(June 5, 2003) -- Students in CA high schools will not have pass an exit exam for at least two years if a bill passed by the CA Assembly with the supportive votes of LB area Assemblymembers Alan Lowenthal and Jenny Oropeza becomes law.

However, the bill would let local school districts decide what part the CAHSEE exam should play in their individual graduation requirements...meaning local school districts could presumably require the CAHSEE if they wish.

The bill also eliminates the Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) of grade two, and eliminates the Governor's Performance Award Program for schools that meet their annual Academic Performance Index (API) target growth.

AB 356 is sponsored by the CA Teachers Association and is being carried by Assemblywoman Loni Hancock (D., Berkeley). In a June 3 recorded vote, Assemblymembers Lowenthal and Oropeza voted for the bill on the Assembly floor (full recorded vote below). It now moves to the CA Senate.

LBReport.com posts AB 356's text and an Assembly legislative analysis below.

The requirement to pass a California High School Exit Examination (CAHSEE) is currently set to begin with students starting with the graduating class of 2004...unless the State Board of Education defers it, a decision that could come in weeks. AB 356 would make that decision for them: it would defer the requirement for two years.

Under the bill, the CAHSEE exam requirement (currently required to graduate in the class of 2004) would be deferred until the 2005-2006 school year. The bill would require students to take the test in order to graduate, but they would not have to pass it if they successfully complete prescribed coursework. It also lets parents ask for a waiver of the requirement that students with disabilities or who do not speak English continue taking the CAHSEE until they finish 12th grade or pass it.

Presently, students can take the CAHSEE as many as seven times, starting in the 7th grade.

Reaction is pending as we post.

	VOTES - ROLL CALL
MEASURE:	AB 356
AUTHOR:	Hancock
TOPIC:	Education:  pupil testing.
DATE:	06/03/2003
LOCATION:	ASM. FLOOR
MOTION:	AB 356 Hancock  Assembly Third Reading
	(AYES  44. NOES  32.)  (PASS)


	AYES
	****

Berg	Bermudez	Calderon	Chan
Chavez	Chu	Corbett	Diaz
Dutra	Dymally	Firebaugh	Frommer
Goldberg	Hancock	Jerome Horton	Jackson
Kehoe	Laird	Leno	Levine
Lieber	Liu	Longville	Lowenthal
Matthews	Montanez	Mullin	Nakano
Nation	Negrete McLeod	Nunez	Oropeza
Parra	Pavley	Reyes	Ridley-Thomas
Salinas	Simitian	Steinberg	Vargas
Wiggins	Wolk	Yee	Wesson


	NOES
	****

Aghazarian	Bates	Benoit	Bogh
Campbell	Cogdill	Correa	Cox
Daucher	Dutton	Garcia	Harman
Haynes	Shirley Horton	Houston	Keene
La Malfa	La Suer	Leslie	Maldonado
Maze	McCarthy	Mountjoy	Nakanishi
Pacheco	Plescia	Richman	Runner
Samuelian	Spitzer	Strickland	Wyland


	ABSENT, ABSTAINING, OR NOT VOTING
	*********************************

Canciamilla	Cohn	Koretz	Maddox

  

  BILL ANALYSIS

ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 356 (Hancock)
As Amended June 2, 2003
Majority vote

EDUCATION           7-1         APPROPRIATIONS      17-7
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|Ayes:|Goldberg, Diaz, Hancock,  |Ayes:|Steinberg, Berg, Kehoe,   |
|     |Montanez, Mullin, Pavley, |     |Corbett, Diaz, Firebaugh, |
|     |Reyes                     |     |Goldberg, Leno, Nation,   |
|     |                          |     |Chan, Nunez, Pavley,      |
|     |                          |     |Ridley-Thomas, Simitian,  |
|     |                          |     |Wiggins, Yee, Laird       |
|     |                          |     |                          |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Plescia                   |Nays:|Bates, Daucher, Haynes,   |
|     |                          |     |Maldonado, Pacheco,       |
|     |                          |     |Runner, Samuelian         |
-----------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY :  Eliminates rewards and punishments for pupils and
schools from high stakes testing.  Specifically, this bill :

1)Eliminates the Governor's Performance Award Program for
schools that meet their annual Academic Performance Index
(API) target growth.

2)Eliminates Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) of grade
two.

3)Delays implementation of the California High School Exit
Examination (CAHSEE) as a requirement for receiving a high
school diploma until the 2005-2006 school year.  It requires
students to take the test in order to graduate, but they do
not have to pass it if they have successfully completed the
prescribed coursework.  It also allows parents to ask for a
waiver of the requirement that students with disabilities or
who do not speak English continue taking the CAHSEE until they
finish 12th grade or pass it.  It also allows local education
agencies to decide what part the CAHSEE should play in their
individual graduation requirements.

EXISTING LAW:

1)Establishes the Governor's Performance Award Program, which
provides both monetary and nonmonetary awards for schools that
meet their annual API target growth.

2)Requires annual STAR testing for grades 2-11, budgetary
resources permitting.

3)Requires successful passing of the CAHSEE to receive a high
school diploma as of August 2003.  It requires students to
take it three times a year until 12th grade is completed or
until it is passed.  It requires students with disabilities to
take it with accommodations (extra time) three times a year
until they complete 12th grade or pass it.  If a disabled
student cannot pass it with accommodations, he/she is required
to pass and alternate test.  It requires students who do not
speak English proficiently to continue taking it until they
pass it or complete grade 12.

FISCAL EFFECT :  Eliminating testing from 2nd grade and cash
Governor's Performance Awards could result in savings.  This
bill could also eliminate costly lawsuits resulting from
litigation over the CAHSEE.

COMMENTS :  This bill removes the Governor's Performance Award
Program, which rewards schools, which meet their target API
growth.  Most schools that earn this award are in high
socio-economic areas and are educationally advantaged to begin
with.

It allows school districts to decide what requirements should be
met to receive a high school diploma. The California Master Plan
for Education final report on Student Learning, recommendation 7
recommends that the state's assessment system "Prohibit the use
of a single measure to make high stakes decisions about
students: including course placement, grade retention,
graduation, state scholarship funds, and college eligibility,
solely on the basis of a test score."

It allows parents of disabled pupils to have the test waived if
they feel the pressure is too great for their children.

It allows local education authorities to decide what
accommodations are necessary for pupils who do not speak English
proficiently.

This bill will exempt 2nd graders from the 410 minutes of
testing currently allotted, which the No Child Left Behind
legislation does not require, and start STAR testing in 3rd
grade instead which will increase instructional time for 2nd
graders.  The author states that a savings of $3.2 million will
result from exempting grade two.  Most psychologists and
educators agree that children in kindergarten, 1st and 2nd grade
should not be tested.

California Teachers' Association is the sponsor of the bill.



