OKAY. I'D LIKE TO CALL THIS
MEETING TO ORDER. GOOD
AFTERNOON, EVERYONE, THIS IS A
HEARING OF THE ASSEMBLY
EDUCATION COMMITTEE. AND I'D
LIKE TO WELCOME OUR VICE CHAIR,
ASSEMBLYMEMBER FLORA, AND WOULD
LIKE TO, ENCOURAGE ALL OF THE
REST OF THE COMMITTEE TO PLEASE
COME TO ROOM 1100 SO THAT WE CAN
ESTABLISH A QUORUM. I'D LIKE TO,
START OFF BY SAYING THAT WE HAVE
SEVEN TÍNH BILLS ON FILE, 17
BILLS, AND THERE ARE SEVEN BILLS
ON CONSENT, WHICH MEANS THEY'LL
BE TAKEN UP AS A GROUP, AND YOU
WILL NOT HEAR ANY PRESENTATIONS
OR ANY DISCUSSION ON ANY OF THE
FOLLOWING BILLS. THE SEVEN BILLS
ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR ARE AB,
AB, 2165 WITH AMENDMENTS. AB
2317, AB 2381, AB 2690, AB 2725
WITH AMENDMENTS AB 2961 WITH
AMENDMENTS AND AB 2968 WITH
AMENDMENTS. THOSE BILLS, IF
YOU'RE HERE FOR ANY OF THOSE
BILLS, YOU WILL NOT HEAR ANY
PRESENTATION OR DISCUSSION ON
THOSE BILLS. WHEN WE ESTABLISH A
QUORUM, WILL BE VOTING TO
APPROVE THOSE BILLS, AS A GROUP.
ONE BILL HAS BEEN PULLED AND
WILL NOT BE HEARD TODAY, THAT
BILL IS FILED. ITEM NUMBER FIVE,
AB 2097. SO IF YOU'RE HERE FOR
AB 2097, THAT WAS ON COMPUTER
SCIENCE. THAT WILL NOT BE
DISCUSSED TODAY. AND SO YOU CAN
GO HOME IF THAT WAS YOUR ONLY
BILL, ALTHOUGH YOU'RE WELCOME TO
STAY FOR THE REST OF THE BILLS,
BILLS WERE WILL BE HEARD AND
SIGNED IN ORDER, WE HAVE,
ASSEMBLYMEMBER WEBER, FIRST ON
THE LIST OF THE SIGN UP BEFORE
WE INVITE ASSEMBLYMEMBER WEBER,
TO COME FORWARD. I'D LIKE TO
REMIND EVERYONE THAT FOR EACH
BILL, OUR STANDARD PROCEDURE IS
THAT WE HAVE UP TO TWO WITNESSES
IN SUPPORT. TWO WITNESSES IN
OPPOSITION. EACH OF WHOM MAY
SPEAK FOR UP TO TWO MINUTES
EACH. MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC AND
THE HEARING ROOM WILL THEN HAVE
AN OPPORTUNITY TO STATE YOUR
POSITION ON THE BILL. BUT PLEASE
LIMIT YOUR COMMENTS TO YOUR
NAME, YOUR AFFILIATION, AND THE
POSITION. YOUR POSITION ON THE
BILL. ONLY MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC
ARE ALSO WELCOME TO PROVIDE
FURTHER DETAILED COMMENT THROUGH
THE POSITION LETTER PORTAL ON
THE ASSEMBLY EDUCATION COMMITTEE
WEBSITE. I'D LIKE TO ALSO,
INDICATE THAT, WE HAVE HAD,
RECENTLY EXPERIENCED A NUMBER OF
DISRUPTIONS ÓRDENES IN OUR
HEARING PROCEEDINGS, CONDUCT
THAT DISRUPTS, DISTURBS OR
OTHERWISE IMPEDES THE ORDERLY
CONDUCT OF THE HEARING IS
STRICTLY PROHIBITED. SUCH
CONDUCT MAY INCLUDE TALKING OR
MAKING LOUD NOISES FROM THE
AUDIENCE, UTTERING LOUD,
THREATENING OR ABUSIVE LANGUAGE,
SPEAKING LONGER THAN THE TIME
ALLOTTED, EXTENDED DISCUSSION OF
MATTERS NOT RELATED TO THE
SUBJECT MATTER OF THE BILL OR
HEARING, OR ANY OTHER DISRUPTIVE
CONDUCT TO ADDRESS ANY
DISRUPTIVE CONDUCT, I WILL HAVE
TO TAKE THE FOLLOWING STEPS. IF
AN INDIVIDUAL DISRUPTS OUR
HEARING, I WILL DIRECT THEM
FIRST TO STOP AND TO WARN THEM
THAT CONTINUED DISRUPTIONS MAY
RESULT IN REMOVAL FROM THE
CAPITOL BUILDING. WE WILL ALSO
DOCUMENT ON THE RECORD THE
INDIVIDUAL INVOLVED AND THE
NATURE OF THE DISRUPTIVE
CONDUCT. AND IF THE CONDUCT DOES
NOT STOP, WE WILL HAVE TO
REQUEST THE ASSISTANCE OF THE
SERGEANTS IN THE ROOM. IN
ESCORTING INDIVIDUALS FROM THE
CAPITOL BUILDING. SO WITH ALL
THAT SAID, I'D LIKE TO WELCOME
ASSEMBLYMEMBER WEBER TO PRESENT,
ASSEMBLY BILL NINE TÍNH 84,
WHICH IS FILE ITEM NUMBER THREE.
WELCOME. ASSEMBLY MEMBER. IS
THAT WORKING? IT WAS OKAY. OKAY.
ALL RIGHT. GOOD AFTERNOON,
CHAIR. AND MEMBERS OF THIS
COMMITTEE. THANK YOU, COMMITTEE
CHAIR AND STAFF FOR YOUR
THOUGHTFUL CONVERSATION. AND I
WILL BE ACCEPTING THE COMMITTEE
AMENDMENTS. I AM HERE TO PRESENT
AB 1984, WHICH SEEKS TO EXPAND
TRANSPARENCY BETWEEN SCHOOLS AND
THE FAMILIES THAT THEY SERVE BY
REQUIRING THE CALIFORNIA
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TO
COLLECT AND PUBLISH DATA ON
TRANSFERS TO ALTERNATIVE
SCHOOLS. ALTERNATIVE SCHOOLS CAN
RANGE FROM CONTINUATION AND
COMMUNITY SCHOOLS TO JUVENILE
COURT OR INDEPENDENT CHARTERS. A
RECENT REPORT FOUND THAT THESE
TYPES OF TRANSFERS REPRESENT A
LARGE, HIDDEN SHARE OF
CALIFORNIA'S EXCLUSIONARY
DISCIPLINE FOR BEHAVIOR
PROBLEMS. WHILE SUSPENSION AND
EXPULSION DATA ARE REQUIRED TO
BE PUBLICLY REPORTED, THERE IS
NO SUCH REQUIREMENT FOR
TRANSFERS. FAMILIES AND
ADVOCATES INSIST THAT LEAS
INCREASE. WE RELY ON VOLUNTARY
AND INVOLUNTARY TRANSFER AS A
MEANS OF FORCING STUDENTS OUT OF
SCHOOL CAMPUSES, CALLING
INVOLUNTARY TRANSFERS EXPULSIONS
BY ANOTHER NAME WHILE EXPULSIONS
ARE REQUIRED TO HAVE A HEARING
WITH DUE PROCESS, APPEAL RIGHTS
OR PROOF THAT OTHER MEANS OF
CORRECTION WERE USED, TRANSFERS
HAVE NO MEANINGFUL
ACCOUNTABILITY OR CLEAR
DISCLOSURE. THESE TYPES OF
TRANSFERS DISPROPORTIONATELY
IMPACT STUDENTS OF COLOR, FOSTER
YOUTH AND STUDENTS WITH
DISABILITIES. A RECENT PUBLIC
REPORT. REQUEST OF DATE OF
DISTRICT DATA ON ENROLLMENT
VERSUS TRANSFERS FOUND THAT
BLACK STUDENTS WERE
OVERREPRESENTED IN THE TRANSFER
DATA FOR DISCIPLINE REASONS.
FINDINGS IN OAKLAND UNIFIED, FOR
EXAMPLE, THAT BLACK STUDENTS
REPRESENT 23% OF THE ENROLLMENT,
BUT 48% OF DISCIPLINARY
TRANSFERS. MOREOVER, TRANSFERS
TO ALTERNATIVE SCHOOLS HEAVILY
DISRUPT A CHILD'S EDUCATION AND
MORE OFTEN THAN NOT, LESS
SUPPORTED AT SCHOOLS WITH LESS
CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES AND HAVE
SEVERE NEGATIVE IMPACT ON A
STUDENT'S COLLEGE READINESS AND
OUTCOME. THESE STAGGERING
FIGURES AND STORIES FROM
FAMILIES AND ADVOCATES ARE
EXACTLY WHY THE CALIFORNIA
REPARATIONS TASK FORCE MADE THIS
ONE OF THEIR POLICY REPARATIONS
TO ADDRESS SEPARATE, UNEQUAL AND
UNEQUAL EDUCATION. WITH ME HERE
TODAY TO SPEAK IN SUPPORT IS
DOCTOR JAY LOCKWOOD, PRESIDENT
AT SACRAMENTO STATE. AND MONA,
I'M SORRY, MONA TORQUATO FROM
EQUAL JUSTICE SOCIETY. THANK YOU
. THANK YOU. SO I'M HERE, MY
NAME IS LUKE, AND SERVE AS
PRESIDENT OF SACRAMENTO STATE.
I'M NOT HERE ON BEHALF OF
SACRAMENTO STATE, BUT ON BEHALF
OF THE WORK THAT WE'VE DONE FOR
MANY YEARS AS RESEARCHERS IN
SUPPORT OF AB 1984. SO SO, OUR
WORK IS FOCUSED THROUGH OUR
CENTER AT SAN DIEGO STATE BEFORE
MY TRANSITION HERE WITH FRANK
HARRIS ON EXCLUSIONARY
DISCIPLINE FOR STUDENTS ACROSS
THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA, SO THAT
INCLUDES SUSPENSIONS, SCHOOL
SUSPENSIONS, WHICH CAN BE IN
SCHOOL OR OUT OF SCHOOL. IT
INCLUDES EXPULSIONS. IT CAN
INCLUDE SIMPLE THINGS LIKE A
LOSS OF RECESS OR NOT BEING ABLE
TO PARTICIPATE IN
EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES. THE
HOLISTIC WAY IN WHICH CHILDREN
ARE EXCLUDED FROM LEARNING
ENVIRONMENTS, AND ONE OF THE
THINGS THAT ONE OF THE REASONS
THAT WE COME TO THIS WORK IS
BECAUSE WHAT EXCLUSIONARY
DISCIPLINE MEANS FOR WHAT IS
OFTENTIMES REFERRED TO AS THE
SCHOOL TO PRISON PIPELINE. SO IN
THE SCHOLARLY REALM, WHEN WE
TALK ABOUT THE SCHOOL TO PRISON
PIPELINE, WE'RE LOOKING
PRIMARILY AT TWO FACTORS. THE
FIRST IS OVERREPRESENTATION OF
IN SPECIAL EDUCATION FOR
STUDENTS WHO ARE NOT IN NEED OF
THAT SERVICE. AND THEN THE
SECOND PILLAR ARE IS
OVEREXPOSURE TO EXCLUSIONARY
DISCIPLINE SUSPENSIONS,
EXPULSIONS, TRANSFERS, AND THOSE
TWO SERVE AS THE TWO PILLARS TO
THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM.
FIRST, THROUGH
OVERREPRESENTATION IN THE
JUVENILE JUSTICE AND JUVENILE
COURT SYSTEM AND THEN EVENTUALLY
IN THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM.
THE WORK ON VOLUNTARY AND
INVOLUNTARY TRANSFERS IS ONE
THAT IS NOT NEAR WHAT WE'RE
SEEING IN TERMS OF SUSPENSIONS
AND EXPULSIONS, BECAUSE THE
STATE LEVEL DATA IS AVAILABLE,
GROUPS LIKE OURS OFTENTIMES
PRODUCE REPORTS THAN USED FOR
PUBLIC ACCOUNTABILITY, AND HAVE
LED TO SOME SIGNIFICANT CHANGES
ACROSS THE STATE. THE WORK ON
SUSPENSIONS WITH THE LEGISLATURE
FOR EXAMPLE, HAS LED TO
REDUCTIONS IN SUSPENSIONS ACROSS
THE STATE BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE
MORE AWARE AND THE DATA IS MORE
READILY AVAILABLE. WHAT HAPPENS
WITH VOLUNTARY AND INVOLUNTARY
TRANSFERS IS BECAUSE THE DATA IS
NOT AVAILABLE. IT IS A BLACK BOX
THAT OFTENTIMES WE DON'T KNOW
WHAT HAPPENS EXCEPT ANECDOTALLY
THROUGH CONVERSATIONS WITH
FAMILIES. WE'VE COLLECTED DATA
FROM OVER 1000 PARENTS OF BLACK
CHILDREN, AND ONE OF THE BIG
THEMES THAT CAME OUT CAME OUT IN
ONE OF THE RESEARCH STUDIES THAT
WE DID WAS THAT STUDENTS WERE
BEING WERE FAMILIES WERE BEING
ENCOURAGED TO TAKE THEIR
CHILDREN TO ANOTHER ENVIRONMENT.
AND OFTENTIMES WHEN WE THINK
ABOUT THIS, YOU MAY BE THINKING
ABOUT KIDS IN HIGH SCHOOL OR
MIDDLE SCHOOL. ACTUALLY, WHAT WE
FOUND IS REALLY IN KINDERGARTEN
THROUGH THIRD GRADE IS A BIG
PATTERN OF THIS WHERE YOU HAVE A
STUDENT, THE EDUCATORS IN THAT
ENVIRONMENT DON'T WANT THEM IN
THAT ENVIRONMENT. AND SO A
VOLUNTARY TRANSFER COULD BE THEM
SAYING, HEY, WHY DON'T YOU GO TO
THIS OTHER SCHOOL? BECAUSE WE
DON'T WANT TO PUT AN EXPULSION
ON YOUR RECORD, BECAUSE THAT
COULD REALLY HURT YOU. AND THEN
THAT CREATES A SITUATION WHERE
NOW THEY'VE CIRCUMVENTED ALL THE
POLICIES AND PRACTICES, THERE IS
NO DUE PROCESS. AND THIS
HAPPENS. AND IN FACT, AS WE WERE
WORKING ON ONE OF OUR RESEARCH
STUDIES ON THIS, ONE OF THE
RESEARCHERS ON THE TEAM, THEY
HAD A FAMILY MEMBER, ONE OF
THEIR, ONE OF THEIR CHILDREN,
WHO WAS SUBJECT TO AN
INVOLUNTARY TRANSFER BASED UPON
FACTORS THAT DID NOT OCCUR, BUT
THERE WAS NO RECOURSE AND NO
FOLLOW UP. IT WAS JUST AN
INVOLUNTARY TRANSFER. SIR, YOUR
TWO MINUTES ARE UP. I'M GOING TO
ASK YOU TO WRAP UP SO VERY MUCH
IN SUPPORT OF THE BILL. THANK
YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. GOOD
AFTERNOON, MONA TAOTAO OF THE
EQUAL JUSTICE SOCIETY IN
SUPPORT, TOO OFTEN IN OUR WORK
AS A CIVIL RIGHTS AND RACIAL
JUSTICE ORGANIZATION, WE SEE
CALIFORNIA SCHOOL DISTRICTS
WRONGFULLY FORCED STUDENTS FROM
GENERAL EDUCATION INTO
ALTERNATIVE OR CONTINUATION
SCHOOLS WHERE THEY DO FAR WORSE
IN GRADUATION RATES AND
ACADEMICALLY. OVERALL BY MAKING
DATA ON TRANSFERS PUBLICLY
AVAILABLE, AB 1984 WOULD
INCREASE PARENTS AND STUDENTS
ABILITY TO HOLD SCHOOL DISTRICTS
ACCOUNTABLE. THE LEGISLATURE
RECOGNIZES EXPULSIONS AS SEVERE
DISCIPLINE. WE SEE DISTRICTS CAN
AND DO USE TRANSFERS AS
DESCRIBED AS DE FACTO EXPULSIONS
BECAUSE OF DUE PROCESS LOOPHOLES
IN OUR SCHOOL TRANSFER LAWS FOR
INSTANCE, DISTRICTS ARE ALLOWED
TO GIVE PARENTS VERY SHORT
NOTICE OF INVOLUNTARY TRANSFER
HEARINGS, SO WORKING PARENTS ARE
FORCED TO CHOOSE BETWEEN BAD JOB
CONSEQUENCES AND SHOWING UP TO
SUPPORT THEIR CHILD. TO STAY IN
GENERAL EDUCATION, IT'S
IMPORTANT FOR PARENTS, STUDENTS
AND COMMUNITY GROUPS LIKE THOSE
WE WORK WITH TO HAVE PUBLIC DATA
ON THIS IN A DISCRIMINATORY
DISCIPLINE CASE AGAINST THE
ANTELOPE VALLEY UNION HIGH
SCHOOL DISTRICT, IT TOOK OUR
TEAM OF CO-COUNSEL, ATTORNEYS
MANY FORMAL DEMANDS OVER MONTHS
TO OBTAIN DATA THAT SHOWED THAT
THAT DISTRICT HAD MANY MORE
TRANSFERS THAN ITS ALREADY HIGH
NUMBER OF EXPULSIONS, THAT
STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES WERE
MORE THAN TWICE AS LIKELY TO BE
TRANSFERRED FOR DISCIPLINE THAN
NON-DISABLED STUDENTS, AND THAT
BLACK STUDENTS WERE FIVE TIMES
MORE LIKELY TO BE SO TRANSFERRED
THAN THEIR PEERS. PUBLIC DATA ON
TRANSFERS MAY HAVE HELPED
PARENTS AND STUDENT PLAINTIFFS
IN THAT CASE OBTAIN THE PARTIAL
COURT RELIEF THEY GOT SOONER. IN
A SIMILAR CASE AGAINST KERN HIGH
SCHOOL DISTRICT AND OTHER
DEFENDANTS, THERE WERE
SIGNIFICANT DROPS IN OVERALL
SUSPENSION AND SUSPENSION OF
LATINO STUDENTS AFTER THE
LITIGATION WAS BROUGHT. BUT LIKE
A WHACK A MOLE, THERE WAS
INDICATION OF DISCIPLINE
CROPPING UP IN THE FORM OF
TRANSFERS. INSTEAD, ESPECIALLY
FOR BLACK STUDENTS. PUBLIC DATA
IN THAT CASE MIGHT HAVE HELPED
ACHIEVE A BETTER OUTCOME FOR
BOTH. THESE SCHOOL DISTRICTS
HAVE ALSO CONFLATED VOLUNTARY
AND INVOLUNTARY TRANSFERS,
ENABLING DISTRICTS TO APPEAR
THAT THEIR HARSH DISCIPLINE IS
LESS PREVALENT THAN IT ACTUALLY
IS. SB 1984 IS A REQUIREMENT TO
DISAGGREGATE PARENT GUARDIAN
STUDENT INITIATED TRANSFERS,
DISTINCT FROM DISTRICT INITIATED
TRANSFERS IS AN IMPORTANT WAY TO
ADDRESS THIS WRAPPING UP
TRANSFER. IN CALIFORNIA, SCHOOLS
ARE OPERATING AS DISCIPLINE LIKE
SUSPENSIONS AND EXPULSIONS. THEY
SHOULD BE PUBLICLY REPORTED.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU VERY MUCH,
ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS IN SUPPORT
OF THE BILL? SEEING NONE, ANY
WITNESSES IN OPPOSITION TO THIS
BILL, PLEASE COME FORWARD SEEING
NONE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS IN
OPPOSITION TO THE BILL? SEEING
NONE, BRINGING IT BACK TO THE
COMMITTEE. MOTION'S BEEN MADE.
OH, WE, WE HAVE NOT ESTABLISHED
A QUORUM YET. AND SO, WE WILL
WAIT TO DO THAT. BUT, IN THE
MEANTIME, ANY QUESTIONS OR ANY
ANY COMMENTS? OKAY I HAVE A
QUESTION. WELL, FIRST OF ALL,
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THIS
IMPORTANT MEASURE. I THINK.
ABSOLUTELY. WE NEED TO HAVE, AT
THE VERY START, MORE DATA TO
DOCUMENT, WHAT EXACTLY IS
HAPPENING SO THAT WE CAN HAVE A
BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF, OF, OF
THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM, BUT,
I MEAN, FROM DATA THAT'S
AVAILABLE NOW, ARE THERE ANY
OVERALL THEMES OR, YOU KNOW,
PATTERNS THAT YOU'VE IDENTIFIED
IN YOUR RESEARCH IN TERMS OF
WHAT IS DRIVING, THE
DISPROPORTIONATE RATES OF
STUDENT DISCIPLINE, IN VARIOUS
SUBGROUPS? WELL, THERE'S A
NUMBER OF FACTORS THAT, INVOLVE
THIS. SO SOME OF IT IS REALLY IF
YOU'RE THINKING ABOUT THE
UNDERLYING FACTOR THAT A LOT OF
OUR TEACHERS AREN'T NECESSARILY
PREPARED TO WORK WITH OUR
CHILDREN OF COLOR. AND IF YOU
THINK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, YOUR
AVERAGE TEACHER FORCE IS NOT
NECESSARILY REFLECTIVE OF THE
STUDENTS OF THE AND THE FAMILIES
AND COMMUNITIES THAT THEY SERVE.
AND SO IT IS NOT UNCOMMON FOR
PEOPLE TO MAKE JUDGMENTS AND
DECISIONS THAT ACCUMULATE OVER
TIME, THAT ARE BASED UPON
ASSUMPTIONS AND STEREOTYPES.
WHAT MANY PEOPLE REFER TO AS
IMPLICIT BIAS. AND SO WE DO SEE
THAT AS BEING ONE OF THE FACTORS
THAT IS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS. WE
DO TEND TO SEE IN OUR WORK WHEN
IT COMES TO EXCLUSIONARY
DISCIPLINE, THAT WHEN YOU'RE IN
RURAL AREAS THAT IT IS MORE THAT
IS MORE PREVALENT OFTENTIMES
BECAUSE THERE'S LESS OVERSIGHT,
YOU'RE FARTHER AWAY FROM
DECISION MAKING BODIES. AND SO
SOMETIMES THESE THINGS MANIFEST.
YOU KNOW, PRETTY QUICKLY, IN
ADDITION TO THAT, I WOULD JUST
SAY, YOU KNOW, THESE ARE
STRUCTURAL ISSUES WITH MANY OF
OUR WITH MANY OF OUR
INSTITUTIONS AND DISTRICTS. SO
THEY'RE REALLY GOOD AT
COLLECTING DATA ON WHAT THEY'RE
ASKED TO COLLECT DATA ON. AND
THEY'RE REALLY NOT GOOD AT
COLLECTING DATA ON THINGS THAT
THEY'RE NOT ASKED TO. RIGHT.
