BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Gloria Romero, Chair
2009-2010 Regular Session
BILL NO: SB 552
AUTHOR: Padilla
AMENDED: April 13, 2009
FISCAL COMM: Yes HEARING DATE: April 29, 2009
URGENCY: No CONSULTANT: Lynn Lorber
SUBJECT : Health Education: organ and tissue donation.
SUMMARY
This bill requires school districts to offer to pupils in
grades 9 or 10 who are enrolled in a health class at least
15 minutes of instruction on organ procurement and tissue
donation.
BACKGROUND
There are currently two ways to register as an organ donor:
1) Each application for a new or renewal driver's license
or identification card provides a place for the
applicant to indicate if he or she wants to be an
organ donor. If the person affirms this desire, the
pink donor dot symbol is pre-printed on the driver's
license or identification card.
2) Since 2006, the Donate Life California website
provides a way to register as an organ donor online.
Neither the standard nor framework for health include any
information about organ procurement or tissue donation.
California does not require the completion of a health
course as a condition for graduation from high school.
ANALYSIS
This bill requires school districts to offer to pupils in
grades 9 or 10 who are enrolled in a health class at least
15 minutes of instruction on organ procurement and tissue
donation. Specifically, this bill:
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1) Provides that this instruction is to be designed to
develop a knowledge of the potentially life-saving
achievement involved in organ and tissue
transplantation.
2) Requires non-profit organizations, including Donate
Life California, to provide school districts with
information that will be provided through the
instruction required by this bill.
STAFF COMMENTS
1) Mandate . This bill imposes a local mandate. Should
the Legislature require school districts to provide
instruction on specific topics?
2) Another approach . SB 426 (Yee), which was passed by
this Committee on a 6-3 vote on April 15, 2009,
requires the Curriculum Development and Supplemental
Materials Commission, as part of its regular process
of developing and revising curriculum frameworks, to
consider and vote on whether to adopt each concurrent
resolution passed by the Legislature that proposes
changes to the frameworks. Although SB 426 is not
law, the process proposed by that measure could allow
for a more consistent approach to legislation that
proposes changes to the K-12 curriculum. To that end,
staff recommends an amendment to remove the mandate to
offer instruction on organ procurement and tissue
donation, and instead require the Curriculum
Development and Supplemental Materials Commission to
consider and vote on whether to include a unit on
organ procurement and tissue donation in the proposed
changes to the 2003 Health Framework. This framework
is scheduled for revision in 2011.
3) Curriculum bills in 2009 . AB 156 (Jeffries)
authorizes a school district to offer one credit
towards the required number of credits necessary for
graduation from high school for training and
certification in cardiopulmonary resuscitation or the
use of an automatic external defibrillator, or both.
AB 156 is pending in the Assembly Education Committee.
AB 380 (De la Torre) enacts the California Clean Energy
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Curriculum and Training Initiative of 2009, which
among other things, requires the Labor and Workforce
Development Agency to establish standardized
curriculum for use at schools. AB 380 is pending is
the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
AB 554 (Furutani) requires that a pupil take at least
2 courses from the subject areas of visual or
performing arts, foreign language, or career technical
education, rather than one course in visual or
performing arts or foreign language. AB 554 is
pending in the Assembly Education Committee.
AB 717 (Cook) encourages instruction in social science
for grades 7 to 12 to include instruction on World War
II and the role of Filipinos in that war. AB 717 is
pending on the Assembly Floor.
AB 970 (Block) encourages the State Board of Education
and the Curriculum Commission to ensure that the
history-social science framework, evaluation criteria,
and instructional materials adopted in the course of
the next submission cycle include information about
American Indians. AB 970 is pending in the Assembly
Education Committee.
SB 223 (Wyland) requires one-half of the currently
required one-semester course in economics to focus on
personal finance and financial literacy. SB 223 is
scheduled for hearing in this Committee on April 29.
SB 234 (Wyland) beginning with the 2010-11 school
year, prohibits a pupil from receiving credit for
passing a course in United States history and
geography, or in world history, and culture, without
exposure in that course to an oral history component
specifically related to genocides.
SB 234 is scheduled for hearing in this Committee on
April 29.
SB 236 (Huff) currently makes technical changes to the
course of study for grades 7 to 12; relative to career
technical education. SB 236 is pending in the Senate
Rules Committee.
SB 297 (Wyland) expresses the intent of the
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Legislature to enact legislation relating to science
and mathematics instruction in public elementary and
secondary schools. SB 297 is pending in the Senate
Rules Committee.
SB 339 (Wyland) states legislative intent to enact
legislation relating to civics education in public
schools. SB 339 is pending in the Senate Rules
Committee.
SB 426 (Yee) requires the Curriculum Commission to
consider and vote on whether to adopt each concurrent
resolution passed by the Legislature that proposes
changes to curriculum frameworks, and requires the
State Board of Education to consider each of the
resolutions. SB 426 is pending in the Senate
Appropriations Committee.
SB 471 (Romero) requires the Curriculum Commission to
make recommendations to the SBE for the purpose of
promoting pupil awareness of career opportunities in
industries facing workforce shortages. SB 471 is
scheduled for hearing in this Committee on April 29.
SB 520 (Pavley) authorizes school districts to offer
one credit towards the required number of credits
required for graduation from high school for each 10
hours of volunteer service provided by a pupil, up to
a maximum of 5 credits per pupil per semester. SB 520
is scheduled for hearing in this Committee on May 6.
SB 552 (Padilla) requires a school district to offer
grade 9 or 10 pupils who are enrolled in health
classes at least 15 minutes of instruction on organ
procurement and tissue donation designed to develop a
knowledge of the
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potentially life-saving achievement involved in organ
and tissue transplantation. SB 552 is scheduled for
hearing in this Committee on April 29.
4) Prior legislation . AB 1972 (Steinberg, 2004) would
have required at least 30 minutes of instruction
regarding organ and tissue donation as part of the
driver education course requirement for grades 7-12.
AB 1972 was held on the Assembly Appropriations
Committee's suspense file.
SUPPORT
American Association of Tissue Banks
Bellflower Unified School District
Blood Centers of California
California Transplant Donor Network
Geneva Mission Lions Club
Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network
Golden State Donor Services
Kentucky Circuit Court Clerks Trust For Life
Legacy Donor Foundation
LifeBanc
Lifeline of Ohio
LifeSource
Lions Club of Los Angeles
Loma Linda University Medical Center, Transplantation
Institute
OneLegacy
Shafter Lions Club
Visalia Charter Oak Lions Club
Numerous individuals
OPPOSITION
None received.