ELECTION OF BOARD OF EDUCATION

THURSDAY, AUGUST 24, 1967

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,

COMMITTEE ON THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA,

Washington, D.C.

The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 9:30 a.m. in Room 1310, Longworth House Office Building, Honorable John L. McMillan (Chairman of the Committee), presiding.

Present Representatives McMillan (presiding), Abernethy, Multer, Dowdy, Whitener, Fraser, Adams, Walker, Jacobs, Nelsen, Harsha, Broyhill, Gude, Zwach and Steiger.

Also present: James T. Clark, Clerk; Hayden S. Garber, Counsel; Sara Watson, Assistant Counsel; Donald Tubridy, Minority Clerk; Leonard D. Hilder, Investigator.

The CHAIRMAN. The Committee will come to order.

(H.R. 12454 follows:)

[H.R. 12454, 90th Congress, 1st Session, by Mr. McMillan (for himself, Mr. Nelsen, Mr. Broyhill of Virginia, Mr. Sisk, Mr. Brown of Michigan, Mr. Steiger of Arizona, Mr. Winn, Mr. Springer, Mr. Harsha, Mr. Myers, Mr. Fraser, Mr. Jacobs, Mr. Adams, Mr. Multer, Mr. Hagan, Mr. Fuqua, Mr. Brown of Ohio, Mr. Walker, Mr. Hungate, and Mr. Blatnik) on August 17, 1967 1]

A BILL To amend the Act of June 20, 1906, and the District of Columbia election law to provide for the election of members of the board of education of the District of Columbia

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SHORT TITLE

SECTION 1. This Act may be cited as the "District of Columbia Elected Board of Education Act".

AMENDMENTS TO DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA BOARD OF EDUCATION LAW

SEC. 2. Section 2 of the Act entitled "An Act to fix and regulate the salaries of teachers, school officers, and other employees of the board of education of the District of Columbia," approved June 20, 1906 (D.C. Code, sec. 31-101), is amended by striking out the first paragraph of subsection (a) and inserting in lieu thereof the following.

"SEC. 2. (a) The control of the public schools of the District of Columbia is vested in a board of education to consist of eleven members, three of whom are to be elected at large, and one to be elected from each school election ward established under the District of Columbia Election Act. The election of the members of the board of education shall be conducted on a nonpartisan basis and in accordance with such Act.

1 Similar or identical bills before the Committee are H.R. 12415 by Mr. Wyatt and H.R. 12416 by Mr. Brown of Ohio on August 16, 1967, and H.R. 12574 by Mr. Zwach on August 23, 1967.

"(b) of the members of the board of education initially elected. five shall serve for terms of two years and six for terms of four years. The members who shall serve for terms of two years shall be determined by lot. The term of office of a member of the board of education elected at a general election shall begin on the fourth Monday in January next following such election. The members may receive compensation at a rate fixed by the District of Columbia Council, which shall not exceed $2,400 per annum.

"(c) (1) Each member of the board of education elected from a ward shall at the time of his nomination (A) be a qualified elector (as that term is defined in section 2 of the District of Columbia Election Act) in the school election ward from which he seeks election, (B) have, for the one-year period immediately preceding his nomination, resided in the school election ward from which he is nominated, (C) have, during the three years next preceding his nomination, been an actual resident of the District of Columbia and have during such period claimed residence nowhere else, and (D) hold no other elective office. A member shall forefit his office upon failure to maintain the qualifications required by this paragraph.

"(2) Each member of the board of education elected at large shall at the time of his nomination (A) be a qualified elector (as that term is defined in section 2 of the District of Columbia Election Act) in the District of Columbia, (B) have, during the three-year period next preceding his nomination, been an actual resident of the District of Columbia and having during such period claimed residence nowhere else, and (C) hold no other elective office. A member will forfeit his office upon failure to maintain the qualifications required by this paragraph.

"(d) Except as provided in subsections (b) and (e) of this section, every member's term shall be for four years and shall expire on the fourth Monday in January. A member may serve until his successor has taken the oath of office and may serve more than one term.

"(e) Whenever, before the end of his term, a member of the board of education dies, resigns, or becomes unable to serve, such vacancy shall be filled as provided in section 10(e) of the District of Columbia Election Act.

