Compromise Measure on Special Education OKd

The Assembly passed and sent to Gov. George Deukmejian on Monday a compromise bill to extend the life of six special education programs for gifted and needy students until the early 1990s.

A bipartisan 54-22 vote sent the legislation, sponsored by Assemblywoman Teresa Hughes (D-Los Angeles), to the governor’s desk. The Senate previously had approved it by a 26-2 vote margin.

In addition to providing more assistance for large inner-city school systems, the measure would keep alive programs providing aid for gifted, handicapped, needy and American Indian students in kindergarten through grade 12.

Bilingual Issue

Hughes, who chairs the Education Committee, said she had removed from the bill a provision that would have revived state requirements for bilingual education after Deukmejian had threatened a veto. The bilingual program expired in 1987 when Deukmejian vetoed a similar bill, arguing that the program ought to be left up to the option of local school districts.

Deukmejian called for elimination of some special education programs and last year proposed that several be scrapped in a trade-off for smaller class sizes in first and second grade. He later abandoned the proposal in the face of strong opposition.

Although they supported the decision to remove bilingual education from the Hughes bill, top Democrats, including Assembly Speaker Willie Brown (D-San Francisco) and Hughes called it a “sad day” for students.

School districts still must provide instruction in students’ native language under less stringent federal law and court rulings that require special assistance for pupils not fluent in English.

Most districts, including the Los Angeles Unified School District, have continued to operate bilingual programs.

Rival Measure

Meanwhile, the Assembly passed a rival bill by Sen. John Seymour (R-Anaheim) to extend only the special education program for handicapped students. A 65-0 vote sent this measure back to the Senate for concurrence in Assembly amendments.

Assemblyman Richard L. Mountjoy (R-Monrovia) said the Hughes bill will “serve as a political cover” so that Democrats can kill Seymour’s measure on the Senate floor, increasing the pressure on Deukmejian to sign the Hughes bill.

Assemblywoman Doris Allen (R-Cypress), who handled the Seymour bill in the Assembly, asked her colleagues to “put all of the game playing behind us” and pass the bill “for the kids” instead of using it as a pawn in a political game.

Time staff writer Noel K. Wilson contributed to this story.