School facilities: athletics: compliance.

Existing law, the Leroy F. Greene School Facilities Act of 1998, requires the State Allocation Board to allocate to applicant school districts state funding for the construction and modernization of school facilities, provided that the school districts demonstrate eligibility for this funding by complying with various requirements. The State Department of Education has specified responsibilities in the process of determining whether a project proposed for funding complies with pertinent requirements. Existing federal law generally prohibits any person from being excluded from participation in, denied the benefits of, or subjected to discrimination under, any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance. This bill, with respect to athletics-related facilities only, as defined, would require the State Department of Education to include, as part of its review of an application for new construction plan approval, a determination of whether the proposed project would provide the opportunity for gender equitable access to athletic facilities or provide equity in the size and quality of areas to be used exclusively by either boys or girls. The bill would authorize the State Department of Education to convene a working group to develop guidelines and procedures for the implementation of the bill, and would require that the activities of the working group be funded from existing department resources. The bill would authorize the department to submit a report, including the guidelines and procedures developed for implementing the bill, and including any additional pertinent recommendations, to the chairpersons of the Assembly and Senate committees on education no later than December 31, 2010.