BILL ANALYSIS �
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Alan Lowenthal, Chair
2011-2012 Regular Session
BILL NO: AB 684
AUTHOR: Block
AMENDED: June 13, 2011
FISCAL COMM: Yes HEARING DATE: June 22, 2011
URGENCY: No CONSULTANT:Kathleen Chavira
NOTE : This bill has been referred to both the Senate
Committees on Education
and on Elections and Constitutional Amendments. A
"do pass" motion
should include a referral to the Senate Committee
on Elections and
Constitutional Amendments.
SUBJECT : Community College Trustee Elections.
SUMMARY
This bill authorizes the local governing board of a
community college district to change election systems in
accordance with the bill's provisions and the California
Voting Rights Act of 2001 and specifically provides for the
number and election of members, and the reapportionment of
trustee areas for the governing board of the
Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District.
BACKGROUND
Current law provides for the election of school district
and community college district board members, the
determination of the number of board members, and provides
for the establishment and adjustment of trustee areas.
(Education Code � 5000-� 5030).
Current law also provides for the change from an at-large
election method to a by-trustee area election method if
initiated by a petition of the electorate, initiated by the
county committee on school district organization, or
initiated by the district. Each of these options requires
the approval of the voters prior to implementation.
(Education Code � 5019)
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Current law establishes the California Voting Rights Act of
2001(Act) which provides that an at-large method of
election may not be imposed or applied in a manner that
impairs the ability of a protected class to elect
candidates of its choice or its ability to influence the
outcome of an election, as a result of the dilution or the
abridgment of the rights of voters who are members of a
protected class, as defined. The Act also establishes
criteria in state law through which the validity of
at-large election systems can be challenged in court.
(Elections Code �14025-� 14032)
Current law authorizes the governing board of a school
district or a county board of education, after a public
hearing on the matter, to request the State Board of
Education to waive all or part of any section of the
Education Code or any Board adopted regulation that
implements a provision of the Education Code and specifies
statutes that are excepted from this waiver authority.
(Education Code � 33050)
ANALYSIS
This bill:
1) Authorizes the local governing board of a community
college district to change election systems in
accordance with the bill's provisions and the
California Voting Rights Act of 2001 upon:
a) Adoption of a resolution by the Board of
Trustees.
b) Approval of the Board of Governors.
2) Authorizes a local governing board of a community
college district to:
a) Establish election by trustee areas, as
specified.
b) Establish a top-two primary election system,
as specified.
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c) Determine the number of trustees,
as specified.
3) Prohibits the application of these provisions to any
community college district statutorily authorized to
provide for its own trustee elections.
4) Provides for the number and election of members and
the reapportionment of trustee areas for the governing
board of the Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College
District.
STAFF COMMENTS
1) Need for the bill . According to the author, many
community college districts that use at-large election
systems are obligated to switch election systems to
trustee area elections under the California Voting
Rights Act (CVRA). Generally this requires an
election authorizing the change in election systems.
For K-12 schools, an appeal to the State Board of
Education can result in a waiver of these requirements
and avoid the cost of an election in order to come
into compliance with the CVRA. Community colleges do
not have a clear option for requesting a waiver, and
even in the event of an election, could be prohibited
from making the changes necessary to comply with the
CVRA if they are rejected by voters. The purpose of AB
684 is to allow community college districts to avoid
costly elections and potential litigations costs by
facilitating their ability to conform to the CVRA.
2) Parallel authority . According to the State Board of
Education, since 2009 it has approved 20 requests from
school districts requesting a waiver of the
requirement that voter approval be secured to change
their voting systems from "at-large" to "district-
based" elections. One of these waivers was granted to
a County Board of Education on behalf of a local
community college district.
This bill proposes to give the Board of Governors
(arguably a more suitable oversight body for community
colleges) a similar waiver authority. While the Board
of Governors does not currently possess as expansive a
waiver authority as the State Board, current law
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(Education Code, Section 84362) does grant the Board
of Governors the authority to grant exemptions from
the 50% law under specified conditions. In addition,
current law grants the BOG the authority to exercise
general supervision over the formation of, and the
approval or disapproval of plans for, new community
college districts and the reorganization of existing
community college districts (Education Code � 70901).
3) Recent amendments . This bill was recently amended to
incorporate the provisions of AB 680 (Block), which
provides for the election system and designation of
trustee areas for the Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community
College District. AB 680 has been gutted and amended
to address a different subject.
4) Why separate provisions for Grossmont- Cuyamaca ?
According to the author, in anticipation of the 2012
election cycle, Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College
District has moved ahead in establishing a
trustee-area election method. The district believes
that it would be out of compliance with the California
Voting Rights Act under its current at-large method
and has already adopted a board resolution expressing
their intent to move to a trustee-area election.
Inclusion of specific language for Grossmont-Cuyamaca
in AB 684 puts them a step ahead in the process of
changing their method, avoiding potential lawsuits and
gives the district as well as local election officials
ample time to prepare for the June 2012 election
cycle.
5) Technical amendment . The stated intent of the bill is
to facilitate the ability of districts to comply with
the California Voting Rights Act. Consistent with the
author's intent and with Section 1 of the bill, staff
recommends the Grossmont-Cuyamaca provisions be
amended on page 5, line 10 to insert before the
period, "and in accordance with the California Voting
Rights Act of 2001."
6) Related court cases . Several local government entities
have been subjected to lawsuit on the basis of
violation of the California Voting Rights Act (CVRA).
These include the following:
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Sanchez v. The City of Modesto. In 2004 the Lawyers
Committee for Civil Rights filed a suit under the CVRA
against the City of Modesto on behalf of three Latino
residents. The committee claimed that racially
polarized voting was keeping Latinos out of office;
the city had had only one Latino council member since
1911 even though the Latino population exceeded 25
percent. The County Superior Court Judge sided with
the city and declared the law unconstitutional. The
case was appealed to the 5th District Court of Appeals
who struck down the initial ruling. The city appealed
the case to the State Supreme Court which refused to
hear the case. The City of Modesto paid $4.7 million
in court costs and in 2009 adopted district voting.
Gomez v. Hanford Joint Union School District. In July
2003 the school district of Hanford was sued by Latino
voters (backed by civil rights organizations) under
the CVRA; the suit claimed that racially polarized
voting had negatively affected the ability of Latino's
to assume office. The city chose to settle and agreed
to use "by district" voting for the board of trustees.
Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights v. Madera Unified
School District. In August 2008 the Lawyers Committee
for Civil Rights filed suit against the Madera Unified
School District on behalf of three Latino residents.
The plaintiffs pointed out that while 82 percent of
students in Madera were Latino, only one out of seven
board members was Latino. The city, instead of going
to trial, agreed to draw district lines.
7) Double-referral . This bill has also been referred to
the Elections and Constitutional Amendments Committee
which generally reviews issues relative to elections
and reapportionment, among other things. The
provisions governing the creation of trustee areas,
the specifics of the election system, as well as their
conformity with the intent of California elections
laws may be better suited to review by the next
committee.
SUPPORT
The AFT Guild, Local 1931
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OPPOSITION
None received.