Summary

SB 185 (Open States or California Legislature) expands access to digital instruction material for schools, allowing districts to negotiate the price of instructional material, forces publishers to offer “unbundled content” for purchase and authorizes school districts to create a district-wide online digital database for classroom use. The bill takes effect January 1, 2014.

Legislative Analysis

This bill has three main provisions. First, it allows K-12 school districts and charter schools to negotiate the price of standards-aligned instructional material and supplemental instructional materials in an either printed or digital format.

Second, the bill requires publishers to offer instructional material as “unbundled” elements, allowing schools to purchase only the elements which meet the needs of their students. This means that schools can purchase print or digital content separately, without being forced to purchase both the print and digital instructional material simultaneously.

Finally, it allows school districts to use the instructional materials they have purchased to create a district-wide database for classroom use. The publisher and school district must agree to an online security system to safeguard content.

By passing this bill, CA works to open the market to competition and improves access to digital material. It also authorizes the creation of an online database, creating the foundation for potential other uses of these purchased material.

Legislative History

Detailed Vote History:  Legiscan | Open States

Signed by Governor Jerry Brown on 8/27/2013