California Committee OKs Audit of Bar Exam That Lost Millions

The February administration of California’s new Bar Exam, that was supposed to save about $3.8 million annually, instead is expected to cost $5.6 million, the State Bar’s executive director Leah Wilson told state lawmakers Tuesday.

The estimate accounts for $3 million in fee waivers, around $2 million to book testing sites, and around $620,000 to return to the Multistate Bar Exam in July, said Wilson, who will step down after her term ends in July.

The cost breakdown came during a 90-minute hearing Tuesday, during which the California Senate committee approved launching an audit into the February bar exam that ...