BILL ANALYSIS �
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Carol Liu, Chair
2013-14 Regular Session
BILL NO: SB 565
AUTHOR: Knight
AMENDED: April 30, 2013
FISCAL COMM: Yes HEARING DATE: June 5, 2013
URGENCY: Yes CONSULTANT:Lenin Del Castillo
NOTE : This bill has been referred to the Committees on
Education and Public
Safety. A "do pass" motion should include referral
to the Committee on
Public Safety.
SUBJECT : Public School Volunteers.
SUMMARY
This bill, an urgency measure, narrows the list of persons
eligible to serve as nonteaching volunteer aides in schools
by prohibiting individuals who have been convicted of
certain serious felonies or that are on post release
community supervision or parole, unless a waiver is granted
by the school district's governing board, as specified.
This bill also authorizes a school district or county
office of education to request a local law enforcement
agency to conduct an automated criminal records check of a
prospective nonteaching volunteer to determine whether he
or she has been convicted of certain serious felonies or on
post release community supervision or parole.
BACKGROUND
Existing law provides parents and guardians with certain
rights, including the right to volunteer their time and
resources for the improvement of school facilities and
programs under the direct supervision of district
employees, including but not limited to providing
assistance in the classroom with the approval of and under
the direct supervision of the teacher. In adopting
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policies that outline the manner in which parents or
guardians, school staff, and pupils may share
responsibility for the intellectual, physical, emotional,
and social development and well-being of pupils, school
district governing boards must specify the manner in which
the parents and guardians of pupils may support the
learning environment, including volunteering in their
children's classrooms or for other activities at the
school. School districts are not authorized to permit
participation by a parent or guardian if it conflicts with
a valid restraining order, protective order, or order for
custody or visitation issued by a court of competent
jurisdiction. (Education Code � 51101)
Existing law also prohibits public and private schools from
employing individuals in non-certificated positions without
first conducting a criminal background check of the
individual. Further, existing law provides that employees
of entities that provide certain contracted services to
school districts who may come into contact with pupils to
be fingerprinted and prohibits employees of those entities
from coming into contact with pupils if they have been
convicted of a serious or violent felony. (Education Code
� 45125 and � 45125.1)
A school district or county office of education (COE) may
request that a local law enforcement agency conduct an
automated records check of a prospective nonteaching
volunteer aide in order to ascertain whether the individual
has been convicted of any sex offense. If the local law
enforcement agency agrees to provide that automatic record
check, the results must be returned to the requesting
district or COE within 72 hours of the written request.
(Education Code � 35021.1)
Under existing law, sex offender registrants, whose sex
crime was against a victim under age 16, are prohibited
from working as an employee or volunteer with minors if the
registrants would be working with minors directly and in an
unaccompanied setting on more than an incidental or
occasional basis or would have supervisory or disciplinary
power over the child. If a registrant's crime was not
against a victim under age 16, the registrant must notify
the employer or volunteer organization of his status as a
registrant. Failure to comply with this law is a
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misdemeanor offense. (Penal Code � 290.95)
Current law specifies when a school district or COE
requests from the Department of Justice (DOJ), records
involving criminal offenses committed by a prospective
volunteer, the school district or COE may request that the
DOJ provide subsequent arrest notification service and
specifies that the DOJ shall comply with that request.
(Education Code � 35021.2)
Existing law prohibits the governing board of a school
district from employing or retaining employment of the
following persons:
Persons who have been convicted of a violent or
serious felony unless the person has obtained a
certificate of rehabilitation and pardon.
(Education Code � 45122.1)
Persons who have been convicted of specified sex
offenses unless the conviction was reversed, the
person was acquitted, or the conviction was dismissed
pursuant to Section 1203.4 of the Penal Code.<1>
(Education Code � 44836)
Persons who have been convicted of specified drug
offenses unless the conviction is reversed, the person
is acquitted, or the charges are dismissed.
(Education Code � 44836)
Existing law also requires individuals assuming a paid or
volunteer position to supervise, direct, or coach a pupil
activity program sponsored by a school district to obtain
an Activity Supervisor Clearance Certificate from the
Commission on Teacher Credentialing (who conducts a
criminal background check prior to issuing the
certificate). (Education Code � 49024)
ANALYSIS
-------------------------
<1> Penal Code � 1203.4 provides a process by which
individuals as specified, who have fulfilled the conditions
of their probation or been discharged prior to the
termination of the period of probation, may petition the
court for a dismissal of the accusations.
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This bill:
1) Prohibits a person who has been convicted of certain
serious felonies, as defined, or that is on post
release community supervision or parole from serving
as a nonteaching volunteer aide in schools. The
serious felonies include murder or involuntary
manslaughter, robbery, kidnapping, and arson.
2) Permits the governing board of a school district to
waive this prohibition for a parent of a child
currently enrolled in the school if any of the
following are met:
a) After reviewing the circumstances on a
case-by-case basis in a closed session, the
governing board determines that the parent is not
a threat to pupils and staff at the school.
b) A judge or the probation officer assigned to
the parent certifies that the parent does not
pose a threat to pupils and staff at the school.