BECAUSE OF THE LEVEL OF PRESSURE
THAT THEY'RE UNDER FOR, YOU
KNOW, THE, THE VARIOUS THINGS
THAT THEY'RE MANAGING. SO THAT'S
NORMAL IN ANY SOCIAL
INSTITUTION. BUT IT CERTAINLY
CREATES AN ADVERSE IMPACT ON OUR
ON OUR STUDENTS OF COLOR. I'M
VERY PROUD THAT THIS THIS BILL
IS BEING CARRIED BY ASSEMBLY
MEMBER WEBER. I THINK THAT IT IS
ONE THAT REALLY COULD ACTUALLY
HAVE A MEANINGFUL IMPACT,
BECAUSE IF YOU LOOK AT WHAT
HAPPENED WITH SUSPENSIONS AND
HOW THAT HAS WENT DOWN OVER
TIME, SIMPLY HAVING DATA
AVAILABLE CREATES A DIFFERENT
CONVERSATION. A DIFFERENT
CONVERSATION CREATES DIFFERENT
OUTCOMES. ALL RIGHT. I THINK
EITHER THE AUTHOR OR SOMEONE
MENTIONED, OAKLAND UNIFIED AS,
AS ONE EXAMPLE, BUT, IS THERE A
SIGNIFICANT GAP BETWEEN THE, THE
RACIAL AND ETHNIC COMPOSITION OF
THE STUDENTS IN OAKLAND UNIFIED
COMPARED TO THEIR TEACHERS AND
STAFF? DO YOU HAVE THAT? I, I
KNOW THAT'S VERY SPECIFIC. I WAS
JUST CURIOUS. I DO NOT HAVE THAT
ON ME, BUT WE WILL GET THAT OKAY
WITH YOU. BUT I THINK WHAT YOU
CAN INFER UP AND DOWN THE STATE
IS WE DO NOT HAVE A DIVERSE
TEACHER POOL. YEAH. REGARDLESS
OF WHAT CITY EVEN IN LIKE LOS
ANGELES. RIGHT SO, I DO NOT
THINK THAT YOU HAVE AN
OVERWHELMINGLY NUMBER OF, YOU
KNOW, BLACK AND BROWN STUDENTS
IN THE OAKLAND UNIFIED COMPARED
TO THE STUDENT POPULATION
PERCENTAGE THAT THEY HAVE. BUT
WE'LL GET THOSE NUMBERS FOR YOU.
OKAY. THANK YOU VERY MUCH,
IMPORTANT BILL, MY
RECOMMENDATION IS TO SUPPORT THE
BILL. WOULD YOU LIKE TO CLOSE?
WELL, AGAIN, I WANT TO THANK THE
COMMITTEE FOR WORKING WITH ME
AND MY STAFF ON THE AMENDMENTS.
I LIKE TO THANK MY TWO WITNESSES
THAT ARE HERE TO SPEAK IN
SUPPORT, SPECIFICALLY WANT TO
THANK, DOCTOR LUKE WOOD. THIS
WAS ACTUALLY ONE OF HIS IDEAS
THAT HE BROUGHT WHEN HE WAS IN
MY DISTRICT, WHEN HE WAS IN SAN
DIEGO A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO, AND
SO, YOU KNOW, BRINGING THIS
ISSUE TO LIGHT IS EXTREMELY
IMPORTANT BECAUSE ANY DISRUPTION
THÀNH TO A STUDENT'S EDUCATION
CAN HAVE AND DOES HAVE LIFE
ALTERING IMPACTS, AND BECAUSE WE
DON'T HAVE ANY DATA ASSOCIATED
WITH THIS PARTICULAR ASPECT OF
DISCIPLINARY ACTION, WE NEED TO
MAKE SURE THAT WE INCREASE THE
TRANSPARENCY AND ALLOW FOR IT TO
BE PUBLICLY AND READILY
AVAILABLE SO THAT WE CAN DO
BETTER FOR ALL OF OUR STUDENTS.
AND WITH THAT, I RESPECTFULLY
ASK FOR YOUR VOTE. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH, WHEN WE ESTABLISH A
QUORUM, WE'LL, TAKE IT UP FOR A
VOTE. THANK YOU FOR YOUR
PRESENTATION TODAY. ALL RIGHT,
NEXT IN SIGN IN ORDER, WE HAVE
ASSEMBLYMEMBER WARD. AB 1858,
WHICH IS FILE ITEM NUMBER TWO.
OKAY, YOU'RE AHEAD ON THE SIGN
IN, BUT IF YOU WANT TO DEFER TO
MISS PAPIN. ALL RIGHT. OKAY, SO
THIS IS, FILE ITEM NUMBER 11, AB
2571 BY ASSEMBLY MEMBER PAPIN.
THANK YOU SO MUCH, MR. CHAIR.
AND MEMBERS, I'M HERE TO PRESENT
AB 2571, AND IT WILL MAKE
HELPFUL DECLARATIONS OF EXISTING
LAW TO ENSURE THAT THE INTENT
AND PURPOSE OF PROP 39 CONTINUES
TO BE MET. IN 2000, CALIFORNIA
VOTERS HAD THE FORESIGHT TO PASS
PROP 39, WHICH AIDED SCHOOL
DISTRICTS IN THEIR ABILITY TO
PROVIDE STUDENTS WITH SAFE AND
EDUCATIONALLY SUPPORTIVE SCHOOL
FACILITIES. THIS MEASURE WILL
OFFER CLARITY TO SCHOOL
DISTRICTS AND ADVANCE THE
MISSION OF PROP 39 IN ENSURING
THAT OUR SCHOOLS REMAIN AT THE
FOREFRONT OF INNOVATION AND
LEARNING. SCHOOL FACILITIES ARE
ESSENTIAL TO A POSITIVE AND
PRODUCTIVE ACADEMIC ENVIRONMENT
AND HAVE LONG BEEN ENVISIONED TO
PROVIDE ADVANCED AND SUPPORTIVE
SERVICES TO MEET THE VAST ARRAY
OF STUDENTS NEEDS. THIS MEASURE
WILL HELP SCHOOL DISTRICTS TO
CONTINUE DEVELOPING AND
PROVIDING STUDENTS WITH A SAFE
AND 21ST CENTURY LEARNING
ENVIRONMENTS THEY DESERVE. I
TRULY APPRECIATE THE COMMITTEE'S
WORK ON THIS BILL, AND I
UNDERSTAND THAT THERE ARE
DETAILS OF THIS BILL THAT NEED
TO BE WORKED OUT, AND I'M
COMMITTED TO COLLABORATING WITH
THE CHAIR AND COMMITTEE STAFF AS
THIS BILL MOVES FORWARD. SO
WITHOUT FURTHER ADO, HERE TO
TESTIFY WITH ME TODAY IS CHRIS
REIF. ON BEHALF OF CSBA. GOOD
AFTERNOON, MR. CHAIR, AND
MEMBERS, CHRIS REIF ON BEHALF OF
THE CALIFORNIA SCHOOL BOARDS
ASSOCIATION. JUST COULD NOT PUT
COULD HAVE PUT IT BETTER THAN
MISS PAPIN. I JUST WANT TO ECHO,
MISS PEPIN'S COMMENTS REGARDING
THE WORK OF THE COMMITTEE AND
THE COMMITTEE STAFF. CCPA STANDS
READY TO CONTINUE WORKING ON
THIS LANGUAGE TOGETHER. THANK
YOU. THANK YOU, DO WE HAVE
PUBLIC COMMENTS IN SUPPORT OF
THE MEASURE? PLEASE COME FORWARD
. THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR. MEMBERS
ANDREA BAHL, ON BEHALF OF THE
CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF
SUBURBAN SCHOOL DISTRICTS, I
APPRECIATE THE WORK ON THIS
BILL. THIS ISSUE IS IMPORTANT TO
SO MANY DISTRICTS, HOUSING FOR
EMPLOYEES IS BECOMING MORE AND
MORE OF A NEED. SO THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. THANK THE AUTHOR.
SEEING NO FURTHER, PUBLIC
COMMENTS, ARE THERE ANY
WITNESSES IN OPPOSITION TO THE
BILL? PLEASE COME FORWARD. SCOTT
KAUFMAN, HOWARD JARVIS,
TAXPAYERS ASSOCIATION WE WOULD
BE OPPOSED TO THE BILL AS
CURRENTLY WRITTEN, BUT THE
COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS ARE
DIRECTLY RELATED TO OUR CONCERNS
, SO WE'RE GOING TO WAIT TO SEE
THOSE IN PRINT BEFORE WE, WE
MAKE A FORMAL OPPOSITION
STATEMENT. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU. THE GENTLEMAN FROM
THE HOWARD JARVIS ASSOCIATION,
I, I DO WANT TO CLARIFY THAT,
THAT WHILE THERE WERE, THE
COMMITTEE DID PROPOSE
AMENDMENTS, WE HAVE HAD
DISCUSSIONS WITH THE AUTHOR,
TODAY'S RECOMMENDATION IS FOR
THE BILL TO BE PASSED OUT OF
THIS COMMITTEE, AS IS, WITH
ONGOING DISCUSSIONS. YOU HEARD,
COMMITTEE FROM, THE AUTHOR AND
THE SPONSOR OF THE BILL, TO
CONTINUE TO DISCUSS POTENTIAL
AMENDMENTS. BUT I WANT TO MAKE
IT CLEAR THAT, THE AUTHOR HAS
NOT ACCEPTED ANY AMENDMENTS FOR
PURPOSES OF, A VOTE FOR THE
BILL. THEN WE WOULD BE OPPOSED
AS AS CURRENTLY DRAFTED. OKAY
ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS IN
OPPOSITION TO THE BILL? SEEING
NONE. BRING IT BACK TO THE
COMMITTEE. ANY QUESTIONS FROM
THE COMMITTEE? ALL RIGHT, MISS
PAPIN, WE'VE HAD SEVERAL
CONVERSATIONS AND, I APPRECIATE,
FIRST OF ALL, I COMPLETELY SHARE
YOUR GOAL AS WELL AS THE GOAL OF
THE CCPA TO, MAKE SURE THAT
SCHOOL DISTRICTS HAVE, THE
OPPORTUNITY, IF THEY CHOOSE TO
DO SO, TO PROMOTE STUDENT
HOUSING OR EMPLOYEE HOUSING ON
SCHOOL DISTRICT PROPERTY, I
BELIEVE THAT IS THE CENTRAL,
GOAL OF YOUR INTEREST HUSING
THIS BILL, BUT I DO WANT TO,
FLAG FOR PUBLIC DISCUSSION. OUR
COMMITTEE STAFF HAS HAS WORKED,
SPENT SOME TIME ON, ON ON THIS
BILL, AND SHE HAS CONSULTED,
WITH, WITH SEVERAL BOND COUNSEL.
AND THERE DOESN'T SEEM TO BE A
CONSENSUS AMONG, BOND COUNSEL.
THAT WERE CONSULTED IN TERMS OF
WHETHER GETTING MORE SPECIFIC IN
TERMS OF THE DEFINITION OF
SCHOOL FACILITIES AND THE
ALLOWABLE USES FOR LOCAL SCHOOL
BOND MEASURES, WHETHER THAT
HELPS OR HURTS IN TERMS OF
PROVIDING SCHOOL DISTRICTS WITH
THE FLEXIBILITY, THE OPTIONS
NECESSARY, TO BE ABLE TO, PURSUE
THE BOND MEASURES, THE LOCAL
BOND MEASURES THAT THEY NEED IN
ORDER TO BE ABLE TO MEET THEIR
LOCAL NEEDS, THERE THERE IS SOME
CONCERN ABOUT, YOU KNOW,
PROVIDING A LIST OF ALLOWABLE
USES OF LOCAL BOND FUNDS, HAVING
THE UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCE
INSTEAD OF LIMITING THEIR USE
FOR THOSE ITEMS NOT ON THE LIST,
THERE'S CONCERNS ABOUT, YOU
KNOW, DEFINING THE TERMS SCHOOL
FACILITIES MAY LIMIT, YOU KNOW,
THE DEFINITION AND INVITE
LITIGATION FOR THOSE THAT ARE
NOT ON THE LIST, EVEN THOUGH YOU
KNOW THE LANGUAGE THAT YOU HAVE
RIGHT NOW, CLEARLY STATES THAT
IT'S NOT LIMITED TO THE ITEMS ON
THE LIST, YOU KNOW, SIMILAR TO
YOUR DESIRE TO CLARIFY THAT,
EMPLOYEE HOUSING SHOULD BE
ALLOWED AS PART OF A LOCAL BOND
FUNDS, YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW,
PURVIEW, OR ALLOWABLE USE, YOU
KNOW, WHAT ABOUT THOSE THAT ARE
NOT RECEIVING THAT SAME KIND OF
CLARIFICATION THAT THAT THAT IS
THE CONCERN, THE NATURE OF THE
CONCERN OF THIS COMMITTEE, WE
HEARD LOUD AND CLEAR THAT YOU
AND CCPA ARE COMMITTING TO
CONTINUE TO, CLARIFY THOSE
ISSUES SO THAT WE ACHIEVE THE
ULTIMATE OBJECTIVE OF MAKING
SURE THAT, THAT SCHOOL DISTRICTS
CAN, IF THEY CHOOSE TO DO SO,
PURSUE USING LOCAL BOND FUNDS TO
BUILD EMPLOYEE HOUSING. SO THAT
WE CAN ADDRESS THE AFFORDABLE
HOUSING CRISIS, ESPECIALLY FOR
OUR TEACHERS AND OUR SCHOOL
STAFF, SO I JUST WANT TO FLAG
ALL THOSE CONCERNS, PUT IT ON
THE RECORD, AND GIVE YOU THE
LAST WORD. ĐÓ. THANK YOU, MR.
CHAIR. I JUST RESPECTFULLY
REQUEST AN AYE VOTE. THANK YOU
FOR YOUR REMARKS. AND AS
REPRESENTED, WE WILL CONTINUE TO
WORK ON IT. OKAY. THANK YOU VERY
MUCH. SO AGAIN, WE DON'T HAVE A
QUORUM YET, BUT WE'LL TAKE YOUR
BILL UNDER SUBMISSION AND WE'LL
TAKE IT UP FOR A VOTE WHEN WE DO
ESTABLISH A QUORUM. THANK YOU.
ALL RIGHT, WE DON'T SEE MR.
CARRA, ALTHOUGH. THAT'S RIGHT.
MR. WARD WAS, KIND ENOUGH TO, TO
GIVE HIS SLOT TO MISS PAPPIN.
AND SO THIS IS FILED ITEM NUMBER
TWO, ASSEMBLY BILL 1858 BY
ASSEMBLY MEMBER WARD. WELL,
THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR. AND
MEMBERS, LET ME START BY
THANKING THE COMMITTEE FOR THE
WORK ON THE BILL. AND I'M VERY
HAPPY TO ACCEPT THE COMMITTEE'S
PROPOSED AMENDMENTS IN
CALIFORNIA. AS YOU ALL KNOW,
SCHOOLS HAVE CLEAR POLICIES AND
PROCEDURES FOR EARTHQUAKE AND
FIRE DRILLS. AND UNFORTUNATELY,
THIS IS NOT THE CASE FOR ACTIVE
SHOOTER DRILLS. AS SCHOOL
SHOOTER DRILLS CAN TAKE MANY
FORMS, THEY CAN BE AS BASIC AS
MODIFIED LOCKDOWN DRILLS, BUT
ALSO AS EXTREME WITH,
SIMULATIONS WITH GUNFIRE, FAKE
BLOOD, ACTORS ON CAMPUS,
STUDENTS AND STAFF NOT BEING
MADE AWARE THAT A DRILL IS
TAKING PLACE, AND ULTIMATELY
CAUSING SIGNIFICANT TRAUMA ON
ALL THOSE WHO ARE INVOLVED
STUDENTS, PARENTS, AND SCHOOL
COMMUNITY MEMBERS, STAFF.
NOWHERE ELSE IN OUR SCHOOL
SYSTEM IS THERE SOMETHING SO
ABRASIVE AND UNREGULATED WE
WOULD NEVER DO A FIRE DRILL BY
FILLING THE HALLS FULL OF SMOKE
AND FAKE FLAMES AND TELLING
EVERYBODY TO GO FOR IT. AB 1858
SEEKS TO STANDARDIZE SCHOOL
SHOOTER DRILLS BY GIVING CLEAR
GUIDANCE TO THE CALIFORNIA
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION SO THEY
CAN UPDATE THEIR CURRENT
REQUIREMENTS FOR SCHOOL SHOOTER
FOR SCHOOL DISTRICTS TO USE WHEN
CONDUCTING THESE DRILLS. THIS
GUIDANCE WILL FOCUS ON AGE
APPROPRIATE DRILL PROCEDURES AND
SIMULATED SHOOTING AND VIOLENCE,
AND PROVIDE LOCAL RESOURCES FOR
STUDENTS TO REACH OUT TO ADDRESS
TRAUMA, REQUIRING STUDENTS AND
STAFF TO BE TOLD WHEN A DRILL IS
BEGINNING AND PARENTAL
NOTIFICATION OF THE DRILL THE
WEEK OF AND FOLLOWING THE DRILL
THAT SAME DAY. I'VE TESTIFYING
HERE IN SUPPORT OF AB 58 KIARA
YOUNGBLOOD FROM THE STUDENTS
DEMAND ACTION ORGANIZATION, AND
WE RESPECTFULLY REQUEST YOUR AYE
VOTE. GOOD AFTERNOON ALL. MY
NAME IS KIARA YOUNGBLOOD AND I
AM A JUNIOR AT SACRAMENTO STATE
UNIVERSITY AS WELL AS A
VOLUNTEER LEADER WITH STUDENT
DEMAND ACTION. I'M STANDING HERE
TODAY TO SHARE MY STORY. IN MY
21 YEARS OF LIFE, I HAVE FACED A
RANGE OF EXPERIENCE WHEN IT
COMES TO PRESENCE OF GUNS ON
SCHOOL GROUNDS, WHETHER IT WAS A
REAL SCHOOL SHOOTING OR AN ACT,
OR OR BEING REQUIRED TO PRACTICE
ACTIVE SHOOTER DRILLS, EVERY
SINGLE INCIDENT I ENDURED BECAME
MORE AND MORE TRAUMATIZING. NO
STUDENT SHOULD EVER HAVE TO
WONDER IF THEY SEE THEIR FAMILY
AGAIN, LET ALONE QUESTION IF
THEY LIVE TO SEE THE NEXT DAY.
WE'RE GOING TO CLASS. SCHOOLS
ARE SUPPOSED TO BE A SAFE SPACE
FOR ALL. WE SHOULD BE ABLE TO
LEARN AND GROW OUR MINDS WITHOUT
THE CONSTANT FEAR OF BEING,
WITHOUT THE CONSTANT FEAR AND
RISK OF BEING SHOT AT. I
COMPLETELY UNDERSTAND WHY OUR
SCHOOLS WANT TO HAVE A SYSTEM IN
PLACE. SHOULD CHARGES STRIKE,
BUT REQUIRING US TO DO AN AFTER
SCHOOL SHOOTER DRILLS DOES MORE
HARM THAN GOOD. THESE DRILLS
SHATTER OUR PERCEPTION OF SAFETY
AND OFTEN LEAVE US, OUR
TEACHERS, AND OUR PARENTS
FEELING VULNERABLE AND EXPOSED.
AS SOMEONE WHO SURVIVED A SCHOOL
SHOOTING AND HAS ALSO DONE
ACTIVE SCHOOL SHOOTER DRILLS, I
KNOW THAT THESE DRILLS CAN BE
JUST AS SCARY AS THE REAL THING,
EVEN IF NO ONE IS PHYSICALLY
HURT. THE TRAUMA OF THESE
LOCKDOWNS IS ABSOLUTELY REAL.
GUN VIOLENCE SURVIVORS OFTEN
SUFFER SYMPTOMS OF TRAUMA,
ANXIETY, AND DEPRESSION. WHEN
YOU'VE SEEN HORRIFYING VIOLENCE,
SUCH AS A GUNMAN GOING AROUND
YOUR SCHOOL TRYING TO HARM YOUR
FRIENDS AND TEACHERS LIKE I DID,
HOW CAN YOU NOT BE DEEPLY
IMPACTED BY SOMETHING LIKE THAT?
I SEEN HOW ACTIVE SHOOTER DRILLS
CAN HAVE SIMILAR EFFECTS ON
SCHOOL COMMUNITIES AS A REAL
SHOOTING. THESE LOCKDOWNS
DISRUPT THE NORMAL FLOW OF
SCHOOL LIFE, FORCING STUDENTS
AND TEACHERS TO BARRICADE
THEMSELVES IN CLASSROOMS, HIDE
AND REMAIN SILENT FOR EXTENDED
PERIODS OF TIMES WITHOUT THE
KNOWLEDGE OF KNOWING WHETHER
IT'S A DRILL OR THE REAL THING.
THE RISK OF A SCHOOL SHOOTING IS
TERRIFYING ENOUGH. OUR SCHOOLS
SHOULDN'T BE TRAUMATIZING US,
EVEN MORE BY KEEPING US IN THE
DARK WHEN IT COMES TO ACTIVE
SHOOTER DRILLS. WITH ALL THAT
BEING SAID, IT IS EXTREMELY
IMPORTANT THAT THIS BILL
PROPOSED BEFORE US TODAY. AB
1858 GETS PASSED. THIS BILL
BRINGS THE TRAUMA INFORMED
APPROACH TO ACTIVE SHOOTER
DRILLS THAT STUDENTS DEMAND
ACTION HAS BEEN ADVOCATING FOR.
IT'S RECOGNIZED THAT WE NEED TO
KNOW IN ADVANCE THAT A DRILL IS
HAPPENING. WHEN IT'S HAPPENING,
THE OPTION TO OPT OUT AND THE
NECESSARY MENTAL HEALTH
RESOURCES TO SUPPORT STUDENTS
AFTERWARDS IS NEEDED. THERE
NEEDS TO BE MORE TRANSPARENCY.
THERE'S NO REASON STUDENTS,
TEACHERS AND PARENTS SHOULD BE
LEFT IN THE DARK WHEN IT COMES
TO SCHOOL. DURING ACTIVE SHOOTER
DRILLS. AB 1858 HAS THE POWER TO
BRING A TRAUMA INFORMED APPROACH
TO THESE DRILLS THAT WE SO
DESPERATELY NEED. THIS BILL IS
EXTREMELY CRUCIAL BECAUSE, AS I
STATED BEFORE, I ALREADY
SURVIVED A SCHOOL SHOOTING AND
BEING FORCED TO DO THESE DRILLS
BRING BACK THAT TRAUMA. THE LOUD
ANNOUNCEMENT OVER THE SPEAKER
TELLING US TO HIDE ANXIOUSLY
WAITING FOR SOMEONE TO COME
AROUND PRETENDING TO BE THE
SHOOTER, AND AGGRESSIVELY
BANGING ON THAT DOOR, REMAINING
SILENT FOR GOD KNOWS HOW LONG.
ALL OF THAT. THANK YOU. I'M SO
SORRY. NO, NO, YOU'RE DOING
GREAT. BUT YOUR TWO MINUTES ARE
UP. IF YOU WANT TO WRAP UP. YES.
SO I VOTE TO PASS AB 15 1858.
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU
FOR SHARING, ANY FURTHER
WITNESSES IN SUPPORT OF THE BILL
? SEEING NONE ANY PUBLIC
COMMENTS IN SUPPORT OF THE BILL?
THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR. MEMBERS
MITCH STEIGER WITH CFT, ĐÃ UNION
OF EDUCATORS AND CLASSIFIED
PROFESSIONALS ALSO IN SUPPORT.
THANK YOU. LANCE CHRISTIANSEN,
VICE PRESIDENT OF THE CALIFORNIA
POLICY CENTER. WE SUPPORT
VIGOROUS PARENTAL NOTIFICATION
ON ALL ASPECTS OF EDUCATION.
THANK YOU. MARY LOU ROSATO, MOMS
DEMAND ACTION VOLUNTEER IN
SUPPORT. JILLIAN KING, MOMS
DEMAND ACTION VOLUNTEER IN
SUPPORT. ARIANA MARIE. STUDENTS
DEMAND ACTION LEADER WITH SAC
STATE UNIVERSITY. I SUPPORT.
JOEL LEÓN, VOLUNTEER FOR MOMS
DEMAND ACTION SACRAMENTO IN
SUPPORT. YARA GERAL, VOLUNTEER
MOMS DEMAND ACTION SUPPORT.
KATHY DICKEY, VOLUNTEER WITH
MOMS DEMAND ACTION IN SUPPORT.
PENELOPE OLIVER, ON BEHALF OF
THE STUDENT STUDENTS DEMAND
ACTION NATIONAL ADVISORY BOARD
AND SUPPORT CHRISTINE MORELAND,
VOLUNTEER WITH MOMS DEMAND
ACTION SACRAMENTO IN SUPPORT
DEVIN BRITTON, VOLUNTEER WITH
MOMS DEMAND ACTION PLACER COUNTY
IN SUPPORT. THANK YOU. ANY
WITNESSES IN OPPOSITION TO THE
BILL? PLEASE COME FORWARD. DAVID
BULLOCK, WE SUPPORT THE BILL.
