BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Carol Liu, Chair
2013-2014 Regular Session
BILL NO: AB 420
AUTHOR: Dickinson
AMENDED: June 19, 2013
FISCAL COMM: No HEARING DATE: June 26, 2013
URGENCY: No CONSULTANT:Lynn Lorber
SUBJECT : Suspension and expulsion: substantially disrupt
school activities or substantially prevent instruction from
occurring.
SUMMARY
This bill eliminates the option to suspend or recommend for
expulsion a pupil who disrupted school activities or
otherwise willfully defied the authority of school
officials and instead authorizes schools to suspend a pupil
in grades 6-12 who has substantially disrupted school
activities or substantially prevented instruction from
occurring.
BACKGROUND
Current law prohibits a pupil from being suspended or
recommended for expulsion unless the principal of the
school determines that the pupil has committed certain
acts, and gives schools the discretion to take action for
most offenses. (Education Code § 48900)
Discretion to suspend
Schools may suspend a pupil for violating any number of
acts, some of which include:
1) Attempting to cause or threatening to cause physical
injury to another person. (Expulsion must be
recommended for causing serious physical injury.) (EC
§ 48915)
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2) Being under the influence of a controlled substance.
(Expulsion must be recommended for possession or the
sale of controlled substances.)
(EC § 48915)
3) Caused or attempted to cause damage to school
property.
4) Possessed or used tobacco.
5) Committed an obscene act or engaged in habitual
profanity or vulgarity.
6) Possessed, offered, arranged or negotiated to sell
drug paraphernalia.
7) Engaged in, or attempted to engage in, hazing.
8) Disrupting school activities or otherwise willfully
defying the valid authority of supervisors, teachers,
administrators, school officials, or other school
personnel engaged in the performance of their duties.
9) Engaged in an act of bullying. (EC § 48900, §
48900.2, § 48900.3,
§ 48900.4, § 48900.7)
Pupils may be suspended for a first offense if the school
principal determines that the pupil committed certain acts
or that a pupil's presence causes a danger to persons or
property or threatens to disrupt the instructional process
or the pupil committed certain acts. (EC § 48900.5)
Subjective decision to expel
Schools may expel pupils for various offenses, including
disruption and defiance, upon finding either of the
following:
1) Other means of correction are not feasible or have
repeatedly failed to bring about proper conduct.
2) Due to the nature of the violation, the presence of
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the pupil causes a continuing danger to the physical
safety of the pupil or others.
(EC § 48915(e))
Prior to suspension
Current law states that suspension shall be imposed only
when other means of correction fail to bring about proper
conduct. (EC§48900.5)
Suspension by the principal must be preceded by an informal
conference between the principal, pupil and whenever
practicable, the teacher, supervisor or school employee who
referred the pupil to the principal. School principals may
suspend a pupil without first holding an informal
conference with the pupil if an emergency situation exists.
A school employee is required to make a reasonable effort
to contact the pupil's parents at the time of suspension;
however, whenever a pupil is suspended from school (as
opposed to suspension from a class) the parent must be
notified in writing. (EC§48911)
Decision to suspend
The governing board of a school district is required,
unless a request has been made to the contrary, to hold
closed sessions if the board is considering suspending or
taking other disciplinary action (other than expulsion) if
a public hearing would lead to the release of confidential
information. School districts are required to notify, in
writing, the pupil and the pupil's parent of the intent to
call and hold a closed session. (EC § 48912)
Alternatives to out-of-school suspension
School district superintendents and school principals are
authorized to use discretion to provide alternatives to
suspension or expulsion, including counseling and an anger
management program. (EC § 48900(v))
School principals are authorized to assign a suspended
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pupil to a supervised suspension classroom for the entire
period of suspension if the pupil poses no imminent danger
or threat to the campus, pupils, or staff, or if an action
to expel the pupil has not been initiated. (EC § 48911.1)
Current law states that schools should consider
implementing at least one of the following if the number of
pupils suspended during the prior school year exceeded 30%
of the school's enrollment:
1) A supervised suspension program.
2) A progressive discipline approach during the schoolday
on campus (as an alternative to off-campus
suspension), using any of the following activities:
a) Conferences between the school staff,
parents and pupils.
b) Referral to the school counselor,
psychologist, child welfare attendance personnel,
or other school support service staff.
c) Detention.