"(f) The board of education may appoint a secretary who shall not be a member of the board of education, and they shall hold stated meetings at least once a month during the school year and such additional meetings as they may from time to time provide for. All meetings of the board of education shall be open to the public, except committee meetings dealing with the appointment of teachers."

(b) The second, third, fourth, and fifth paragraphs of such section 2(a) are redesignated as subsections (g), (h), (i), and (j), respectively. (c) Subsection (b) of such section 2 is repealed.

AMENDMENTS TO DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA ELECTION LAW

SEC. 3. The Act entitled "An Act to regulate the election in the District of Columbus of electors of President and Vice President of the United States and of delegates representing the District of Columbia to national political conventions, and for other purposes", approved August 12, 1955 (D.C. Code, sec 1-1101 et seq.), is amended as follows:

(1) The first section of such Act (D.C. Code, sec. 1-1101) is amended by inserting immediately after "Vice President of the United States" the following ", the members of the board of education of the District of Columbia,”.

(2) Section 2 of such Act (D.C. Code, sec. 1-1102) is emanded by adding at the end thereof the following new paragraph:

"(4) The term 'ward' means a school election ward established by the Board under section 5(a) (4) of this Act."

(3) Paragraph (4) of section 5(a) of such Act (D.C. Code, sec. 1–1105(a) (4)) is amended by inserting immediately before the semicolon the following:*: divide the District into eight compact and contiguous school election wards which shall include such numbers of precincts as will provide approximately equal population within each ward; and reapportion the wards accordingly after each decennial census".

(4) Section 7 of such Act (D.C. Code, sec. 1-1107) is amended

(A) by striking out in subsection (d) “during each presidential election year" and inserting in lieu thereof "during each even-numbered calendar year"; and

(B) by striking out in subsection (e) "Municipal Court for the Distrit of Columbia" and inserting in lieu thereof "District of Columbia Court of General Sessions'.

(5) Section 8 of such Act (D.C. Code, sec. 1-1108) is amended by adding the following new subsections:

"(h) (1) Except in the case of the three members of the board of education elected at large, the members of the board of education shall be elected by the qualified electors of the respective wards of the District of Columbia from which the members have been nominated. The nomination and election of a member of the board of education, and candidates for such office, shall be governed by the provisions of this Act.

(2) In the case of the three members of the board of education elected at large, each such member shall be elected by the qualified electors of the District of Columbia. The nomination and election of such a member of the board of education, and candidates for such office, shall be governed by the provisions of this Act.

**(i) Each candidate in a general election for member of the board of education shall be nominated for such office by a petition (1) filed with the Board not later than thirty days before the date of such general election; (2) signed by no less than two hundred and fifty persons who are duly registered under section 7 in the ward from which the candidate seeks election, or in the case of a candidate running at large, signed by not less than two hundred and fifty persons who are duly registered in the District of Columbia; and (3) accompanied by a filing fee of $400. Such fee may be refunded only in the event that the candidate withdraws his nomintaion by writing received by the Board not later than three days after the date on which nominations are closed. The Board may prescribe rules with respect to the preparation and presentation of nominating petitions and the posting and disposition of filing fees. The Board shall arrange the ballot so as to enable a voter to vote for any one duly nominated candidate for the board of education.

"(j) (1) The Board is authorized to accept any nominating petition as bona fide with respect to the qualifications of the signatories thereto if the original or facsimile thereof has been posted in a suitable public place for at least ten days. Any qualified elector may within such ten-day period challenge the validity of any petition by a written statement duly signed by the challenger and filed with the Board and specifying concisely the alleged defects in such petition. Copy of such challenge shall be sent by the Board promptly to the person designated for the purpose in the nominating petition.

(2) The Board shall receive evidence in support of and in opposition to the challenge and shall determine the validity of the challenged nominating petition not less than eight days after the challenge has been filed. Within three days after announcement of the determination of the Board with respect to the validity of the nominating petition, either the challenger or any person named in the challenged petition as a nominee may apply to the District of Columbia Court of Appeals for a review of the reasonableness of such determination. The court shall expedite consideration of the matter and the decision of such court shall be final and not appealable.