I'M WITH THE SFP ALLIANCE AND
THE NEIGHBORS OF THE 40TH
ASSEMBLY DISTRICT FOR SAME
LEGISLATION. WE DO SUPPORT THE
BILL, BUT WE DO OPPOSE WE OPPOSE
, SUPPORT THE OVERALL FEELING OF
THE BILL, BUT WE OPPOSE IT. AND
UNLESS IT'S AMENDED TO REQUIRE
AN ARMED SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICER
AT EVERY SCHOOL. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU. ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS
IN OPPOSITION TO THE BILL?
SEEING NONE. BRING IT BACK, MR.
VICE CHAIR. FLORA. THANK YOU,
MR. CHAIR. AND, I HAVE THE
UTMOST RESPECT FOR THE AUTHOR,
AND I WANT TO JUST RAISE MY
CONCERNS. AND I WANT TO BE VERY,
VERY CLEAR THAT THE THOUGHT, OF
A SCHOOL SHOOTING AS A FATHER OF
TWO DAUGHTERS IS TERRIFYING,
RIGHT? I ALSO COME FROM A PUBLIC
SAFETY BACKGROUND, AND THERE'S A
SAYING IN PUBLIC SAFETY,
MILITARY LIKE THAT, YOU TRAIN
LIKE YOU FIGHT. AND THOUGH THESE
EVENTS ARE ABSOLUTELY HORRIFIC
AND I DO NOT WISH IT ON ANYBODY,
IT IS THE SAD REALITY OF WHAT WE
LIVE IN CURRENTLY. AND WE NEED
OUR MEN AND WOMEN OF LAW
ENFORCEMENT, OUR FIREFIGHTERS,
TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THEY'RE
WALKING INTO. WE NEED OUR
STUDENTS TO UNDERSTAND WHAT TO
DO AND IF THERE IS, IF WE
SUGARCOAT HOW HORRIFIC A MASS
CASUALTY INCIDENT IS, WE MAY NOT
BE PREPARED FOR THAT MENTALLY,
OKAY? AND WE'RE NOT GOING TO BE
PREPARED FOR MENTALLY ONE WAY OR
THE OTHER. DON'T GET ME WRONG.
LIKE THERE'S NO PREPARING FOR
THIS. AND SO I AM CONCERNED. I
UNDERSTAND THE INTENT AND THE
ISSUES WITH THIS, BUT I CAN'T
TELL YOU HOW MANY TRAININGS I'VE
BEEN THROUGH PERSONALLY LIKE
THIS. THE EVERY 15 MINUTE
PROGRAM. RIGHT. WE'VE. ALL
STATEWIDE NATIONAL, WE'VE ALL
SEEN THOSE. AND UNTIL YOU
REALIZE THE GORE AND THE HORROR
OF A SHOOTING INCIDENT LIKE THIS
, I DO NOT BELIEVE OUR MEN AND
WOMEN OF LAW ENFORCEMENT, PUBLIC
SAFETY, AND OUR STUDENTS ARE
GOING TO BE PREPARED AND KNOW
WHAT TO DO IN THAT SITUATION
WHEN IT ARISES. AND SO WHEN WE
TRAIN LIKE WE FIGHT, RIGHT? WE
TRY TO MAKE IT AS REALISTIC AS
POSSIBLE. SO IN THE HORRIFIC
MOMENT THAT THAT INCIDENT
ACTUALLY HAPPENS FOR REAL, WE'RE
GOING TO BE SLIGHTLY MORE
PREPARED TO WHAT TO DO. SO I
JUST WANT TO SAY THAT, AND I
IT'S NOT NECESSARILY LIKE AN
OPPOSITION TO THE BILL. IT'S
JUST LIKE, I REALLY DO HAVE
CONCERNS THAT WE'RE CREATING AN
ENVIRONMENT THAT'S NOT REALITY
OF WHAT THESE EVENTS TRULY. AND
I'LL JUST LEAVE IT AT THAT. AND
TO THE AUTHOR, I'D LOVE TO TALK
TO YOU OFFLINE AS WELL, BECAUSE
I REALLY DO. I'M NOT GOING TO BE
ABLE TO SUPPORT THIS BILL TODAY.
SURE, BASED ON THOSE CONCERNS,
BECAUSE I DON'T WANT TO CREATE
ENVIRONMENT OF FALSE
EXPECTATIONS OF WHAT A SCHOOL
SHOOTING ACTUALLY IS. IT'S HELL.
AND IT SUCKS THAT WE ALL HAVE TO
DEAL WITH THIS, BUT WE DO. AND
THAT'S JUST THE SAD REALITY OF
WHERE WE'RE LIVING CURRENTLY. SO
I APPRECIATE YOUR TESTIMONY AND
PLEASE DON'T TAKE MY OPPOSITION
AS NOT UNDERSTANDING AND
SYMPATHIZING WITH YOU. AND TO
ALL ITS SUPPORTERS AS WELL. BUT
JUST I COME FROM A JUST A
SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE.
SO THANK YOU. THANK YOU MR.
ALVAREZ. THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR,
AND THANK YOU TO THE AUTHOR AND
TO THE WITNESS AND TO THE
TESTIMONY. AGREE. AS A FATHER OF
TWO, AND I KNOW YOU'RE A FATHER
AS WELL OF CHILDREN IN OUR, IN
OUR SCHOOL SYSTEM. IT'S
CERTAINLY NOT THE THOUGHT. YOU
EVER WANT TO HAVE THIS OR THE
CALL YOU WANT TO HEAR, OR EVEN
WHEN IT'S LIKE IN THE VICINITY,
WHICH HAS HAPPENED TO ME, A
COUPLE OF TIMES. UNFORTUNATELY
WHAT I APPRECIATE, THOUGH, ABOUT
THE APPROACH TO THE BILL IS, YOU
KNOW, AS A, AS A PARENT, YOU
MAKE DECISIONS ON, LIKE, EVEN
WHAT YOU ALLOW YOUR CHILDREN TO,
LIKE, WATCH ON TV. THAT'S
SOMETHING WE DO. WHAT ACCESS TO
WHAT TYPES OF DEVICES OR SOCIAL
MEDIA SITES AND ALL THAT. AND WE
TAKE THAT VERY SERIOUSLY, AND
YOU RELY ON ON EXPERTS WHO SORT
OF HELP YOU DETERMINE LIKE THIS
IS APPROPRIATE OR THAT'S NOT.
AND I THINK THAT'S WHAT I
APPRECIATE ABOUT THE APPROACH IS
THAT YOU'RE YOU'RE ASKING FOR,
FOR PROFESSIONALS WHO ARE
PRACTITIONERS TO HELP DETERMINE
WHAT THE APPROPRIATENESS LEVEL
OF. IT'S VERY DIFFERENT FROM A
KINDERGARTNER TO A HIGH SCHOOLER
OF WHAT LEVEL OF INTENSITY, IF
YOU WILL, THE DRILL SHOULD BE.
SO I UNDERSTAND THE POINT BEING
MADE THAT YOU WANT TO BE ABLE TO
SIMULATE SOMETHING TO THE EXTENT
THAT YOUNG PEOPLE CAN RESPOND
THE RIGHT WAY AND BE PREPARED
THE RIGHT WAY, BUT BUT I DON'T
KNOW WHAT THAT IS. AND I THINK
YOU'VE RECOGNIZED THAT THERE'S
PEOPLE WHO HAVE THE SKILL SET TO
HELP DETERMINE THAT. SO I WANT
TO SAY THANK YOU FOR TAKING THAT
APPROACH BECAUSE AS OPPOSED TO
JUST SAYING THIS IS WHAT WE'RE
MANDATING, THIS IS WHAT, HOW WE
SHOULD GET TO, TO HOW WE SHOULD
DO THIS TYPE OF DRILL. THE ONLY
QUESTION THAT I DID ASK FOR
PARENTS, WHO, YOU KNOW, WILL BE
ASKING ONCE THIS IS OUT ON THE
OPT OUT, PROVISION, ON HOW YOU
ENVISION THAT TO BE ROLLED OUT,
AND IN PRACTICE, ONCE, THE
SCHOOL YEAR STARTS WITH THE
INITIAL FORMS OR WHAT IS THE
THINKING BEHIND THE OPTING OUT
OPTION? THANK YOU FOR THE
QUESTION. I WOULD, PROBABLY
DEFER TO SOME GUIDANCE THROUGH
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION OR
SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS ON MAYBE
CONFORMING THAT TO EXISTING
PRACTICES FOR OPTING OUT OF
SCHOOL BASED ACTIVITIES. OKAY,
JUST TO BE CLEAR WITH EVERYBODY
AS TO HOW THAT PROCESS WOULD
WORK. SO I APPRECIATE THAT,
THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR. ALL RIGHT.
THANK YOU, MR. WARD, FOR
BRINGING THIS IMPORTANT MEASURE
BEFORE THE COMMITTEE. I KNOW
THAT I'VE ALSO, AS A PARENT,
I'VE HAD CONVERSATIONS WITH
OTHER PARENTS ABOUT, WHETHER
ESPECIALLY THESE HIGH, HIGH
INTENSITY DRILLS, YOU KNOW, ARE
REALLY NECESSARY, ESPECIALLY FOR
OUR, OUR YOUNGEST, ELEMENTARY
SCHOOL CHILDREN. AND, AND SO I
FULLY, PERSONALLY APPRECIATE,
YOU KNOW, THE, THE, ONE OF YOUR
MAIN GOALS OF THIS BILL TO,
SPARE THE CHILDREN FROM
UNNECESSARY TRAUMA FROM SOME OF
THESE, HIGH INTENSITY DRILLS.
I'VE HEARD, YOU KNOW, CATCH UP
OR OTHER RED INK BEING USED IN
PLACE OF BLOOD TO, TO SIMULATE,
THE, SCHOOL SHOOTING AS PART OF
THESE HIGH INTENSITY DRILLS,
AND, AND SO I SHARE YOUR CONCERN
ABOUT WHETHER THAT'S NECESSARY
AT THE SAME TIME, I, I
APPRECIATE, OUR VICE CHAIRS
COMMENTS, YOU KNOW, AS WE ALL
RESPECT OUR VICE CHAIR, AS A
FORMER FIREFIGHTER, AS A FORMER
FIRST RESPONDER, AND CERTAINLY I
THINK HE HAS MORE EXPERIENCE
WITH THESE TYPE OF PUBLIC SAFETY
DRILLS THAN I DO, AND SO I, I, I
DO HEAR WHAT YOU'RE SAYING. I IT
WAS, STAFF BROUGHT TO MY
ATTENTION THAT, YOU KNOW, ONE OF
THE PROPOSALS THAT HAS BEEN MADE
IN TERMS OF MAKING SURE THAT THE
ADULTS GET THE HIGH INTENSITY
DRILLS, BUT PERHAPS SPARE THE
CHILDREN IS TO HAVE THE DRILLS,
YOU KNOW, IN THE ABSENCE OF THE
CHILDREN, SO THAT THE ADULTS CAN
PRACTICE THESE HIGH INTENSITY
DRILLS, YOU KNOW, LAW
ENFORCEMENT, SCHOOL
ADMINISTRATORS, YOU KNOW,
PERHAPS WITHOUT THE STUDENTS
THAT MIGHT BE ONE, BUT I THINK
ULTIMATELY, YOU KNOW, THAT,
WOULD YOUR BILL IS PROPOSING
THAT WE DEFER TO THE DEPARTMENT
OF EDUCATION TO CONVENE, YOU
KNOW, PUBLIC SAFETY, FIRST
RESPONDERS, SCHOOL
ADMINISTRATORS TO IDENTIFY BEST
PRACTICES, TO TRY TO STRIKE THAT
BALANCING ACT BETWEEN MAKING
SURE THAT OUR STAFF AND OUR
FIRST RESPONDERS ARE ADEQUATELY
TRAINED WHILE AT THE SAME TIME
TRYING TO, MINIMIZE ANY
UNNECESSARY TRAUMA TO THE KIDS.
SO I'M HAPPY TO SUPPORT THIS,
THIS BILL. AND I'D LIKE TO GIVE
YOU THE LAST WORD. THANK YOU.
MR. CHAIR. I THINK YOU SAID IT
ELOQUENTLY, I RECOGNIZE
OBVIOUSLY, A VERY, IMPACTFUL,
TOPIC FOR MOST OF US THAT HAVE
KIDS AND, YOU KNOW, CARE VERY
MUCH AND WORRY ABOUT, THE
UNTHINKABLE HAPPENING ON A GIVEN
DAY. AND WE, OF COURSE, WANT
THEM TO BE PREPARED, NOTHING IN
THIS BILL IS EVER SUGGESTING
THAT, YOU KNOW, WE SHOULDN'T BE
THOUGHTFUL ABOUT OUR SCHOOL
CAMPUSES SAFETY AND THOSE THAT,
THAT, THAT ARE, THEIR DAILY, YOU
KNOW, I FEEL I WOULD STRONGLY
FEEL REMISS IF I, YOU KNOW,
DIDN'T SAY THAT. I DO AGREE WITH
OUR VICE CHAIR. YOU KNOW, IT IS
HELL, IT WOULD BE HORRIFIC. AND
IT'S JUST A SAD STATE OF AFFAIRS
THAT WE ARE LIVING IN RIGHT NOW
WHERE THESE OCCURRENCES ARE, ARE
HAPPENING ALL TOO, ALL TOO FAR
IN OUR COMMUNITY. I WOULD LOOK
FORWARD TO THAT CONVERSATION,
BECAUSE I'D LIKE TO GO A LITTLE
BIT DEEPER AND TALK ABOUT OTHER
WAYS TO BE ABLE TO REDUCE GUN
VIOLENCE IN OUR COMMUNITY THAT I
FEEL WE SHOULD BE HAVING MORE,
MIDDLE GROUND ON, THAT SAID, IT
IS AN OCCURRENCE HERE. AND SO
GIVEN OUR EXPERIENCE OF TRYING
TO WHAT I THINK IS EARNESTLY
RESPOND TO IT IS TO BE PREPARED
AND HOW TO ADDRESS WHEN THAT
COMES UP. AND TO I THINK OUR
CHAIR'S POINT. THERE'S A
DIFFERENT WAY OR OR SITUATION IN
WHICH WE COULD ENGAGE, RESPONSE,
EMERGENCY RESPONSE PERSONNEL, TO
BE ABLE TO COME ON AFTER HOURS
TO, YOU KNOW, HAVE HAVE ACTORS
THERE, YOU KNOW, SORT OF
PLAYING, HOW TO, HOW TO NAVIGATE
A SCHOOL CAMPUS BUT NOT HAVE
THAT BEING THE ACTUAL STUDENTS
IN THE MIDDLE OF THE DAY. THAT'S
A SMART SUGGESTION. ALL THIS CAN
BE WORKED OUT WITH DEPARTMENT OF
EDUCATION, BUT WITH THIS BILL,
IS TRYING TO DO IS JUST TO PUT
SOME PARAMETERS ON SOMETHING. WE
DON'T HAVE ANY PARAMETERS ON
TODAY. RIGHT. AND WE HAVE AN
EARTHQUAKE DRILL. WE'RE NOT
SHAKING THE BUILDING, BUT YOU
ARE DOING YOUR BEST TO SIMULATE
THE EXERCISE AND THINKING
THROUGH IT. AND IN FACT, AN
ADVOCATE IN OUR COMMUNITY WHO
CARES VERY MUCH ABOUT GUN
VIOLENCE PREVENTION SAID, YOU
KNOW, FOR ME, THIS IS, YOU KNOW,
IN HIGH INTENSITY. THIS EXERCISE
IS ACTUALLY NOT JUST ABOUT
RESPONDING TO AN ACTIVE SHOOTER
SITUATION, BUT IT COULD BE A GAS
LEAK ON THE CAMPUS, OR IT COULD
BE A SWARM OF BEES. IT COULD BE
A LOT OF THINGS THAT, ARE
REQUIRING STUDENTS AND TEACHERS
AND TO ORGANIZE QUICKLY AND
RESPOND CALMLY, AND, AND GET OUT
OR GET GET SAFE. AND I THINK
THAT THAT IS I THINK SOMETHING
THAT WE WANT TO BE ABLE TO WORK
THROUGH THOUGHTFULLY. BUT THERE
IS A WAY THAT WE CAN DO THAT,
WITHOUT INVOKING TRAUMA, WHICH
IS ALMOST UNIFORMLY WHAT WE ARE
DOING TODAY. THE AMOUNT OF INPUT
THAT I'VE RECEIVED ACTUALLY
ACROSS THE STATE FROM
INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE SAID I
STILL LIVE, I GO TO COMMUNITY
COLLEGE AND I STILL LIVE WITH
FROM PTSD, FROM THIS EXPERIENCE
THAT I HAD IN HIGH SCHOOL. AND
SO I THINK WE'RE WE'RE ON TO
SOMETHING HERE ABOUT, YOU KNOW,
TRYING TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE
DOING NO HARM WITHOUT
UNDERCUTTING OUR ABILITY TO KEEP
OUR SCHOOL CAMPUSES SAFE. AND I
THINK WE CAN GET THERE. WITH
THAT, I RESPECTFULLY ASK FOR
YOUR AYE VOTE. THANK YOU VERY
MUCH, MR. WARD. WE WILL TAKE
YOUR BILL UNDER SUBMISSION AND
PUT IT UP FOR A VOTE WHEN WE
HAVE A QUORUM. THANK YOU. THANK
YOU FOR YOUR TESTIMONY. ALL
RIGHT. WE HAVE MR. CARR READY TO
GO, AND SO THIS IS FILE ITEM 12,
AB 2640.
THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR. I'D LIKE
TO THANK THE COMMITTEE FOR THE
WORK ON THIS BILL. I WILL BE
ACCEPTING THE COMMITTEE
AMENDMENTS AND, FRANKLY, THE
WORK ON THIS ISSUE FOR A NUMBER
OF YEARS. I KNOW WE'VE HAD A LOT
OF ENGAGEMENT OVER THE YEARS, AB
2640 IS THE COMPASSIONATE
LEARNING ADVANCEMENT FOR SCIENCE
STUDENTS OR CLASS ACT, THIS BILL
WILL REQUIRE TEACHERS AND
SCHOOLS TO PROVIDE STUDENTS WITH
A NOTICE INFORMING THEM ABOUT
THEIR RIGHT TO OPT OUT OF ANIMAL
DISSECTION ASSIGNMENTS. IN
ADDITION, THEY WILL RECEIVE
INFORMATION ABOUT WHERE THE
ANIMAL WAS SOURCED FROM AND THE
CHEMICALS IS PRESERVED IN. UNDER
CURRENT LAW, STUDENTS ALREADY
HAVE THE RIGHT TO OPT OUT.
HOWEVER, MANY STUDENTS MAY NOT
BE AWARE OF THIS RIGHT AND FEEL
OBLIGATED TO PARTICIPATE IN THE
ANIMAL DISSECTION ASSIGNMENT.
FREEING IT WILL IMPACT THEIR
GRADES. THE CLASS ACT IS A STEP
IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION TO
STRENGTHEN STUDENTS ABILITY TO
OPT OUT, WHILE ENCOURAGING
ALTERNATIVE METHODS TO HELP
INCREASE STUDENT ENGAGEMENT AND
SUPPORT THEIR INTEREST, AND
LEARNING ABOUT ANATOMY, ANATOMY
AND DISSECTION ARE ESSENTIAL
SCIENTIFIC PEDAGOGY. HOWEVER,
WITH THE ADVANCEMENTS IN
EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY,
ALTERNATIVE METHODS HAVE BECOME
MORE WIDELY ACCESSIBLE AND COST
EFFECTIVE. THESE ALTERNATIVE
METHODS, SUCH AS A SYNTHETIC
FROG MODEL OR FROGGIPEDIA, AN
APPLICATION FOR MOBILE PHONES OR
TABLETS. AND THAT'S REALLY JUST
A THERE ARE LITERALLY DOZENS AND
DOZENS OF DIFFERENT TOOLS
AVAILABLE NOW THAT DO OFFER A
PRACTICAL ALTERNATIVE METHOD
ALLOWS STUDENTS TO STILL
PARTICIPATE IN THE MATERIAL.
MANY OF THE METHODS WERE PUT TO
THE TEST DURING AND SINCE THE
PANDEMIC, WHEN OBVIOUSLY WE HAD
TO LEARN TO LEARN IN DIFFERENT
WAYS AND TEACH IN DIFFERENT
WAYS, AND A LOT OF THOSE METHODS
PROVED TO BE INCREDIBLY
EFFECTIVE BY PROVIDING STUDENTS
WITH THE WRITTEN NOTICE. AB 2640
EMPOWERS THEM TO BE INFORMED,
GIVEN THE CHOICE TO OPT OUT OF
ANIMAL DISSECTION, AND INSTEAD
RECEIVE AN ALTERNATIVE
COMPARABLE ASSIGNMENT. HERE TO
TESTIFY IN SUPPORT IS SAMANTHA
CROW, TEACHING SCIENCE PROGRAM
MANAGER AND FORMER PROFESSOR OF
BIOLOGY, AND CATHERINE HAMPTON,
STUDENT AT CHAPMAN UNIVERSITY.
THANK YOU SO MUCH, GOOD
AFTERNOON, CHAIRMAN AND MEMBERS.
THE CLASS ACT IS A COMMON SENSE
BILL THAT STRENGTHENS STUDENTS
RIGHTS TO CHOOSE ETHICS OVER
GRADES. AND WE WANT TO THANK
AUTHOR ASSEMBLY KALRA, ASSEMBLY
MEMBER KALRA FOR INTRODUCING IT.
SO I'M SAMANTHA CROW, I AM THE
PROGRAM MANAGER FOR PETA'S
TEACHING SCIENCE DIVISION, ĐOAN,
AND I'M ALSO A FORMER PROFESSOR
OF BIOLOGY WHO EXCLUSIVELY USED
NON-ANIMAL METHODS TO TEACH
PRE-NURSING STUDENTS FOR OVER A
DECADE. I WILL KEEP MY COMMENTS
QUITE SHORT, AND I JUST WANT TO
SAY THAT I STRONGLY ENCOURAGE US
TO CONSIDER HELPING STUDENTS
BECOME BETTER SCIENTISTS AND
HELP EDUCATORS BECOME OR HONOR
STUDENTS RIGHTS BY VOTING YES ON
AB 2640 FOR A MORE
COMPASSIONATE, TRAUMA INFORMED
AND INCLUSIVE CLASSROOM. THANK
YOU. THANK YOU. HI, MY NAME IS
CATHERINE HAMPTON AND I'M A
CURRENT STUDENT AT CHAPMAN
UNIVERSITY IN ORANGE. I WAS BORN
AND RAISED IN CUPERTINO, AND MY
FAMILY MOVED TO EL DORADO HILLS
WHEN I WAS JUST ENTERING MIDDLE
SCHOOL. THROUGHOUT MY TIME IN
MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL, I HAD
GROWING CONCERNS REGARDING
LESSONS THAT REGULARLY TOOK
PLACE IN MY SCIENCE CLASSES, AND
BECAUSE OF THIS, I STRONGLY
SUPPORT AB 2640 ALMOST EVERY
YEAR IN GRADE SCHOOL. I WAS
SUBJECTED TO PARTICIPATING IN
CLASS DISSECTIONS OF ANIMALS
RANGING FROM WORMS TO CATS.
DURING THESE LESSONS, I WAS
PRESENTED WITH A PREVIOUSLY
LIVING INDIVIDUAL TO CUT OPEN
AND OBSERVE THEIR ANATOMY WHILE
BEING GIVEN INFORMATION ABOUT
BODILY FUNCTION. WHILE I WAS
EXPOSED TO THE PUNGENT SMELLS OF
FORMALDEHYDE THAT OVERWHELMED MY
NOSE AND MADE MY EYES WATER, I
WAS WARNED OF THE HEALTH RISKS
OF BEING AROUND SUCH A STRONG
PRESERVATIVE. AS A STUDENT WHO
WAS BORN WITH A SEVERE ASTHMATIC
CONDITION, I TOOK IT UPON MYSELF
TO MONITOR MY HEALTH EXTRA
CAREFULLY ON DISSECTION DAYS.
