Minimum competency testing (MCT) programs for students are growing in popularity and being adopted by many states. In order to determine the extent of the MCT movement, researchers at North Carolina State University surveyed state departments of education in all 50 states. In updating these data for 1986-1987, it was found that 64 percent of the 47 responding states had statewide MCT programs. Two thirds of these programs were initiated by state legislatures and most of the rest were initiated by state education agencies. The most frequent grade levels tested were third (57 percent), sixth (43 percent), and eighth and ninth (47 percent each). One third of all states require a statewide MCT as a requirement for graduation, and half of the states implementing MCT programs have modified the basic curriculum on account of test results. Summaries of nine states' testing programs are included in the report, and 10 policy issues are described: state control, student learning, determining the purposes of minimum competency testing, remediation response, curriculum development response, political response, judicial response, costs, technical qualities of MCTs, and effects on instruction. Special sections focus on remediation and legal issues associated with MCT programs, and tables are included. (Author/TE)