BILL NUMBER: AB 356	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  JUNE 2, 2003
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MARCH 17, 2003

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Hancock
   (Principal  coauthor   coauthors  :
Assembly  Member   Members Montanez and 
Mullin)
    (Coauthors: Assembly Members Diaz, Firebaugh, Frommer,
Koretz, Levine, Longville, and Nunez) 
    (Coauthors: Senators Kuehl and Speier) 

                        FEBRUARY 11, 2003

   An act to amend Sections 52050.5, 52052,  52055.51,
  52052.2,  52055.655,  52056.5  ,
60603, 60604, 60605, 60605.6, 60606, 60640, 60642, 60642.5, 60643,
60643.1, 60851,  60852,  and 60856 of,  and
 to repeal  Sections 52052.2, 52055.5, 52055.52,
52055.650, 52057, and 60859 of,   Sections 52057 and
60859 of, and to repeal Article 10.6 (commencing with Section 44650)
of Chapter 3 of Part 25 of,  the Education Code, relating to
education testing.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 356, as amended, Hancock.  Education:  pupil testing.
   (1) Existing law establishes the Public Schools Accountability Act
of 1999, which consists of the Academic Performance Index, the
Immediate Intervention/Underperforming Schools Program, and the
Governor's High Achieving/Improving Schools Program.  Under the 
existing  act, schools receive awards for high achievement and
improvement and sanctions for continued low performance.
   This bill would delete the rewards  and sanctions
 provisions from the act and would make conforming changes.

   (2) Existing law, the Standardized Testing and Reporting Program,
requires that each school district, charter school, and county office
of education administer to each of its pupils in grades 2 to 11,
inclusive, a designated achievement test and a standards-based
achievement test.
   This bill would exclude pupils in grade 2 from this testing
requirement and make conforming changes.
   (3) Existing law requires  , commencing with the 2003-04
school year,  that a  pupil completing grade 12
successfully pass a high school exit examination as a condition of
receiving a diploma of graduation or a condition of graduation from
high school.
   This bill would  delete passage   postpone
the beginning  of the exit examination  as a condition
of receiving a diploma of graduation or a condition of graduation
from high school   requirement to the 2005-06 school
year  , would authorize school districts to decide how to use
the results of the high school exit examination as part of their
local graduation requirements  until the 2005-06 school year
 , and would make conforming changes.  
   (4) Existing law establishes the Certificated Staff Performance
Incentive Program for the purpose of awarding performance awards to
teachers and other certificated staff in underachieving schools, if
the academic performance of pupils significantly improves, as
specified.
   This bill would repeal that program. 
   Vote:  majority.  Appropriation:  no.  Fiscal committee:  yes.
State-mandated local program:  no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


  SECTION 1.   Article 10.6 (commencing with Section 44650) of
Chapter 3 of Part 25 of the Education Code is repealed.
  SEC. 2.   Section 52050.5 of the Education Code is amended to
read:
   52050.5.  The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:

   (a) The purpose of the California public school system is to
provide for the academic development of each pupil and prepare each
pupil, to the extent of his or her ability, to become a lifelong
learner, equipped to live and succeed within the economic and
societal complexities of the 21st century.
   (b) It is in the interest of the people and the future of this
state to ensure that each child in California receives a high quality
education consistent with all statewide content and performance
standards, as adopted by the State Board of Education, and with a
meaningful assessment system and reporting program requirements.
   (c) Recent assessments indicate that many pupils in California are
not now, generally, progressing at a satisfactory rate to achieve a
high quality education.
   (d) To remedy this, the state is in need of an immediate and
comprehensive accountability system to hold each of the state's
public schools accountable for the academic progress and achievement
of its pupils within the resources available to schools.
   (e) Any promising and effective accountability system must be
based upon a constructive and collaborative process that seeks to
include stakeholders in the accountability process.
   (f) Any promising and effective accountability system requires the
active involvement of parents and guardians, pupils, educators,
community leaders, school boards, and schoolsite teams.
   (g) The statewide school accountability system must encourage the
active participation of parents and guardians, pupils, educators, and
the local community in improving pupil achievement.
   (h) The statewide accountability system must be easily accessible
and understandable to parents and others.
   (i) It is also the intent of the Legislature that the
comprehensive and effective school accountability system primarily
focus on increasing academic achievement.
   (j) To achieve better pupil performance, it is the intent of the
Legislature that any school accountability system do all of the
following:
   (1) Encourage teacher preparation that allows teachers to develop
the ability to inspire pupils to become lifelong learners.
   (2) Encourage teacher preparation and consistent ongoing
professional development that serves to develop competency in content
and pedagogy and that allows teachers to effectively involve
themselves in promoting school accountability.
   (3) Encourage the involvement of the community and its
stakeholders in the accountability system.
   (4) Encourage local community involvement in providing support for
education and identifying causes of pupil failure and designing
programs for remediation.
   (5) Approach accountability with an attitude of collaboration,
encouragement, and correction.
   (6) Utilize the state infrastructure to support schools, school
districts, and county offices of education in their efforts to
improve pupil achievement and progress.
   (7) Encourage each local community to support and sustain
high-quality educational programs and to build the capacity of
educators and schools to succeed in educating every pupil.
   (8) Encourage active involvement of parents and guardians in the
development and implementation of school accountability systems.

  SEC. 2.   
  SEC. 3.   Section 52052 of the Education Code is amended to
read:
   52052.  (a) (1) By July 1, 1999, the Superintendent of Public
Instruction, with approval of the State Board of Education, shall
develop an Academic Performance Index (API), to measure the
performance of schools, especially the academic performance of
pupils, and to demonstrate comparable improvement in academic
achievement by all numerically significant ethnic and
socioeconomically disadvantaged subgroups within schools.
   (2) For purposes of this section, a numerically significant ethnic
or socioeconomically disadvantaged subgroup is a subgroup that
constitutes at least 15 percent of a school's total pupil population
and consists of at least 30 pupils.  An ethnic or socioeconomically
disadvantaged subgroup of at least 100 pupils constitutes a
numerically significant subgroup, even if the subgroup does not
constitute 15 percent of the total enrollment at a school.  For
schools whose API scores are based on test scores of no fewer than 11
and no more than 99 pupils, numerically significant subgroups shall
be defined by the Superintendent of Public Instruction, with approval
by the State Board of Education.
   (3) The API shall consist of a variety of indicators currently
reported to the State Department of Education including, but not
limited to, the results of the achievement test administered pursuant
to Section 60640, attendance rates for pupils and certificated
school personnel for elementary schools, middle schools, and
secondary schools, and the graduation rates for pupils in secondary
schools.
   (A) The pupil data collected for the API that comes from the
achievement test administered pursuant to Sections 60640 and 60644
and the high school exit examination administered pursuant to Section
60851, when fully implemented, shall be disaggregated by special
education status, English language learners, socioeconomic status,
gender and ethnic group.  Only the test scores of pupils who were
counted as part of a school district's enrollment in the October
California Basic Educational Data System's data collection for the
current fiscal year and were continuously enrolled during that year
may be included in the test results reported in the API.  Results of
the achievement test and other tests specified in subdivision (b)
shall constitute at least 60 percent of the value of the index.
   (B) Before including high school graduation rates and attendance
rates in the index, the Superintendent of Public Instruction shall
determine the extent to which the data are currently reported to the
state and the accuracy of the data.
   (C) If the Superintendent of Public Instruction determines that
accurate data for these indicators is not available, the
Superintendent of Public Instruction shall report to the Governor and
the Legislature by September 1, 1999, and recommend necessary action
to implement an accurate reporting system.
   (b) Pupil scores from the following tests, when available and when
found to be valid and reliable for this purpose, shall be
incorporated into the API:
   (1) The assessment of the applied academic skills matrix test
developed pursuant to Section 60604.
   (2) The nationally normed test designated pursuant to Section
60642.
   (3) The standards-based achievement tests provided for in Section
60642.5.
   (4) The high school exit examination.
   (c) Based on the API, the Superintendent of Public Instruction
shall develop, and the State Board of Education shall adopt, expected
annual percentage growth targets for all schools based on their API
baseline score from the previous year.  Schools are expected to meet
these growth targets through effective allocation of available
resources.  For schools below the statewide API performance target
adopted by the State Board of Education pursuant to subdivision (d),
the minimum annual percentage growth target shall be 5 percent of the
difference between a school's actual API score and the statewide API
performance target, or one API point, whichever is greater.  Schools
at or above the statewide API performance target shall have, as
their growth target, maintenance of their API score above the
statewide API performance target.  However, the State Board of
Education may set differential growth targets based on grade level of
instruction and may set higher growth targets for the lowest
performing schools because they have the greatest room for
improvement.  To meet its growth target, a school shall demonstrate
that the annual growth in its API is equal to or more than its
schoolwide annual percentage growth target and that all numerically
significant ethnic and socioeconomically disadvantaged subgroups, as
defined in subdivision (a) of Section 52052, are making comparable
improvement.
   (d) Upon adoption of state performance standards by the State
Board of Education, the Superintendent of Public Instruction shall
recommend, and the State Board of Education shall adopt, a statewide
API performance target that includes consideration of performance
standards and represents the proficiency level required to meet the
state performance target.
   (e)  The API shall be used for both of the following:
   (1) Measuring the progress of schools selected for participation
in the Immediate Intervention/Underperforming Schools Program
pursuant to Section 52053.
   (2) Ranking all public schools in the state for the purpose of the
High Achieving/Improving Schools Program pursuant to Section 52056.