MOREOVER, AS A STUDENT WITH A
LONGTIME LOVE FOR ANIMALS, I
FELT PANICKED, UPSET AND
TRAUMATIZED WHEN, WHEN TOLD IN
HIGH SCHOOL THAT I NEEDED TO
DISSECT A CAT FOR A GRADE. WHEN
I ASKED FOR AN ALTERNATIVE, I
WAS TOLD TO JUST DO IT BY MY
TEACHER, AND EVEN AFTER
REPEATING MY CONCERNS TO MY
TEACHER, I WAS NOT OFFERED AN
ALTERNATIVE ASSIGNMENT. SEVERAL.
SEVERAL OF MY CLASSMATES WHO
WERE ALSO, QUOTE, DISTURBED TO
BE DISSECTING CATS, HAD TO LEAVE
THE ROOM BECAUSE THEY WERE SO
UPSET AND THEY TOLD ME THEY
WOULD HAVE OPTED OUT IF THEY
KNEW THEY COULD. THE LAW IN
CALIFORNIA IS NOT CURRENTLY
PROTECTING STUDENTS AS IT WAS
INTENDED TO, AND IT MUST BE
CHANGED. AND THAT'S WHY AB 2640
IS SO IMPORTANT. I ENCOURAGE THE
COMMITTEE TO REFLECT CAREFULLY
ON THE POTENTIAL BENEFITS THAT
ENACTING AB 2640 COULD BRING TO
THE STUDENTS OF CALIFORNIA. AS A
STUDENT IN THIS STATE, I
APPRECIATE YOUR WILLINGNESS TO
CONSIDER MY PERSPECTIVE ON
ANIMAL DISSECTION IN THE
CLASSROOM. THANK YOU. THANK YOU.
ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS IN SUPPORT
OF THE MEASURE? PLEASE COME
FORWARD. HI, MY NAME IS NICHOLAS
SACKETT FOR SOCIAL COMPASSION IN
LEGISLATION, PROUD SPONSORS AND
ALSO COURTESY. ME TOO FOR
CO-SPONSORS, PHYSICIANS
COMMITTEE FOR RESPONSIBLE
MEDICINE. THANK YOU. GOOD
AFTERNOON, CHAIR AND MEMBERS,
SUSAN MADINET W STRATEGIES HERE
ON BEHALF OF ANIMAL LEGAL
DEFENSE FUND AND STRONG SUPPORT.
THANK YOU. PLEASE, PLEASE
SUPPORT THIS RATIONAL,
INTELLIGENT BILL WHICH WOULD
ENCOURAGE, USE YOUR NAME AND
AFFILIATION, PLEASE. MIKE SAGE I
LIVE IN SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA.
THANK YOU SIR. IT HAS BEEN SHOWN
WE DON'T ALLOW TESTIMONY FOR THE
PUBLIC COMMENT SECTION, BUT WE
APPRECIATE YOUR YOUR SUPPORT FOR
THE MEASURE. THANK YOU. THANK
YOU. MAGGIE ZARASKA, ANIMAL
ACTIVIST IN SUPPORT. PLEASE
LINDA MIDDLESWORTH I STAND WITH
PHYSICIANS COMMITTEE FOR
RESPONSIBLE MEDICINE IN SUPPORT.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU. IVERSONI
GRASS VALLEY I STAND IN SUPPORT.
THANK YOU, RYAN HAYEK, DAVIS,
CALIFORNIA I SUPPORT THE BILL
MINZONI RESIDENT OF GRASS
VALLEY. I SUPPORT THE BILL KIM
SHAW, RESIDENT OF ORINDA AND I
SUPPORT THE BILL WHOLEHEARTEDLY.
KEN THIEL OF NORTH SACRAMENTO
COUNTY AND I SUPPORT THE BILL
AND REMIND YOU OF R AND M,
RIGHTS AND MORALITY. PEOPLE
SHOULD HAVE A RIGHT TO THEIR
MORALITY. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT,
ANY WITNESSES IN OPPOSITION TO
THE BILL? PLEASE COME FORWARD.
SEEING NONE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS
IN OPPOSITION TO THE BILL,
PLEASE COME FORWARD. SEEING
NONE. BRING IT BACK TO THE
COMMITTEE. MR. VICE CHAIR.
FLORA. THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR. AND
I WANT TO THANK THANK YOU TO THE
AUTHOR. AND I SUPPORT THIS BILL
FOR ONE AND ONE REASON ONLY. AND
YOU BROUGHT IT UP, FOR MALAHIDE.
IT IS NOT AWESOME. AND IT'S ALSO
NOT LOST ON ME THAT THE VEGAN
VEGETARIAN IS AUTHORING THIS
BILL. SO I APPRECIATE YOU BÀN.
ALL RIGHT. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU,
MR. CARRA. ALSO FOR BEING OUR
RESIDENT VEGAN VEGETARIAN
CHAMPION. AS WELL AS ANIMAL
RIGHTS CHAMPION, AND THANK YOU
TO THE WITNESSES IN SUPPORT OF
THE MEASURE, WE, APPRECIATE YOUR
WORKING WITH THE COMMITTEE. I
KNOW THAT AS YOU REFERENCED,
THERE'S BEEN A LONG HISTORY OF
YOUR CHAMPIONING THIS CAUSE,
AND, AND SO, YOU KNOW, THE
CHALLENGE OF THIS COMMITTEE IS
ALWAYS, HOW DO WE BALANCE A
COMPASSION WITH MAKING SURE THAT
WE ARE, NOT COMPROMISING
EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR
STUDENTS? AND SO ABSOLUTELY
STRENGTHENING A STUDENT'S RIGHT
TO OPT OUT, AS WELL AS TO
EXPLORE, ALTERNATIVES. IS
SOMETHING THAT, THAT I'M VERY
HAPPY THAT WE'RE ABLE TO LAND AT
THIS SPOT, AND SO, ASSEMBLY
MEMBER KALRA, WOULD YOU LIKE TO
SAY? WELL, I WANT TO SAY, YOU
KNOW, AS YOU REFERRED THE
PREVIOUS EFFORTS, THE FIRST TIME
AROUND, WE HAD A BILL TO
OUTRIGHT BAN ANIMAL DISSECTION.
AND I KNOW TEACHERS THAT, YOU
KNOW, TEACHERS, INCLUDING
FORMERLY CTA, OTHERS HAD
CONCERNS, COMMITTEE HAD
CONCERNS. I REALLY WANT TO THANK
YOU. AND THANK THE COMMITTEE.
AND THE TEACHERS WHO DO NOT ARE
NOW ARE NOT IN AN OPPOSED
POSITION, OVER THE YEARS, REALLY
WORKING THROUGH THIS TO GET TO A
PLACE WHERE I THINK THAT, YOU
KNOW, WE RECOGNIZE SOME OF THE
HARMS THAT ARE CAUSED IN
CLASSROOM, THE CHEMICAL AND
OTHERWISE WE EMPOWER THE
STUDENTS, AND WE STILL ALLOW
TEACHERS TO HAVE THEIR OWN, YOU
KNOW, SELF-DETERMINATION AS TO
HOW THEY WANT TO TEACH THEIR
SCIENCE AS WELL. AND SO I REALLY
APPRECIATE, APPRECIATE YOU, MR.
CHAIR, AND YOUR STAFF. AND WITH
THAT, AT THE APPROPRIATE TIME
WOULD ASK FOR AN AYE VOTE. THANK
YOU, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR
YOUR PRESENTATION. WE'LL TAKE IT
ON SUBMISSION AND AGAIN, ASK FOR
THE REST OF THE COMMITTEE, TO
PLEASE COME SO THAT WE CAN
ESTABLISH QUORUM AND TAKE CARE
OF BUSINESS, THANK YOU. SEEING
NO AUTHORS READY TO PRESENT THE
BILL, AND SEEING NO OTHER
COMMITTEE MEMBERS, WE HAVE
MASTER FONG. MASTER FONG HAS AS
ITEM NUMBER FOUR, A B 2019
ASSEMBLYMEMBER VINCE FONG, THE
FLOOR IS YOURS WHEN YOU'RE READY
. PERFECT TIMING. THANK YOU, MR.
CHAIR. AND MEMBERS, I THANK FOR
THE OPPORTUNITY TO PRESENT A B
2019 FOR MANY HIGH SCHOOL
STUDENTS, ATTENDING COLLEGE IS
ONLY MADE POSSIBLE THROUGH
COMMUNITY COLLEGES, WHICH BEGINS
WITH ALLOWING STUDENTS TO ENROLL
BOTH IN HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE
COURSES. HIGHER EDUCATION
UNLOCKS ECONOMIC AND FINANCIAL
MOBILITY, ESPECIALLY FOR
DISADVANTAGED STUDENTS. MANY
SCHOOLS HAVE REALIZED THE
BENEFITS OF PROVIDING HIGHER
EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES, AND
HAVE HAD STEPPED AND HAVE
STEPPED UP BY PARTNERING
TOGETHER WITH THE LOCAL COLLEGES
TO EXPAND DUAL ENROLLMENT. THESE
PROGRAMS ARE TRIED AND TRUE WAYS
TO OPEN MORE DOORS TO CALIFORNIA
STUDENTS, STUDENTS, AND
ADMINISTRATORS. THE CENTRAL
VALLEY ARE OFTEN FACED WITH
ISSUES OF FUNDING, SCHEDULING,
AND SHEER DISTANCE BETWEEN
SCHOOL SITES. AB 2019 HELPS
REMEDY THESE PROGRAMS OR THESE
PROGRAMS, THESE PROBLEMS SO
STUDENTS CAN TAKE FULL ADVANTAGE
OF THESE EDUCATIONAL
OPPORTUNITIES. THIS BILL SEEKS
TO AID STUDENTS WHO WISH TO TAKE
FULL ADVANTAGE OF EARLY AND
MIDDLE COLLEGE PROGRAMS THAT USE
THE SCHOOL WITHIN A SCHOOL MODEL
, MEANING THAT HIGH SCHOOL
STUDENTS CAN TAKE COMMUNITY
COLLEGE CLASSES ON THEIR OWN
TRADITIONAL HIGH SCHOOL CAMPUS,
OFTEN IN A SMALLER COHORT OF
STUDENTS WHOSE SCHEDULES ARE
STRATEGICALLY ARRANGED TO ALLOW
FOR SUBSTANTIAL COLLEGE CREDITS
TO BE EARNED, WHETHER THEY ARE
TAKING COMMUNITY COLLEGE COURSES
ON A COMMUNITY COLLEGE CAMPUS OR
AT THEIR LOCAL HIGH SCHOOL.
STUDENTS WHO SHOW INITIATIVE TO
ACHIEVE HIGHER EDUCATION GOALS
SHOULD BE GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY,
AND THIS BILL WILL ALIGN THOSE
GOALS. I'M JOINED BY DOCTOR
APRIL MOORE, SUPERINTENDENT OF
THE SIERRA SANDS UNIFIED SCHOOL
DISTRICT, AND JAMES ESPINOSA,
PRINCIPAL OF THE MIDDLE COLLEGE
HIGH SCHOOL AT SAN BERNARDINO
VALLEY COLLEGE. THANK YOU AND
ASK FOR AN AYE VOTE. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR AND
COMMITTEE MEMBERS. I'M APRIL
MOORE, SUPERINTENDENT, AND THE
SIERRA SANDS UNIFIED SCHOOL
DISTRICT IN KERN COUNTY. AND
ACCORDING TO A STUDY BY THE
PUBLIC POLICY INSTITUTE IN
CALIFORNIA IN 2021, DUAL
ENROLLMENT PARTICIPATION AND
OUTCOMES VARY ACROSS RACIAL AND
ETHNIC GROUPS.ꆝD IN GENERAL,
WHITE AND ASIAN STUDENTS ARE
OVERREPRESENTED IN DUAL
ENROLLMENT PROGRAMS, WHILE BLACK
AND LATINO STUDENTS ARE
UNDERREPRESENTED AND PROMOTING
DUAL ENROLLMENT, PARTICIPATION
AND SUCCESS AMONG HISTORICALLY
UNDERREPRESENTED GROUPS IS KEY
AND IS ONE OF THE KEY FACTORS OF
AB 2019. IN 2023, FOUR OF THE
NINE CALIFORNIA EXEMPLARY DUAL
ENROLLED AWARD RECIPIENTS WERE
LOCATED IN KERN COUNTY, AND
THESE FOUR HIGH SCHOOLS ALL HAVE
A HIGH CONCENTRATION OF LATINO
STUDENTS AND STUDENTS OF POVERTY
WHO HAVE HISTORICALLY BEEN
UNDERREPRESENTED IN DUAL
ENROLLMENT PROGRAMS IN THESE
SCHOOLS, IT MAKES SENSE TO HAVE
A SCHOOL WIDE COMPREHENSIVE DUAL
ENROLLMENT PROGRAM. HOWEVER, AT
SCHOOLS WHERE STUDENTS WHO HAVE
BEEN HISTORICALLY REPRESENTED
MAKE UP A SMALLER POPULATION OR
PERCENTAGE OF THE POPULATION, AB
2019 ALLOWS THESE STUDENT GROUPS
TO BENEFIT FROM DUAL ENROLLMENT
WHILE ADHERING TO THE SAME
INSTRUCTIONAL MINUTE
REQUIREMENTS CURRENTLY IN
STATUTE FOR EARLY AND MIDDLE
COLLEGE HIGH SCHOOLS THROUGH
EARLY AND MIDDLE COLLEGE
PROGRAMS, AND THESE PROGRAMS
HAVE BEEN IN PLACE IN OUR STATE
FOR OVER A DECADE. THEY'RE
GETTING RESULTS FOR STUDENTS,
AND WE'RE SEEING MORE AND MORE
DISTRICTS IN CALIFORNIA WANT TO
MODEL OFF OF THAT SUCCESSFUL,
MODEL, ESPECIALLY OVER HALF OF
THE RECENT GRANTEES AWARDED THE
DUAL ENROLLMENT OPPORTUNITIES
GRANT FOR MIDDLE AND EARLY
COLLEGES WERE PLANNING TO START
OR GROW A PROGRAM WITHIN AN
EXISTING SCHOOL. MY OWN
DISTRICT, SIERRA SANDS, IS
PARTNERING WITH SARA COSO
COMMUNITY COLLEGE TO HOST A
PROGRAM ON THE COLLEGE CAMPUS,
LAUNCHING IN THE 20 2526
ACADEMIC YEAR. AND SO IN CLOSING
, WE ASK FOR AN AYE VOTE AS THIS
BILL WILL MAKE A MATERIAL
DIFFERENCE IN OUR ABILITY TO
LAUNCH OUR PROGRAM AND SUPPORT
OUR STUDENTS. THANK YOU. THANK
YOU, THANK YOU FOR. THANK YOU
FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY TO ADDRESS
THE CHAIR AND ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE
ON EDUCATION IN SUPPORT OF AB
2019. I'M JAMES ESPINOSA,
PRINCIPAL OF MIDDLE COLLEGE HIGH
SCHOOL IN SAN BERNARDINO. I'M
ALSO EXECUTIVE BOARD PRESIDENT
OF THE CALIFORNIA COALITION OF
EARLY AND MIDDLE COLLEGES AT
MIDDLE COLLEGE HIGH SCHOOL IN
SAN BERNARDINO, 90% OF OUR
STUDENTS ARE FIRST GEN, OVER 95%
ARE FROM UNDERREPRESENTED GROUPS
. 90% OF OUR SCHOLARS WE TARGET
UNDERPERFORMING IN OUR GRADES,
ENTERING OUR SCHOOL, OUR
ACADEMIC RESULTS INCLUDE A
YEARLY 100% GRADUATION RATE,
100% A COMPLETION, AND FOUR YEAR
COLLEGE ACCEPTANCE. FOR 2024,
44% OF OUR STUDENTS WERE EARN
THEIR AA, WHILE THE AVERAGE
STUDENT WILL EARN 52 COLLEGE
CREDITS THAT ARE TRANSFERABLE
PER STUDENT. WE'VE ACHIEVED 94%
ON THE MOST RECENT CAPS TESTING
IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS AND 71%
IN MATH. 90% OF OUR STUDENTS
WILL GRADUATE WITH A WEIGHTED
4.0 OR HIGHER AND ON THE MOST
RECENT NATIONAL STUDENT
CLEARINGHOUSE DATA, 80% OF OUR
STUDENTS ARE GRADUATING FROM
FOUR YEAR INSTITUTIONS ON TIME,
WHEREAS THE NATIONAL AVERAGE FOR
FIRST GEN STUDENTS IS CLOSER TO
20 TO 25% FOR MIDDLE COLLEGE.
HIGH SCHOOL, 180 MINUTES OF
INSTRUCTION ALLOWS OUR FIRST
GENERATION COLLEGE STUDENTS TO
HAVE THE SPACE TO DO TWO OR MORE
COLLEGE CLASSES WITH ACCESS,
SUPPORT, AND SUCCESS. WE ARE
CURRENTLY SUPPORTING AN EARLY
COLLEGE HIGH SCHOOL LAUNCH THIS
FALL 2024 AT ARROYO VALLEY HIGH
SCHOOL COMPREHENSIVE HIGH SCHOOL
IN SAN BERNARDINO. OVER 90% OF
THEIR STUDENTS ARE LATINX, HIGH
POVERTY, AND FIRST GEN, WITH THE
PASSAGE OF AB 2019, THESE
STUDENTS WILL ALSO HAVE A CHANCE
TO ACHIEVE WHAT WE HAVE AT
MIDDLE COLLEGE HIGH SCHOOL, AS
WILL STUDENTS AND EARLY COLLEGE
PROGRAMS THROUGHOUT THE STATE.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION
OF THIS IMPORTANT BILL FOR
CLOSING EQUITY GAPS AND MAKING
DREAMS A REALITY FOR ALL
STUDENTS, INCLUDING FIRST
GENERATION, UNDERREPRESENTED
STUDENTS LIKE MYSELF. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH, ANY PUBLIC
COMMENTS IN SUPPORT OF THE
MEASURE? PLEASE COME FORWARD.
THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR AND
MEMBERS. JEFF WALKER,
REPRESENTING THE RIVERSIDE
COUNTY SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS
AND SUPPORT. GOOD AFTERNOON,
CHAIR AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS
CARLOS ROJAS WITH THE KERN
COUNTY SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS
IN SUPPORT AND ALSO ON BEHALF OF
THE CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF
SCHOOL BUSINESS OFFICIALS, IN
SUPPORT. THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR.
MEMBERS. ANDREA BAHL, ON BEHALF
OF THE CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF
SUBURBAN SCHOOL DISTRICTS, IN
SUPPORT. THANK YOU. THANK THE
AUTHOR. SANDRA MORALES. ON
BEHALF OF THE CALIFORNIA HIGH
SCHOOL COALITION IN SUPPORT.
PAUL ROBINSON WITH SANTA MARIA
JOINT UNION HIGH SCHOOL DISTRICT
IN SUPPORT. DAVID BOLLAG, ACTING
AS AN INDIVIDUAL IN SUPPORT. ANY
WITNESSES IN OPPOSITION TO THE
BILL? PLEASE COME FORWARD.
SEEING NONE, ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS
IN OPPOSITION TO THE BILL,
PLEASE COME FORWARD. SEEING
NONE. BRING IT BACK TO THE
COMMITTEE. ANY QUESTIONS OR
COMMENTS FROM THE COMMITTEE?
SEEING NONE, THANK YOU VERY
MUCH, MR. FONG. THIS IS MY
SECOND OPPORTUNITY TO EXPRESS MY
SUPPORT FOR THIS IMPORTANT
MEASURE, TO ENCOURAGE, THE EARLY
AND MIDDLE COLLEGE HIGH SCHOOLS,
TO PROVIDE MORE OPPORTUNITIES
FOR, FOR OUR STUDENTS. AND SO
I'M HAPPY TO SUPPORT THE BILL.
WOULD YOU LIKE TO CLOSE, I THANK
YOU, MR. CHAIR. AS AS YOU
MENTIONED, AS SCHOOLS PLAN TO
GROW DUAL ENROLLMENT, ENROLLMENT
PROGRAMS, AND AB 2019 WILL GIVE
CERTAINTY TO STUDENTS IN SCHOOLS
WHO WISH TO PARTAKE IN EARLY AND
MIDDLE COLLEGE PROGRAMS TO
MAXIMIZE FUNDING AND ACCESS TO
CLASSES. I RESPECTFULLY ASK FOR
YOUR VOTE. THANK YOU, WE DO NOT
HAVE QUORUM YET, AND SO AT THE
APPROPRIATE TIME, WE'LL TAKE
YOUR BILL UP FOR A VOTE. THANK
YOU. ALL RIGHT, SEEING NO OTHER
AUTHORS READY TO PRESENT, I'M
GOING TO JUMP THE LINE AND
PRESENT MY BILLS, MR. VICE
CHAIR, IF I CAN PASS THE GAVEL
TO YOU AND, I'LL GET READY
.
FOR ACTION TODAY. THANK YOU. SO
ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR.
WE'RE GOING TO START WITH
PRESENTING FILE ITEM NUMBER
FIVE, AB 211. FILE ITEM NUMBER
SIX. I'M SORRY, AB 2160. RIGHT,
BILL. WRONG FILE. ITEM FILE
NUMBER SIX AB 2112.
VICE CHAIR AND MEMBERS, I'M
PLEASED TO PRESENT ASSEMBLY BILL
2112, WHICH WILL INCREASE ACCESS
TO HIGH QUALITY EXPANDED
LEARNING PROGRAMS BY STABILIZING
THE FUNDING FOR THESE ELP
PROGRAMS FOR ALL LEAS. THE
EXPANDED LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES
PROGRAM, OR ELP, SERVES CHILDREN
IN TK THROUGH SIXTH GRADE WITH
BEFORE AND OR AFTER SCHOOL
PROGRAMS, AS WELL AS SUMMER
SCHOOL. RESEARCH HAS HAS SHOWN
OVER AND OVER AGAIN THAT THESE
PROGRAMS ARE AMONG THE MOST
EFFECTIVE IN CLOSING THE
ACHIEVEMENT GAP AND MAKING SURE
THAT THERE ARE QUALITY PROGRAMS
RAIMES BEFORE AND AFTER SCHOOL,
AS WELL AS DURING SUMMER SCHOOL,
FOR ESPECIALLY FOR
SOCIOECONOMICALLY, ECONOMICALLY
DISADVANTAGED COMMUNITIES. ĐỂ LÀ
PRIORITIZED UNDUPLICATED PUPILS
LOW INCOME ENGLISH LEARNERS
FOSTER YOUTH, BUT MAY BE
PROVIDED TO ALL STUDENTS. ELOP
IS FUNDED IN TWO WAYS THE LOCAL
EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES OR LEAS,
WITH 75% OR MORE OF UNDUPLICATED
PUPILS, RECEIVE A FIXED RATE OF
$2,750 PER PUPIL UNDER RATE ONE,
AND ARE REQUIRED TO OFFER ELP TO
ALL TK THROUGH SIXTH GRADE
STUDENTS. LEAS WITH 럊S THAN
75% OF UNDUPLICATED PUPILS ARE
UNDER RATE TWO, WHICH IS
CALCULATED BASED UPON THE
BALANCE REMAINING AFTER RATE
ONE. LEAS HAVE BEEN FUNDED AND
TAKES INTO ACCOUNT, THE
STATEWIDE TK THROUGH SIX ADA
RATE. TWO LEAS ARE REQUIRED TO
OFFER ELP TO AT LEAST ALL
UNDUPLICATED STUDENTS DUE TO THE
FORMULA USED FOR RATE TWO. THE
FUNDING CAN VARY SIGNIFICANTLY
FROM ONE YEAR TO THE NEXT. FOR
EXAMPLE, IN THE CURRENT YEAR,
THE RATE DROPPED BY 12% FROM THE
PRIOR YEAR. THE LÀ IS SUBJECT TO
RATE. TWO HAVE BEEN NOTIFIED OF
THEIR FUNDING ALLOCATIONS
SHORTLY BEFORE THE START OF THE
SCHOOL YEAR, AFTER THEY'VE MADE
ALL OF THE PLANNING AND STAFFING
DECISIONS, AND YOU'LL HEAR MORE
ABOUT ABOUT FROM THE PROVIDERS,
MAKING IT EXTREMELY DIFFICULT TO
PLAN AND STAFF A HIGH QUALITY
PROGRAM TO MEET THE NEEDS OF
THEIR STUDENTS. AB 2112 WILL SET
A FLOOR FOR RATE TWO AT NÓ, NO
LESS THAN THE 2022 2023 RATE OF
2054 PER PUPIL. THE BILL WILL
ALSO REQUIRE THE CALIFORNIA
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TO
ESTABLISH A STAKEHOLDER
WORKGROUP TO LOOK AT THE OVERALL
ELP PROGRAM, AND TO PROVIDE
RECOMMENDATIONS ON BEST
PRACTICES, APPROPRIATE FUNDING
LEVELS, AND TO IDENTIFY DATA
THAT SHOULD BE COLLECTED IN
ORDER TO EVALUATE THE
EFFECTIVENESS OF THE PROGRAM.