3) Authorizes a school district or county office of
education to request a local law enforcement agency to
conduct an automated records check of a prospective
nonteaching volunteer aide in order to ascertain
whether the individual has been convicted of certain
serious felonies, as defined, or if the individual is
on post release community supervision or parole.
STAFF COMMENTS
1) Need for the bill : According to the author's office,
many schools encourage family members to participate
in their child's education by volunteering in the
classroom and attending field trips or other district
activities. School districts routinely require the
volunteers to undergo a criminal background screening
in order to ensure the safety of their pupils.
However, if the screening reveals convictions for
serious offenses or felonies, districts may find it
difficult to turn down the volunteer because current
law specifies that parents and guardians have the
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right to volunteer their time and because current law
does not explicitly prohibit anyone other than
registered sex offenders from volunteering in schools.
According to the author's office, by prohibiting
individuals who have been convicted of certain crimes
from serving as a volunteer aide, this bill would
provide a layer of protection and strengthen the
ability of a district to refuse volunteer service from
individuals who may pose a potential danger to
children. In order for districts to continue
encouraging parental participation, they believe that
districts must be able to guarantee the safety of all
students, staff, and other district visitors.
2) Automated records check . The California Department of
Justice (DOJ) provides an automated service for
criminal history background checks that may be
required as a condition of employment, licensing,
certification, foreign adoptions, or VISA/Immigration
clearances. The Criminal Offender Record Information
system is based on fingerprints that are transmitted
digitally to the DOJ. According to the DOJ, because
this bill authorizes the automated records check to be
conducted by local law enforcement agencies, there
would likely be additional criminal history name
searches accomplished through the California Law
Enforcement Telecommunications Report (CLETS). The
CLETS is a non-fingerprint based system that provides
all criminal history (not just the offenses specified
in this bill). Could a name-based records review
result in the disqualification of a parent due to
mistaken identity? Could this requirement create an
extra burden for local law enforcement agencies that
would have to review the records in order to disclose
only the convictions specified in this bill? Since
school districts already have the authority to conduct
criminal background checks on volunteers, it is
unclear whether the authority provided in this bill is
necessary.
3) Protecting children . The Legislature has repeatedly
established high "fitness" standards for individuals
who work near and around vulnerable populations,
including children. Several sections of the Education
code prohibit individuals convicted of certain crimes
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from being employed by school districts. Although
volunteers tend to have limited contact with children
and serve under the direction and supervision of
teachers and other school employees, it is unclear
whether that limited contact implies minimal risk to
pupils. Many districts "err on the side of caution"
and require volunteers to undergo a criminal
background check prior to engaging in volunteer
service in the district.
To the extent that this bill establishes criminal "fitness"
requirements for volunteers that are similar to those
that already exist for school employees, this bill
could strengthen the ability of schools to create and
maintain a safe learning environment for their
students. However, opponents argue that this bill
will prevent many parents and other community
volunteers from participating in school activities
during a critical time in their children's lives,
regardless of whether the past conviction for a crime
occurred many years ago. They believe the bill would
interfere with their rights as parents to participate
in their child's education. Additionally, the bill's
waiver provision would only apply to parents.
Therefore, grandparents, relatives, and community
members with prior felony convictions who are
prohibited from volunteering would not be eligible for
the waiver.
4) Impact on families . A June 2010 Research Brief
published by the University of California Los Angeles
Institute for Democracy, Education, and Access
indicates that although there is very little
difference across racial groups in reported use of
illicit drugs, African Americans are several times
more likely than whites to have been arrested and
convicted of a drug offense. Opponents contend that
in some communities, SB 565 would exclude a
disproportionate number of individuals from
volunteering and make it difficult for parents with
past drug convictions to help out in classrooms or
attend school field trips.
5) New Waiver Process . This bill would allow a
district's governing board to grant a waiver on a
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case-by-case basis to a parent who is prohibited from
volunteering if the governing board, judge, or
probation officer determines that the parent is not a
threat to pupils and staff at the school. However,
the bill does not include specific parameters or
criteria for this process. For example, under what
timeframe would a governing board of a school district
need to process a waiver? Could there be lengthy
delays with processing the waivers, especially for the
governing boards of large school districts or
districts with a high number of waiver requests? Who
would be responsible for initiating the governing
board's granting of a waiver? It appears that this
bill could potentially create a burdensome process
that may be inconsistent for school districts
throughout the state.
6) Related and prior legislation . This bill is similar
to AB 13 (Knight, 2012) which would have authorized
local education agencies to request local law
enforcement agencies to conduct a criminal records
check of a prospective nonteaching volunteer and
prohibit persons who have been convicted of certain
violent or serious felonies, specified sex offenses,
or felony controlled substance offenses from serving
as a nonteaching volunteer, but limited the
prohibition to the first five years following a
conviction. This bill failed passage in this
Committee.
SUPPORT
Palmdale School District (sponsor)
OPPOSITION
American Civil Liberties Union
Legal Services for Prisoners with Children
National Employment Law Project
Public Advocates
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