d) Study teams, guidance teams, resource panel
teams, or other assessment-related teams. (EC §
48911.2)
Teachers may suspend pupils from class for the day and the
following day. If the pupil is to remain on campus during
that suspension, the pupil must be under appropriate
supervision. Teachers must ask the parent to attend a
parent-teacher conference regarding the suspension. Pupils
are prohibited from returning to the class from which he or
she was suspended, during the period of the suspension,
without the concurrence of the teacher and principal. (EC
§ 48910)
Schools are authorized to require a pupil to perform
community service as part of or instead of suspension or
expulsion for most offenses. (EC § 48900.6)
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Missed assignments
The teacher of any class from which a pupil is suspended is
authorized to require the pupil to complete any assignments
and tests missed during the suspension. (EC § 48913)
Number of days of suspension
The number of days that a pupil may be suspended from
school is capped at five consecutive schooldays. (EC §
48911)
With some exception, the total number of days for which a
pupil may be suspended is capped at 20 schooldays per
school year, unless the pupil enrolls in or is transferred
to another regular school, an opportunity school or a
continuation school, in which case the cap is 30 schooldays
per school year. School districts are authorized to count
suspensions that occur while a pupil is enrolled in another
school district toward the maximum numbers of days for
which a pupil may be suspended in any school year. (EC §
48903)
In cases where expulsion from any school or suspension for
the remainder of the semester from continuation schools is
being processed by a school district, the district
superintendent may extend the suspension until the
governing board has rendered a decision. (EC § 48911(g))
Length of expulsion
School district governing boards are required to set a
date, not later than the last day of the semester following
the semester in which the expulsion occurred, when the
pupil shall be reviewed for readmission to a school within
the district or the school the pupil last attended. (EC §
48916(a))
Pupils with exceptional needs
Schools are authorized to suspend or expel an individual
with exceptional needs in accordance with federal law. If a
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pupil with an individualized education program (IEP)
exhibits behavior problems, the IEP team must make a
determination if the behavior is a manifestation of the
disability and whether the strategies in the IEP are
effective to address the behavior. If it is determined that
the IEP is ineffective, a functional analysis is then
amended to include a behavior intervention plan. (EC §
48915.5, § 56523, and California Code of Regulations Title
5, § 3052)
ANALYSIS
This bill eliminates the option to suspend or recommend for
expulsion a pupil who disrupted school activities or
otherwise willfully defied the authority of school
officials and instead authorizes schools to suspend a pupil
in grades 6-12 who has substantially disrupted school
activities or substantially prevented instruction from
occurring. Specifically, this bill:
1) Eliminates the option to suspend or recommend for
expulsion a pupil who disrupted school activities or
otherwise willfully defied the valid authority of
supervisors, teachers, administrators, school
officials, or other school personnel engaged in the
performance of their duties.
2) Instead authorizes schools to suspend a pupil in
grades 6-12 who has substantially disrupted school
activities or substantially prevented instruction from
occurring.
3) Limits the authority to suspend a pupil for
substantially disrupting school activities or
substantially preventing instruction from occurring to
the third or more offense in a school year, and only
if the pupil's parent, guardian or educational rights
holder has been informed that other means of
correction were attempted before the recommendation to
suspend.
4) Prohibits a pupil from being recommended for expulsion
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for substantial disruption of school activities or
substantial prevention of instruction from occurring.
5) Specifically authorizes teachers to continue to
suspend from class for up to 2 days a pupil in any
grade who disrupts school activities or otherwise
willfully defies the valid authority of supervisors,
teachers, administrators, school officials, or other
school personnel engaged in the performance of their
duties.
6) States it is the intent of the Legislature to
encourage schools to prioritize and use alternative
means of correction such as participation in a
restorative justice program or a positive behavior
support system with tiered interventions to improve
educational outcomes for children.
STAFF COMMENTS
1) Need for the bill . According to the author, "Existing
law provides that students can be suspended or
recommended for expulsion from a school district for
willful defiance, defined simply as: disrupting school
activities or otherwise willfully defying the valid
authority of school staff. Without regard to the
severity, under this highly subjective category,
students can be suspended or expelled from the entire
district and denied valuable instructional time for
any disruptive or defiant behavior including failing
to turn in homework, not paying attention, or refusing
to follow directions. California has one of the
highest rates of suspension in the nation, with more
than 700,000 recorded suspensions in 2010-11.
Nationally, nearly 43% of all out-of-school
suspensions are for insubordination, whereas only .7%
are for use or possession of a firearm or explosive.
According to unofficial data obtained from the
California Department of Education, it is estimated
that "willful defiance" was identified as the most
"severe" grounds for 42% of all suspensions in
2010-11. Under this highly subjective category,
students are sent home, too often to an empty home,
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with no supervision, and denied valuable instructional
time for anything from failing to turn in homework,
not paying attention, or refusing to follow
directions, taking off a coat or hat, or swearing in
class. They can also be potentially expelled from a
district for such offenses."
2) Discretion . This bill eliminates the option for
schools to suspend or recommend for expulsion a pupil
(in any grade) who disrupted school activities or
otherwise willfully defied the authority of school
officials. This bill instead authorizes schools to
suspend a pupil in grades 6-12 who has substantially
disrupted school activities or substantially prevented
instruction from occurring, but only on or after the
third offense within the school year. Therefore,
schools would no longer be authorized to impose an
out-of-school suspension for a pupil in K-5 for
disrupting school activities.
However, this bill specifically authorizes teachers to
continue to suspend from class for up to 2 days a
pupil in any grade who disrupts school activities or
otherwise willfully defies the valid authority of
supervisors, teachers, administrators, school
officials, or other school personnel engaged in the
performance of their duties.
