BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Alan Lowenthal, Chair
2011-2012 Regular Session
BILL NO: SB 132
AUTHOR: Lowenthal
AMENDED: April 27, 2011
FISCAL COMM: Yes HEARING DATE: May 4, 2011
URGENCY: No CONSULTANT:Kathleen Chavira
SUBJECT : School facilities and state planning priorities.
SUMMARY
This bill requires the State Allocation Board (SAB) to
review and revise, as necessary, its guideline, rules,
regulations, procedures, and policies, and the California
Department of Education (CDE) to modify site, building, and
design standards to ensure that K-12 school facility
construction projects reflect the state planning
priorities, and makes other conforming changes.
BACKGROUND
Current law (Government Code Section 65041.1) establishes
state planning priorities intended to promote equity,
strengthen the economy, protect the environment, and
promote public health and safety in the state. The specific
priorities are to:
Promote infill development and equity by rehabilitating,
maintaining, and
improving existing infrastructure that supports infill
development and appropriate reuse and redevelopment of
previously developed, underutilized land that is
presently served by transit, streets, water, sewer,
and other essential services, particularly in
underserved areas, and to preserving cultural and
historic resources.
Protect environmental and agricultural resources by
protecting,
preserving, and enhancing the state's most valuable
natural resources, including working landscapes such
as farm, range, and forest lands, natural lands such
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as wetlands, watersheds, wildlife habitats, and other
wildlands, recreation lands such as parks, trails,
greenbelts, and other open space, and landscapes with
locally unique features and areas identified by the
state as deserving special protection.
Encourage efficient development patterns by ensuring that
infrastructure:
o Uses land efficiently.
o Is built adjacent to existing developed
areas.
o Is located in an area appropriately
planned for growth.
o Is served by adequate transportation and
other essential utilities and services.
o Minimizes ongoing costs to taxpayers.
Current law also requires the Governor, in conjunction with
the annual budget, to submit a proposed five-year
infrastructure plan to the Legislature and specifies that
such a plan identify new, rehabilitated, modernized,
improved, or renovated infrastructure requested by state
agencies. Among other things, the report must also include
the criteria and priorities used to identify and select
state agency requested infrastructure (which must be
consistent with state planning priorities) that it proposes
to fund. (Government Code § 13100-13104)
Current law requires the CDE to, among other things,
develop standards for site selection and establish
standards to ensure that design and construction of school
facilities are educationally appropriate and promote school
safety. Current law prohibits the apportionment of funds
to school districts for school construction projects
unless, among other things, the school district has
obtained written approval of the CDE that site selection
and building plans and specifications comply with the
adopted standards. (Education Code § 17251)
Current law also requires that, prior to commencing
acquisition of property for a new schoolsite or as an
addition to an existing schoolsite, the local school
district governing board must, at a public hearing,
evaluate the property using the site selection standards
established by the California Department of Education.
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(Education Code § 17211)
ANALYSIS
This bill :
1) Requires that, by July 1, 2012, the State Allocation
Board review and revise, as necessary, its guidelines,
rules, regulations, procedures and policies for school
construction and modernization to ensure that they
reflect specified state planning priorities.
(Government Code § 65041.1)
2) Requires that, prior to commencing acquisition of real
property for a new school site or adding to an
existing schoolsite, the local school district
governing board consider whether the new site or
addition reflect the state planning priorities.
3) Requires that the CDE developed standards for site
selection, design and construction for use by school
districts reflect the state planning priorities.
4) Expands the content of the five year infrastructure
plan, which the Governor is required to submit to the
Legislature annually, to include criteria and
priorities used to identify and select infrastructure
the Governor proposes to fund for purposes of K-12
infrastructure needs.
5) Makes other technical and conforming changes.
6) Makes related findings and declarations.
STAFF COMMENTS
1) Need for the bill . According to the author, school
quality and location affects local land use and
transportation patterns, community vitality, economic
development and student outcomes. Unfortunately,
schools are typically absent from
sustainability-oriented infrastructure and policy
discussions. Many state school facility policies are
not structured to support broader sustainable
development objectives. This bill will ensure the
state's school facility construction investment
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reflects the state planning priorities.
2) Changes midstream ? This bill requires the SAB to
review and revise, as necessary, guidelines, rules,
regulations procedures, and policies for school
construction and modernization by July 1 2012. There
are currently a number of school facility construction
projects "in the pipeline" awaiting funding from the
sale of currently authorized bonds. Is it the intent
that changes to policies guidelines, rules,
regulations, procedures and policies impact these
projects? Should implementation of any changes be
applicable to new projects only?
3) Authority to select infrastructure projects . This
bill expands the contents of the five year
infrastructure plan, which the Governor is required to
submit to the Legislature annually, to include
criteria and priorities used to identify and select
infrastructure the Governor proposes to fund for
purposes of
K-12 infrastructure needs.
Traditionally, the Governor has played a role in
identifying broad funding needs and in shaping
programs that meet specific policy objectives such as
the provision of career technical education facilities
and charter school facilities. However, the Governor
does not have the ability to identify and select which
K-12 infrastructure projects are to be funded, as this
authority rests with the State Allocation Board and
the California Department of Education, two entities
that act independent of the Governor.
Staff recommends that Section 4 of the bill be amended
to restore current law. Staff further recommends the
bill be amended to require that the infrastructure
report include information on the criteria that the
CDE and SAB use, consistent with the state planning
priorities, to identify K-12 infrastructure projects
to be funded.
SUPPORT
California Advocacy Committee of the United States Green
Building Council
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California Farm Bureau Federation
Los Angeles Unified School District
Natural Resources Defense Council
OPPOSITION
None received on this version.