BILL ANALYSIS �
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1790|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1790
Author: Hagman (R), et al.
Amended: 6/20/12 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE : 7-0, 6/13/12
AYES: Lowenthal, Alquist, Hancock, Huff, Liu, Price,
Simitian
NO VOTE RECORDED: Runner, Blakeslee, Vargas, Vacancy
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 71-0, 4/23/12 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : K-12 instructional materials: digital format
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill requires a publisher or manufacturer
submitting a printed instructional material for adoption by
the state board or the governing board of a school district
to ensure that the printed instructional material is also
available in a digital format during the entire term of the
adoption. This bill would not authorize the use of
instructional materials that would constitute an
infringement of copyright under specified federal law.
This bill applies these provisions only to adoptions that
occur after the exemption time period described above.
ANALYSIS : School districts are required to provide
instructional materials adopted by the State Board of
Education (SBE) to pupils in grades K-8. School districts
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adopt materials for use in high schools. The SBE is
prohibited from adopting instructional materials until the
2015-16 school year (due to budget constraints).
(Education Code (ED) Section 60200, 60200.7, and 60400)
The SBE adopted common core standards in English language
arts and mathematics on August 2, 2010, but is prohibited
from developing frameworks or adopting instructional
materials until the 2015-16 school year. A full adoption
of basic instructional materials is time-consuming and
costly. Schools are using instructional materials that
were adopted several years ago yet are expected to provide
instruction on the new common core standards.
SB 140 (Lowenthal, Chapter 623, Statutes of 2011) required
the California Department of Education (CDE), on a one-time
basis, to develop a list of supplemental instructional
materials that are aligned with California's common core
standards to bridge the gap between existing instructional
materials and the new common core standards. (ED Section
60605.86)
Existing law requires publishers to adhere to several
requirements when submitting instructional materials to the
SBE for consideration, and well as in the provision of
those materials to school districts, including:
1. Furnishing the materials at a price that does not exceed
the lowest price sold in the United States.
2. Providing any materials free of charge to the same
extent as received by any state.
3. Providing to the state, at no cost, computer files or
other electronic versions of each state-adopted literary
title and the right to transcribe, reproduce, modify and
distribute the material in Braille, large print,
recordings, American Sign Language videos or other
specialized media exclusively for use by pupils with
visual disabilities. (ED Section 60061 and 60220)
Existing law requires the CDE to establish a pilot program
of 12 schools to request publishers make instructional
materials in electronic multimedia format available for
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purchase. Participating schools are required to provide to
pupils the hardware necessary to use the electronic
materials, or print materials to pupils who do not have
access to the hardware. No schools elected to participate
in this pilot program. (ED Section 60051)
Existing law authorizes school districts to include
relevant technology-based materials when adopting
instructional materials if the materials are both available
and comparable to other, equivalent instructional
materials. (ED Section 60052)
Existing law authorizes school districts to use
Instructional Materials Realignment funding to purchase
state-adopted instructional materials for pupils in grades
K-8, and standards-aligned materials for pupils in grades
9-12, in an electronic or hardbound format if it can ensure
that each pupil will be provided with a copy of the
instructional materials to use at school and at home. This
specifically does not require school districts to purchase
two sets of materials. The Instructional Materials
Realignment funding program sunsets on July 1, 2013. (ED
Section 60422.1)
For purposes of the Williams settlement, current law
defines "sufficient textbooks or instructional materials"
to mean that each pupil, including English learners, has a
standards-aligned textbook or instructional materials, or
both, to use in class and to take home, but does not
require two sets of textbooks or instructional materials to
be purchased for each pupil. Instructional materials may
be in a digital format as long as each pupil, at a minimum,
has and can access the same materials in the class and to
take home, as all other pupils in the same class or course
in the district and has the ability to use and access them
at home. (ED Section 60119)
Existing law requires, by January 1, 2020, publishers of
any textbook offered for sale at the University of
California, California State University, the California
Community Colleges, or a private university in the state,
to the extent practicable, make the textbooks available (in
whole or part) for sale in an electronic format. The
electronic version must contain the same content as the
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printed version and may be copyright-protected. (ED
Section 66410)
This bill requires a publisher or manufacturer submitting a
printed instructional material for adoption by the state
board or the governing board of a school district to ensure
that the printed instructional material is also available
in a digital format during the entire term of the adoption.