   (f) (1) A comprehensive high school, middle school, or elementary
school with 11 to 99 valid test scores of pupils who were enrolled in
a school within the same school district in the prior fiscal year
shall receive an API score with an asterisk that indicates less
statistical certainty than API scores based on 100 or more test
scores.
   (2) A school under the jurisdiction of a county board of education
or a county superintendent of schools, a community day school, or an
alternative school, including continuation high schools and
opportunity schools, may receive an API score if the school has 11 or
more valid test scores and the school chooses to receive an API
score for at least three years.
   (3) A school that participates in the Immediate
Intervention/Underperforming Schools Program described in Section
52053 shall receive an API score for the duration of its
participation in that program, unless the Superintendent of Public
Instruction determines that an API score would be an invalid measure
of the school's performance for one or more of the following reasons:

   (A) Irregularities in testing procedures occurred.
   (B) The data used to calculate the school's API score are not
representative of the pupil population at the school.
   (C) Significant demographic changes in the school's pupil
population render year-to-year comparisons of pupil performance
invalid.
   (D) The State Department of Education discovers or receives
information indicating that the integrity of the school's API score
has been compromised.
   (g) Only schools with 100 or more test scores contributing to the
API may be included in the API rankings.
   (h) By July 1, 2000, the Superintendent of Public Instruction,
with the approval of the State Board of Education, shall develop an
alternative accountability system for schools with fewer than 100
test scores contributing to the schools' API scores, and for schools
under the jurisdiction of a county board of education or a county
superintendent of schools, community day schools, and alternative
schools serving high-risk pupils, including continuation high schools
and opportunity schools.   
  SEC. 3.  Section 52052.2 of the Education Code is repealed.
  SEC. 4.  Section 52055.5 of the Education Code is repealed.
  SEC. 5.  Section 52055.51 of the Education Code is amended to read:

   52055.51.  (a)  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the
Superintendent of Public Instruction, with the approval of the State
Board of Education, may require the district to enter into a contract
with a school assistance and intervention team.  If the State Board
of Education approves, the governing board of the school district may
retain its legal rights, duties, and responsibilities with respect
to that school.
   (b) School assistance and intervention team members should possess
a high degree of knowledge and skills in the areas of school
leadership, curriculum, and instruction aligned to state academic
content and performance standards, classroom management and
discipline, academic assessment, parent-school relations, and
evaluation and research based reform strategies and have proven
successful expertise specific to the challenges inherent in
state-monitored schools.
   (c) The team shall provide intensive support and expertise to
implement the school reform initiatives in the plan.  Decisions about
interventions shall be data driven.  A school assistance and
intervention team shall work with school staff, site planning teams,
administrators, and district staff to improve pupil literacy and
achievement by assessing the degree of implementation of the current
action plan, refining and revising the action plan, and making
recommendations to maximize the use of fiscal resources and personnel
in achieving the goals of the plan.  The district shall provide
support and assistance to enhance the work of the team at the
targeted schoolsites.
   (d) Not later than 60 days after the assignment of a school
assistance and intervention team, the team must have completed an
initial report.  The report shall include recommendations for
corrective actions chosen from a range of interventions, including
the reallocation of district fiscal resources to ensure that
appropriate resources are targeted to those specific interventions
identified in the recommendations of the team for the targeted
schools and other changes deemed appropriate to make progress toward
meeting the schools growth target.  Not later than 90 days after the
API is made public, the governing board of the school district shall
adopt the team's recommendations at a regularly scheduled meeting of
the governing board.  The governing board may not place the adoption
on the consent calendar.  The report shall be submitted to the
Superintendent of Public Instruction and State Board of Education.
   (e) No less than three times during the year, the school district
and schoolsite shall present the team with data regarding progress
toward the goals established by the team's initial assessment.  The
data shall be presented to the governing board of the school district
at a regularly scheduled meeting.  The team shall, to the extent
possible, utilize existing site data.  The data shall also be
provided to the Superintendent of Public Instruction and State Board
of Education.  Every effort shall be made to report this data in a
manner that minimizes the length and complexity of the reporting
requirement in order to maximize the focus on improving pupil
literacy and achievement.
   (f) An action taken pursuant to this section  may not increase
local costs or require reimbursement by the Commission on State
Mandates.
  SEC. 6.  Section 52055.52 of the Education Code, as added by
Chapter 1035 of the Statutes of 2002, is repealed.
  SEC. 7.  Section 52055.52 of the Education Code, as added by
Chapter 1020 of the Statutes of 2002, is repealed.
  SEC. 8.  Section 52055.650 of the Education Code is repealed.
  SEC. 9.   
  SEC. 4.  Section 52052.2 of the Education Code is amended to read:

   52052.2.  A school that receives an API score with an asterisk
 shall be  is  eligible for  the
Governor's Performance Awards Program, as set forth in Section 52057
and for  participation in the Immediate
Intervention/Underperforming Schools Program, as set forth in Section
52053.   
  SEC. 5.   Section 52055.655 of the Education Code is amended
to read:
   52055.655.  (a)  A   Notwithstanding
subdivision (c) of Section 52055.650, a  school participating in
the High Priority Schools Grant Program for Low Performing Schools
that meets or exceeds its API growth target shall continue to receive
funding under this program in the amount specified in Sections
52054.5 and 52055.600 for one additional year of implementation.
   (b) From funds made available to the State Department of Education
pursuant to the act adding this section, the State Department of
Education shall conduct a study on the issue of sustainability of
funding for low-performing schools.  The issues to be addressed in
this study shall include, but are not limited to, the following:
   (1) An objective rather than a comparative view of the necessity
of sustaining supplemental funding over time to address the ongoing
needs of low-performing pupils, and the impact of policies that only
provide funding over a specified period of time.
   (2) A description of the ongoing needs of low-performing schools,
as identified in needs assessments submitted pursuant to paragraph
(3) of subdivision (a)  of   Section 
52055.620 and the sources of funding schools used to meet these
needs.
   (3) An analysis of the use of funds provided pursuant to this
article and the effectiveness of that use in meeting the continued or
changing needs of communities served by low-performing schools.
This analysis shall include an evaluation of the growth in academic
achievement realized by participating schools and the ability of
those schools to sustain growth in academic achievement if funding is
continued.
   (4) An assessment of whether local, state, and federal resources
are likely to be sufficient to sustain all or some of the academic
improvements made in low-performing schools after this state subsidy
expires, taking into account prospects for the subsequent pupil
population's incidence of poverty and low socioeconomic status.

