
         AB 680 (Block)
         As Amended  May 5, 2011
         Majority vote 

          HIGHER EDUCATION    8-0         ELECTIONS           6-0          
          
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         |Ayes:|Block, Achadjian,         |Ayes:|Fong, Logue, Bonilla,     |
         |     |Brownley, Fong, Galgiani, |     |Gatto, Swanson, Valadao   |
         |     |Lara, Miller, Portantino  |     |                          |
         |     |                          |     |                          |
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          APPROPRIATIONS      17-0                                         
          
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         |Ayes:|Fuentes, Harkey,          |     |                          |
         |     |Blumenfield, Bradford,    |     |                          |
         |     |Charles Calderon, Campos, |     |                          |
         |     |Davis, Donnelly, Gatto,   |     |                          |
         |     |Hall, Hill, Lara,         |     |                          |
         |     |Mitchell, Nielsen, Smyth, |     |                          |
         |     |Solorio, Wagner           |     |                          |
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         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 








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           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 








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         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 








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         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