BILL ANALYSIS �
SB 509
Page 1
Date of Hearing: June 22, 2011
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Julia Brownley, Chair
SB 509 (Price) - As Amended: May 3, 2011
SENATE VOTE : 38-0
SUBJECT : Instructional materials
SUMMARY : Authorizes a school district to purchase the newest
adopted instructional materials for the neediest schools in the
school district, as defined, prior to purchasing these materials
for the remaining schools in the district. Specifically, this
bill :
1)Defines "neediest schools" as schools ranked in deciles 1 to
3, inclusive, of the base Academic Performance Index (API) in
any one of the past three school years.
2)Authorizes a school district to establish criteria to define
the "neediest schools" for schools that do not have at least
one year of valid rankings in the base API.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires, beginning with 2010-11 fiscal year and every third
year thereafter, the Superintendent of Public Instruction
(SPI) to identify a list of schools ranked in deciles 1-3 of
the Academic Performance Index (API) for which the county
superintendent must annually submit a report to each district,
the county board of education and the board of supervisors,
that describes the state of the schools.
2)States that the priority objective of the visits made by the
county superintendent is to determine the status of all of the
following circumstances:
a) Sufficient textbooks;
b) The condition of a facility that poses an emergency or
urgent threat to the health or safety of pupils or staff;
c) The accuracy of data reported on the school
accountability report card with respect to the
availability of sufficient textbooks and instructional
materials, and the safety, cleanliness, and adequacy of
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school facilities;
d) The extent to which pupils who have not passed the
high school exit exam by the end of 12th grade are
informed that they are entitled to receive intensive
instruction and services for up to two consecutive
academic years after completion of the 12th grade or until
the pupil has passed both parts of the high school exit
exam, whichever comes first; and,
e) The extent to which pupils who have elected to receive
intensive instruction and services are being served.
3)Provides, for the 2008-09 to 2014-15 fiscal years, that
sufficient textbooks or instructional materials include
standards-aligned textbooks or instructional materials, or
both, that were adopted prior to July 1, 2008.
4)States legislative intent that each local educational agency
(LEA) provide each pupil with standards-aligned textbooks or
instructional materials from the same adoption, specifies that
LEAs are not required to purchase all of the instructional
materials included in an adoption if the materials that are
purchased are made available to all the pupils for whom they
are intended in all of the schools within the LEA, and repeals
these provisions on July 1, 2015.
5)Stipulates that for the 2008-09 to 2014-15 fiscal years,
school districts are not required to provide pupils with
instructional materials by a specified period of time
following adoption of those materials by the State Board of
Education (SBE), and states that school districts are not
relieved of their obligations to provide every pupil with
textbooks or instructional materials during this time.
5.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.
FISCAL EFFECT : This bill is keyed non-fiscal.
COMMENTS : In an attempt to help districts deal with the fiscal
challenges of the recent years, the state has provided temporary
flexibility to school districts in various aspects of the law,
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including laws relative to the purchasing of instructional
materials. From the 2008-2009 to the 2014-15 fiscal years,
school districts are not required to purchase new instructional
materials within specified timelines, and current law
specifically authorizes districts to purchase standards-aligned
instructional materials that were adopted prior to July 1, 2008
to meet existing requirements regarding the sufficiency of
textbooks. Only one instructional materials adoption has been
conducted after July 1, 2008, which was the reading/language
arts (RLA) adoption. Current law, which sunsets on July 1,
2015, relieves districts from having to purchase these new
instructional materials, but does not prohibit districts from
purchasing the new materials. However, if districts do purchase
from the most recent adoption, they have to ensure that each
pupil in the district will have access to instructional
materials from the same adoption.
This bill allows a school district to purchase new instructional
materials from the 2008 RLA adoption for its decile 1-3 schools,
prior to purchasing for the other schools in the district.
Williams v. California : In 2000 several civil rights
organizations filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of public
school students against the State, the Eliezer Williams, et al.,
vs. State of California, et al. (Williams) case, arguing that
the State had denied students the fundamental right to an
education by failing to provide them basic educational resources
such as current and undamaged books, clean and safe facilities,
and qualified teachers. In August 2004, the state entered into
a settlement agreement in the Williams case, and amongst the
provisions of the settlement agreement, laws were enacted to
ensure that pupils have access to reasonably current textbooks
and instructional materials, in useable condition, in each core
subject to use in class and to take home. Additionally, schools
ranked in deciles 1-3 on the API are monitored for, among other
things, the provision to pupils of sufficient textbooks or
instructional materials that are aligned to the content
standards.
This bill specifically authorizes the purchase of instructional
materials from the most recent adoption for only some of the
schools within the district. Arguments have been made that some
instructional materials currently in use are very outdated and
that this bill would allow at least some students to have more
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updated books, particularly students attending some of the
lowest performing schools.
A question can be raised as to whether the provisions of this
bill may create a situation that allows for some pupils within a
district have access to newer and more updated books while
pupils in other schools in the district will have older
instructional materials. On the other hand, some would argue
that prioritizing the lowest performing schools in the district
to have the most current instructional materials, lessens the
concerns over creating these differences amongst students within
one district, as this allows for students in the "neediest
schools," as defined in this bill, to have access to more
updated instructional materials. This bill defines "neediest
schools" as school ranked in the deciles 1-3 of the API. Some
may argue that allowing for differences in the instructional
materials that students in different schools of a district have
access to may be of concern, particularly because there may be
pupils in need at other schools in the district. However,
others may argue that ensuring that the "neediest" schools
benefit from the provisions of this bill outweighs any other
concerns that the bill may create. It should also be noted that
this bill is permissive and does not require districts to
purchase these new instructional materials. Additionally,
because this bill amends statute enacted as part of the budget
flexibility which sunsets on July 1, 2015, the provisions of
this bill will also sunset on that date.
The author states, "AB 509 would allow school districts to
purchase the most recently adopted materials for the neediest
schools without the financial burden of purchasing for the
entire district. School Districts would be able to utilize the
school's decile rating of the base Academic Performance Standard
for any one of the past three school years to identify their
neediest schools."
Arguments in support : The Association of American Publishers
writes, "Under the Williams Settlement statutes, sufficiency for
instructional materials is defined to be standards aligned
instructional materials from the same adoption. If a district
wants to purchase new materials, it must provide students in the
same grade level or course with materials from the same adoption
to satisfy the sufficiency requirements. In these difficult
fiscal times, it makes it difficult for a district to make any
purchases an all because it becomes an -"all or nothing"-
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decision. This amendment provides some flexibility around the
all or nothing decision to purchase up to date, standards
aligned instructional materials."
Arguments in opposition : The Association of California School
Administrators notes a "support unless amended" position on this
bill and writes, "We appreciate that Senator Price has addressed
the concerns we had with the original bill which now provides
for some flexibility for local education agencies to purchase
recent English language arts and mathematics programs if they
choose to do so, for just some schools. However, it is important
that no confusion result at the local level when publishers seek
to sell their programs that it is not required they purchase for
additional schools as is the current intent of the Legislature
when a program is purchased. Therefore, to ensure further
clarity in the bill we request the following amendment to remove
our opposition. Our amendment to delete the "prior to purchasing
these materials for the remaining schools in the district" found
on page 2 lines 11-13 of the bill ensures no school district is
expected to buy for the entire district"
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
Association of American Publishers
Opposition
Association of California School Administrators (Unless amended)
Riverside County School Superintendents' Association (Unless
amended)
Analysis Prepared by : Marisol Avi�a / ED. / (916) 319-2087