BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



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          Date of Hearing:  May 13, 2015


                           ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION


                              Patrick O'Donnell, Chair


          ACR 60  
          (Santiago) - As Introduced April 28, 2015


          SUBJECT:  Education: students with disabilities.


          SUMMARY:  Resolves that the Legislature affirms that state  
          policies and procedures should utilize People First Language to  
          the greatest extent possible when referring to students with  
          disabilities.  Specifically, this resolution:  


          1)Makes findings and declarations relative to the importance of  
            using "People First Language," which places the person ahead  
            of his or her disability



          2)Makes findings and declarations regarding the impact that  
            language has on beliefs and attitudes about students with  
            disabilities



          3)Resolves that the Legislature affirms that state policies and  
            procedures should utilize People First Language to the  
            greatest extent possible, especially those utilized by state  
            and local educational agencies









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          EXISTING LAW:  


          1)Establishes, through federal and state law, a system of  
            special education, implemented through the California Master  
            Plan for Special Education.  


          2)Requires, through federal and state law, that all students who  
            are eligible for special education must be provided with a  
            free appropriate public education in the least restrictive  
            environment.


          FISCAL EFFECT:  This bill has been keyed non-fiscal by the  
          Office of Legislative Counsel.


          COMMENTS:  


          Need for the resolution.  The author's office states, "The  
          language used to refer to students with disabilities has a  
          profound impact in shaping beliefs and attitudes about these  
          students, driving policies and laws, influencing our feelings  
          and decisions, and affecting students' daily lives. Old,  
          inaccurate, and inappropriate descriptors about students with  
          disabilities perpetuate negative stereotypes and attitudinal  
          barriers. When we identify or describe students with  
          disabilities primarily in terms of their disability or medical  
          diagnosis, we devalue and stigmatize them. Using thoughtful  
          terminology can foster positive attitudes about students with  
          disabilities. 


          One of the major improvements in communicating verbally or in  
          writing with or about students with disabilities is People First  








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          Language, which places the person ahead of his or her  
          disability. People First Language is an objective form of  
          communication that eliminates generalizations and stereotypes by  
          focusing on the person rather than the disability."


          People First Language.  People First Language refers to a means  
          of identifying people first as a person and then by their  
          condition.  An example:  "a person with disability" vs. "a  
          disabled person." According to the author, this language reduces  
          generalizations and stereotypes by focusing on the person rather  
          than the disability.  


          A number of public agencies use and promote People First  
          Language.  The California Mental Health Services Authority's  
          Stigma and Discrimination Reduction Initiative endorses People  
          First language as a means of reducing institutional stigma for  
          people with mental health challenges.  The federal Centers for  
          Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) promotes the use of People  
          First Language, and it is endorsed in various ways by California  
          school districts and other states.  In the 1980's a similar  
          movement occurred related to HIV and AIDS, in which advocates  
          worked to change terms such as "AIDS victims" and "AIDS  
          patients" to "people with AIDS."


          Prior legislation.  Several bills in recent years have updated  
          language used in the areas of mental health and developmental  
          disabilities.  These bills have used People First constructions  
          to describe people in the revised statutes.  For example, AB  
          1847 (Chesbro, Chapter 144, Statutes of 2014) replaced  
          references to "mentally disordered  persons" and other such  
          terms throughout 14 California codes with references to "persons  
          with a mental health disorder." Similarly, AB 2370 (Mansoor,  
          Chapter 448, Statutes of 2012) and SB 1381 (Pavley, Chapter 457,  
          Statutes of 2012) removed references to "mentally retarded  
          persons" and replaced them with "persons with an intellectual  
          disability."  








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          Technical amendments.  Staff recommends the following  
          amendments, consistent with the author's intent:


                 Page 1, line 3, delete "About 686,000" and insert "More  
               than 700,000"
                 Page 1, lines 4: delete "about" and insert "more than"


                 Page 16, after "Whereas" insert "For example,"


          


          REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:




          Support


          SELPA Administrators of California (sponsor)


          Association of Regional Center Agencies


          UDW/AFSCME Local 3930












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          Opposition


          None on file




          Analysis Prepared by:Tanya Lieberman / ED. / (916) 319-2087