BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Gloria Romero, Chair
2009-2010 Regular Session
BILL NO: AB 174
AUTHOR: Carter
INTRODUCED: January 29, 2009
FISCAL COMM: Yes HEARING DATE: June 17, 2009
URGENCY: No CONSULTANT: James Wilson
NOTE : The Rules Committee has requested that this bill be
returned if approved by the Committee on Education. A "do
pass" motion should include referral to the Committee on
Rules.
SUBJECT : School District Reorganization
SUMMARY
This bill authorizes a County Committee on School District
Organization to approve petitions to create new school
districts without having to submit the proposal to the
State Board of Education when the governing boards of the
affected districts consent and the county superintendent(s)
with jurisdiction
over the affected districts approve, and where there is an
agreement to share the costs of complying with the
requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act
(CEQA).
BACKGROUND
Current law provides for a county committee on school
district organization in each county (county committee) to
consider locally developed reorganization petitions to
transfer territory among districts; unify, merge or create
new districts or revise the boundaries of trustee areas.
Proposals for transfer of territory may be decided by the
county committee in a public hearing, although such
decisions to transfer more than 10% of a district's
territory must be ratified by a vote of the people in the
affected districts. The decisions of the county committee
may be appealed to the State Board of Education (SBE) for
specified reasons.
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When the reorganization proposal involves more than a
transfer of territory, the county committee holds a public
hearing and forwards the proposal, along with the
committee's recommendation, to the SBE. Current law
provides that if the SBE approves a proposal for
reorganization then the proposal is returned to the County
for approval of a vote of the people in the territory being
reorganized.
Currently the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA)
requires agencies with the principal responsibility for
carrying out or approving a project to prepare a negative
declaration, mitigated declaration, or environmental impact
report, unless the project is exempt from CEQA. School
district reorganization petitions are subject to CEQA.
ANALYSIS
This bill:
1) Authorizes a county committee on school district
organization to approve or disapprove a petition to
form one or more school districts without further
review by the State Board of Education (SBE),
provided that:
a) Each county superintendent with jurisdiction
over an affected
school district gives approval authority to his
county committee and that county committee
accepts the authority.
b) The governing board of each affected school
district consents to
the petition.
c) The county committee designated as the lead
agency for CEQA
enters into an agreement on behalf of the county
committee for all affected school districts to
share the costs of complying with CEQA.
2) Provides that a petition to form one or more school
districts that is not approved by the county
committee, shall be transmitted to the SBE for their
review in accordance with current procedures. For
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such proposals the SBE becomes the lead agency for
CEQA.
3) Provides that a petition to form one or more school
districts that is approved by the county committee, or
by the SBE following review, shall not become
effective until approval by of a vote of the people in
the territory being reorganized.
4) Provides that the county committee shall be the lead
agency for CEQA for each petition it considers, unless
the SBE has assumed that duty as noted above.
5) Provides that when two or more counties are involved
in a reorganization proposal, the county
superintendents shall mutually agree as to which
county committee will be the lead agency for CEQA and
if no agreement is reached then the county committee
with the greatest number of pupils affected by the
proposal shall be the lead agency.
6) Provides that the 120 day period that is allowed for a
county committee to approve or disapprove a transfer
of territory begins only after:
a) The environmental impact report is certified
or
b) A negative declaration is approved, or
c) It is determined that the proposal is exempt
from CEQA.
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STAFF COMMENTS
1) Need for the bill. This measure would reduce the
steps required for the creation of new school
districts by allowing such reorganization proposals to
be approved locally, as territory transfers are
currently, and not have to be reviewed by the State
Board except when there is disagreement or when the
proposal is turned down by the local county committee.
According to the Department of Education, a total of 85
reorganization petitions were heard by the State Board
twelve years prior to 2008. This included 21
petitions consolidating existing districts that would
qualify as an eligible petitions for county committee
approval under this proposal and all of these
petitions were approved by the State Board. Nineteen
of the 21 were approved when put to a vote of the
affected electorate.
2) Last year's bill. AB 2243 of 2008 (Carter) was
similar to this bill and was vetoed with the following
message.
The historic delay in passing the 2008-2009 State Budget
has forced me to prioritize the bills sent to my desk
at the end of the year's legislative session. Given
the delay, I am only signing bills that are the
highest priority for California. This bill does not
meet that standard and I cannot sign it at this time.
3) Previous legislation . AB 1642 (Salinas), Chapter 344
of 2005, revised to the school district reorganization
process, including authorizing a county committee to
abolish the common governing board of an elementary
district and a high school district upon a vote of the
electors of the respective districts.
AB 780 (Cogdill), Chapter 652 of 2004, authorized Fresno,
Humboldt and Ventura counties to locally approve
school district unifications through January 1, 2009
without receiving the further approval of the State
Board; it also required the approval of the State
Board in the event that the county decision on a
unification proposal was appealed.
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AB 2841 (Salinas), vetoed in 2004, proposed streamlining
changes to the process similar to AB 1642.
SUPPORT
Superintendent of Public Instruction (sponsor)
California County Boards of Education
OPPOSITION
Department of Finance