BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 1338
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 3, 2013
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Joan Buchanan, Chair
AB 1338 (Buchanan) - As Amended: March 19, 2013
SUBJECT : School employees: child abuse: reporting.
SUMMARY : Requires the governing body of each school district,
charter school, and county office of education to adopt a policy
on the reporting of child abuse and the responsibilities of
mandated reporters in accordance with the requirements of the
Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act (CANRA); and, requires
each school district, charter school, and county office of
education to review the mandated reporting requirements of
school employees with all school personnel within in the first
six weeks of each school year.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Establishes the CANRA which specifies the following types of
people are mandated reporters, among others:
a) A teacher.
b) An instructional aide.
c) A teacher's aide or teacher's assistant employed by a
public or private school.
d) A classified employee of a public school.
e) An administrative officer or supervisor of child welfare
and attendance, or a certificated pupil personnel employee
of a public or private school.
f) An employee of a county office of education or the State
Department of Education whose duties bring the employee
into contact with children on a regular basis.
g) An employee of a school district police or security
department.
h) A person who is an administrator or presenter of, or a
counselor in, a child abuse prevention program in a public
AB 1338
Page 2
or private school. (Penal Code 11164, et seq.)
2)Requires the State Office of Child Abuse Prevention to develop
and disseminate information to all school districts and
district school personnel in California regarding the
detection of child abuse. The information may be disseminated
by the use of literature, as deemed suitable by the Department
of Education. Staff development seminars and any other
appropriate means of instructing school personnel in the
detection of child abuse and neglect and the proper action
that school personnel should take in suspected cases of child
abuse and neglect, shall be developed by the Department of
Education. (Education Code 44691)
3)Requires school districts and county offices of education to
create comprehensive school safety plans for their schools;
and, requires the school safety plan to include child abuse
reporting procedures consistent with Article 2.5 of Chapter 2
of Title 1 of Part 4 of the Penal Code. (Education Code 32282)
4)Requires an employer having 50 or more employees to provide at
least two hours of classroom or other effective interactive
training regarding sexual harassment to all supervisory
employees in California, and to all new supervisory employees
within six months of their assumption of a supervisory
position; and, specifies each employer shall provide sexual
harassment training and education to each supervisory employee
in California once every two years. (Government Code 12950.1)
5)Specifies that employers are strongly encouraged to provide
their employees who are mandated reporters with training in
the duties imposed. This training shall include training in
child abuse and neglect identification and training in child
abuse and neglect reporting; and, specifies that school
districts that do not train their employees in the duties of
mandated reporters under the child abuse reporting laws shall
report to the California Department of Education the reasons
why this training is not provided. (Penal Code 11165.7)
6)Requires any mandated reporter, with the exception of child
visitation monitors, prior to commencing his or her
employment, and as a prerequisite to that employment, shall
sign a statement on a form provided to him or her by his or
her employer to the effect that he or she has knowledge of the
mandated reporting procedures and will comply with those
AB 1338
Page 3
provisions; and, specifies the statement shall inform the
employee that he or she is a mandated reporter and inform the
employee of his or her reporting obligations and of his or her
confidentiality rights. The employer shall provide a copy of
Sections 11165.7, 11166, and 11167 to the employee. (Penal
Code 11166.5)
7)Requires that when a person is issued a state license or
certificate to engage in a profession or occupation that is a
mandated reporter, the state agency issuing the license or
certificate shall send a statement substantially similar to
the one contained in #7 above to the person at the same time
as it transmits the document indicating licensure or
certification to the person; specifies the statement also
shall indicate that failure to comply with the requirements of
Section 11166 is a misdemeanor, punishable by up to six months
in a county jail, by a fine of one thousand dollars ($1,000),
or by both that imprisonment and fine; and, specifies as an
alternative, a state agency may cause the required statement
to be printed on all application forms for a license or
certificate printed on or after January 1, 1986. (Penal Code
11166.5)
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : According to the author, too many incidents across
the state have shown us that school personnel are not always
aware of their duty to report incidents of child abuse and
neglect. This results in individual criminal and civil
liability for the employee, liability for the district, and most
importantly, does not protect children. Currently, all
teachers, aides, classified and administrative employees have a
duty to report under CANRA. Failure to make a report can result
in jail time and/or a $1,000 fine. The law is clear, but school
employees need regular reminders of their responsibilities to
maintain a safe school environment for children. AB 1338
requires all school districts, county offices of education and
charter schools to have a policy on mandated reporting and to
review that policy with all employees annually.
The Bay Area News Group conducted a survey of school districts
regarding their mandated reporter training policies and
practices. According to the Contra Costa Times, "Fewer than half
the districts in Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo and Santa
Clara counties that responded to the survey said they offer
AB 1338
Page 4
their employees the sort of training that experts encourage and
the law suggests: annual instruction in how to recognize signs
of sexual or other physical abuse, and clear reminders of the
legal requirement to report to authorities even the suspicion of
mistreatment. The survey results also underscore that vagueness
in the law has exacerbated the districts' failings. All told,
only 29 districts said they have provided annual training about
abuse and the law to all employees. The law strongly encourages
training without saying how often it should be provided, but
experts agree it should be frequent.
According to Child Abuse Mandated Reporter Training Project
(CAMRTP) in California, it is estimated that four children die
each day in this country as a result of child abuse and neglect.
The Federal Child abuse Reporting act was passed in 1974 to
address this issue. Over the years, numerous amendments have
expanded the definition of child abuse and the list of persons
who are required to report suspected child abuse. The Child
Abuse Mandated Reporter Training Project is funded by the
California Department of Social Services (CDSS), Office of Child
abuse Prevention (OCAP) and the goal of this project is to have
free training available for mandated child abuse reporters so
they may carry out their responsibilities properly. Currently
the CAMRTP provides free online training modules that are
specifically tailored for educators.
Reports to CDE : While districts are required to report to CDE if
they are not providing training to employees regarding their
duties as mandated reporters, CDE has never to date received a
report from a school district regarding why they do not provide
training for mandated reporters.
Committee Amendment : Committee staff recommends a technical
amendment to specify that the governing board of a school
district and county office of education and the governing body
of a charter school shall adopt such a policy.
Arguments in Support : The Association of California School
Administrators (ACSA) supports the bill and states, "ACSA
believes that placing the requirement at the local level will
ensure the adoption of a policy on mandated reporting
requirements for sexual misconduct and ultimately increase
student safety."
Arguments in Opposition : The California Right to Life
AB 1338
Page 5
Coalition, Inc. opposes the bill and states, "The bill ignores
one area of persons who should be included in the mandated
reporting of child abuse: medical personnel and employees at
school-based wellness centers. A minor girl may go to a school
wellness center for family planning and abortion referrals. She
may become pregnant by a male 3 years older than she. She may
have been forced by the adult male to get contraceptives or even
an abortion. This is abuse and should be reported by the
employees and medical personnel who are receiving public funds
and local school funding to operate."
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees
Association of California School Administrators
EdVoice
Opposition
California Right to Life Coalition, Inc.
Analysis Prepared by : Chelsea Kelley / ED. / (916) 319-2087