BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 700
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 700 (Gomez)
As Amended August 14, 2013
Majority vote
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|ASSEMBLY: |75-0 |(May 30, 2013) |SENATE: |39-0 |(August 26, |
| | | | | |2013) |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Original Committee Reference: ED.
SUMMARY : Requires the Instructional Quality Commission (IQC) to
ensure voter information is included in American Government and
civics curriculum for the high school level. The bill specifies
that the curriculum shall include information on the importance
of registering to vote in local, state, and federal elections,
how to register to vote, both online and by mail, what the
requirements are to register to vote, how to request an absentee
ballot, how to fill out and return an absentee ballot, what to
expect on election day, how to find a polling place, and where
and how to access and understand the voter information pamphlet
and other materials to become an informed voter.
The Senate amendments :
1)Specify the curriculum shall include information on how to
register to vote, both online and by mail;
2)Specify the curriculum shall include the requirements that
must be met in order for a person to become a registered
voter;
3)Specify the curriculum shall include information on how to
request an absentee ballot and how to fill out and return an
absentee ballot;
4)Specify the curriculum shall include information on what to
expect on election day; and
5)Specify the curriculum shall include information on how to
find a polling place.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, to the extent the requirements of this bill are
AB 700
Page 2
already included in the scheduled history-social science
curriculum framework review process, there will be minor,
absorbable General Fund (GF) costs to the State Department of
Education (CDE) to implement this measure. If these
requirements cannot be achieved within the existing review
process, there will likely be one-time GF administrative costs
to CDE between $75,000 and $150,000. According to the Senate
Appropriations Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8,
negligible state costs.
COMMENTS :
Voter Education . Historically, voter turnout among those under
age 30 is lower than among other age groups. In an article
published February 21, 2013, Project Vote, a national
nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that promotes voting in
historically underrepresented communities, concluded that
establishing partnerships, actively involving students and
teachers, including a civic education component, and enacting
innovative voter registration programs are strategies that can
increase voter turnout and engagement among young people under
the age of 30. Similarly, the League of Women Voters found that
91% of the young people who registered to vote in 2008 actually
turned out to cast a ballot; unfortunately, less than half of
all 18-year-olds were registered to vote. The League of Women
Voters reported "it is lack of information, not lack of
interest, that keeps [young people] on the sidelines at election
time."
Content Standards and Curriculum Frameworks . California
curriculum is based on content standards. The curriculum
frameworks are guidelines for implementing the standards that
are developed by the IQC (also referenced in statute as the
"commission") and approved by the State Board of Education
(SBE). The IQC is an 18-member commission consisting of one
member of the Assembly, one member of the Senate, and 16 public
members. At least seven of the public members must have taught,
written, or lectured on the subject areas required for
graduation. The history-social science standards were developed
in 1998 and the History-Social Science Framework was last
revised in 2005. A review and update of this framework was
underway and nearly complete when the state suspended the
process on July 28, 2009, due to fiscal constraints. The SBE is
specifically prohibited from reviewing frameworks and adopting
instructional materials until the 2015-16 school year. SB 1540
AB 700
Page 3
(Hancock), Chapter 288, Statutes of 2012, authorizes the SBE to
consider the adoption of a revised curriculum framework and
evaluation criteria for instructional materials in
history-social science, but prohibits the CDE from conducting
any work until after CDE has completed work related to the
development of curriculum frameworks for the common core content
standards.
Analysis Prepared by : Jill Rice / ED. / (916) 319-2087
FN:
0001774