BILL ANALYSIS �
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Kevin de Le�n, Chair
SB 1172 (Steinberg) - Pupil Health: Vision Appraisals
Amended: April 23, 2014 Policy Vote: Education
Urgency: No Mandate: Yes
Hearing Date: May 12, 2014 Consultant: Jacqueline
Wong-Hernandez
This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File.
Bill Summary: SB 1172 requires school vision appraisals to
include tests for near vision, and expands current requirements
(in scope and frequency) for school nurses and teachers to
observe student's eyes to also include observation of the
appearance and behavior of student's eyes, and requires
observation to be continual and regular.
Fiscal Impact:
Vision testing requirements: Potentially substantial
reimbursable mandate to increase the number of required
vision tests, and the scope of those tests.
Continual monitoring: The requirement for "continual and
regular observation of the pupil's eyes" by teachers and
school nurses could result in significant local costs, and
could be an additional reimbursable mandate to the extent
that costs could be proven.
Background: Existing law requires school districts to provide
for the testing of the sight and hearing of each student
enrolled in the district. The test is to be given only by: a)
duly qualified supervisors of health employed by the district;
b) certificated employees of the district or county office of
education (COE) who possess the qualifications prescribed by the
Commission on Teacher Credentialing; c) contract with an agency
duly authorized to perform those services by the county
superintendent of schools, under guidelines established by the
State Board of Education; or, d) accredited schools or colleges
or optometry, osteopathic medicine, or medicine. (Education
Code � 49452)
Non-medical certificated employees of a school district or COE
may be authorized to give vision tests if the employee meets
specified requirements.
SB 1172 (Steinberg)
Page 1
Existing law requires, upon first enrollment in an elementary
school, and at least every third year thereafter until the child
has completed grade 8, the vision of students to be appraised by
the school nurse or other authorized person. The evaluation must
include tests for visual acuity and color vision, however, color
vision is to be appraised once and only on male students. Gross
external observation of the child's eyes, visual performance,
and perception are to be done by the school nurse and the
classroom teacher. The evaluation may be waived if the parents
present a certificate from a physician and surgeon, a physician
assistant or an optometrist, and parents may opt-out based on
religious beliefs. (EC � 49455)
A report must be made to the parent when a visual or other
defect has been noted by the supervisor of health or his/her
assistant. (EC � 49456)
Proposed Law: This bill requires school vision appraisals to
include tests for near vision, and expands current requirements
for school nurses and teachers to observe student's eyes to also
include observation of the appearance and behavior of student's
eyes, and requires observation to be continual and regular.
Specifically, this bill:
1) Adds appraisal of near vision to currently-required tests
for visual acuity and color vision.
2) Adds the observation of the appearance and behavior of
student's eyes, and specifies that this observation is to
be continual and regular, to the current requirement that
school nurses and classroom teachers observe student's
eyes, visual performance, and perception.
3) Modifies the frequency of vision appraisals from upon first
enrollment and at least every third year thereafter until
the student has completed grade 8, to kindergarten or upon
first enrollment, and grades 2, 5 and 8.
4) Requires the California Department of Education (CDE) to
adopt guidelines to implement this bill, including training
requirements and a method of testing for near vision.
Related Legislation: SB 430 (Wright) requires a pupil to receive
a vision examination from a physician, optometrist, or
SB 1172 (Steinberg)
Page 2
ophthalmologist and requires that screening to include a test
for binocular function, refraction, and eye health. SB 430 is
pending in the Assembly Health Committee.
Staff Comments: This bill expands vision testing requirements,
including an increased minimum number of screenings, likely
resulting in a significant reimbursable state mandate on school
districts. Current law requires specified personnel to
administer vision screenings upon a student's enrollment, and
then at least every third year through 8th grade. For a student
who enrolls in kindergarten, the screening requirement would be,
minimally: kindergarten, 3rd grade, and 6th grade, for a total
of 3 administrations. This bill requires screenings "during the
kindergarten year or upon first enrollment or entry in a
California school district of a pupil?and in grades 2, 5, and
8," which (for any student enrolling before 2nd grade) would
require a minimum of 4 administrations. This bill also expands
the scope of the vision screenings to include near vision. If
each of the more than 1,000 school districts statewide claimed
even the $1,000 minimum mandate claim to conduct additional (and
more extensive) vision screenings, state costs would exceed $1
million.
This bill also requires "continual and regular observation of
the pupil's eyes" by teachers and school nurses. What
constitutes continual and regular observation is unclear, but it
is reasonable to consider that to be more than once in a school
year. This creates cost pressure to employ additional school
nurses to observe pupils' eyes, as well as pressure on a
teacher's time. To the extent that costs could be proven, this
requirement could constitute an additional reimbursable mandate.