BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Carol Liu, Chair
2013-2014 Regular Session
BILL NO: SB 430
AUTHOR: Wright
INTRODUCED: February 21, 2013
FISCAL COMM: Yes HEARING DATE: April 10, 2013
URGENCY: No CONSULTANT: Lynn Lorber
NOTE :This bill has been referred to the Committees on
Education and
Health. A "do pass" motion should include
referral to the
Committee on Health.
SUBJECT : Vision appraisals: binocular function.
SUMMARY
This bill requires the current vision appraisal of students
to also include tests for binocular function.
BACKGROUND
Current law requires school districts to provide for the
testing of the sight and hearing of each student enrolled
in the district. The test is to be given only by:
Duly qualified supervisors of health employed by
the district.
Certificated employees of the district or county
office of education who possess the qualifications
prescribed by the Commission on Teacher Credentialing.
Contract with an agency duly authorized to perform
those services by the county superintendent of
schools, under guidelines established by the State
Board of Education.
Accredited schools or colleges or optometry,
osteopathic medicine, or medicine. (Education Code §
49452
SB 430
Page 2
Current law requires, upon first enrollment in an
elementary school, and at least every third year thereafter
until the child has completed grade 8, the vision of
students to be appraised by the school nurse or other
authorized person. The evaluation must include tests for
visual acuity and color vision, however, color vision is to
be appraised once and only on male students. Gross
external observation of the child's eyes, visual
performance, and perception are to be done by the school
nurse and the classroom teacher. The evaluation may be
waived if the parents present a certificate from a
physician and surgeon, a physician assistant or an
optometrist. (EC § 49455)
Current law requires a report to be made to the parent when
a defect other than a visual defect has been noted by the
supervisor of health or his/her assistant. (EC § 49456)
ANALYSIS
This bill requires the current vision appraisal of students
to also include tests for binocular function.
Specifically, this bill:
1) Adds binocular function to the list of tests included
in the existing vision appraisal given to students
every three years until the student completes grade 8.
2) Specifies that binocular function appraisals need not
begin until the student has reached grade 3.
3) Authorizes the binocular function appraisal to include
a validated symptom survey developed during a National
Institute of Health clinical trial and published for
use in the public domain.
4) Adds binocular function to the list of appraisals that
may be completed by a physician and surgeon, a
physician assistant or an optometrist in lieu of the
appraisals completed at school.
STAFF COMMENTS
1) Need for the bill . According to the author, "School
vision testing relates to distance vision, basic
refraction, and eye health but does not address vision
SB 430
Page 3
needs for reading which are closer to the face. Also,
current testing is one eye at a time, which cannot
reveal problems of eye coordination that can impact
reading. We have a significant number of students who
are not identified and cannot tell us they have
reading problems. The result is less reading, more
time to do homework, behavior problems and possibly
poorer grades. The best teachers in the world cannot
help this student."
2) Binocular function . This term generally refers to the
ability of both eyes to function together. Current
law limits the types of professionals who conduct
vision appraisals in schools. Questions that may be
better suited for the discussion of this bill in the
Senate Health Committee include: Will training be
necessary for the people authorized to conduct vision
appraisals? What other measures of binocular function
may be used other than the National Institute of
Health's symptom survey?
3) Frequency of appraisal . Current law requires, upon
first enrollment in an elementary school, and at least
every third year thereafter until the child has
completed grade 8, the vision of students to be
appraised, including tests for visual acuity and color
vision. The evaluation of color vision is to be
appraised once and only on male students, and need not
begin until the male student has reached grade 1.
This bill provides that appraisals of binocular
function need not begin until the student has reached
grade 3; therefore, the binocular function of students
would be appraised in grade 3 and grade 6.
4) Fiscal impact . According to the Assembly
Appropriations Committee analysis of similar but
broader legislation that included additional
appraisals and training (see AB 1095 below),
"expanding the current eye appraisal could result in
annual General Fund (Prop 98) costs to school
districts of approximately $2.9 million. This assumes
a marginal cost of approximately $2 per pupil, with
approximately 1.4 million pupils eligible each year
for an eye exam, and training costs of approximately
$50,000."
SB 430
Page 4
5) Governor's Local Control Funding Formula : As part of
the 2013-14 Governor's Budget, the administration
proposes to restructure the existing K-12 finance
system and eliminate over 40 existing programs while
also repealing, what the administration determines are
countless "discretionary" provisions of statute, while
implementing a new formula known as the Local Control
Funding Formula (LCFF). The LCFF would consolidate
the vast majority of state categorical programs and
revenue limit apportionments into a single source of
funding (12 categorical programs, including Special
Education, Child Nutrition, Preschool, and After
School programs, would be excluded). The LCFF
proposal would also eliminate the statutory and
programmatic requirements for almost all existing
categorical programs - the programs would be deemed
"discretionary" and programs in any of these areas
would be dependent on local district discretion. To
the extent that the LCFF or a modified version of it
is adopted as part of the budget, the majority of
currently required categorical activities would be
left to local districts' discretion. Therefore, the
changes proposed by this bill for vision appraisals
could be diluted, eliminated, rendered obsolete or
discretionary at the local level.
6) Prior legislation . AB 1095 (Wright, 2001) would have
required every student, within 90 days of entering
grade 1, to undergo a comprehensive eye exam that
includes, in addition to ocular health and distance
and near visual acuity, additional evaluations of
visual skills such as eye teaming, focusing and
tracking that may impact a child's ability to read.
AB 1095 was held in the Senate Appropriations
Committee's suspense file.
AB 1096 (Wright, 2001) would have established a pilot
program for schools scoring in the bottom 20% on state
achievement tests, to administer to poor readers a
comprehensive eye screening and remedial vision
training. AB 1096 died on the Senate Floor's inactive
file.
SB 606 (Vasconcellos, 2001) would have required the
existing student eye examination to include screening
for binocular function, ocular alignment, ocular
SB 430
Page 5
motility, and near visual acuity. SB 606 was held on
the Assembly Appropriations Committee's suspense file.
SUPPORT
California Teachers Association
Congress of Racial Equality of California
Hales Corners Lutheran Church and Schools
Small School Districts' Association
Individuals
OPPOSITION
None on file.