  SEC. 10.  Section 52056.5 of the Education Code is amended to read:

   52056.5.  Commencing with the 2000-01 fiscal year, a school that
fails to meet annual state growth targets established pursuant to
Section 52052 may, as determined by the Superintendent of Public
Instruction with the approval of the State Board of Education, be
subject to the Immediate Intervention/Underperforming Schools Program
pursuant to subdivisions (e) and (f) of Section 52053, and Sections
52053.5, 52054, 52054.5, and 52055.
  SEC. 11.   
  SEC. 6.   Section 52057 of the Education Code is repealed.

  SEC. 12.   
  SEC. 7.   Section 60603 of the Education Code is amended to
read:
   60603.  As used in this chapter:
   (a) "Achievement test" means any standardized test that measures
the level of performance that a pupil has achieved in the core
curriculum areas.
   (b) "Assessment of applied academic skills" means a form of
assessment that requires pupils to demonstrate their knowledge of,
and ability to apply, academic knowledge and skills in order to solve
problems and communicate.  It may include, but is not limited to,
writing an essay response to a question, conducting an experiment, or
constructing a diagram or model.  An assessment of applied academic
skills may not include assessments of personal behavioral standards
or skills, including, but not limited to, honesty, sociability,
ethics, or self-esteem.
   (c) "Basic academic skills" means those skills in the subject
areas of reading, spelling, written expression, and mathematics that
provide the necessary foundation for mastery of more complex
intellectual abilities, including the synthesis and application of
knowledge.
   (d) "Content standards" means the specific academic knowledge,
skills, and abilities that all public schools in this state are
expected to teach and all pupils are expected to learn in each of the
core curriculum areas, at each grade level tested.
   (e) "Core curriculum areas" means the areas of reading, writing,
mathematics, history-social science, and science.
   (f) "Direct writing assessment" means an assessment of applied
academic skills that requires pupils to use written expression to
demonstrate writing skills, including writing mechanics, grammar,
punctuation, and spelling.
   (g) "End of course exam" means a comprehensive and challenging
assessment of pupil achievement in a particular subject area or
discipline, such as the Golden State Exams.
   (h) "Performance standards" are standards that define various
levels of competence at each grade level in each of the curriculum
areas for which content standards are established.  Performance
standards gauge the degree to which a pupil has met the content
standards and the degree to which a school or school district has met
the content standards.
   (i) "Publisher" means a commercial publisher or any other public
or private entity, other than the State Department of Education,
which is able to provide tests or test items that meet the
requirements of this chapter.
   (j) "Statewide pupil assessment program" means the systematic
achievement testing of pupils in grades 3 to 11, inclusive, pursuant
to the standardized testing and reporting program under Article 4
(commencing with Section 60640) and the assessment of basic academic
skills and applied academic skills, administered to pupils in grade
levels specified in subdivision (c) of Section 60605, required by
this chapter in all schools within each school district by means of
tests designated by the State Board of Education.   
  SEC. 13.   
  SEC. 8.   Section 60604 of the Education Code is amended to
read:
   60604.  (a) The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall design
and implement, consistent with the timetable and plan required
pursuant to subdivision (b), a statewide pupil assessment program
consistent with the testing requirements of this article in
accordance with the objectives set forth in Section 60602.  That
program shall include all of the following:
   (1) A plan for producing valid, reliable, and comparable
individual pupil scores in grades 3 to 11, inclusive, and a
comprehensive analysis of these scores based on the results of the
achievement test designated by the State Board of Education that
assesses a broad range of basic academic skills pursuant to the
Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) Program established by
Article 4 (commencing with Section 60640).
   (2) A method of working with publishers to ensure valid, reliable,
and comparable individual, grade-level, school-level,
district-level, county-level, and statewide scores in grades 3 to 11,
inclusive, that is based on the achievement test designated pursuant
to subdivision (b) of Section 60605.
   (3) Statewide academically rigorous content and performance
standards that reflect the knowledge and skills that pupils will need
in order to succeed in the information-based, global economy of the
21st century.  These skills shall not include personal behavioral
standards or skills, including, but not limited to, honesty,
sociability, ethics, or self-esteem.
   (4) A statewide system that provides the results of testing in a
manner that reflects the degree to which pupils are achieving the
academically rigorous content and performance standards adopted by
the State Board of Education.
   (5) The alignment of assessment with the statewide academically
rigorous content and performance standards adopted by the State Board
of Education.
   (6) The active, ongoing involvement of parents, classroom
teachers, administrators, other educators, governing board members of
school districts, and the public in all phases of the design and
implementation of the statewide pupil assessment program.
   (7) The development of a contract or contracts with a publisher or
publishers, after the approval of statewide academically rigorous
content standards by the State Board of Education, for the
development of performance standards and assessments of applied
academic skills designed to test pupils' knowledge of academic skills
and abilities to apply that knowledge and those skills in order to
solve problems and communicate.
   (b) The superintendent shall develop and annually update for the
Legislature a five-year cost projection, implementation plan, and
timetable for implementing the program described in subdivision (a).
The annual update shall be submitted on or before March 1 of each
year to the chairperson of the fiscal subcommittee considering budget
appropriations in each house.  The update shall explain any
significant variations from the five-year cost projection for the
current year budget and the proposed budget.
   (c) The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall provide each
school district with guidelines for professional development that are
designed to assist classroom teachers to use the results of the
assessments administered pursuant to this chapter to modify
instruction for the purpose of improving pupil learning.  These
guidelines shall be developed in consultation with classroom teachers
and approved by the State Board of Education before dissemination.
   (d) The Superintendent of Public Instruction  and the State Board
of Education shall consider comments and recommendations from school
districts and the public in the development, adoption, and approval
of assessment instruments.
   (e) The results of the achievement test administered pursuant to
Article 4 (commencing with Section 60640) shall be returned to the
school district within the period of time specified by the State
Board of Education.   
  SEC. 14.   
  SEC. 9.   Section 60605 of the Education Code is amended to
read:
   60605.  (a) (1) (A) Not later than January 1, 1998, the State
Board of Education shall adopt statewide academically rigorous
content standards, pursuant to the recommendations of the Commission
for the Establishment of Academic Content and Performance Standards,
in the core curriculum areas of reading, writing, and mathematics to
serve as the basis for assessing the academic achievement of
individual pupils and of schools, school districts, and the
California education system.  Not later than November 1, 1998, the
State Board of Education shall adopt these standards in the core
curriculum areas of history/social science and science.
   (B) The  State Board of Education shall adopt statewide
performance standards in the core curriculum areas of reading,
writing, mathematics, history/social science, and science based on
the recommendations made by the Superintendent of Public Instruction
and a contractor or contractors.

