BILL NUMBER: SB 759	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Senator Alquist

                        FEBRUARY 23, 2007

   An act relating to school accountability.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SB 759, as introduced, Alquist. School accountability report card.

   Existing law requires the development by public schools of a
school accountability report card to provide data by which a parent
can make meaningful comparisons between public schools that will
enable him or her to make an informed decision on which school to
enroll his or her children. Statutory provisions require that
specified content be included in the report card.
   This bill would declare the intent of the Legislature to enact
legislation to conduct a comprehensive review of the school
accountability report card with the participation of the State Board
of Education, the Governor, the Legislative Analyst, relevant
committees of the Legislature, and a wide variety of governmental
agencies, school districts, and organizations representing parents,
guardians, and other involved parties during 2007.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.


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

  SECTION 1.  (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
   (1) Proposition 98, approved by the voters at the November 8,
1988, statewide general election, requires public schools in
California annually to produce a school accountability report card
that parents or guardians can use to obtain information about schools
to assist them in making informed decisions about a school in which
to enroll their children.
   (2) The report card would be more clear, readable, and useful if
it were streamlined and modernized.
   (3) Since Proposition 98 was enacted in 1988, new requirements
have been continually added to the report card, resulting in a
lengthy and complex document that is difficult to read and understand
and that cannot be easily used by parents or guardians, educators,
and the public.
   (4) A comprehensive review of the required content of the report
card is needed to consider the deletion of any obsolete or
duplicative provisions, to streamline the format in which information
and data are displayed, and to improve the readability of the report
card.
   (5) The report card can be a valuable means of accountability for
school expenditures and assessment results, and can be an important
means for parents, guardians, and the public to compare the schools
available to their children when it is accessible and understandable.

   (b) It is, therefore, the intent of the Legislature to enact
legislation to conduct a comprehensive review of the school
accountability report card with the participation of the State Board
of Education, the Governor, the Legislative Analyst, relevant
committees of the Legislature, and a wide variety of governmental
agencies, school districts, and organizations representing parents,
guardians, and other involved parties. It is further the intent of
the Legislature that the comprehensive review be conducted during
2007 and result in recommendations for further legislation.