Opponents of standardized tests as a requirement for high school graduation take note. The California Legislature has made a move toward eliminating that state’s version of MCAS — apparently because the public schools in that state are becoming so wretched that it’s pointless to hold students to any kind of standard.

The San Francisco Chronicle reports that a budget committee has voted to abolish the test requirement on a party vote of 6-4, with Democrats taking pity on examophobic students:

Those who voted to eliminate the graduation requirement said they could not in good conscience continue to require the exam while slashing school budgets.

“When the state is making cuts that could lead to a shorter school year, fewer teachers and larger class sizes, it doesn’t seem realistic to expect the same results as before the cuts,” said Assembly Speaker Karen Bass, D-Baldwin Vista (Los Angeles County), in a statement.

Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vows to restore the $8 million per year that would be saved by eliminating the test. (California now has a budget deficit of $24 billion.)

I’d say that the elimination of the test seems as short-sighted as if we allowed the auto industry to save costs by doing away with safety standards. (“When we’re making shoddier cars, it doesn’t seem realistic to expect the same crash-test results as before.”) But that would be an analogy, and I’m not sure they teach Californians how to identify those anymore.