(k) In any election, the order in which the names of the candidates for office appear on the ballot shall be determined by lot, upon a date or dates and under regulations prescribed by the Board.”

(6) Section 9 of such Act (D.C. Code, sec. 1-1109) is amended

(A) by striking out "for electors of President and Vice President" in the second sentence of subsection (b); and

(B) by striking out "Municipal Court for the District of Columbia" in subsection (e) and inserting "District of Columbia Court of General Sessions".

(7) Section 10 of such Act (D.C. Code, sec. 1-1110) is amended

(A) by striking out the second and third sentences of paragraph (1) of subsection (a) and the second sentence of paragraph (2) of such subsection:

(B) by adding at the end of subsection (a) the following new paragraphs:

(3) A general election for members of the board of education shall be held on the Tuesday next after the first Monday in the month of November which is in an even-numbered calendar year and which begins more than ninety days after the date of the enactment of this paragraph and on the Tuesday next after the first Monday in November of each even-numbered calendar year thereafter.

"(4) Except in the case of a candidate running at large, if no candidate for the office of member of the board of education receives a majority of the votes

validly cast in the ward from which he was nominated, a runoff election shall be held in such ward on the twenty-first day following the date of the election in which such votes were cast. The two candidates who received respectively the highest number and the second highest number of votes validly cast in such ward shall run in such runoff election, except that if more than two candidates received the same number of votes validly cast in such ward and the number of votes validly cast for each such candidate was higher than the number of votes validly cast in such ward for any other candidate all the candidates who received the highest number of votes validly cast in such ward may run in such runoff election. If in any case (other than the one described in the preceding sentence) a tie vote must be resolved to determine the two candidates who received respectively the highest number and the second highest number of votes, the Board may resolve such tie vote by requiring the candidates receiving the tie vote to cast lots at such time and in such manner as the Board may prescribe.

"(5) In the case where the requisite number of candidates running at large for the office of member of the board of education do not receive a majority of the votes validly cast in the District of Columbia, a runoff election shall be held on the twenty-first day following the date of the election in which such votes were cast, and the Board shall by regulation, prescribe the method for conducting such runoff election among those candidates receiving the highest number of votes at such original election."

(C) by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:

“(b) All elections prescribed by this Act shall be conducted by the Board in conformity with the provisions of this Act. In all elections held pursuant to this Act the polls shall be open from 8 o'clock antemeridian to 8 o'clock postmeridian. Candidates receiving the highest number of votes in elections held pursuant to this Act shall be declared the winners, except when otherwise required by the provisions of subsections (a) (4) and (a) (5) of this section.";

(D) by inserting after "In the case of a tie" in subsection (c) the following: "vote in any election other than an election for members of the board of education," ;

(E) by inserting after "official" in subsection (d) the following: ", other than a member of the board of education," ; and

(F) by adding at the end thereof the following new subsection:

"(e) Whenever before the end of his term, a member of the board of education dies, resigns, or becomes unable to serve, such vacancy shall be filled at the next general election which occurs more than forty-five days after the date such vacancy occurs. The board of education shall choose a person to serve the remainder of such unexpired term of office or to serve until a person elected to serve the remainder of such unexpired term takes office, whichever first occurs. Any person appointed under this subsection shall have the same qualifications for holding such office as were required of his immediate predecessor."

(8) The following new sections shall be added at the end of such Act: "SEC. 15. No person shall be a candidate for more than one office in any election. If a person is nominated for more than one office, he shall, within three days after the last day on which nominations may be made, notify the Board, in writing, for which office he elects to run.

"SEC. 16. This Act may be cited as the 'District of Columbia Election Act'."

TERMINATION OF OFFICE

SEC. 4. The term of office of the members of the board of education appointed under section 2 of the Act of June 20, 1906, before the date of the enactment of this Act shall terminate on the date on which at least six of the members first elected to the board of education take office.

The CHAIRMAN. First I would like to ask-is there any person here who would care to submit a written statement for the record? If you have a written statement, we would be glad to have you submit it at this time.

Mrs. Gilbert A. Harrison, President of the District of Columbia Citizens Association for Better Education, Inc., your statement will be printed in the record.