This bill prohibits the expulsion of a pupil (at any grade
level) for substantially disrupted school activities
or substantially prevented instruction from occurring.
Does eliminating the ability for schools to suspend a pupil
in grades K-5 for substantially disrupting school
activities or substantially preventing instruction
from occurring provide sufficient discretion to
schools?
Does allowing suspension of pupils in grades 6-12 but only
on or after the third offense, and prohibiting
expulsion, provide sufficient discretion to schools?
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Does allowing suspension for substantially disrupting
school activities or substantially preventing
instruction from occurring provide too much
discretion?
Is this bill a reasonable compromise between prohibiting
suspension and allowing suspension of older pupil
(while prohibiting expulsion)?
3) Substantially disrupt school activities or
substantially prevent instruction from occurring .
This bill deletes reference to "willful defiance" and
adds a new category of "substantially prevented
instruction from occurring." Current law does not
define "willful defiance" nor does this bill define
"substantially prevented instruction from occurring."
However, current law does reference the disruption of
the instructional process relative to the involuntary
transfer of pupils to a continuation school.
(Education Code § 48432.5)
4) Capacity . This bill removes the option for schools to
suspend a pupil in grades K-5 for disrupting school
activities. Implementation of alternative means of
correction could include the need for staff training,
school counselors and psychologists, staff to
supervise pupils who serve in-school suspensions, and
classrooms to house pupils who serve in-school
suspensions. This bill does not require schools to
use alternative means of correction.
5) Related legislation . AB 256 (Garcia) specifically
authorizes schools to suspend or recommend for
expulsion a pupil for bullying by electronic means
that originated off of school grounds. AB 256 is
scheduled to be heard by this Committee on June 26.
AB 1216 (Campos) provides that a pupil who engages in
bullying is subject to either of the following, at the
option of the pupil's parent or legal guardian:
a) Suspension or expulsion, or an alternative
to expulsion provided by the superintendent of
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the school district or the principal.
b) Attendance at a class designed to prevent
and eradicate bullying, conducted by the school
district in which the pupil is enrolled.
AB 1216 is pending in the Assembly Education
Committee.
6) Prior legislation . AB 2242 (Dickinson, 2012) would
have prohibited pupils who are found to have disrupted
school activities or otherwise willfully defied the
authority of school officials from being subject to
extended suspension, or recommended for expulsion. AB
2242 was vetoed by the Governor, whose veto message
read:
I cannot support limiting the authority of local
school leaders, especially at a time when budget
cuts have greatly increased class sizes and
reduced the number of school personnel. It is
important that teachers and school officials
retain broad discretion to manage and set the
tone in the classroom.
The principle of subsidiarity calls for greater,
not less, deference to our elected school boards
which are directly accountable to the citizenry.
SB 1235 (Steinberg, 2012) would have encouraged
schools that have suspended more than 25% of the
school's enrollment or more than 25% of any
numerically significant racial or ethnic subgroup of
the school's enrollment in the prior school year to
implement, for at least three years, at least one
specified strategies to reduce the suspension rate or
disproportionality. SB 1235 was vetoed by the
Governor, whose veto message read:
This bill requires the Superintendent of Public
Instruction each year to compile a list of
schools which suspend too high a percentage of
their students and then invite districts that
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have such schools to attend meetings to discuss
the problem.
My preference is to leave the matter of student
suspension to local school boards and the
citizens who elect them.
I understand the author's concern, which is why I
have signed a number of other bills aimed at
reducing the number of student suspensions and
expulsions.
SUPPORT
Advancement Project
American Academy of Pediatrics
American Civil Liberties Union of California (ACLU)
Arc and United Cerebral Palsy California Collaboration
Black Parallel School Board
Brothers, Sons, Selves Coalition
California Association for Parent-Child Advocacy (CAPCA)
California Federation of Teachers
California Latino School Boards Association
California National Organization for Women (California NOW)
California School Health Centers Association
California State PTA
Center for Juvenile and Criminal Justice
Children Now
Children's Defense Fund - California (CDF-CA)
Disability Rights California
Equality California (EQCA)
Families in Good Health
Families in Schools
Fight Crime: Invest in Kids California
Gay and Lesbian Community Services Center of Orange County
Gay-Straight Alliance Network (GSA Network)
Labor/Community Strategy Center's Community Rights Campaign
Labor/Community Strategy Center's Community Rights Campaign
Leataata Floyd Elementary School, Billy Aydlett (Principal)
Legal Services for Children
Los Angeles Unified School District
Los Angeles Unified School District, Monica Garcia (Board
President)
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Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund
(MALDEF)
Orange County Equality Coalition
Pioneer High School, Kerry Callahan (Principal)
PolicyLink
Public Counsel
Resources for Independence Central Valley
San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD)
University of California Student Association
Vallejo City Unified School District
Violence Prevention Coalition of Greater Los Angeles
Weingart East Los Angeles YMCA
Youth & Education Law Project, Mills Legal Clinic
Youth Justice Coalition
Youth Law Center
Numerous individuals
OPPOSITION
None on file.