          (C) The State Board of Education shall require the
contractor or contractors to submit performance standards to the
Superintendent of Public Instruction and the board not later than a
specified date that allows sufficient opportunity for the
Superintendent of Public Instruction to make a recommendation to the
board and for the board to conduct regional hearings prior to the
adoption of the performance standards.
   (2) (A) The State Board of Education may modify any proposed
content standards or performance standards prior to adoption and may
adopt content and performance standards in individual core curriculum
areas as those standards are submitted to the board.  The
performance standards shall be established against specific grade
level benchmarks of academic achievement for each subject area tested
and shall be based on the knowledge and skills that pupils will need
in order to succeed in the information-based, global economy of the
21st century.  These skills shall not include personal behavioral
standards or skills, including, but not limited to, honesty,
sociability, ethics, or self-esteem.  The standards adopted pursuant
to this section shall be for the purpose of guiding state decisions
regarding the development, adoption, and approval of assessment
instruments pursuant to this chapter and shall not be construed to
mandate any actions or activities by school districts.
   (B) Because these standards are models, the adoption of these
standards is not subject to the Administrative Procedure Act.  This
subparagraph is declaratory of existing law.
   (3) Before adopting academic content and performance standards,
the board shall hold regional hearings for the purpose of giving
parents and other members of the public the opportunity to comment on
the proposed standards.
   (b) (1) The State Board of Education shall require the State
Department of Education to notify publishers of the opportunity to
submit, for consideration by the State Board of Education pursuant to
Section 60642, tests of achievement that include all of the basic
academic skills identified in subdivision (c) of Section 60603 in
grades 3 to 8, inclusive, and the core curriculum areas of English
and language arts, mathematics, and science in grades 9 to 11,
inclusive.
   (2) The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall recommend to
the State Board of Education which achievement test to adopt pursuant
to subdivision (b) of Section 60642.
   (c) (1) The State Board of Education shall ensure that the
statewide assessment system adopted pursuant to this chapter yields
valid, reliable individual pupil scores and, where applicable,
aggregate school scores, school district scores, and statewide scores
of pupils and assesses basic academic skills and content standards,
including the use of a direct writing assessment or other applied
academic skills if deemed valid and reliable and if resources are
made available for their use.
   (2)  This subdivision does not prevent the State Board of
Education from developing or adopting an assessment instrument that
also contains assessments of basic academic skills.
   (d) To the extent feasible and as otherwise required, the State
Board of Education shall ensure that assessments developed, or
contracted for pursuant to Section 60642.5, by the state are aligned
with the statewide content and performance standards adopted pursuant
to subdivision (a).  The State Department of Education, with the
approval of the State Board of Education, shall periodically contract
for a review of the achievement test for conformance with these
standards.
   (e) After adopting statewide content and performance standards,
the State Board of Education shall review the existing curriculum
frameworks for conformity with the new statewide standards and shall
modify the curriculum frameworks where appropriate to bring them into
alignment with the standards.
   (f) The State Board of Education shall adopt regulations for the
conduct and administration of the testing and assessment program.
   (g) The State Board of Education shall adopt a regulation for
minimum security procedures that test and assessment publishers and
school districts must follow to ensure the security and integrity of
test and assessment questions and materials.   
  SEC. 15.   
  SEC. 10.   Section 60605.6 of the Education Code is amended to
read:
   60605.6.  Subject to the availability of funds in the annual
Budget Act for this purpose, the Superintendent of Public
Instruction, upon approval of the State Board of Education, shall
contract for the development and distribution of workbooks, as
follows:
   (a) One workbook to be distributed to all pupils in the 10th
grade. This workbook shall contain information on the proficiency
levels that must be demonstrated by pupils on the high school exit
examination described in Chapter 9 (commencing with Section 60850).
The workbook also shall contain sample questions, with explanations
describing how these sample questions test pupil knowledge of the
language arts and mathematics content standards adopted by the State
Board of Education pursuant to Section 60605.
   (b) Separate workbooks for each of grades 3 to 11, inclusive.
Each pupil in grades 3 to 11, inclusive, who is required to take the
achievement tests described in Section 60642 or Section 60642.5 shall
receive a copy of the workbook designed for the same grade level in
which the pupil is enrolled.  These workbooks shall contain material
to assist pupils and their parents with standards-based learning,
including the grade appropriate academic content standards adopted by
the State Board of Education pursuant to Section 60605 and sample
questions that require knowledge of these standards to answer.  The
workbooks also shall describe how the sample questions test knowledge
of the State Board of Education adopted academic content standards.
  
  SEC. 16.   
  SEC. 11.   Section 60606 of the Education Code is amended to
read:
   60606.  (a) After designating a test of academic achievement for
use in grades 3 to 11, inclusive, pursuant to Section 60642, or
adopting an assessment of applied academic skills for use in grades
4, 5, 8, and 10 pursuant to Section 60605, the State Board of
Education shall submit each of those two instruments when designated
or adopted to the Statewide Pupil Assessment Review Panel, which is
hereby established, for review by the panel.
   (b) The panel shall consist of six members.  Three members shall
be appointed by the Governor, one member shall be appointed by the
Senate Committee on Rules, one member shall be appointed by the
Speaker of the Assembly, and one member shall be appointed by the
Superintendent of Public Instruction.  A majority of the panel shall
consist of parents whose children attend public schools in the state
in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive.
   (c) Panel members shall serve two-year terms, without
compensation.  No panel member shall serve more than two consecutive
terms.
   (d) The panel shall review the two instruments specified in
subdivision (a) in order to ensure that the content of the
instruments complies with the requirements of Section 60614.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the panel may meet in
closed session with a publisher for the purpose of addressing
questions and clarifying issues that relate to ensuring that the
content of the publisher's test or assessment, as the case may be,
comply with the requirements of Section  60614.
   (e) The panel shall report its findings and recommendations to the
State Board of Education within 10 days of its receipt of each
instrument.  If the panel fails to report within the required 10
days, the test or assessment shall be deemed acceptable to the panel.
   