ULTIMATELY, AS I'M LOOKING AT
THE CHAIR OF OUR BUDGET
SUBCOMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
FINANCE, WE UNDERSTAND THAT THIS
IS AN ISSUE THAT NEEDS TO BE
ADDRESSED IN THE BUDGET. AND I,
I KNOW THAT, OUR, BUDGET
SUBCOMMITTEE CHAIR HAS,
QUESTIONS, TO FOLLOW UP ON THIS
MEASURE, BUT WE, WE WANT TO
HIGHLIGHT AND EXPLORE THE, THE
POLICY IMPLICATIONS OF THIS,
FUNDING STABILIZATION SITUATION
FACED BY OUR ELA PROGRAMS SO
THAT IT CAN FURTHER INFORM, THE
ACTIVITIES TO, TO ADDRESS THIS
IN THE BUDGET AS WELL AS TO MAKE
SURE THAT THE DEPARTMENT OF
EDUCATION, PROPERLY PRIORITIZE
THIS URGENT ISSUE. I THIS BILL
IS SPONSORED BY THE SAN DIEGO
UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT. AND
SPEAKING ON THEIR BEHALF, AS
NICOLE DEWITT, SENIOR EXECUTIVE
DIRECTOR OF THRIVING SCHOOL
COMMUNITIES, AS WELL AS AARON
SIPES, DIRECTOR OF EXPANDED
LEARNING IN THE ELK GROVE
UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT. THANK
YOU SO MUCH, MR. CHAIR. FIRST
WITNESS, TWO MINUTES APIECE,
PLEASE. THANK YOU FOR THE
OPPORTUNITY TO SHARE SAN DIEGO
UNIFIED'S MODEL FOR LAUP
PROGRAMING. OUR MAIN FOCUS FOR
LEVERAGING ELP FUNDS HAS BEEN IN
TWO AREAS OUR SUMMER OFFERINGS,
AS WELL AS THE EXPANSION OF OUR
EXTENDED DAY PROGRAMS DURING THE
SCHOOL YEAR. SINCE JUST THIS
PAST SUMMER OF 2023, SAN DIEGO
UNIFIED HAS ENROLLED 14,000
INDIVIDUAL UNDUPLICATED STUDENTS
IN ONE OR MORE L0 PROGRAMS,
WHICH IS APPROXIMATELY 40% OF
OUR TK THROUGH SIX UNDUPLICATED
STUDENT POPULATION. TO ENSURE
MAXIMUM PARTICIPATION FOR OUR
UNDUPLICATED STUDENTS, WE
ACTIVELY ADVERTISE THE
ENROLLMENT PROCESS IN FIVE
DIFFERENT LANGUAGES. WE ALSO
DEDICATE A TWO MONTH PRIORITY
ENROLLMENT WINDOW FOR
UNDUPLICATED STUDENTS TO SELECT
SUMMER PROGRAMING PRIOR TO OTHER
STUDENTS, AND ENSURE
UNDUPLICATED STUDENTS ARE
ENROLLED FIRST INTO OUR SUMMER
AND PRIME TIME EXTENDED DAY
PROGRAMS. IN ADDITION, STRATEGIC
OUTREACH TO HOMELESS AND FOSTER
YOUTH THROUGH OUR NONPROFIT
COMMUNITY PARTNERS IS LEVERAGED
AS WELL AS MULTILINGUAL OFFICE
HOURS AND CALL CENTERS. BECAUSE
OF THIS PRIORITIZATION, EOP HAS
BEEN TRANSFORMATIONAL FOR OUR
FAMILIES, PARTICULARLY THOSE
WITH THE GREATEST NEED, GIVING
STUDENTS ACCESS TO LEARNING
OPPORTUNITIES THAT THEY COULD
PREVIOUSLY NOT AFFORD. THIS HAS
IMPACTED ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE
ACROSS ALL GRADE LEVELS, WITH
STUDENTS WHO PARTICIPATED IN 80%
OR MORE OF THEIR SUMMER PROGRAM
DEMONSTRATING BIGGER GAINS THAN
NON-PARTICIPANTS. ON THE FALL
ADMINISTRATION OF THE FAST
READING AND MATH ASSESSMENTS.
HOWEVER, THE INSTABILITY IN RATE
TWO PER PUPIL FUNDING WE RECEIVE
FROM YEAR TO YEAR HAS BEEN A
HUGE CHALLENGE. WE ONLY LEARN
OUR PER PUPIL FUNDING RATES
WEEKS BEFORE THE START OF THE
SCHOOL YEAR, PUTTING US IN THE
DIFFICULT POSITION OF HAVING TO
PLAN PROGRAMS, MAKE STAFFING
DECISIONS, COMMUNICATE WITH
FAMILIES AND MAINTAIN
RELATIONSHIPS WITH OUR COMMUNITY
PARTNERS WITHOUT KNOWING HOW
MUCH FUNDING WE WILL RECEIVE
FROM THE STATE. THIS CURRENT
FISCAL YEAR OF 23, 24 HOUR PER
PUPIL FUNDING RATE DECREASED BY
$250 PER STUDENT, WHICH RESULTED
IN A LOSS OF $7.2 MILLION FOR
SAN DIEGO UNIFIED. THIS CUT PUT
A STRAIN ON OUR PROGRAMS, AND
WE'VE HAD TO REDUCE THE NUMBER
AND VARIETY OF ENRICHMENT
OPPORTUNITIES WE PLAN TO OFFER
THIS SUMMER. THANK YOU SO MUCH.
WE'LL JUST ASK YOU TO WRAP UP
YOUR THOUGHT. THANK YOU SO MUCH
ON BEHALF OF SAN DIEGO UNIFIED.
WE TRULY APPRECIATE YOUR TIME
AND CONSIDERATION FOR THIS
ASSEMBLY BILL. THANK YOU SO
MUCH. NEXT WITNESS TWO MINUTES,
PLEASE. GOOD AFTERNOON.
COMMITTEE CHAIR AND MEMBERS
AARON SIPES, DIRECTOR OF
EXPANDED LEARNING FOR ELK GROVE
UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT AND ON
BEHALF OF THE ASSOCIATION OF
CALIFORNIA SCHOOL
ADMINISTRATORS, AS THE
ADMINISTRATOR OVERSEEING THE
AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS IN ELK
GROVE FOR MORE THAN TEN YEARS,
I'VE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO
WITNESS FIRSTHAND THE POSITIVE
IMPACT THESE PROGRAMS HAVE HAD
ON OUR STUDENTS, THEIR FAMILIES,
AND OUR SCHOOL COMMUNITIES.
PRIOR TO RECEIVING EXPANDED
LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES PROGRAM
FUNDING, OUR DISTRICT HAD A
GRANT FUNDED PROGRAMS AT 17
ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS AND SERVED
ABOUT 2200 STUDENTS DAILY. THESE
PROGRAMS WERE LIFE CHANGING FOR
SOME CHILDREN, WHO ARE NOW ABLE
TO HAVE A HEALTHY DINNER FOR
FAMILIES WHO ARE NOW ABLE TO
TAKE EMPLOYMENT, AND FOR ENGLISH
LEARNERS WHO ARE NOW ABLE TO
RECEIVE HOMEWORK SUPPORT WITH LP
FUNDING, WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO
EXTEND OUR PROGRAMS TO 27
ADDITIONAL SCHOOL SITES,
ELIMINATE WAIT LISTS AT OUR 17
EXISTING SITES, AND INCREASE
ENROLLMENT TO 10,000 STUDENTS IN
TK THROUGH SIX. IN ADDITION TO
INCREASING THE NUMBER OF
STUDENTS SERVED IN AFTER SCHOOL,
WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO ADD MUCH
NEEDED PROGRAMS FOR STUDENTS IN
HALF DAY TK AND KINDERGARTEN
CLASSES. WE NOW SERVE 1800 TK
STUDENTS DURING THE DAY, WHICH
PROVIDES SUPPORTS FOR FAMILIES
AND GREATLY CONTRIBUTES TO THE
ATTENDANCE AND REGULAR DAY
CLASSES. LAST YEAR, OUR
DISTRICT'S LP ALLOCATION WAS
REDUCED FROM 31 MILLION TO 26
MILLION, MOSTLY DUE TO THE
DECREASE FUNDING OF TIER TWO.
FOR A DISTRICT LIKE OURS THAT
OPERATES YEAR ROUND SCHOOLS, WE
MUST OPERATE 75 DAYS OF
INTERSESSION PROGRAMING TO
PROVIDE 30 DAYS OF OPPORTUNITY
FOR ALL TRACKS. THE MAJORITY OF
OUR SITES DO NOT RECEIVE
ADDITIONAL GRANT FUNDING, BUT
WITH LARGE ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS
SERVING 800 TO 1000 STUDENTS, WE
STILL HAVE HUNDREDS OF CHILDREN
AT THOSE SITES WHO ARE ENGLISH
LEARNERS, ARE IN FOSTER CARE, OR
WHO QUALIFY FOR FREE MEALS.
ADEQUATE LP FUNDING ALLOWS US TO
CONTINUE PROVIDING ACCESSIBLE,
EQUITABLE PROGRAM FOR STUDENTS
REGARDLESS OF THEIR NEED. AS AN
EXAMPLE, A PARENT OF A CHILD
WITH DOWN SYNDROME CAME TO ME
WITH TEARS IN HER EYES TO
EXPRESS HER GRATITUDE FOR THE
OPPORTUNITY TO ENROLL HER
DAUGHTER IN PROGRAM. AS SHE
SHARED, MY DAUGHTER HAS NEVER
HAD THE CHANCE TO BE IN AN AFTER
SCHOOL PROGRAM. CHILD CARE
CENTERS TURNED HER AWAY BECAUSE
THEY COULD NOT SUPPORT HER
NEEDS. THIS IS THE FIRST CHANCE
SHE'S HAD TO JUST BE A KID AND
BE WITH HER FRIENDS OUTSIDE OF
SCHOOL, AND SHE LOVES IT. IT'S
DIFFICULT TO PLAN FOR AND SERVE
THE INCREASED NUMBER OF
STUDENTS, ESPECIALLY THOSE WITH
ADDITIONAL NEEDS, WITHOUT STABLE
FUNDING LEVELS FOR THIS STUDENT
AND FOR ALL OF OUR STUDENTS AND
FAMILIES WHOSE DAILY LIVES ARE
IMPACTED BY THIS CRITICAL
PROGRAM, I RESPECTFULLY REQUEST
YOUR AYE VOTE FOR AB 2112. THANK
YOU SO MUCH. WE'RE GOING TO TAKE
A BRIEF PAUSE AND ESTABLISH A
QUORUM. IF YOU'RE ALL RIGHT WITH
THAT, MR. CHAIR. YES, MADAM
SECRETARY, PLEASE CALL THE ROLL
MURATSUCHI HERE. MURATSUCHI
HERE. FLORA. HERE. FLORA. HERE.
ADDIS ALVAREZ HERE. ALVAREZ.
HERE. BONTA. BONTA. HERE.
HOOVER. MCCARTY QUORUM IS
ESTABLISHED. ALL RIGHT. GO BACK
TO WITNESSES IN SUPPORT, NAME AN
ORGANIZATION, PLEASE. THANK YOU,
MR. CHAIR. ANDREA BALL, ON
BEHALF OF THE CALIFORNIA
ASSOCIATION OF SUBURBAN SCHOOL
DISTRICTS IN SUPPORT. JEFF BACA,
ON BEHALF OF THE RIVERSIDE
COUNTY SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS
AND THE 23 SCHOOL DISTRICT
SUPERINTENDENTS IN RIVERSIDE
COUNTY IN SUPPORT. MARTHA
ZARAGOZA DIAZ, REPRESENTING THE
CALIFORNIA MUSIC EDUCATORS
ASSOCIATION IN SUPPORT. THANK
YOU SO MUCH FOR BULLDOG ACTING
AS AN INDIVIDUAL AND SUPPORTING.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH. ANYONE ELSE
IN SUPPORT SEEING NONE, ANYONE
IN OPPOSITION TO AB 2112. SEEING
NONE, BRING IT BACK TO THE
COMMITTEE QUESTIONS COMMITTEE.
MR. ALVAREZ, THANK YOU, THANK
YOU TO OUR CHAIR FOR WORKING ON
THIS ISSUE. IT'S DEFINITELY,
IMPORTANT TO TALK ABOUT THE, THE
MERITS OF THE POLICY, SO I
APPRECIATE YOU DOING THAT. I, AS
AS WE HAD SHARED THE QUESTIONS
REALLY ARE MORE, TO TRY TO
PROVOKE MORE THOUGHT ABOUT THIS,
WHICH, YOU'VE ALREADY OUTLINED,
I THINK. AND WELL, TESTIFIED
HERE ON THE TIER ONE VERSUS TIER
TWO INSTABILITY, WHICH IS NOT
REALLY FAIR FOR OUR DISTRICTS AS
THEY NEED TO DETERMINE THEIR
PLANNING. SO, I APPRECIATE THAT
THIS IS TRYING TO GET TO THAT. I
THINK THE ONLY COMPONENT THAT,
AND YOU MIGHT RECALL FROM OUR
DISCUSSION AT BUDGET
SUBCOMMITTEE THREE, IS THAT I
DIDN'T SEE SPECIFICALLY
OUTLINING. I'D LIKE YOU TO
PROVIDE MAYBE YOUR THOUGHTS OF
WHERE IT FITS INTO TO YOUR
PROPOSAL. IS THAT DISTRICTS ARE
RECEIVING, ALLOCATIONS BASED ON,
RAW TOTAL NUMBERS OF STUDENTS
THAT MIGHT BE ELIGIBLE. BUT THE
PARTICIPATION RATES ARE NOT IN
LINE. NOT EVERY STUDENT THAT'S
ELIGIBLE AND THAT THE DISTRICT
RECEIVES FUNDING FOR IS ACTUALLY
PARTICIPATING IN THESE PROGRAMS
FOR ONE REASON OR ANOTHER. AND I
APPRECIATE, YOU KNOW, THE EFFORT
BEING MADE TO REACH AS MANY
STUDENTS AS POSSIBLE. BUT THE
REALITY IS THAT THAT THAT
PARTICIPATION LEVEL IS NOT 100.
SO CAN YOU SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS
ABOUT HOW YOU HOPE THIS WILL BE
DISCUSSED AND WHAT THE WORKING
GROUP, SORRY IF I'M CALLING IT
THE RIGHT THE RIGHT NAME, BUT
THE WITH THE GROUP WILL PROVIDE
IN TERMS OF INSIGHT AND ON
RECOMMEND OPTIONS FOR THE
LEGISLATURE. YES. THANK YOU. I,
YOU KNOW, WOULD LOVE TO HEAR
FROM OUR WITNESSES FROM SAN
DIEGO AND ELK GROVE, BUT I KNOW
THAT, AS CHAIR OF THE EDUCATION
COMMITTEE, I HAD AN OPPORTUNITY
TO VISIT, YOU KNOW, YOUR
DISTRICT, SAN DIEGO UNIFIED,
LAST SUMMER TO SEE HOW THEY WERE
USING THE FUNDING, FOR, FOR
THEIR KIDS. AND, I WAS JUST
BLOWN AWAY. THE SAN DIEGO
UNIFIED CONTRACTED WITH THE
STEPHEN COVEY CENTER TO TEACH
THE SEVEN HABITS OF HIGHLY
EFFECTIVE PEOPLE TO A
PRESCHOOLERS. AND THEY. AND THEY
HIRED SAN DIEGO HIGH SCHOOL
STUDENTS TO BE SUMMER, BASICALLY
LIKE LIKE CAMP COUNSELORS, YOU
KNOW, THEY WERE ASSISTING THE
CERTIFICATED TEACHERS, YOU KNOW,
RUNNING THE PROGRAMS, YOU KNOW,
TO PROVIDE THESE PROGRAMS. AND
SO, YOU KNOW, I WAS ABLE TO
WITNESS FIRSTHAND, YOU KNOW, HOW
IT WAS SERVING A LOW INCOME
COMMUNITY, YOU KNOW, MAKING SURE
THAT, YOU KNOW, WE KNOW THAT SO
MUCH LEARNING LOSS TAKES PLACE
DURING THESE LONG SUMMER
VACATIONS WHEN, YOU KNOW,
WEALTHIER FAMILIES HAVE ALL
THESE ENRICHMENT ACTIVITIES. I
MEAN, THAT'S THE WHOLE POINT OF
THE ELA PROGRAMS, RIGHT? IS, IS
TO TRY TO GIVE A FAIR SHOT TO
LOWER INCOME KIDS THAT MAY NOT
HAVE ALL THOSE ENRICHMENT
ACTIVITIES, THESE WONDERFUL ELA
PROGRAMS, BUT WHAT I HEARD OVER
AND OVER AGAIN, AND I KNOW YOU
HAVE ALSO, AS BUDGET
SUBCOMMITTEE CHAIR, IS THAT WITH
THE UNCERTAINTY OF THE FUNDING,
YOU KNOW, A LOT OF DISTRICTS
MAY, MAY BE CONSERVATIVE IN
TERMS OF, OF PLANNING OUT
BASICALLY, YOU KNOW, DOING THE
RIGHT THING, WHAT THESE
DISTRICTS HAVE DONE TO FULLY
TAKE ADVANTAGE OF, OF THESE
DOLLARS TO PROVIDE THE MAXIMUM
BENEFIT FOR THE MAXIMUM NUMBER
OF STUDENTS, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE
OF THE UNCERTAINTY OF, YOU KNOW,
IS IF WE START THIS, ARE WE
GOING TO HAVE THE FUNDING TO BE
ABLE TO, CARRY THROUGH? AND
THAT'S EXACTLY, YOU KNOW, WHAT'S
HAPPENING TO THESE DISTRICTS, I
WOULD LOVE TO GIVE AN
OPPORTUNITY TO OUR SCHOOL
DISTRICTS TO, YOU KNOW, SHARE
YOUR, YOUR EXPERIENCES. YEAH,
ABSOLUTELY. NICOLE, THE SAN
DIEGO UNIFIED, SO I THINK IT'S
REALLY IMPORTANT FOR US TO DO
OUTREACH TO THE FAMILIES THAT
DIDN'T PARTICIPATE. AND THAT'S
SOMETHING THAT WE ACTIVELY DO IN
OUR DISTRICT, IS WE DO OUTREACH
TO FAMILIES AFTER ENROLLMENT TO
SEE WHAT WERE THE BARRIERS AND
WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES. AND I
THINK ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I
WOULD HOPE WOULD COME OUT FROM A
WORKGROUP IS, HOW DO WE MAKE THE
ENROLLMENT PROCESS EASIER FOR
OUR FAMILIES? SO THERE'S A LOT
OF DIFFERENT PROGRAMS, A LOT OF
DIFFERENT COMMUNITY PARTNERS, A
LOT OF DIFFERENT WAYS STUDENTS
CAN EXPERIENCE LEARNING. HOW DO
WE HOUSE THAT ALL UNDER ONE
SYSTEM SO THAT WE CAN TRACK NOT
JUST ENROLLMENT, BUT ATTENDANCE
AND OUTCOMES. AND SO THAT'S
SOMETHING THAT WE'RE ACTIVELY
WORKING ON AS A DISTRICT TO MAKE
SURE THAT WE CAN USE THAT IN
FUTURE YEARS TO REMOVE THAT
BARRIER OF ENROLLMENT AS A
CHALLENGE. I APPRECIATE THAT.
AND I WOULD ADD, MR. CHAIR, WE
ARE LUCKY, AND I'M SURE THERE
ARE OTHER VERY GOOD MODELS
THROUGHOUT THE STATE, BUT, IN
SANTA UNIFIED, YOU DESCRIBED ONE
PROGRAM, BUT THERE ARE THERE ARE
THERE'S A VARIATION OF OPTIONS,
AND IT'S LIKE THE LIST IS VERY,
VERY LONG. SO THERE ARE A LOT OF
GREAT OPTIONS, PARTNERSHIPS
MAINLY, WITH A LOT OF COMMUNITY
BASED ORGANIZATIONS, BUT ALSO
OUR INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER
EDUCATION, THERE'S SOME REALLY
NEAT THINGS HAPPENING. I'M GLAD
YOU GOT A CHANCE TO EXPERIENCE
THOSE, BUT I'VE ALSO SEEN THEM
FIRSTHAND, AND, BUT BUT JUST TO
GO BACK TO MY POINT AND THERE
WAS SOME, RESPONSE HERE IS, IS
AS THE WORKGROUP, DOES THEIR,
THEIR, THEIR TAKE ON THIS TASK,
GIVEN THE, FINANCIAL SITUATION
OF OUR STATE THAT WE LIKELY WILL
BE IN FOR A COUPLE OF YEARS AND,
AND JUST GOOD PRACTICES IN TERMS
OF, OF, BEING ACCOUNTABLE FOR
THE DOLLARS THAT THE
CALIFORNIANS ENTRUST US WITH, I
WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT AS WE
RECEIVE THOSE DOLLARS, THEY'RE
PUT PUT TO USE IN THE WAY THAT
WE INTEND, WHICH MEANS SERVING
AS MANY STUDENTS AS POSSIBLE. SO
APPRECIATE THE OUTREACH, THE,
CONTACTING FAMILIES WHO MAYBE WE
BELIEVE ARE ELIGIBLE, WHO AREN'T
PARTICIPATING. THAT'S ALL GOOD.
AND WE SHOULD DO THAT, SOME OF
THOSE FAMILIES MAY JUST CHOOSE
NOT TO BECAUSE THEY HAVE ANOTHER
OPTION, THAT, THAT THEY'RE
ENGAGING IN, AND THAT'S OKAY,
TOO, BUT WE NEED TO CREATE THAT
ACCOUNTABILITY SYSTEM SO THAT AS
WE TRUE UP, IF YOU WILL, HOW
MANY KIDS ARE ACTUALLY
PARTICIPATING TO THE FUNDING
THAT GETS RECEIVED FOR THIS
PARTICULAR PROGRAM, GIVEN HOW
MANY OTHER INITIATIVES WE ALL
WANT TO SEE IN OUR SCHOOL
DISTRICT, THAT THIS PROGRAM
RECEIVES THE FUNDING THAT SERVES
A NUMBER OF STUDENTS THAT ARE
PARTICIPATING AND NOT IN EXCESS
OF THAT, SO THAT THOSE FUNDS
PERHAPS COULD BE USED FOR OTHER
IMPORTANT PROGRAMS. AND THAT'S
THAT'S WHAT I WANT TO EMPHASIZE,
THAT I HOPE THIS CONVERSATION
BRINGS, BECAUSE WE NEED THAT
COMPONENT OF ACCOUNTABILITY SO
THAT WE CAN BUDGET AND ALLOCATE
AND APPROPRIATE CORRECTLY ON A
GOING FORWARD BASIS. AS WE LOOK
TO MAKE THIS PROGRAM SUSTAINABLE
. DOES THAT MAKE SENSE?