This bill would not authorize the use of instructional
materials that would constitute an infringement of
copyright under specified federal law. This bill applies
these provisions only to adoptions that occur after the
exemption time period described above.
Comments
Local negotiations . School districts must provide to
pupils in grades K-8 instructional materials that have been
adopted by the SBE. School districts must provide to
pupils in grades 9-12 instructional materials that are
aligned to the standards; SBE does not adopt instructional
materials for grades 9-12. Publishers of instructional
materials that have been adopted by the SBE negotiate
directly with school districts with regard to exactly which
adopted materials the district will purchase (print
textbooks, materials for English learners, ancillary
materials, and the format desired). School districts have
some ability to negotiate the price of materials but
publishers are prohibited from charging a fee that is
higher than charged for the same material in any other
state. While school districts currently have the authority
to request digital formats and negotiate with publishers,
publishers are not required to disclose all available
options nor are publishers required to offer materials in
any format other than print versions.
Existing digital format of basic instructional materials .
The SBE has adopted some instructional materials in digital
formats, but those materials are generally associated with
a print textbook, and are only for basic instructional
materials (not supplementals). This bill applies to basic
materials (with respect to grades K-8), as the bill
references instructional materials that are adopted (rather
than approved). Supplemental instructional materials are
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not adopted by the SBE. School districts adopt basic
materials for grades 9-12 and supplemental materials for
grades K-12.
No requirement to purchase . This bill does not require
school districts to purchase instructional materials in any
specific format, nor does this bill reinstate the
requirement that school districts purchase materials within
a specific timeframe subsequent to adoption by the SBE.
Prior Legislation
AB 2211 (Fuentes), Chapter 254, Statutes of 2010, amends
the definition of "sufficient textbooks or instructional
materials" to state that instructional materials may be in
a digital format as long as each pupil, at a minimum, has
and can access the same materials in the class and to take
home, as all other pupils in the same class or course in
the district and has the ability to use and access them at
home.
AB 1010 (Pavley, 2004) requires a publisher that makes
basic instructional materials available to a school
district in a hard copy format to also make instructional
materials available in an electronic multimedia format upon
adoption of instructional materials after January 1, 2005,
by the SBE or by the governing board of a school district
that maintains a high school. Makes these requirements
operative January 1, 2007, and provides that a school
district that purchases instructional materials in an
electronic multimedia format pursuant to the bill shall
comply with specified law governing instructional
materials. AB 1010 was vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger
with the following veto message: "While I support the idea
of using an electronic multimedia format, it is crucial
that we remain focused on providing all pupils with an
actual textbook in core curricula areas. In addition, I am
concerned about the rising costs of textbooks and this bill
could create increased costs to the State in the form of
higher textbook costs for publishers to comply with the
electronic multimedia format requirement. Higher costs
could make it more difficult for schools to ensure that
pupils have adequate textbooks which was a cornerstone of
the Williams v. State of California settlement agreement."
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FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 6/20/12)
Association of American Publishers
Association of California School Administrators
California Communities United Institute
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author,
"Currently, California K-8 and 9-12 school districts are
mandated to provide all students a hard copy of the
learning material, which has traditionally been in the form
of textbooks. Recently, the advent of e-readers have
allowed these texts to be published digitally and applied
to an e-reader, giving students a new medium to receive the
material. AB 1790 will guarantee that if a school district
decides to go to a digital medium, publishers will be ready
to provide the materials in this format."
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 71-0, 4/23/12
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Beall,
Bill Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bonilla, Bradford,
Buchanan, Butler, Campos, Carter, Chesbro, Conway, Cook,
Dickinson, Donnelly, Eng, Feuer, Fong, Fuentes, Beth
Gaines, Galgiani, Garrick, Gatto, Gordon, Gorell, Grove,
Hagman, Halderman, Hall, Harkey, Hayashi, Roger
Hern�ndez, Hill, Huber, Huffman, Jeffries, Jones, Knight,
Lara, Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mansoor, Mendoza,
Miller, Mitchell, Monning, Morrell, Nielsen, Norby,
Olsen, Pan, Perea, V. Manuel P�rez, Portantino, Silva,
Skinner, Solorio, Swanson, Torres, Valadao, Wagner,
Wieckowski, Williams, Yamada, John A. P�rez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Brownley, Charles Calderon, Cedillo,
Davis, Fletcher, Furutani, Hueso, Nestande, Smyth
PQ:m 6/20/12 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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