  SEC. 17.   
  SEC. 12.   Section 60640 of the Education Code is amended to
read:
   60640.  (a) There is hereby established the Standardized Testing
and Reporting Program, to be known as the STAR Program.
   (b) Commencing in the 1997-98 fiscal year and each fiscal year
thereafter, and from the funds available for that purpose, each
school district, charter school, and county office of education shall
administer to each of its pupils in grades 3 to 11, inclusive, the
achievement test designated by the State Board of Education pursuant
to Section 60642 and the standards-based achievement test provided
for in Section 60642.5.  The State Board of Education shall establish
a testing period to provide that all schools administer these tests
to pupils at approximately the same time during the instructional
year, except as necessary to ensure test security and to meet the
final filing date.
   (c) The publisher and the school district shall provide two makeup
days for the testing of previously absent pupils within the testing
period established by the State Board of Education in subdivision
(b).
   (d) The governing board of the school district may administer
achievement tests in kindergarten and grade 1 or 12, or both, as it
deems appropriate.
   (e)  Pursuant to paragraph (17) of subsection (a) of Section 1412
of Title 20 of the United States Code, individuals with exceptional
needs, as defined in Section 56026, shall be included in the testing
requirement of subdivision (b) with appropriate accommodations in
administration, where necessary, and those individuals with
exceptional needs who are unable to participate in the testing, even
with accommodations, will be given an alternate assessment.
   (f) At the school district's option, pupils of limited English
proficiency who are enrolled in any of grades  3 to 11, inclusive,
may take a second achievement test in their primary language.
Primary language tests administered pursuant to this subdivision and
subdivision (g) shall be subject to the requirements of subdivision
(a) of Section 60641.  These primary language tests shall produce
individual pupil scores that are valid and reliable.  Notwithstanding
any other provision of law, the State Board of Education shall
designate for use, as part of this program, a single primary language
test in each language for which a test is available for grades 3 to
11, inclusive, no later than November 14, 1998, pursuant to the
process used for designation of the assessment chosen in the 1997-98
fiscal year, as specified in Sections 60642 and 60643, as applicable.

   (g) Pupils of limited English proficiency who are enrolled in any
of grades 3 to 11, inclusive, shall be required to take a test in
their primary language if a test is available, if fewer than 12
months have elapsed after their initial enrollment in any public
school in the state.
   (h) (1) The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall apportion
funds to school districts to enable school districts to meet the
requirements of subdivisions (b), (f), and (g).
   (2) The State Board of Education shall annually establish the
amount of funding to be apportioned to school districts for each test
administered and shall annually establish the amount that each
publisher shall be paid for each test administered under the
agreements required pursuant to Section 60643. The amounts to be paid
to the publishers shall be determined by considering the cost
estimates submitted by each publisher each September and the amount
included in the Budget Act and by making allowance for the estimated
costs to school districts for compliance with the requirements of
subdivisions (b), (f), and (g).
   (3) An adjustment to the amount of funding to be apportioned per
test may not be valid without the approval of the Director of
Finance.  A request for approval of an adjustment to the amount of
funding to be apportioned per test shall be submitted in writing to
the Director of Finance and the chairpersons of the fiscal committees
of both houses of the Legislature with accompanying material
justifying the proposed adjustment.  The Director of Finance is
authorized to approve only those adjustments related to activities
required by statute.  The Director of Finance shall approve or
disapprove the amount within 30 days of receipt of the request and
shall notify the chairpersons of the fiscal committees of both houses
of the Legislature of the decision.
   (i) For the purposes of making the computations required by
Section 8 of Article XVI of the California Constitution, the
appropriation for the apportionments made pursuant to paragraph (1)
of subdivision (h), and the payments made to the publishers under the
contracts required pursuant to Section 60643 or subparagraph (C) of
paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 60605 between the State
Department of Education and the contractor, shall be deemed to be
"General Fund revenues appropriated for school districts," as defined
in subdivision (c) of Section 41202 of the Education Code, for the
applicable fiscal year, and included within the "total allocations to
school districts and community college districts from General Fund
proceeds of taxes appropriated pursuant to Article XIII B," as
defined in subdivision (e) of Section 41202 of the Education Code,
for that fiscal year.
   (j) As a condition to receiving an apportionment pursuant to
subdivision (h), a school district shall report to the superintendent
all of the following:
   (1) The number of pupils enrolled in the school district in grades
3 to 11, inclusive.
   (2) The number of pupils to whom an achievement test was
administered in grades 3 to 11, inclusive, in the school district.
   (3) The number of pupils in paragraph (1) who were exempted from
the test at the request of their parents or guardians.   
  SEC. 18.   
  SEC. 13.   Section 60642 of the Education Code is amended to
read:
   60642.  (a) The Superintendent of Public Instruction and the State
Board of Education may consider any evaluations of independent
experts who have not been employed by a test publisher in the
preceding 12 months regarding the suitability of the achievement
tests submitted by publishers as required by subdivision (b) of
Section 60605 for use as part of the STAR Program established by this
article.
   (b) Based upon a review of the achievement tests submitted and the
recommendation made by the Superintendent of Public Instruction
pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 60605, the State Board of
Education, in its sole discretion, based on the considerations set
forth in Section 60644, shall designate for use as part of the STAR
Program a single test in grades 3 to 11, inclusive.
   (c) The State Board of Education shall ensure that the achievement
test designated pursuant to subdivision (b) contains the subject
areas specified in subdivision (c) of Section 60603 for grades 3 to
8, inclusive, and the core curriculum areas of English and language
arts, mathematics, and science for grades 9 to 11, inclusive.
   (d) The State Board of Education is hereby authorized to designate
the achievement test to be administered pursuant to this article for
more than one academic year subject to the availability of funds.
   (e) The board shall minimize, to the extent it deems feasible, the
amount of testing time required by the assessment in subdivision (b)
for those content areas for which there also exists a
standards-based examination as provided for pursuant to Section
60642.5.   
  SEC. 19.   
  SEC. 14.   Section 60642.5 of the Education Code is amended to
read:
   60642.5.  (a) The Superintendent of Public Instruction, with
approval of the State Board of Education, shall provide for the
development of an assessment instrument, to be called the California
Standards Tests, that measures the degree to which pupils are
achieving the academically rigorous content standards and performance
standards, to the extent standards have been adopted by the State
Board of Education.  This standards-based achievement test shall
contain the subject areas specified in subdivision (c) of Section
60603 for grades 3 to 8, inclusive, and shall include an assessment
in history/social science in at least one elementary or middle school
grade level selected by the State Board of Education and science in
at least one elementary or middle school grade level selected by the
State Board of Education, and the core curriculum areas specified in
subdivision (e) of Section 60603 for grades 9 to 11, inclusive,
except that history-social science shall not be included in the grade
9 assessment unless the State Board of Education adopts academic
content standards for a grade 9 history-social science course, and
shall include, at a minimum, a direct writing assessment once in
elementary school and once in middle or junior high school and other
items of applied academic skill if deemed valid and reliable and if
resources are made available for their use.
   (b) In approving a contract for the development or administration
of the California Standards Tests, the State Board of Education shall
consider each of the following criteria:
   (1) The ability of the contractor to produce valid, reliable
individual pupil scores.
   (2) The ability of the contractor to report results pursuant to
subdivision (a) of Section 60643 by August 8.
   (3) The ability of the contractor to ensure alignment between the
standards-based achievement test and the academically rigorous
content and performance standards as those standards are adopted by
the State Board of Education.  This criterion shall include the
ability of the contractor to implement a process to establish and
maintain alignment between the test items and the standards.
   (4) The per pupil cost estimates of developing, and, if
appropriate, administering the proposed assessment with a system to
facilitate the determination of future per pupil cost determinations.

