SENATE SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON

GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS

June 17, 2002 Hearing Room B

6:00 p.m. Tapes 5 - 6

MEMBERS PRESENT: Sen. Bev Clarno, Chair

Sen. Jason Atkinson

Sen. Mae Yih

STAFF PRESENT: Marjorie Taylor, Administrator

Patsy Wood, Committee Assistant

MEASURE/ISSUES HEARD: SB 1026 Public Hearing and Work Session

SB 1025 Public Hearing

SB 1026 Work Session to Reconsider Vote

These minutes are in compliance with Senate and House Rules. Only text enclosed in quotation marks reports a speaker’s exact words. For complete contents, please refer to the tapes.

TAPE/#	Speaker	Comments
TAPE 5, A
003	Chair Clarno	Calls the meeting to order at 6:07 p.m. and opens a public hearing on SB 1026.
SB 1026 PUBLIC HEARING
006	Admin. Marjorie Taylor	Introduces SB 1026 which increases unemployment insurance benefits to eligible individuals by $13 per week and reduces unemployment insurance tax for first quarter of 2003.
012	Sen. Yih	Asks how taxes can be lowered when benefits are increased.
020	Joe Gilliam	Oregon Grocery Industry Association. Testifies in support of SB 1026. Explains how additional federal money lets them increase the benefits while decreasing the tax rate thus extending the economic stimulus package presented in HB 4021 (1^st Special Session 2002).
052	J.L. Wilson	National Federation of Independent Business. Testifies in support of SB 1026 echoing the sentiments of Mr. Gilliam.
059	Sen. Atkinson	For the record, asks whether the benefit is equally fair to employers and employees.
063	Gilliam	Responds that the $13 a week is equal to $14.14 million, and the .16% tax reduction is worth $15.68 million, so they are very close.
076	Sen. Atkinson	Asks if there is also an extension in the number of weeks.
080	Gilliam	Explains that the extension is adding a full quarter.
087	Chair Clarno	Closes the public hearing and opens work session on SB 1026.
SB 1026 WORK SESSION
090	Sen. Atkinson	MOTION: Moves SB 1026 to the floor with a DO PASS recommendation.
		VOTE: 3-0
093	Chair Clarno	Hearing no objection, declares the motion CARRIED. SEN. ATKINSON will lead discussion on the floor.
095	Chair Clarno	Closes the work session on SB 1026 and opens a public hearing on SB 1025.
SB 1025 PUBLIC HEARING
104	Chair Clarno	Recesses the committee.
105	Chair Clarno	Reconvenes the committee.
107	Admin. M. Taylor	Introduces SB 1025 which requires the Department of Education to adopt and administer norm-referenced academic achievement testing in Oregon public schools, and makes implementation by school district of Certificate of Initial Mastery (CIM), Certificate of Advanced Mastery (CAM) and state assessment system optional.
117	Stan Bunn	Superintendent of Public Instruction. Testifies in opposition to SB 1025 saying Oregon’s 10-year old system of standards and assessment should not be changed. Feels that allowing schools to opt out of the CIM/CAM requirement would send a message that the state is not serious about high standards in education. Adds that with a new assessment system, clarity would be lost in identifying students with special needs. Wonders what measurement the state will have to ensure that students are performing at a quality level if they do away with CIM/CAM.
148	Bunn	Discusses some of the complications in abandoning the CIM/CAM assessment system, including the risk of losing $500,000,000 in federal money, possible litigation at a high cost, and jeopardizing the ability to receive federal, competitive grants. Describes problems that would occur with the legislatively mandated “report card” in Oregon.
192	Bunn	Describes the problems if Oregon moves from CIM/CAM to a national test. Urges the committee to not make the Department of Education abandon a system that has been in place for 10 years.
226	Sen. Atkinson	Expresses frustration experienced by rural Oregon regarding the cost of the program and the training of staff. Says that students question the value of the CIM/CAM when moving on to college and wonder if other states have this program. Mentions that the legislation is proposing that the CIM/CAM system become “optional.”
246	Bunn	Responds that “optional”, to him, means no standard. Describes the value of the CIM/CAM: a higher number of third-grade students reading at a standard level, and benefits when going on to college such as scholarships and early or automatic entry. Says that the cost to school districts and the Department of Education will be substantially higher (based on the federal government’s rigorous standards) if we abandon CIM/CAM and move to alternatives.
299	Sen. Yih	Asks about the cost of norm-referenced academic achievement testing for every grade in Oregon.