ABSOLUTELY. I MEAN, WE WANT TO
MAKE SURE, ESPECIALLY GIVEN THE
CHALLENGING BUDGET SITUATION
THAT THAT WE'RE FACING, THAT WE
ARE WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT
EVERY TAXPAYER DOLLAR IS
PROPERLY SPENT SO THAT IT
DELIVERS THE INTENDED, BENEFIT
FOR OUR STUDENTS. I APPRECIATE
THAT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. AND,
I'M HAPPY TO NOW THAT WE HAVE A
QUORUM, MOVE THE ITEM. I'LL
SECOND IT. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS
FROM COMMITTEE MEMBERS? SEEING
NONE. MR. CHAIR, WOULD YOU LIKE
TO CLOSE? THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
I, I APPRECIATE ESPECIALLY THE
DISCUSSION RELATED TO THE
BUDGET, AND WE KNOW THAT THIS
ULTIMATELY NEEDS TO BE RESOLVED
IN THE BUDGET, NOT ONLY THIS
YEAR, BUT ONGOING YEARS. BUT, WE
WOULD TO FURTHER, SUPPORT THESE
GREAT ELA PROGRAMS, WE WOULD
RESPECTFULLY ASK FOR YOUR VOTE.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH. MADAM
SECRETARY. PLEASE CALL THE ROLL
FILE. ITEM SIX AB 2112. THE
MOTION IS DỰ. PASS TO
APPROPRIATIONS. MURATSUCHI ĐÃ
MURATSUCHI I LARA I LARA I
ADDIS. ADDIS I ALVAREZ. YES
ALVAREZ I BONTA I WANT TO I
HOOVER. MCCARTY BILL IS I WILL
LEAVE IT OPEN FOR ABSENT
MEMBERS. ALL RIGHT, MR. CHAIR,
IT LOOKS LIKE YOU ARE GOING TO
PRESENT A B 2226 FILE ITEM
NUMBER EIGHT. YES THIS IS AB
2226. OKAY. THANK YOU. LET ME,
GIVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE OUR
WITNESSES JOIN US.
ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU, VICE CHAIR
AND MEMBERS, I AM PROUD TO
PRESENT ASSEMBLY BILL 2226,
WHICH WILL REQUIRE THAT CHILDREN
ATTEND ONE YEAR OF KINDERGARTEN
PRIOR TO ENTERING FIRST GRADE
BEGINNING IN THE 2026 2027
SCHOOL YEAR. A LOT OF PEOPLE
ASK, WELL, ISN'T KINDERGARTEN
ALREADY MANDATORY? IT IS NOT. AS
WE ALL KNOW, THIS BILL WILL MAKE
KINDERGARTEN ATTENDANCE
MANDATORY. WE KNOW THAT MOST
STUDENTS DO ATTEND KINDERGARTEN.
OVER 90% OF STUDENTS ALREADY
ATTEND KINDERGARTEN. A KEY
ELEMENT IN PREPARING THEM, NOT
ONLY FOR THEIR ACADEMIC SUCCESS,
BUT THEIR SOCIAL EMOTIONAL
SUCCESS. HOWEVER FOR UP TO 6% OF
STUDENTS OF CHILDREN WHO DO NOT
ATTEND KINDERGARTEN TODAY, AND
AS THIS VARIES SIGNIFICANTLY
ACROSS, DIFFERENT RACIAL AND
ETHNIC COMMUNITIES, THIS CREATES
THE EQUITY GAP. WE KNOW THAT
EARLY EDUCATION HAS THE BIGGEST
RETURN ON INVESTMENT, AND AS WE
ARE, YOU KNOW, WORKING HARD
TOWARD ACHIEVING OUR GOAL FOR
UNIVERSAL TRANSITIONAL
KINDERGARTEN, THIS BILL IS
REMINDING US, LET'S NOT FORGET
KINDERGARTEN AND BY MAKING THIS
MANDATORY, WE CAN ACHIEVE WE CAN
CLOSE THOSE EQUITY GAPS AND REAP
THE BENEFITS OF EARLY CHILDHOOD
EDUCATION, MUCH AS WE ARE
WORKING HARD TO EXPAND UNIVERSAL
TRANSITIONAL KINDERGARTEN IN
TERMS OF THE EQUITY GAPS, FOR
EXAMPLE, APPROXIMATELY 7% OF
LATINO CHILDREN WERE NOT
ENROLLED IN KINDERGARTEN IN
2019. OUR ACADEMIC STANDARDS
CONTINUE TO EVOLVE, AND IN
RECENT YEARS, STUDENTS ARE
EXPECTED TO ARRIVE IN FIRST
GRADE WITH BASIC LITERACY AND
NUMERACY SKILLS. AS KINDERGARTEN
BUILDS ON THESE SKILLS, AS WELL
AS ON OTHER ELEMENTS OF THE
EARLY EDUCATION SYSTEM, WITH
CHILDREN HAVING THE OPPORTUNITY
TO ATTEND A HIGH QUALITY
PRESCHOOL PROGRAM AT THREE YEARS
OF AGE, A TRANSITIONAL
KINDERGARTEN PROGRAM AT FOUR
YEARS OF AGE, AND THEN
KINDERGARTEN AT FIVE YEARS OF
AGE. CHILDREN BEGIN SCHOOL IN
THE FIRST FIRST GRADE WILL BE
MISSING OUT ON THOSE THREE
CRITICAL YEARS OF EARLY
EDUCATION. A SIGNIFICANT
OPPORTUNITY GAP AGAIN,
CALIFORNIA MADE SIGNIFICANT
INVESTMENTS IN RECENT YEARS TO
SUPPORT UNIVERSAL TRANSITIONAL
KINDERGARTEN, UNIVERSAL MEALS,
COMMUNITY SCHOOLS, THE ELA
PROGRAMS THAT WE JUST DISCUSSED.
IT'S ESSENTIAL THAT WE DON'T
WAIT ANY LONGER TO MANDATE
KINDERGARTEN TO ENSURE THAT ALL
OF OUR CHILDREN LEARN,
REGARDLESS OF WHERE YOU LIVE,
HAVE AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY TO
GAIN THE ACADEMIC AND SOCIAL AND
EMOTIONAL SKILLS THEY WILL NEED
THROUGHOUT THEIR SCHOOL, CAREER
AND BEYOND. AND THAT'S WHY WE
HAVE SEEN THIS BILL. WE SAW THIS
BILL LAST YEAR. SENATOR RUBIO'S,
BILL. AND SO I'M JOINING FORCES
TO MAKE THIS A BICAMERAL
PRIORITY, TO, TO, TO CHAMPION
MANDATORY KINDERGARTEN TO MAKE
SURE THAT ALL STUDENTS ARE
ENROLLED IN KINDERGARTEN PRIOR
TO ENROLLING IN FIRST GRADE,
STARTING IN THE 2026 2027 SCHOOL
YEAR. I'M VERY HAPPY TO HAVE TWO
WITNESSES HERE TODAY
REPRESENTING LOS ANGELES UNIFIED
AS DEPUTY SUPERINTENDENT DOCTOR
CARLA ESTRADA, AND A TEACHER
FROM SACRAMENTO CITY UNIFIED,
INGRID HUTCHINS. THANK YOU VERY
MUCH, MR. CHAIR. FIRST WITNESS,
TWO MINUTES, PLEASE. GOOD
AFTERNOON. MY NAME IS KARLA
ESTRADA, DEPUTY SUPERINTENDENT
OF INSTRUCTION FOR THE LOS
ANGELES UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT.
AND IT IS WITH GREAT OPTIMISM
THAT I SIT BEFORE YOU TODAY
REPRESENTING OUR DISTRICT AS A
PROUD CO-SPONSOR OF AB 2226, AN
EQUITY DRIVEN STEP TOWARDS
MAKING KINDERGARTEN MANDATORY IN
OUR GREAT STATE OF CALIFORNIA.
IT ALSO CLOSELY ALIGNS TO THE
INVESTMENTS THAT THE STATE HAS
MADE IN EARLY CHILDHOOD AND
YOUTH WORK, SUPPORTING STUDENTS
ACADEMIC AND SOCIAL EMOTIONAL
FOUNDATIONS. YOU'LL BE ALWAYS SO
PLEASED TO SEE OUR LITTLE ONES
IN SCHOOL SITTING ACROSS FROM
THEIR TEACHERS, THEIR EDUCATORS,
TEACHING THEM ABOUT READING,
MATH, SOCIAL SKILLS, WONDERFUL
PLAY ACTIVITIES. THAT'S WHAT'S
HAPPENING IN OUR SCHOOLS RIGHT
NOW. AND FOR OUR KINDERGARTNERS,
WE WANT TO ENSURE THAT SAME
OPPORTUNITY THIS BILL REPRESENTS
A CORNERSTONE OF CALIFORNIA'S
PROMISE THAT EVERY CHILD STARTS
THEIR EDUCATIONAL JOURNEY
EQUIPPED WITH THE EARLY LEARNING
EXPERIENCES ESSENTIAL FOR THEIR
FUTURE SUCCESS. IT IS A BOLD
STEP TOWARDS EQUITABLE
EDUCATIONAL POLICY, AIMING TO
BRIDGE THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP THAT
TOO OFTEN DIVIDES STUDENTS FROM
UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES AND
THEIR PEERS, SUCH AS IN LUẬN.
LUSD WERE 86% OF OUR STUDENTS
LIVE IN POVERTY OR ARE
SOCIOECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED
THROUGHOUT LOS ANGELES. WE
CONTINUE TO SEE EVIDENCE OF
STUDENTS BENEFITING FROM
KINDERGARTEN THROUGH ACADEMIC
AND SOCIAL EMOTIONAL GROWTH,
INCLUDING ON PERFORMANCE
ASSESSMENTS THAT INFORM THEIR
DAILY LEARNING. WE SEE THE
IMPACT THIS DATA IN FIRST,
SECOND AND THIRD GRADE STUDENTS
HAVE EVEN DEMONSTRATED THOSE WHO
ATTENDED KINDERGARTEN, HIGHER
ACHIEVEMENT LEVELS ON THEIR
SMARTER BALANCE ASSESSMENTS AS
LATE AS INTO FIFTH GRADE, AND
THE POSITIVE IMPACT OF MANDATORY
KINDERGARTEN IS NOT CONFINED
WITHIN THE BOUNDARIES OF LA
GROUNDBREAKER. RESEARCH BY
RESEARCHERS AT UC IRVINE HAVE
SHOWN THAT STUDENTS FROM STATES
THAT EMBRACE THIS POLICY NOT
ONLY HAVE A HIGHER LIKELIHOOD OF
PURSUING HIGHER EDUCATION, THEY
ARE ALSO MOST LIKELY TO ACHIEVE
ECONOMIC PROSPERITY AS ADULTS.
THE DATA SHOWS THAT THIS IS MOST
SIGNIFICANT AMONG OUR BLACK AND
LATINO STUDENTS, UNDERSCORING
THE URGENCY OF PROVIDING
OUTCOMES FOR OUR. THANK YOU SO
MUCH FOR YOUR TWO MINUTES. THANK
YOU. NEXT WITNESS TWO MINUTES,
PLEASE. HELLO. MY NAME IS INGRID
HUTCHINS, AND I'M A TRANSITIONAL
KINDERGARTEN TEACHER AT GOLDEN
EMPIRE ELEMENTARY AND SACRAMENTO
CITY UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT.
I'M HERE IN SUPPORT OF AB 2226.
IT'S TIME FOR CALIFORNIA TO
ACKNOWLEDGE THE IMPORTANT ROLE
KINDERGARTEN PLAYS IN A
STUDENT'S LIFETIME. LIFELONG
ACADEMIC SUCCESS. KINDERGARTEN
PROVIDES THE ESSENTIAL
FOUNDATION FOUNDATIONAL SKILLS
THAT ALL FUTURE LEARNING
REQUIRES. STUDENTS WHO ATTEND
KINDERGARTEN AN LEARN SOCIAL
SKILLS SUCH AS SHARING, TAKING
TURNS, PATIENCE,
SELF-REGULATION, AND GROUP
DYNAMICS. AS WE SAW DURING THE
COVID LOCKDOWNS, CLASSROOM
COMMUNITIES PROVIDE
OPPORTUNITIES TO LEARN AND
PRACTICE THESE SKILLS IN WAYS
THAT AREN'T EASILY REPLICATED
OTHERWISE. KINDERGARTEN IS WHERE
STUDENTS BECOME READERS, NOT
ONLY DO THEY LEARN TO RECITE,
RECOGNIZE, AND WRITE THE
ALPHABET, BUT THEY ALSO LEARN
PHONEMES, SYLLABLES, AND RHYMES.
THEY LEARN SIGHT WORDS. ABOUT 40
OF THEM START TO DECODE AND
BLEND CVC WORDS, AND THEN
PROUDLY READ THEIR FIRST BOOKS
INDEPENDENTLY. THEY LEARN TO
DISTINGUISH BETWEEN LITERATURE
AND INFORMATIONAL TEXT. THEY
COMPARE AND CONTRAST FAMILIAR
STORIES AND ENGAGE IN
DISCUSSIONS ABOUT THE
CHARACTERS. THEY SOUND OUT NEW
WORDS, WRITE THEM, THEN BUILD
SENTENCES TO SHARE THEIR IDEAS
WITH OTHERS. KINDERGARTEN IS
ALSO WHERE STUDENTS START TO
BECOME MATHEMATICIANS. ÓRDENES
KINDERGARTNERS LEARN HOW TO
COUNT TO 100, ADD AND SUBTRACT
WITHIN TEN, AND DECOMPOSE
NUMBERS. THEY LEARN THE CONCEPT
OF TIME POSITIONS OF OBJECTS,
AND HOW TO ANALYZE THREE AND TWO
DIMENSIONAL. I'M SORRY, TWO AND
THREE DIMENSIONAL SHAPES.
KINDERGARTEN IS A STUDENT'S
FIRST EXPOSURE TO ALGEBRA AND
GEOMETRY. THESE EXAMPLES ARE
JUST A FEW OF THE 70 STANDARDS
THAT ARE TAUGHT IN ENGLISH
LANGUAGE ARTS AND MATH ALONE IN
KINDERGARTEN. IMAGINE WHAT IT
MUST BE LIKE TO BE ONE OF THE
APPROXIMATELY 3 TO 4% OF
STUDENTS IN CALIFORNIA WHOSE
FIRST EXPERIENCES IN SCHOOL IS
WHEN THEY ENTER FIRST GRADE.
THEIR PEERS ARE ENTERING FIRST
GRADE, PREPARED FOR THE
INCREASED ACADEMIC RIGOR. THANKS
TO THEIR EARLY LITERACY SKILLS,
NUMERACY SKILLS, AND SOCIAL
EMOTIONAL SKILLS. IN
KINDERGARTEN. WHILE NEW TO
SCHOOL, FIRST GRADERS ENTER
SCHOOL A FULL YEAR BEHIND THEIR
CLASSMATES ACADEMICALLY AND
SOCIALLY. THANK YOU SO MUCH.
WE'LL JUST ASK YOU TO WRAP UP
YOUR THOUGHT. THANK YOU. I'M IN
SUPPORT. THANK YOU SO MUCH.
OTHER WITNESSES IN SUPPORT OF AB
2226. SHELLY GUPTON, CTA FIFTH
GRADE TEACHER FROM ELK GROVE
UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT. THANK
YOU, DANNY CHAU WITH THE
CALIFORNIA TEACHERS ASSOCIATION,
PROUD CO-SPONSORS OF THIS
MEASURE, JOHN WINGER, ON BEHALF
OF THE CALIFORNIA CHARTER SCHOOL
ASSOCIATION IN SUPPORT JENNIFER
BAKER ON BEHALF OF THE
CALIFORNIA RETIRED TEACHERS
ASSOCIATION AND THE CALIFORNIA
ASSOCIATION FOR BILINGUAL
EDUCATION AND SUPPORT. GOOD
AFTERNOON, CHAIR AND MEMBERS
TRISTAN BROWN WITH CFT HERE IN
SUPPORT. ZHANG LARA WITH THE
CALIFORNIA SCHOOL EMPLOYEES
ASSOCIATION IN SUPPORT. MARTHA
ZARAGOZA, DÍAS, REPRESENTING
DELTA KAPPA GAMMA, CALIFORNIA
AND THE CALIFORNIA MUSIC
EDUCATORS ASSOCIATION IN SUPPORT
. CHRISTINA SALAZAR WITH
CALIFORNIANS TOGETHER IN SUPPORT
. GOOD AFTERNOON, MR. CHAIR, AND
MEMBERS. DOMINIQUE DANNY FROM
EDVOICE AND SUPPORT. SIERRA COOK
WITH THE SAN DIEGO UNIFIED
SCHOOL DISTRICT IN SUPPORT. GOOD
AFTERNOON. MARTHA ALBERT OF THE
L.A. UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT.
PROUD CO-SPONSOR. THANK YOU,
THANK YOU. ANYONE ELSE IN
SUPPORT SEEING NONE. ANYONE IN
OPPOSITION TO AB 2226. WE HAVE
TWO MINUTES, SIR. THANK YOU SIR.
IT PAINS ME TODAY TO HAVE TO
OPPOSE THIS LEGISLATION.
UNFORTUNATELY BECAUSE OF PAST
LEGISLATION PRIOR SB 277 IN 2015
AND SB 2000, SB 2076 IN 2019,
SCHOOLS NOW REQUIRE THAT
STUDENTS BE IMMUNIZED WITH THE
STUDENT WITH THE CHILDHOOD
VACCINE SCHEDULE. THERE IS STILL
A GROUP OF CALIFORNIANS HERE
THAT DO NOT WISH TO PARTICIPATE
ON THAT, BECAUSE THEY FEEL IT'S
NOT SAFE FOR THEIR FOR THEIR FOR
THEIR FOR THEIR CHILDREN. AND
THEY DO WAIT TILL THE LAST
MOMENT TO, TO GET THOSE SHOTS
BECAUSE THEY CANNOT AFFORD TO DO
HOME SCHOOLING. THEY'RE NOT IN A
POSITION TO DO THAT OR THEY DO
NOT HAVE INDIVIDUAL EDUCATION
PROGRAMS. SO I DO REQUEST THAT
THE AUTHOR IMPLEMENT A AMENDMENT
TO THIS THAT THOSE STUDENTS
BEFORE THEY, ENTER, ENTER
KINDERGARTEN, HAVE AN EXEMPTION
TO NOT BE REQUIRED TO GET THAT
UNTIL FIRST GRADE, BECAUSE THOSE
PARENTS ALSO FEEL THAT THE
LONGER THEY WAIT TO GET THOSE
VACCINES, THE SAFER THEIR
CHILDREN WILL BE. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU. LANCE CHRISTENSEN,
VICE PRESIDENT OF THE CALIFORNIA
POLICY CENTER. THANK YOU FOR
HAVING ME HERE. I'M HERE IN
SUPPORT OR IN OPPOSITION TO THIS
BILL, BUT IN SUPPORT OF THE TENS
OF THOUSANDS OF PARENTS WHO
SIMPLY DON'T WANT THEIR CHILDREN
IN KINDERGARTEN FOR ANY NUMBER
OF REASONS, TO FORCE THEM TO DO
SO, THEY MAY BE, EMOTIONALLY OR
OTHERWISE IMMATURE, NOT HAVE THE
ABILITY OR FUNCTIONS TO GET TO
SCHOOL, OR MAYBE THE PARENT JUST
SIMPLY WANTS TO HAVE THEM FOR
ANOTHER YEAR. AS A PARENT OF
FIVE WHO SENT ALL OF THEIR KIDS
TO KINDERGARTEN, I CAN SEE THE
VALUE IN IT. I ALSO CAN SEE THE
VALUE IN KIDS JUST STAYING HOME
WITH THEIR PARENTS, BECAUSE
THAT'S SIMPLY WHAT THEY WANT. SO
WE WOULD RESPECTFULLY OPPOSE
THIS BILL. THANK YOU. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. ANY OTHER BODY ELSE
IN OPPOSITION TO 2226 NAME AND
ORGANIZATION ONLY SEEING NONE.
BRING IT BACK TO THE COMMITTEE.
SEEING NONE. MR. CHAIR, WOULD
YOU LIKE TO CLOSE? THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. YOU KNOW, I IF I MAY,
I JUST WANT TO BRIEFLY ADDRESS
THE, THE, THE CONCERN RAISED
ABOUT NOT EVERY FAMILY MAY WANT
TO SEND THEIR KIDS TO
KINDERGARTEN. THIS BILL DOES,
ALLOW PARENTS THE CHOICE OF
KEEPING THEIR CHILDREN HOME
UNTIL THEY'RE SIX YEARS OLD, AS
THAT IS THE CURRENT REQUIREMENT
FOR A COMPULSORY EDUCATION, AND,
AND THE BILL ALSO CLARIFIES THAT
KINDERGARTEN ATTENDANCE CAN, CAN
BE, THROUGH HOME SCHOOLING, IF
THEY CHOOSE TO. AND SO, YOU
KNOW, FAMILIES THAT WANT TO
HOMESCHOOL THEIR KIDS CAN, CAN,
FULFILL THIS, KINDERGARTEN
REQUIREMENT, THROUGH
HOMESCHOOLING. BUT THE BOTTOM
LINE IS THAT WE WANT TO SEND A
CLEAR AND CONSISTENT MESSAGE TO,
TO ALL COMMUNITIES, TO ALL
FAMILIES, THAT, THAT THERE'S SO
MUCH IMPORTANCE, SO MUCH
LEARNING, SO MUCH SOCIAL
EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT, AT THE
EARLY AGES, AND THAT WE WANT TO
MAKE SURE THAT WE DON'T, ALLOW
FOR THESE EQUITY GAPS AND THESE
COMMUNITIES, BY SENDING MIXED
MESSAGES IN TERMS OF THE
IMPORTANCE OF KINDERGARTEN.
KINDERGARTEN IS IMPORTANT. EVERY
KID SHOULD ATTEND KINDERGARTEN,
AND WITH WITH THAT, I
RESPECTFULLY ASK FOR AN IDEA.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH, MR. CHAIR.
I WILL GO AHEAD AND MOVE THE
BILL. I'M NOT GOING TO BE ABLE
TO SUPPORT IT TODAY, BUT I THINK
WE MIGHT NEED A MOTION HERE. SO
I'LL MOVE THE BILL. OKAY. MADAM
SECRETARY, PLEASE CALL THE ROLL
FILE. ITEM EIGHT AB 2226. THE
MOTION IS TO PASS TO
APPROPRIATIONS. MURATSUCHI ĐÃ
MURATSUCHI I LARA NOT VOTING OR
NOT VOTING. ADDIS I ADDIS I
ALVAREZ. BONTA. HOOVER MCCARTY.
THE BILL IS ON CALL. WE'LL LEAVE
IT OPEN FOR ABSENT MEMBERS. AND
WE'RE MOVING ON TO FILE ITEM
NUMBER ONE, ASSEMBLY BILL NUMBER
1825.
ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU, VICE CHAIR
AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS. I AM
PROUD TO PRESENT AB 1825, THE
CALIFORNIA FREEDOM TO READ ACT.
SO THIS BILL, I STARTED WORKING
ON IT, LAST FALL, AS WE WERE ALL
HEARING, MORE AND MORE ABOUT,
BOOKS BEING BANNED ACROSS THE
COUNTRY WITH, UNFORTUNATELY, TOO
MANY OF THE, THE BOOKS BEING
TARGETED, FOR BANNING, BEING
BOOKS THAT IDENTIFY THE, THE
EXPERIENCE SOURCES OR THE
PERSPECTIVES OF LGBTQ,
COMMUNITIES OF COLOR, AND IN
FACT, AS THE, STAFF ANALYSIS
INDICATES, ACCORDING TO THE
AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION,
THERE HAS BEEN, CHALLENGES OF
BOOK TITLES IN THE UNITED STATES
ACROSS THE COUNTRY INCREASED 65%
FROM 2022 TO 2023, THE HIGHEST
LEVEL EVER DOCUMENTED BY THE
AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION. IN
THE POINT ABOUT THE TITLES, IN
PARTICULAR REPRESENTING THE
VOICES AND LIVED EXPERIENCES OF
LGBTQ AND, BLACK, INDIGENOUS AND
COMMUNITIES OF COLOR, BEING
TARGETED. THEY MADE UP 47% OF
THOSE TARGETED IN THE CENSORSHIP
ATTEMPTS HERE IN CALIFORNIA IN
2023, 2023, THERE WERE 52
CHALLENGES TO 98 BOOKS IN PUBLIC
LIBRARIES AND SCHOOL LIBRARIES.
