Proposed Changes to the Administration of the California Bar Exam
The Office of Admissions seeks public comment on a proposal to reduce the number of bar exam test locations.
Deadline: July 31, 2023, 11:59 p.m.
Direct comments to
Comments should be submitted using the online Public Comment Form. The online form allows you to input your comments directly and can also be used to upload your comment letter and/or other attachments.
Background
In addition to the proposed increases to fees for services and programs operated by the Office of Admissions, the State Bar is proposing a change to the locations in which the bar exam is given to provide efficiencies and cost savings.
Without reducing exam-related costs, more than $1 million in additional fee increases will be needed. See the fee increase proposal also out for public comment at this time.
Applicants currently test in person at one of 10 to 16 sites across the state (10 to 12 sites for the February exam; 14 to 16 for the July exam). For 2024, administration of the exam in this manner is estimated to cost approximately $5.6 million, or $2.2 million for February alone.
Beginning with the February 2024 exam, the State Bar is proposing to reduce the number of test sites to six.
After more extensive research, input from stakeholders, psychometricians, the disability community, and others, the State Bar anticipates making a further change for the administration of the July 2024 and future exams by administering the written portion of the exam remotely. Public input will be sought on the proposed methods for accomplishing that change in the future.
Discussion/proposal
Your comments are being sought on the proposal to reduce the number and location of bar exam test sites as a cost reduction measure.
Locations will be scaled down to three very large sites in San Francisco, Ontario, and Los Angeles. These sites will also have space for test takers with certain testing accommodations. In addition, there will be three facilities providing dedicated space for those with testing accommodations in Orange, the State Bar’s San Francisco office, and the State Bar’s Los Angeles office.
This proposal would eliminate test locations in San Diego, Oakland, and Sacramento.
Rough estimates suggest a savings of nearly $450,000 compared to the estimated cost of the current model, looking at the February 2024 exam only.
Preliminary input from the public will be shared with the Board of Trustees in July, with the final feedback shared at a special meeting to be conducted in early August, when the Board will take action.
Any fiscal/personnel impact
This proposal, combined with the admissions fee increases also out for public comment, is designed to make headway in eliminating the structural deficit in the Office of Admissions. The estimates are based on assumptions about the numbers of test takers, including the numbers that would require in-person testing space for a remote exam.
Comments should be submitted using the online Public Comment Form. The online form allows you to input your comments directly and can also be used to upload your comment letter and/or other attachments.