304	Bunn	Responds that the federal government is going to have rigorous standards for third grade through tenth grade testing and Oregon wants to use a testing system and standards currently in the approval process to save money.
320	Bill Auty	Associate Superintendent for Assessment. Says that Oregon would have to implement a norm-referenced national test in 7 different subject areas. Discusses the increased cost of testing which is between $3 and $12 per student, per subject, and there are 40,000 students per grade.
347	Sen. Yih	Asks what grades are tested in Oregon.
351	Auty	Replies that testing is now done in grades 3, 5, 8 & 10.
353	Sen. Yih	Asks if this bill calls for testing of every grade.
354	Auty	Responds it will be grades 1 through12.
355	Sen. Yih	Asks if these tests can be administered by teachers in their classroom rather than through outside contracting.
360	Auty	Replies that these tests are constructed by publishers and they recoup their costs through their testing so they would be unlikely to give teachers the tests to score internally.
370	Bunn	Discusses TESSA – a computerized program that gives test results in 5 minutes. Says it is unclear if a national test would be able to synchronize with TESSA which could significantly lengthen the time to get back test results.
395	Sen. Verne Duncan	Senate District 20. Testifies in opposition to SB 1025 saying it is hard to think about spending money on a new program when the state is trying to find ways to save money. Discusses the problem many teachers have with the amount of paperwork involved, but says using the TESSA program will give teachers instant information. Comments that the legislature is part of the problem by cutting back on the funds for the computer system.
TAPE 6, A
005	Sen. Duncan	Says you have to look at a trend through the years for evaluation purposes. Emphasizes that we would be sending a terrible message to the schools in this state if we asked educators to start over with a new system. Discusses this time as an era of accountability. Urges the committee to not throw out a system that has the potential of being a great educational tool.
050	Sen. Charles Starr	Senate District 13. Testifies in support of SB 1025 saying he has heard from teachers that CIM/CAM are a failure, and heard from school board members that this is a burden that has not been funded. Says our expectations are not high enough so we don’t compare well in the world. Gifted students tell him CIM is a waste of time. Discusses the cost of the new program saying it shouldn’t cost more. Feels CIM/CAM will eventually be eliminated, if it is not done so today. Says England tried this system for 20 years and they said it did not work. Urges the committee to pass SB 1025 to the floor do pass.
126	Sen. Randy Miller	Senate District 19. Testifies in support of SB 1025, saying it is very difficult to admit failure, but feels the CIM/CAM has been a monumental failure. Notes that there is no value to colleges of the CIM or CAM. Has heard that CIM/CAM deprives teachers of an opportunity to teach. Notes that this legislation makes the CIM/CAM optional. Urges the committee to pass the bill to the floor do pass saying it will save money, save time in the classroom and help save education.
218	Sen. Gary George	Senate District 12. Testifies in support of SB 1025. Comments about a town hall meeting where teachers and staff asked him to “get bureaucracy off their back” by making the CIM and CAM optional. Describes how the CIM/CAM files are physically taking up a large amount of space. Notes the amount of money this process has used up. Says making CIM/CAM optional would leave those schools successfully using the program intact, while giving all school districts the option to choose. Says this is a chance to reform the reform.
323	Chair Clarno	Asks if he has children in the school system.
324	Sen. George	Replies that he has five children that have graduated, but says that 19 members of his family are in the education profession. Shares some of the discussions he has had with family members in California who feel bogged down in the classroom by this same type of testing.
348	Chair Clarno	Closes the public hearing on SB 1025 and opens a work session to reconsider SB 1026.
SB 1026 WORK SESSION
356	Sen. Atkinson	MOTION: Moves to RECONSIDER the vote by which SB 1026 was sent to the floor DO PASS.
		VOTE: 3-0
360	Chair Clarno	Hearing no objection, declares the motion CARRIED.
365	Chair Clarno	Closes the work session on SB 1026 and adjourns the meeting at 7:02 p.m.

Submitted By, Reviewed By,

Patsy Wood Marjorie Taylor,

Committee Assistant Administrator