THAT COMPARES IN 2022. THERE
WERE 32 ATTEMPTS TO BAN 87
TITLES. SO, THIS BILL I REACHED
OUT TO THE AMERICAN LIBRARY
ASSOCIATION AND TO THE ACLU TO,
AND, THIS BILL SEEKS TO PROHIBIT
PUBLIC LIBRARIES AND LET ME
DISTINGUISH PUBLIC LIBRARIES,
FROM SCHOOL LIBRARIES. WE HAD A
BILL LAST YEAR THAT DEALT WITH
SCHOOL LIBRARIES. THIS BILL
DEALS WITH PUBLIC LIBRARIES,
THIS BILL WOULD PROHIBIT PUBLIC
LIBRARIES FROM BANNING BOOKS
THAT DISCRIMINATE AGAINST OR
EXCLUDE MATERIALS BASED ON RACE,
NATIONALITY, GENDER IDENTITY,
SEXUAL ORIENTATION, RELIGION,
DISABILITY, POLITICAL
AFFILIATION, OR SOCIOECONOMIC
STATUS, OR ON THE BASIS THAT THE
MATERIALS UNDER CONSIDERATION,
CONTAIN AN INCLUSIVE AND DIVERSE
PERSPECTIVES. WE WANT INCLUSIVE
AND DIVERSE PERSPECTIVES, AND
THAT IS EXACTLY THE POINT OF
THIS BILL. UNFORTUNATELY, THE
FREEDOM TO READ, A CORNERSTONE
OF OUR DEMOCRACY HAS BEEN UNDER
ATTACK, NOT ONLY IN CALIFORNIA
BUT ACROSS THE COUNTRY. FOR
EXAMPLE, IN FRESNO. COUNTY,
FRESNO COUNTY INTRODUCED A
RESOLUTION, THAT, CONSTITUTES A
UNCONSTITUTIONAL FORM OF
CENSORSHIP TARGETING BOOKS BASED
ON SEEMINGLY DISFAVORED SPEECH
REFERENCES TO BODILY ANATOMY,
SEXUAL CONTENT, AND GENDER
IDENTITY. AND WE'RE GOING TO
HEAR MORE FROM THE CITY OF
HUNTINGTON BEACH, WHICH,
INTRODUCED A RESOLUTION WHICH
WOULD IMPOSE AN UNCONSTITUTIONAL
CENSORSHIP, SCHEME ON THE
PEOPLE'S RIGHT TO ACCESS LIBRARY
BOOKS AND MATERIALS PROTECTED BY
THE FIRST AMENDMENT. THIS BILL
WAS DRAFTED BY, LIBRARIANS AND
FIRST AMENDMENT ADVOCATES, AS
REPRESENTED BY THE AMERICAN
LIBRARY ASSOCIATION AND THE ACLU
, WHO, I HAVE HAD VERY
PRODUCTIVE DISCUSSIONS, AND I
EXPECT TO HEAR FROM OUR
CALIFORNIA LIBRARIANS THROUGH
THE CALIFORNIA LIBRARIAN
ASSOCIATION, ON, YOU KNOW,
FURTHER WORK THAT NEEDS TO BE
DONE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE GET
THIS POLICY RIGHT IN THIS
COMPLICATED AREA, AND BEFORE I
TURN IT OVER TO THE WITNESSES,
LET ME JUST SAY THAT, YOU KNOW,
NOT ONLY AS AN ADVOCATE OF, OF
THE FREEDOM TO READ, BUT ALSO AS
A PARENT, YOU KNOW, WHO, HAS HAD
MANY CONVERSATIONS WITH OTHER
PARENTS ABOUT WHETHER THIS BILL
IS GOING TO ALLOW FOR IN OUR
STATE LIBRARIES OR, YOU KNOW,
WHETHER IT'S GOING TO TAKE AWAY
THE ABILITY OF LIBRARIANS TO BE
ABLE TO, EXERCISE THEIR
PROFESSIONAL JUDGMENT AND
DISCRETION TO MAKE SURE THAT
BOOKS ARE PROVIDED TO THE
PUBLIC, ARE AGE APPROPRIATE, AND
DEVELOP MENTALLY APPROPRIATE,
THE, THE GOAL AND THE INTENT OF
THIS, THIS BILL IS TO, TO,
ENTRUST AND, YOU KNOW, GIVE THE
AUTHORITY THAT DISCRETION TO
LIBRARIANS IN A WAY THAT, THAT,
THAT THAT ALLOWS FOR, YOU KNOW,
SUCH JUDGMENT AS TO WHERE AND
HOW SUCH BOOKS SHOULD BE
DISPLAYED, BUT, IN A WAY THAT,
THAT THAT DOESN'T ALLOW FOR, THE
MINORITY OF VOICES AND
COMMUNITIES TO TAKE AWAY FROM
THE MAJORITY OF CALIFORNIANS WHO
WANT, SIMPLY TO BE ABLE TO ENJOY
THE FREEDOM TO READ THE BOOKS OF
THEIR OWN CHOOSING, WITH ME, I
AM VERY PROUD TO HAVE, A COUNCIL
MEMBER FROM THE CITY OF
HUNTINGTON BEACH WHO'S FIGHTING
THE GOOD FIGHT, AND HE'S GOING
TO SHARE MUCH OF WHAT'S BEEN
HAPPENING IN HUNTINGTON BEACH IN
TERMS OF THEIR BOOK BANNING,
TAKING PLACE IN THEIR COMMUNITY,
COUNCILMAN DAN KALMICK HAS BEEN
FIGHTING, THAT THAT EFFORT. AND
HE'S GOING TO SHARE HIS
EXPERIENCE. AND ALSO PROUD TO
HAVE REPRESENTING EQUALITY
CALIFORNIA. CRAIG PULSIFER, VERY
MUCH APPRECIATE BOTH OF THEM
JOINING US IN SUPPORT OF THE
BILL. THANK YOU. SO MUCH, MR.
CHAIR. TWO MINUTES PER WITNESS,
PLEASE. THANK YOU, CHAIRMAN
MURATSUCHI, MEMBERS OF THE
EDUCATION COMMITTEE STAFF. MY
NAME IS DAN KALMICK. I'M AN
ELECTED CITY COUNCIL MEMBER FOR
THE CITY OF HUNTINGTON BEACH. I
APPEAR BEFORE YOU TODAY IN
SUPPORT OF ASSEMBLY BILL 1825,
THE CALIFORNIA FREEDOM TO READ
ACT. THIS BILL WOULD HELP
PROTECT MY LIBRARY AND MY CITY
THAT IS UNDER ATTACK BY THOSE
WHO HAVE A MISGUIDED VIEW OF
WHAT LIBRARIES ARE AND ARE
SUPPOSED TO BE. LIBRARIES ARE
FOR EVERYONE AND FOR ALL AGES.
BUT MY MAYOR AND COUNCIL
MAJORITY HAVE DECIDED THAT OUR
TEAM OF AWARD WINNING LIBRARIANS
AND TRAINED LIBRARY STAFF ARE
HARMING OUR CHILDREN, A PROBLEM
THAT OBJECTIVELY DOES NOT EXIST.
SO THEY'VE TAKEN UPON THEMSELVES
TO CREATE, UNDER EXISTING LAW,
THE COMMUNITY PARENT GUARDIAN
REVIEW BOARD FOR THE PROCUREMENT
OF CHILDREN'S LIBRARY MATERIALS.
THIS ENVISIONS TO HAVE 21
RESIDENTS REVIEWING ALL THE
BOOKS IN OUR CHILDREN'S LIBRARY
AND NEW MATERIAL BEING ACQUIRED,
WHICH IS EFFECTIVELY A BAN IF
THEY ARE DETERMINED TO NOT BE
ALLOWED IN OUR LIBRARY. NOW, IT
SHOULD BE NOTED THAT THE
DEFINING CHILDREN AS ANYONE
UNDER THE AGE OF 18, THESE
PARENTS AND GUARDIANS ARE NOT
REQUIRED TO HAVE ANY TRAINING OR
EXPERTISE TO REVIEW SOME 6200
BOOKS AND MATERIALS THAT WE
ACQUIRE ANNUALLY. WE NEED THIS
BILL TO PROTECT OUR MORE THAN
100 YEAR OLD LIBRARY SYSTEM FROM
A GROUP OF SHORT TIME BANDITS,
FOLKS THAT ESPOUSE A BELIEF IN
THE CONSTITUTION AND BILL OF
RIGHTS, BUT THAT ARE SHORTLY
AFTER BEING ELECTED IMMEDIATELY
TURNED TO RESTRICTING THE RIGHTS
OF OTHERS THAT DON'T CONFORM
WITH THEIR NARROW AND OFTEN
HATEFUL VIEWS. TANGENTIALLY, IN
A MOVE TO GAIN GREATER CONTROL
OVER OUR LIBRARY, THEY'RE
LOOKING INTO OUTSOURCING THE
MANAGEMENT AND OPERATIONS, SO
I'M GLAD TO SEE LANGUAGE IN THIS
BILL THAT WOULD COVER THAT
EVENTUALITY AS WELL. HUNTINGTON
BEACH IS A CHARTER CITY, AND AS
THE ATTORNEY GENERAL IS AWARE,
WE HAVE AN ANACHRONISTIC
DISTINCTION OF HAVING AN ELECTED
CITY ATTORNEY. HIS OFFICE HAS
SENT OUR CITY ON MANY A FOOL'S
ERRAND, JUST FOR THE SAKE OF
FIGHTING A FIGHT WITH TAXPAYER
DOLLARS. THE LIBRARY ISSUE IS NO
DIFFERENT, WHICH IS WHY WE NEED
ACCOUNTABILITY IN THIS BILL. THE
ABILITY FOR A USER TO OF THE
LIBRARY TO TAKE CIVIL ACTION
AGAINST THE CITY AND LIBRARY
ENTITY AND NOT THE LIBRARIANS.
THEREIN IS A MUST.
ACCOUNTABILITY IS WHAT'S MISSING
FROM THIS ENTIRE CONVERSATION.
THE COMMITTEE I SPOKE OF EARLIER
DOES NOT INCLUDE ANY APPEAL
PROCESS. THE 21 RANDOM POLITICAL
APPOINTEES WITH NO
QUALIFICATIONS AT ALL WILL HAVE
THE FINAL SAY IN WHAT ENTERS OUR
LIBRARY. THAT'S NOT DEMOCRATIC.
THAT'S NOT AMERICAN. AMERICA
RELIES ON EXPERTS. THE APOLLO
PROGRAM DIDN'T RELY ON AMATEUR
POLITICIANS TO DO CALCULATIONS
FOR LUNAR ORBITAL INSERTION. NO,
THEY USED THE BEST PEOPLE FOR
THE BEST JOBS. THANK YOU SO
MUCH, SIR. WE'LL ASK YOU TO WRAP
UP YOUR THOUGHT, PLEASE. THANK
YOU. I'M A PARENT OF A FOUR YEAR
OLD. A ONE YEAR OLD, THE RIGHT
TO STOP, CHILDREN'S. THE RIGHT
IN THE SWEET SPOT OF THE
CHILDREN'S LIBRARY. I BELIEVE
THAT IT'S PARENTS THAT SHOULD
DECIDE WHAT THEIR CHILDREN
SHOULD READ AND NOT WHAT MY
CHILDREN SHOULD READ. THANK YOU
SO MUCH FOR THAT. NEXT WITNESS,
PLEASE, GOOD AFTERNOON, CRAIG
PULSIFER, ON BEHALF OF EQUALITY
CALIFORNIA, PROUD TO BE HERE IN
SUPPORT. APPRECIATE THE MEMBER
BRINGING THIS BILL FORWARD, TO
ENSURE THAT OUR PUBLIC LIBRARIES
REMAIN COMMITTED TO INTELLECTUAL
DIVERSITY AND ENSURING THAT,
FOLKS CAN SEE THEIR OWN STORIES
AND COMMUNITIES REFLECTED IN THE
BOOKS THEY READ, AS WE'VE SEEN
OVER THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS,
CALIFORNIA IS NOT IMMUNE FROM
THE GROWING EFFORTS TO SUPPRESS
FREE EXPRESSION AND INTELLECTUAL
FREEDOM. AND NATIONAL CAMPAIGNS
TO RESTRICT THE FREEDOM TO READ,
LEARN AND THINK ARE COMING TO
OUR STATE, RESULTING IN HARMFUL
POLICIES LIKE RECENT ATTEMPTS TO
BAN BOOKS THAT REFERENCE LGBTQ,
CIVIL RIGHTS LEADER HARVEY MILK
OR SPEAK TRUTHFULLY ABOUT RACE
AND SYSTEMIC RACISM IN THE U.S,
ACCORDING TO A RECENT PEN
AMERICA REPORT, BOOKS THAT
INCLUDE DIVERSE CHARACTERS
PRIMARILY CHARACTERS OF COLOR
AND LGBTQ PEOPLE WERE
OVERWHELMED BE THE SUBJECT OF
BOOK BANS, AND AT THE SAME TIME,
MOST BOOK BANS PRIMARILY TARGET
FEMALE PEOPLE OF COLOR AND LGBTQ
AUTHORS. OF THE NEARLY 6000
INSTANCES OF BOOK BOOKS BANNED
ACROSS THE COUNTRY DURING THE
PREVIOUS TWO SCHOOL YEARS, 36%
INCLUDE LGBTQ CHARACTERS OR
THEMES, AND 37% INCLUDE
CHARACTERS OF COLOR OR DISCUSS
RACE AND RACISM. WE'VE ALSO SEEN
AN UPTICK IN BANS THAT WEAPONIZE
ALARMING RHETORIC AND
MISLEADINGLY CHARACTERIZE BOOKS
AS AGE INAPPROPRIATE OR OBSCENE,
TO CENSOR MATERIALS THAT
HUMANIZE LGBT PEOPLE AND
EXPERIENCES. THESE POLICIES ALL
CONTRIBUTE TO THE CURRENT SPIKE
IN BANS TARGETING LGBTQ PEOPLE,
LEADING THE AMERICAN LIBRARY
ASSOCIATION TO REPORT THAT THE
MAJORITY OF BOOKS CHALLENGED
SINCE 2021 DREW COMPLAINTS FOR
THEIR LGBTQ CONTENT. WE STAND
WITH OUR PARTNERS AND ALLIES TO
DENOUNCE BOOK BANS DESIGNED TO
ROB LGBTQ PEOPLE, PEOPLE OF
COLOR, AND OTHER MARGINALIZED
GROUPS OF THE ABILITY TO
CONTEXTUALIZE THEIR OWN
EXPERIENCES, HISTORIES AND
CULTURE. AND THIS BILL IS AN
IMPORTANT AND TIMELY MEASURE
THAT WILL PROTECT INTELLECTUAL
FREEDOM IN CALIFORNIA AND
PROHIBIT BANNING BOOKS SOLELY
BASED ON PARTIZAN VIEWS OR
DISCRIMINATORY BIAS AGAINST
MINORITY GROUPS, AGAIN,
APPRECIATE THE CHAIR BRINGING
THIS FORWARD AND RESPECTFULLY
URGE YOUR AYE VOTE. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. ANYONE ELSE IN
SUPPORT OF AB 1825? NAME AN
ORGANIZATION, PLEASE. HI THERE,
RACHEL BHAGWAT, ACLU CALIFORNIA
ACTION IN SUPPORT OF THIS BILL.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH. ANYONE ELSE
IN SUPPORT? SEEING NONE, ANYONE
IN OPPOSITION TO AB 1825. THANK
YOU, MR. CHAIRMAN AND MEMBERS,
I'M CHRISTINA DECARO. I'M THE
LOBBYIST FOR THE CALIFORNIA
LIBRARY ASSOCIATION. WE
REPRESENT CITY, COUNTY, SPECIAL
DISTRICT AND OTHER TYPES OF
LIBRARIES. CLA A HAS AN
OPPOSING, LESS AMENDED POSITION
ON THE BILL THAT IS BEFORE YOU
TODAY. IN OUR LETTER, THE AUTHOR
TO THE AUTHOR CLA HIGHLIGHTED
VARIOUS POINTS OF CONCERN,
INCLUDING THE PRIVATE RIGHT OF
ACTION LANGUAGE AND THE
REFERENCE TO THE ALA BILL OF
RIGHTS. I AM PLEASED TO REPORT,
HOWEVER, THAT LAST NIGHT MR.
MURATSUCHI SPENT ALMOST A FULL
HOUR WITH MY CLIENT DELIBERATELY
GOING THROUGH EACH POINT OF
CONTENTION THAT WE HAD WITH THE
BILL. WE WERE INCREDIBLY
IMPRESSED WITH THE THOUGHTFUL
AND PRODUCTIVE APPROACH THAT THE
ASSEMBLY MEMBER TOOK WITH OUR
GROUP. HE REALLY LISTENED TO THE
REAL WORLD IMPACTS THAT THE BILL
COULD INADVERTENTLY HAVE ON OUR
LIBRARIES, AND HE OFFERED SOME
SOLID SOLUTIONS TO US BASED ON
OUR CONVERSATIONS WITH THE
ASSEMBLYMAN, THERE DOES SEEM TO
BE AN ACCEPTABLE PATH FORWARD,
AND WE ARE VERY HOPEFUL THAT WE
CAN REACH A RESOLUTION VERY
SOON. I WANT TO PERSONALLY THANK
HIM FOR THE TIME HE INVESTED
WITH THE CLIENT, THE SINCERITY
HE'S COMING FROM A GREAT PLACE
WITH THIS BILL. WE APPRECIATE IT
VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. HAPPY TO
ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. NEXT WITNESS PLEASE.
YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES. MY NAME IS
CYNTHIA CRAVENS, AND I'M
TESTIFYING ON BEHALF OF AARON
FRIDAY ATTORNEY. AND THANK YOU,
ATTORNEY AND LEAD OF OUR DUTY.
WE OPPOSE AB 1825 UNLESS AMENDED
IN CONFORMANCE WITH THE
SUBMITTED OPPOSITION. THE INTENT
OF THIS BILL IS OBVIOUS. THE
PREAMBLE REFERENCES. PUBLIC
SCHOOL LIBRARIES, UNIFIED SCHOOL
DISTRICTS, AND UNION HIGH SCHOOL
LIBRARIES DEMONSTRATE THAT IT
WILL NOT MERELY AFFECT WHAT ONE
NORMALLY CONSIDERS A PUBLIC
LIBRARY. THE COST SECTION
REFERENCES SCHOOL DISTRICTS.
ANOTHER TELL TALE SIGN IF WE ARE
WRONG, TAKE OUT ALL REFERENCES
TO SCHOOL DISTRICTS OR BETTER
YET, STATE IN THE BILL THAT IT
IS INAPPROPRIATE TO SCHOOL
LIBRARIES IN APPLICABLE TO
SCHOOL LIBRARIES OR CO-LOCATED
LIBRARIES. AS WE KNOW THAT WE
ARE RIGHT, THIS IS THE PART OF
THE AGENDA TO DISEMPOWER SCHOOL
BOARDS FROM DECIDING WHAT BOOKS
THEY BELIEVE ARE APPROPRIATE TO
BE PURCHASED AND SHELVED IN
THEIR OWN COMMUNITIES. THE
SUPREME COURT IN PICO HELD THAT
SCHOOL BOARDS HAVE GREAT
LATITUDE IN DECIDING WHAT BOOKS
ARE APPROPRIATE, AND YOU WANT TO
REMOVE THAT. THIS IS ANOTHER
BILL IN ENSURING THAT THE
SEXUALIZING OF CHILDREN
CONTINUES UNABATED. WE REQUEST
THAT THIS BILL BE AMENDED TO
ENSURE THAT HARMFUL MATERIAL,
THAT IS OBSCENE MATERIAL AS IT
RELATES TO CHILDREN, ARE SHELVED
AWAY FROM CHILDREN'S SECTIONS.
AND WE FIRMLY BELIEVE IN THE
RIGHT FOR PUBLIC LIBRARIES AS
OPPOSED TO SCHOOL LIBRARIES TO
CARRY OFFENSIVE MATERIALS
COVERING ALL VIEWPOINTS. A WELL
WRITTEN BILL WOULD ACTIVELY BE
HELPFUL TO US WHO BELIEVE IN
BIOLOGICAL REALITY. BOOKS SUCH
AS LOST IN TRANSLATION,
IRREVERSIBLE DAMAGE, THE
TRANSGENDER CRAZE, SEDUCING OUR
DAUGHTERS PARENTS WITH
INCONVENIENT TRUTHS ABOUT TRANS
TRANS ING OUR CHILDREN, AND
TRANS WILL BE REQUIRED TO BE
SHELVED AND AVAILABLE TO THE
PUBLIC. PLEASE VOTE NO ON AB
1825. AARON FRIDAY, ESQUIRE
CO-LEAD OF OUR DUTY USA AND
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE FOR PROTECT
KIDS CALIFORNIA. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU SO MUCH. ANY OTHER
WITNESSES, OPPOSITION TO 1825.
NAME AN ORGANIZATION ONLY,
PLEASE, DAVID BULLOCK
REPRESENTING CALIFORNIA PARENTS
AGAINST PERVASIVE VULGARITY IN
OUR SCHOOL LIBRARIES, IN
OPPOSITION, UNLESS AMENDED AS
OUR DUTY REQUESTED. THANK YOU.
CHARLOTTE JOHNSON, INDIVIDUAL
PARENT OPPOSED TO AB 1825. LANCE
CHRISTENSEN, VICE PRESIDENT OF
CALIFORNIA POLICY CENTER.
OPPOSE, UNLESS AMENDED AS
INDICATED. THANK YOU. GREG BURT,
CALIFORNIA FAMILY COUNCIL.
OPPOSE UNLESS AMENDED. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH. ANY OTHER WITNESSES
IN OPPOSITION TO AB 1825? SEEING
NONE. BRING IT BACK TO THE
COMMITTEE FOR THE COMMITTEE
MEMBERS SEEING NONE. OH, I'M
SORRY, THAT'S. IT'S NOT A
QUESTION. I'LL MOVE THE BILL,
BUT ALSO, I JUST WANT TO
APPRECIATE. APPRECIATE YOU,
CHAIR MURATSUCHI, FOR BRINGING
THIS FORWARD. I THINK IT'S
INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT. I WANT TO
APOLOGIZE TO THE TRANSGENDER
COMMUNITY FOR WHAT YOU'VE HAD TO
LISTEN TO, TODAY, ANY OF THE
RHETORIC IN THIS ROOM, BECAUSE
IT'S ABSOLUTELY UNWARRANTED. AND
I THINK IT'S PARTICULARLY
IMPORTANT THAT WE HAVE BILLS
LIKE THIS THAT STAND UP FOR ALL
CHILDREN AND ALL PEOPLE IN OUR
COMMUNITIES, AND STAND UP FOR,
THE IMPORTANCE OF INTELLECTUAL
ENGAGEMENT AND LITERATURE AND
THE AVAILABILITY OF LITERATURE
THAT TRULY DOES REPRESENT WHAT
OUR COMMUNITIES. AND SO I JUST
WANT TO APPRECIATE ALL OF YOU
FOR TAKING THE TIME. THESE ARE
HARD THINGS. THERE'S BEEN SO
MANY ATTACKS LATELY, AND EVERY
TIME WE HEAR THESE ATTACKS, THEY
BECOME RETRAUMATIZING FOR PEOPLE
. SO I JUST WANT TO SAY ANOTHER
THANK YOU FOR THAT AND FOR YOUR
LEADERSHIP ON THIS ISSUE. THANK
YOU. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. ANY
OTHER SECOND WE GOT A SECOND.