   (5) The contractor's procedures  to   for
 ensuring the security and integrity of test questions and
materials.
   (6) The contractor's experience in successfully conducting testing
programs adopted and administered by other states.  For experience
to be considered, the number of grades and pupils tested shall be
provided.
   (c) The standards-based achievement tests may use items from other
tests including items from the achievement test designated pursuant
to Section 60642.   
  SEC. 20.   
  SEC. 15.   Section 60643 of the Education Code is amended to
read:
   60643.  (a) To be eligible for consideration under Section 60642
or 60642.5 by the State Board of Education, test publishers shall
agree in writing each year to meet the following requirements, as
applicable, if selected:
   (1) Enter into an agreement, pursuant to subdivision (e) or (f),
with the State Department of Education by October 15.
   (2) With respect to selection under Section 60642.5, align the
standards-based achievement test provided for in Section 60642.5 to
the academically rigorous content and performance standards adopted
by the State Board of Education.
   (3) Comply with subdivisions (c) and (d) of Section 60645.
   (4) Provide valid and reliable individual pupil scores only in the
content areas specified in subdivision (c) of Section 60642 to
parents or guardians, teachers, and school administrators.
   (5) Provide valid and reliable aggregate scores only in the
content areas specified in subdivision (c) of Section 60642 to school
districts and county boards of education in all of the following
forms and formats:
   (A) Grade level.
   (B) School level.
   (C) District level.
   (D) Countywide.
   (E) Statewide.
   (F) Comparison of statewide scores relative to other states.
   (6) Provide disaggregated scores, based on
limited-English-proficient status and nonlimited-English-proficient
status.  For purposes of this section, pupils with
"nonlimited-English-proficient status" shall include the total of
those pupils who are English-only pupils, fluent-English-proficient
pupils, and redesignated fluent-English-proficient pupils.  These
scores shall be provided to school districts and county boards of
education in the same forms and formats listed in paragraph (5).
   (7) Provide disaggregated scores by pupil gender and provide
disaggregated scores based on whether pupils are economically
disadvantaged or not.  These disaggregated scores shall be in the
same forms and formats as listed in paragraph (5).  In any one year,
the disaggregation shall entail information already being collected
by school districts, county offices of education, or charter schools.

   (8) Provide disaggregated scores for pupils who have
individualized education programs and have enrolled in special
education, to the extent required by federal law.  These scores shall
be provided in the same forms and formats listed in paragraph (5).
This section may not be construed to exclude the scores of special
education pupils from any state or federal accountability system.
   (9) Provide information listed in paragraphs (5), (6), (7), and
(8) to the State Board of Education and the State Department of
Education in the medium requested by each entity, respectively.
   (b) It is the intent of the Legislature that the publisher work
with the Superintendent of Public Instruction and the State Board of
Education in developing a methodology to disaggregate statewide
scores as required in paragraphs (6) and (7) of subdivision (a), and
in determining which variable indicated on the STAR testing document
shall serve as a proxy for "economically disadvantaged" status
pursuant to paragraph (7).
   (c) Access to any information about individual pupils or their
families shall be granted to the publisher only for purposes of
correctly associating test results with the pupils who produced those
results or for reporting and disaggregating test results as required
by this section.  School districts are prohibited from excluding a
pupil from the test if a parent or parents decline to disclose
income.  This chapter does not abridge or deny rights to
confidentiality contained in the Family Educational Rights and
Privacy Act of 1974 (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1232g) or other applicable
provisions of state and federal law that protect the confidentiality
of information collected by educational institutions.
   (d) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the publisher of
the achievement test designated pursuant to Section 60642, the
publisher of the standards-based achievement test provided for in
Section 60642.5, or any contractor under subdivision (f) shall comply
with all of the conditions and requirements enumerated in
subdivision (a), as applicable, to the satisfaction of the State
Board of Education.
   (e) (1) A publisher may not provide a test described in Section
60642, 60642.5, or 60650 or in subdivision (f) of Section 60640 for
use in California public schools unless the publisher enters into a
written contract with the State Department of Education as set forth
in this subdivision.
   (2) The State Department of Education shall develop, and the State
Board of Education shall approve, a contract to be entered into with
any publisher pursuant to paragraph (1).  The department may develop
the contract through negotiations with the publisher.
   (3) For purposes of the contracts authorized pursuant to this
subdivision, the State Department of Education is exempt from the
requirements of Part 2 (commencing with Section 10100) of Division 2
of the Public Contract Code and from the requirements of Article 6
(commencing with Section 999) of Chapter 6 of Division 4 of the
Military and Veterans Code.
   (4) The contracts shall include provisions for progress payments
to the publisher for work performed or costs incurred in the
performance of the contract.  Not less than 10 percent of the amount
budgeted for each separate and distinct component task provided for
in each contract shall be withheld pending final completion of all
component tasks by that publisher.  The total amount withheld pending
final completion shall not exceed 10 percent of the total contract
price.
   (5) The contracts shall require liquidated damages to be paid by
the publisher in the amount of up to 10 percent of the total cost of
the contract for any component task that the publisher through its
own fault or that of its subcontractors fails to substantially
perform by the date specified in the agreement.
   (6) The contracts shall establish the process and criteria by
which the successful completion of each component task shall be
recommended by the State Department of Education and approved by the
State Board of Education.
   (7) The publishers shall submit, as part of the contract
negotiation process, a proposed budget and invoice schedule, that
includes a detailed listing of the costs for each component task and
the expected date of the invoice for each completed component task.
   (8) The contracts shall specify the following component tasks, as
applicable, that are separate and distinct:
   (A) Development of new tests or test items as required by
paragraph (2) of subdivision (a).
   (B) Test materials production or publication.
   (C) Delivery of test materials to school districts.
   (D) Test processing, scoring, and analyses.
   (E) Reporting of test results to the school districts, including,
but not limited to, all reports specified in this section.
   (F) Reporting of test results to the State Department of
Education, including, but not limited to, the electronic files
required pursuant to this section.
   (G) All other analyses or reports required by the Superintendent
of Public Instruction to meet the requirements of state and federal
law and set forth in the agreement.
   (9) The contracts shall specify the specific reports and data
files, if any, that are to be provided to school districts by the
publisher and the number of copies of each report or file to be
provided.
   (10) The contracts shall specify the means by which any delivery
date for materials to each school district shall be verified by the
publisher and the school district.
   (11) School districts may negotiate a separate agreement with the
publisher for any additional materials or services not within the
contracts specified in this subdivision, including, but not limited
to, the administration of the tests to pupils in grade levels other
than grades 3 to 11, inclusive.  Any separate agreement is not within
the scope of the contract specified in this subdivision.
   (f) The State Department of Education, with approval of the State
Board of Education, may enter into a separate contract for the
development or administration of any test authorized pursuant to this
part, including, but not limited to, item development, coordination
of tests, assemblage of tests or test items, scoring, or reporting.
The liquidated damages provision set forth in paragraph (5) of
subdivision (e) shall apply to
               any contract entered into pursuant to this
subdivision.   
  SEC. 21.   
  SEC. 16.   Section 60643.1 of the Education Code is amended to
read:
   60643.1.  (a) (1) Commencing in the 1999-2000 school year, and
each school year thereafter, the test publisher designated by the
State Board of Education pursuant to Section 60642 shall make
available a reading list on the Internet by June 1.  The reading list
shall include an index that correlates ranges of pupil reading
scores on the English language arts portion of the achievement test
designated pursuant to Section 60642 to titles of materials that
would be suitable for pupils in each of grades 3 to 11, inclusive, to
read in order to improve their reading skills.  This reading list
shall include titles of books that allow a pupil to practice reading
at his or her current reading level and that will assist the pupil in
achieving a higher level of proficiency.  To the extent possible,
the index shall also include information related to the subject
matter of each title.  At a minimum, the reading list shall also
categorize titles by subject matter and identify age-appropriate
distinctions in the list.
   (2) Commencing in the 1999-2000 school year, and each school year
thereafter, the test publisher shall make available, for purchase by
school districts, a report that provides a numerical distribution of
the reading scores of all pupils in California who took the
achievement test designated pursuant to Section 60642.
   (3) Commencing in the 1999-2000 school year, and each school year
thereafter, the test publisher shall make available, for purchase by
school districts, reading lists that can be distributed to pupils
based on a pupil's age and the ranges of scores on the English
language arts portion of the achievement test designated pursuant to
Section 60642.
   (4) The requirements of this subdivision shall only become
operative upon a determination by the Director of Finance that funds
are available to make an adjustment pursuant to subdivision (h) of
Section 60640.
   (b) The State Board of Education and the Superintendent of Public
Instruction shall jointly certify that the process used by the
publisher to determine the reading levels of the corresponding
reading list pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) meets the
following criteria:
   (1) The process is educationally valid.
   (2) The process results in a reading list for each reading span
that provides titles at the pupil's current reading level and the
next higher level for challenging practice.
   (3) The process results in a selection from the universe of titles
from the list developed pursuant to subdivision (d) that matches
each reading level.
   (4) The process is unbiased in the selection of publishers' titles
from the legal compliance list.
   (c) The titles listed at each reading level range posted on the
Internet and the reading lists made available to school districts
pursuant to subdivision (a) shall, at a minimum, include all relevant
literature materials approved as of September 1, 1999, as being
legally compliant pursuant to Article 3 (commencing with Section
60040) of Chapter 1, and the titles listed in all of the content area
reading and literature lists that are developed and published by the
State Department of Education and that have been determined by the
department to meet the relevant reading level as certified pursuant
to subdivision (b).
   (d) By imposing the requirements of this section on publishers, it
is not the intent of the Legislature to unfairly disadvantage any
publisher who has otherwise met the requirements of this section or
of Article 3 (commencing with Section 60040) of Chapter 1 of Part 33.
   
  SEC. 22.   
  SEC. 17.   Section 60851 of the Education Code is amended to
read:
   60851.  (a) Commencing with the  2003-04  
2005-06  school year and each school year thereafter, each pupil
completing grade 12 shall successfully pass the exit examination as
 specified in this section   a condition of
receiving a diploma of graduation or a condition of graduation from
high school .  Funding for the administration of the exit
examination shall be provided for in the annual Budget Act.  The
Superintendent of Public Instruction shall apportion funds
appropriated for this purpose to enable school districts to meet the
requirements of subdivisions (a), (b), (d), and (e).  The State Board
of Education shall establish the amount of funding to be apportioned
per test administered, based on a review of the cost per test.
   (b) A pupil may take the high school exit examination in grade 9
in the 2000-01 school year only.  Each pupil shall take the high
school exit examination in grade 10 beginning in the 2001-02 school
year and may take the examination during each subsequent
administration, until each section of the examination has been passed
or the pupil graduates.
   (c)  The   Until the 2005-06 school year, the
 governing board of a school district may determine the role of
the high school exit examination in the district's graduation
requirement.
   (d) At the parent or guardian's request, a school principal shall
submit a request for a waiver of the requirement to continue
attempting to successfully pass the high school exit examination to
the governing board of the school district for a pupil with a
disability who has taken the high school exit examination with
modifications that alter what the test measures and has received the
equivalent of a passing score on one or both subject matter parts of
the high school exit examination.  A governing board of a school
district may waive the requirement to continue attempting to
successfully pass one or both subject matter parts of the high school
exit examination for a pupil with a disability if the principal
certifies to the governing board of the school district that the
pupil has all of the following:
   (1) An individualized education program adopted pursuant to the
federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. Sec.
1400 et seq.) or a plan adopted pursuant to Section 504 of the
federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Sec. 794(a)) in place
that requires the accommodations or modifications to be provided to
the pupil when taking the high school exit examination.
   (2) Sufficient high school level coursework either satisfactorily
completed or in progress in a high school level curriculum sufficient
to have attained the skills and knowledge otherwise needed to pass
the high school exit examination.
   (3) An individual score report for the pupil showing that the
pupil has received the equivalent of a passing score on the high
school exit examination while using a modification that fundamentally
alters what the high school exit examination measures as determined
by the State Board of Education.
   (e) The high school exit examination shall be offered in each
public school and state special school that provides instruction in
grades 10, 11, or 12, on the dates designated by the Superintendent
of Public Instruction.  An exit examination may not be administered
on any date other than those designated by the Superintendent of
Public Instruction as examination days or makeup days.
   (f) The results of the high school exit examination shall be
provided to each pupil taking the examination within eight weeks of
the examination administration and in time for the pupil to take any
section of the examination not passed at the next administration.  A
pupil shall take again only those parts of the examination he or she
has not previously passed and may not retake any portion of the exam
that he or she has previously passed.
   (g) Supplemental instruction shall be provided to any pupil who
does not demonstrate sufficient progress toward passing the high
school exit examination.  To the extent that school districts have
aligned their curriculum with the state academic content standards
adopted by the State Board of Education, the curriculum for
supplemental instruction shall reflect those standards and shall be
designed to assist the pupils to succeed on the high school exit
examination.  This chapter does not  to  require the
provision of supplemental services using resources that are not
regularly available to a school or school district, including summer
school instruction provided pursuant to Section 37252.  In no event
shall any action taken as a result of this subdivision cause or
require reimbursement by the Commission on State Mandates.
Sufficient progress shall be determined on the basis of either of the
following:
   (1) The results of the assessments administered pursuant to
Article 4 (commencing with Section 60640) of Chapter 5 of Part 33 and
the minimum levels of proficiency recommended by the State Board of
Education pursuant to Section 60648.
   (2) The pupils' grades and other indicators of academic
achievement designated by the district.   
  SEC. 23.  Section 60852 of the Education Code is amended to read:
   60852.  Notwithstanding Section 60851, if a school district
determines that a pupil does not possess sufficient English language
skills to be assessed pursuant to Section 60850, the district may
defer the requirement that the pupil take the high school exit
examination for a period of up to 24 calendar months of enrollment in
the California public school system until the pupil has completed
six months of instruction in reading, writing, and comprehension in
the English language.
  SEC. 24.   
  SEC. 18.   Section 60856 of the Education Code is amended to
read:
   60856.  After adoption and the initial administrations of the high
school exit examination the State Board of Education, in
consultation with the Superintendent of Public Instruction, shall
study the appropriateness of other criteria by which high school
pupils who are regarded as highly proficient but unable to pass the
high school exit examination may demonstrate their 
competency.   competency and receive a high school
diploma.   This criteria shall include, but is not limited to,
an exemplary academic record as evidenced by transcripts and
alternative tests of equal rigor in the academic areas covered by the
high school exit examination.  If the State Board of Education
determines that other criteria are appropriate and do not undermine
the intent of this chapter that all high school graduates demonstrate
satisfactory academic proficiency, the board shall forward its
recommendations to the Legislature for enactment.   
  SEC. 25.   
  SEC. 19.   Section 60859 of the Education Code is repealed.