BILL ANALYSIS
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair
685 (Davis)
Hearing Date: 08/27/2009 Amended: 07/23/2009
Consultant: Dan Troy Policy Vote: ED 6-2
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BILL SUMMARY: AB 685 would require the Department of Education
to determine whether athletics-related facilities proposed as
part of new school construction projects provide for
gender-equitable access and provide equity in the size and
quality of areas to be used exclusively by either boys or girls.
The bill would also require the Department to convene a working
group to develop guidelines and procedures for implementing the
review.
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Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 Fund
Workgroup/reporting Approximately $150 for
developing General
guidelines and reporting
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STAFF COMMENTS: SUSPENSE FILE. AS PROPOSED TO BE AMENDED.
Current law requires the CDE to review and approve new
construction plans for school facility projects funded by the
State Allocation Board (SAB). This review is conducted by the
School Facilities Planning Division (SFPD) of the CDE. The SFPD
review verifies project consistency with the design standards of
California Code of Regulations, Title 5. Federal law (Title IX
of the Education Amendments of 1972 to the 1964 Civil Rights
Act) provides that, in part, "no person in the United States
shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in,
be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination
under any educational program or activity receiving Federal
financial assistance." In order to be in compliance with
Federal Title IX, a school must show compliance with one of
these three parts. The federal tests are:
1) Athletic participation of women and girls is
proportionate to enrollment.
2) The school has a history and continuing practice of
program expansion for women or girls.
3) The school is fully meeting female athletes' interests
and abilities in its present athletic program.
This bill is a response to a 2004 study by the RMC Research
Company that found that only 26 percent of California high
schools were compliant with the Title IX proportionality
requirements. This bill would establish a process to ensure
compliance in regard to new school athletic facility
construction, including the convening of a working group that
would consist of representatives of the California
Interscholastic Federation, the Civil Rights Enforcement section
of the Department of Justice, urban, rural, and suburban
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AB 685 (Davis)
school districts, as well facilities planning and equal
opportunity experts from the Department of Education (CDE).
According to CDE, costs for convening the working group and
developing guidelines would be approximately $150,000, including
the cost of a consultant position and additional costs for
reporting. Ongoing costs for assessing projects are anticipated
to be minor.
AS PROPOSED TO BE AMENDED:
Author's amendments would make the convening of the working
group permissive and would authorize the Superintendent of
Public Instruction to select the members of the group.