MR. CHAIR, WOULD YOU LIKE TO
CLOSE? THANK YOU VERY MUCH. I,
WOULD LIKE TO, TAKE THIS
OPPORTUNITY TO, RESPOND TO SOME
OF THE CONCERNS RAISED BY THE
BILL, NUMBER ONE, THIS, AS I
STATED EARLIER, THE BILL, ONLY
DEALS WITH PUBLIC LIBRARIES, NOT
WITH SCHOOL LIBRARIES, THAT IS
HIGHLIGHTED IN THE COMMITTEE
ANALYSIS UNDER EXISTING LAW,
THERE IS A DEFINITION OF PUBLIC
LIBRARY. IT'S IN A SECTION OF
THE EDUCATION CODE THAT DEALS
WITH NON-SCHOOL PUBLIC
LIBRARIES, BUT I'M HAPPY TO
EXPLORE, YOU KNOW, WHETHER THERE
NEEDS TO BE FURTHER
CLARIFICATION, TO, TO MAKE IT
ABSOLUTELY CLEAR TO ANYONE THAT
THIS ONLY DEALS WITH PUBLIC
LIBRARIES. LAST YEAR WE HAD A
BILL THAT DEALT WITH SCHOOL
LIBRARIES, AND SO THE INTENT OF
THIS BILL IS TO JUST DEAL WITH,
WITH PUBLIC LIBRARIES. I WANT
TO, ACKNOWLEDGE AND APPRECIATE
THE CALIFORNIA LIBRARIANS, AS I
STATED, THE HISTORY OF THIS
BILL, I MEAN, MY, MY, GOAL IN
THIS BILL IS, IS A BILL THAT IS
SUPPORTED BY LIBRARIANS,
WHOLEHEARTEDLY AND, AND BY,
CIVIL LIBERTARIANS, YOU KNOW, AS
WELL AS ALL, ALL OF THE, YOU
KNOW, STRONG SUPPORT FROM THE
LGBTQ COMMUNITY, THE ACLU AND,
AND OTHER COMMUNITIES THAT HAVE
BEEN IMPACTED BY THESE, THESE
BOOK BANS, ALL AMERICANS, ALL
CALIFORNIANS, YOU KNOW, THAT
WANT TO FIGHT BOOK BANS, THROUGH
THE PROCESS OF DRAFTING THIS
BILL AND REDRAFTING AND
REDRAFTING THE BILL, I HAVE
LEARNED THAT SOME OF THE
POLITICS OF LIBRARIANS THAT,
WHAT WORKS FOR THE AMERICAN
LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, WHICH
HELPED DRAFT THIS BILL, ORIGINAL
BILL, YOU KNOW, MAY NOT WORK FOR
THE CALIFORNIA LIBRARIANS, BUT
AS YOU HEARD FROM THE
REPRESENTATIVE FROM THE
CALIFORNIA LIBRARIANS, I'M FULLY
COMMITTED TO ADDRESSING THEIR
THEIR CONCERNS, ESPECIALLY I
WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THE PRIVATE
RIGHT OF ACTION. THE ONLY,
REASON WHY WE PUT THE PRIVATE
RIGHT OF ACTION IS BECAUSE WE
WANTED TO HAVE AN ENFORCEMENT
MECHANISM FOR, YOU KNOW, FOR
VIOLATIONS OF THE WHAT WE SEE
ARE THE ARE THE CORE VALUES IN
TERMS OF SUPPORTING THE FREEDOM
TO READ, BUT WE ALSO HEARD LOUD
AND CLEAR FROM CALIFORNIA
LIBRARIANS, ESPECIALLY FROM
SMALL AND RURAL LIBRARIES, YOU
KNOW, THAT THEY ARE CONCERNED
ABOUT HOW THIS MIGHT INVITE
UNNECESSARY LITIGATION AND, YOU
KNOW, I CERTAINLY, YOU KNOW,
THIS IS NOT A PARTIZAN ISSUE.
YOU KNOW, WE WANT, YOU KNOW,
LIBRARIES TO BE FULLY FUNDED. WE
DON'T WANT, YOU KNOW, THAT
FUNDING TO BE HAVE TO BE SPENT
ON LAWYERS OR HAVING TO DEAL
WITH WITH, WITH LAWSUITS, AND SO
, WE ARE DISCUSSING, WITH
STAKEHOLDERS. IF WE CAN
ACCOMPLISH THE GOALS OF THE BILL
, WHICH I BELIEVE WE ESTABLISHED
IN OUR MEETING YESTERDAY, WE
WERE IN COMPLETE AGREEMENT THAT
THAT WE NEED TO HAVE IDENTIFY
THE CORE VALUES TO PROTECT THE
FREEDOM OF RIGHT TO READ, AS
WELL AS TO HAVE A MECHANISM TO
ENFORCE THOSE, THOSE CORE VALUES
IN A WAY THAT DOESN'T INVITE
UNNECESSARY, EXCESSIVE
LITIGATION THAT MAY THREATEN,
YOU KNOW, THE, THE, THE
IMPORTANT LIBRARY SERVICES. SO
OVERALL, COMMITTED TO WORKING
WITH, WITH, ANY CONCERNS BEING
RAISED. AND LAST BUT CERTAINLY
NOT LEAST, I'VE LEARNED I'VE
GAINED TREMENDOUS RESPECT FOR
THE, FOR THE, THE, THE IMPORTANT
WORK DONE BY PROFESSIONAL
LIBRARIANS AND, YOU KNOW, ALL OF
THEIR TRAINING, ALL OF THEIR
EXPERIENCE TO EXERCISE THEIR
JUDGMENT, THEIR LOCAL CONTROL,
TO BE ABLE TO DEVELOP COLLECTION
DEVELOPMENT POLICIES ON, ON, YOU
KNOW, WHAT BOOKS TO PROCURE AND
HOW TO MAKE THEM AVAILABLE TO
THE PUBLIC, IT'S A, YOU KNOW, A
BALANCING ACT THAT THAT WORKS IN
DIFFERENT WAYS IN DIFFERENT
COMMUNITIES, BUT ULTIMATELY, THE
GOAL OF THE BILL IS TO ESTABLISH
THOSE CORE PRINCIPLES TO, TO
SUPPORT THE FREEDOM TO READ
WHILE AT THE SAME TIME GIVING
PROPER DEFERENCE TO THE
PROFESSIONAL JUDGMENT OF OUR
LOCAL LIBRARIANS. THOSE ARE THE
GUIDING PRINCIPLES OF THE BILL.
IT'S A WORK IN PROGRESS, BUT
VERY MUCH APPRECIATE THE SUPPORT
THAT WE'VE RECEIVED THUS FAR AND
VERY MUCH WOULD APPRECIATE YOUR
SUPPORT TODAY. THANK YOU VERY
MUCH, MR. CHAIR. MADAM
SECRETARY, PLEASE CALL THE ROLL
BILL. ITEM ONE AB 1825. THE
MOTION IS TO PASS TO JUDICIARY
MURATSUCHI MURATSUCHI I LARA
VOTING LARA NOT VOTING. ADDIS.
ADDIS I ALVAREZ. BONTA I BONTA I
HOOVER. MCCARTY MCCARTY I. THE
BILL IS OUT. WE'LL LEAVE IT OPEN
FOR ABSENT MEMBERS. AND I THINK,
MR. MCCARTY, YOU'RE UP
.
WE ARE, I BELIEVE, THE FINAL
BILL. WELL, WE STILL NEED TO,
TAKE ALL THE VOTES ON THE BILLS,
BUT FOR PRESENTATION, THE FINAL
BILL ITEM NUMBER 17, AB 3131,
THE FLOOR IS YOURS, MR. MCCARTY.
THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR. I PRESENT
THIS BILL TODAY, AB 3131.
RELATED TO CAREER EDUCATION, CTE
EDUCATION IN CALIFORNIA AS WELL
AS BLACK CALIFORNIANS, THIS WAS
A IMPORTANT ISSUE OF THE
REPARATIONS REPORT THAT CAME OUT
OVER A YEAR AGO. IT'S A PRIORITY
BILL OF OUR LEGISLATIVE BLACK
CAUCUS AS WE LOOK FORWARD TO
TACKLING, EDUCATION AND ECONOMIC
, MOBILITY ISSUES AMONG BLACK
CALIFORNIANS THROUGH OUR
REPARATIONS PACKAGE. WE DO HAVE
THIS CAREER CTE EDUCATION
PROGRAM INCENTIVE GRANT PROGRAM
IN CALIFORNIA, AND THIS JUST
BETTER ALIGNS THAT WITH OUR
BLACK STUDENTS IN CALIFORNIA WHO
HAVE UNFORTUNATELY, TOO MANY
TIMES BEEN EXCLUDED FROM CAREER
EDUCATION PROGRAMS. OH, WE'LL GO
BACK TO THE BEGINNING, MR.
CHAIR. THANK YOU AND YOUR
COMMITTEE STAFF FOR WORKING WITH
US. AND WE WILL BE ACCEPTING
THESE, COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS,
AGAIN, OUR REPARATIONS REPORT
FOCUSED ON THIS ISSUE AND FOUND
THAT EXPANDING ACCESS TO HIGH
QUALITY CAREER EDUCATION
PROGRAMS IS A VITAL STEP IN
CLOSING THE EXISTING ACHIEVEMENT
OPPORTUNITY GAP THAT SEPARATE,
TOO MANY CALIFORNIANS AND
FRANKLY, HAVE TOO MUCH UNEQUAL
EDUCATION OUTCOMES. RESEARCH
SHOWS THAT THERE'S A WIDE
DISCREPANCY IN STEM ORIENTED CTE
COURSES IN MANY OF THESE
PROGRAMS THROUGHOUT THE STATE,
AND THIS WILL BE AN OPPORTUNITY
TO MAKE SURE THAT WE FOCUS ON
MOVING FORWARD IN 2024 AND
REWRITE HISTORIC WRONGS. WITH ME
TODAY IS A REPRESENTATIVE FROM
THE GREATER SACRAMENTO URBAN
LEAGUE, RESPECTFULLY ASK FOR
YOUR SUPPORT. THANK YOU. THANK
YOU. HELLO. THANK YOU, CHAIR AND
MEMBERS FOR HAVING ME TODAY. MY
NAME? OH. GOOD. GO BACK. THANK
YOU, CHAIR AND MEMBERS FOR
HAVING ME TODAY. MY NAME IS
DOCTOR TROY WILLIAMS. I'M A
PUBLIC HEALTH RESEARCHER AND THE
CHIEF IMPACT OFFICER AT THE
GREATER SACRAMENTO URBAN LEAGUE.
THE URBAN LEAGUE IS THE LARGEST
AND OLDEST, LARGEST AND SECOND
OLDEST CIVIL RIGHTS ORGANIZATION
IN THE UNITED STATES. FOR WELL
OVER 100 YEARS, OUR ORGANIZATION
HAS BEEN ADVOCATING FOR BLACK
PEOPLE TO HAVE ACCESS TO JOBS,
EDUCATION, AND HOUSING. OUR
ORGANIZATION HAS OVER THREE
SERVES, OVER 300 COMMUNITIES AND
HAS OVER 90 AFFILIATES
NATIONWIDE. SO WHAT THAT MEANS
IS THAT ON A MONTHLY BASIS, I
HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO INTERACT
WITH MY COLLEAGUES AND HEAR
ABOUT HOW THEY'RE FIGHTING FOR
CIVIL RIGHTS. SO WHEN WE HAD THE
OPPORTUNITY TO TESTIFY AND SHOW
OUR SUPPORT FOR THIS BILL, WE
STEPPED UP AND WE WERE VERY
EXCITED TO DO SO. NOW, I WAS
BORN AND RAISED IN A RED LINE
COMMUNITY, AND I ATTENDED A HIGH
SCHOOL THAT WAS UNDER-RESOURCED
AND OVERCROWDED. AND WHEN I
GRADUATED HIGH SCHOOL, I HAD NO
IDEA WHAT I WAS GOING TO DO. MY
ENTIRE HIGH SCHOOL CAREER,
NOBODY SPOKE TO ME ABOUT MY POST
HIGH SCHOOL DECISIONS. SO AFTER
I GRADUATED FROM HIGH SCHOOL, I
ENDED UP GETTING FOUR JOBS SAM'S
CLUB, KMART WAREHOUSE, FLOWERS
BREAD COMPANY, AND HOLIDAY INN.
SELECT I WAS WORKING 96 HOURS A
WEEK AND I WAS MISERABLE DAILY.
AND MY JOB, I HAD THE
OPPORTUNITY TO INTERACT WITH
COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO ARE
EXPERIENCING THE SAME THINGS,
AND THEY TELL ME THE SAME
INSTANCES OF THEM WORKING BLUE
COLLAR, LOW SKILL JOBS, BARELY
ABLE TO MAKE ENDS MEET. AND WE
OFTEN DISCUSS IF WE HAD THE
OPPORTUNITY FOR THESE TYPES OF
PROGRAMS IN OUR HIGH SCHOOLS,
HOW DIFFERENT OUR LIVES WOULD
BE, HOW WE WOULD LOVE THE
OPPORTUNITY TO LEARN THESE TYPES
OF STEM CAREERS AND
PROFESSIONALS IN OUR COMMUNITY
FACILITATED BY PEOPLE WHO LOVE
US. SO INVESTMENT INTO HIGH
QUALITY CTE PROGRAMS THAT
COMBINE ACADEMIC EDUCATION WITH
OCCUPATIONAL TRAINING OFFER
ESSENTIAL TOOLS AGAINST
PERSISTING INEQUITIES. THIS BILL
WILL HELP BREAK DOWN THOSE
BARRIERS TO EDUCATIONAL ACCESS
AND CREATE PATHWAYS FOR ECONOMIC
MOBILITY FOR UNDERSERVED
POPULATIONS. BY PRIORITIZING
EQUITY AND INCLUSION IN OUR
EDUCATION WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT
INITIATIVES, WE CAN BUILD
STRONGER AND MORE RESILIENT
COMMUNITIES AND CREATE
OPPORTUNITIES FOR ALL
CALIFORNIANS TO THRIVE. THANK
YOU, AND I RESPECTFULLY ASK FOR
YOUR VOTE. THANK YOU. SIR, ANY,
FURTHER PUBLIC COMMENTS IN
SUPPORT OF THE MEASURE? PLEASE
COME FORWARD. GOOD AFTERNOON.
MEMBERS AND CHAIR AARON TAYLOR,
ON BEHALF OF THE CALIFORNIA
DENTAL ASSOCIATION AND STRONG
SUPPORT. SAMANTHA JOHNSON FOR
THE CALIFORNIA AFRICAN AMERICAN
CHAMBER OF COMMERCE IN SUPPORT
SYDNEY'S HEARING ON BEHALF OF
THE CALIFORNIA HỘI NAACP. THANK
YOU AND STRONG SUPPORT. THANK
YOU, ANY WITNESSES IN OPPOSITION
TO THE BILL? SEEING NONE ANY
PUBLIC COMMENTS IN OPPOSITION TO
THE BILL? SEEING NONE. BRING IT
BACK TO THE COMMITTEE. ANY
QUESTIONS? COMMENTS MOTION'S
BEEN MADE SECOND. SECOND, SEEING
NO QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS. THANK
YOU VERY MUCH, MR. MCCARTY, FOR
THIS IMPORTANT MEASURE. I KNOW
IT'S, PART OF THE LARGER,
REPARATIONS, PACKAGE, AND YOU'RE
BEING A LEADER, ESPECIALLY IN
THE EDUCATION POLICY SPACE. IS
AN IMPORTANT PART OF THAT. THAT
LARGER EFFORT. BUT, PROUD TO
SUPPORT THE MEASURE, WOULD YOU
LIKE TO CLOSE? YES, THANK YOU
FOR ENGAGING ON THIS AND WORKING
WITH US. AND WE WERE KIND OF AT,
YOU KNOW, AT THE BEGINNING
TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO BEST
TARGET THESE RESOURCES BECAUSE
LET'S FACE IT, BLACK STUDENTS GO
TO SCHOOLS ALL ACROSS
CALIFORNIA. AND HISTORICALLY
REDLINED NEIGHBORHOODS DON'T
ALWAYS HAVE THAT SAME POPULATION
. AFTER WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH
HOUSING AND MOBILITY AND
GENTRIFYING NEIGHBORHOODS. SO WE
CAME UP WITH A, I THINK, AN
APPROPRIATE APPROACH, LOOKING AT
THE WORK THAT WE DID IN THIS
COMMITTEE WITH THE EQUITY
MULTIPLIER, FOCUSING ON SCHOOLS
THAT HAVE HIGH AFRICAN AMERICAN
STUDENT POPULATIONS AND
TARGETING THESE THESE EXISTING
STATE RESOURCES FOR CAREER
EDUCATION TO THOSE SCHOOLS AND
THOSE STUDENTS. SO THANK YOU.
AND I RESPECTFULLY ASK FOR YOUR
I VOTE. THANK YOU, MOTION HAS
BEEN MADE AND SECONDED. MADAM
SECRETARY, PLEASE CALL THE ROLL.
FILE ITEM 17 AB 3131. THE MOTION
IS TO PASS AS AMENDED TO HIGHER
EDUCATION. MURATSUCHI ĐÃ
MURATSUCHI I LARA ADDIS. ADDIS I
ALVAREZ. BONTA I TO I HOOVER.
HOOVER I MCCARTY I MCCARTY I.
FIVE Ở. THE BILL IS OUT ALL
RIGHT. WE BELIEVE WE'VE
CONCLUDED, PRESENTATIONS ON THE
BILLS. AND SO WE WILL NOW TAKE A
VOTE. BUT, STARTING WITH THE
CONSENT CALENDAR, CAN I
ENTERTAIN A MOTION FOR AND A
SECOND FOR THE CONSENT CALENDAR?
IS THERE A SECOND, SECOND,
SECOND? THE MOTION'S FOR THE
CONSENT CALENDAR AS FOLLOWS AB
2165 DO PASS TO APPROPRIATIONS
AB 2317 DO PASS TO
APPROPRIATIONS. AB 2381 DO PASS
TO HUMAN SERVICES. AB 2690 DO
PASS TO APPROPRIATIONS AB 2725
DO PASS, AS AMENDED, TO
APPROPRIATIONS. AB 2961 DO PASS,
AS AMENDED TO LABOR COMMITTEE AB
2968 DO PASS, AS AMENDED TO
HIGHER EDUCATION MURATSUCHI ĐÃ
OH OH OH. HOLD, PLEASE.
MAYBE THE CORRECTION AB 2968.
THE MOTION IS DỰ PASSES AMENDED
TO NATURAL RESOURCES MURATSUCHI
I MURATSUCHI I LARA ADDIS. ADDIS
I ALVAREZ BONTA I BONTA I HOOVER
I MCCARTY MCCARTY I. FIVE ZERO
THE CONSENT CALENDAR IS ADOPTED.
WHY DON'T WE START AT THE TOP OF
THE AGENDA? THE FILE ORDER, AB
1825. FILE ITEM ONE AB 1825. THE
MOTION IS TO PASS TO JUDICIARY.
ALVAREZ. HOOVER HOOVER. NỘ. BUT
IT'S OUT 4 TO 1. THE BILL IS OUT
A FILE. ITEM TWO AB 1858,
ENTERTAIN A MOTION AND A SECOND,
SECOND. FILE ITEM TWO AB 1858.
THE MOTION IS DỰ PASS, AS
AMENDED TO APPROPRIATIONS.
MURATSUCHI A MURATSUCHI I FLORA
ADDIS. ADDIS I ALVAREZ. BONTA I
BONTA I HOOVER. HOOVER I MCCARTY
MCCARTY I. FIVE ZERO THE BILL IS
OUT. JUST GO IN ORDER. OKAY,
FILE ITEM THREE AB 1984, NEED A
MOTION AND A SECOND MOVE.
MOTIONS AND SECOND MADE FILE
ITEM THREE AB 1984. THE MOTION
IS TO PASS AS AMENDED, TO
APPROPRIATIONS. MURATSUCHI A
MURATSUCHI I FLORA A LARA I
ADDIS. ADDIS I ALVAREZ. BONTA I
BONTA I HOOVER HOOVER I MCCARTY.
CARDI I SIX ZERO. THE BILL IS
OUT. ITEM WE NEED A MOTION AND A
SECOND. SECOND. FILE ITEM FOUR
AB 2019. THE MOTION IS DỰ PASS
TO APPROPRIATIONS MURATSUCHI A
MURATSUCHI I LARA A LARA I
ADDIS. ADDIS I ALVAREZ. BONTA I
BONTA I HOOVER. HOOVER I MCCARTY
MCCARTY I60. THE BILL IS OUT.
LIFT THE CALL ON FILE ITEM
NUMBER SIX AB 2112. FILE ITEM
SIX AB 2112. THE MOTION IS TO
PASS TO APPROPRIATIONS. HOOVER.
HOOVER I MCCARTY MCCARTY I SEVEN
ZERO. THE BILL IS OUT. LIFTING
THE CALL ON FILE. ITEM NUMBER
EIGHT. FILE ITEM EIGHT AB 2226.
THE MOTION IS DUE PASSED TO
APPROPRIATIONS. ALVAREZ. BONTA I
TO I HOOVER. HOOVER. NÓ MCCARTY.
MCCARTY. I 4 TO 1. THE BILL IS
OUT. WE NEED A MOTION ON FILE
ITEM NUMBER 11. SO MOVED. FILE
ITEM 11 AB 2571. THE MOTION IS
DỰ. PASS TO HIGHER EDUCATION
MURATSUCHI A MURATSUCHI I LARA A
LARA I ADDIS. ADDIS I ALVAREZ
BONTA I TO I HOOVER HOOVER NOT
VOTING MCCARTY MCCARTY I. FIVE
ZERO THE BILL IS OUT. NEED A
MOTION AND A SECOND ON FILE ITEM
12 SO MOVED. ITEM 12 AB 2640.
THE MOTION IS TO PASS, AS
AMENDED, TO APPROPRIATIONS.
MURATSUCHI A MURATSUCHI I LARA I
LARA I ADDIS ADDIS I ALVAREZ
BONTA I WANTA I HOOVER HOOVER I
MCCARTY MCCARTY I SIX ZERO. THE
BILL IS OUT. LIFT THE CALL ON
ITEM NUMBER 17, FILE ITEM 17 AB
3131. THE MOTION IS TO PASS AS
AMENDED TO HIGHER EDUCATION LARA
LARA I ALVAREZ. SIX ZERO THE
BILL IS OUT.
ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR. LARA
LARA I ALVAREZ.
ALL RIGHT. SHOULD WE?
ALL RIGHT. WELL, WAIT UNTIL, 350
FOR ANY FURTHER ADD ONS. AND
THANK YOU
.
OKAY. WE ARE GOING TO GIVE,
COMMITTEE MEMBERS TO ADD ON,
WE'VE TAKEN CARE OF ALL OF THE
BILLS, BUT, WE WILL FORMALLY
ADJOURN THE COMMITTEE HEARING
.
ARMED SERVICES GRANT FOR 100.
25. THINKING OF ADJOURN. THAT'S
WHAT WE WERE. YOU SAID YOU'D
NORMALLY GAVEL DOWN. LEAVE IT
OPEN FOR ANOTHER
.
OKAY, WELL, JUST OPEN THE,
AGENDA FOR ANY ADD ONS FOR OUR
BILL VOTES ON THE CONSENT
CALENDAR. ALVAREZ, I ALVAREZ I.
YEAH. SEVEN ZERO ON THE CONSENT
CALENDAR FILE ITEM ONE AB 1825
MOTIONS DO PASS THE JUDICIARY.
ALVAREZ. A ALVAREZ I I'M SORRY.
THAT WAS FLATLINE AT ONE ONE 5
TO 1, THE BILL IS OUT. FILE ITEM
TWO, AB 1858. THE MOTIONS DO
PASS, AS AMENDED TO
APPROPRIATIONS. ALVAREZ I
ALVAREZ I SIX ZERO, THE BILL IS
OUT. FILE ITEM THREE AB 1984.
THE MOTION IS TO PASS, AS
AMENDED, TO APPROPRIATIONS.
ALVAREZ I ALVAREZ I SEVEN ZERO.
THE BILL IS OUT. FILE ITEM FOUR
AB 2019. THE MOTIONS DO PASS TO
APPROPRIATIONS. ALVAREZ I
ALVAREZ I SEVEN ZERO. THE BILL
IS OUT. OKAY. FILE ITEM EIGHT AB
2226. THE MOTIONS DO PASS TO
APPROPRIATIONS. ALVAREZ I
ALVAREZ I 5 TO 1, 5 TO 1, 5 TO
1. THE BILL IS OUT. FILE ITEM 11
AB 2571. THE MOTION IS TO PASS
TO HIGHER EDUCATION. ALVAREZ I
ALVAREZ I SIX ZERO. THE BILL IS
OUT. FILE ITEM 12 AB 2640. THE
MOTIONS DO PASS AS AMENDED TO
APPROPRIATIONS. ALVAREZ I
ALVAREZ I SEVEN ZERO. THE BILL
IS OUT. FILE ITEM 17 AB 3131.
THE MOTION IS TO PASS, AS
AMENDED, TO HIGHER EDUCATION.
THÀNH ALVAREZ I ALVAREZ I SEVEN
ZERO. THE BILL IS OUT. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH