BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Senator Carol Liu, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: AB 913
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|Author: |Santiago |
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|Version: |April 9, 2015 Hearing |
| |Date: June 17, 2015 |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes |
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|Consultant:|Lynn Lorber |
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Subject: Student safety
SUMMARY
This bill expands the existing written jurisdictional agreements
between postsecondary educational institutions and local law
enforcement to include responsibility for investigating sexual
assaults and hate crimes, and requires the written agreements to
be updated every five years.
BACKGROUND
The federal Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy
and Campus Crime Statistics Act requires public and private
postsecondary educational institutions that receive federal
financial aid to disclose information about crimes on and around
campuses as well as establish certain rights for victims of
sexual assault.
(United States Code, Title 20, § 1092)
Existing state law:
1)Requires, as a condition for participation in the Cal Grant
program, the governing board of each community college
district, the Trustees of the California State University, the
Regents of the University of California, and the governing
board of each private and independent postsecondary
institution to adopt and implement written policies and
procedures, by July 1, 2015, to ensure that any report of a
Part 1 violent crime, sexual assault, or hate crime, committed
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on or off campus, received by a campus security authority, and
made by the victim for purposes of notifying the institution
or law enforcement, is immediately, or as soon as practicably
possible, forwarded to the appropriate law enforcement agency.
(Education Code § 67383)
2)Requires the governing board of each community college
district, the Trustees of the California State University, the
Regents of the University of California, and the governing
board of independent postsecondary institutions to adopt rules
requiring each of their respective campuses to enter into
written agreements with local law enforcement agencies that
clarify operational responsibilities for investigations of
Part 1 violent crimes occurring on each campus. (EC § 67381)
3)Defines:
a) "Part 1 violent crime" as willful homicide, forcible
rape, robbery, or aggravated assault, as defined in the
Uniform Crime Reporting Handbook of the Federal Bureau of
Investigation.
b) "Sexual assault" to include, but not be limited to,
rape, forced sodomy, forced oral copulation, rape by a
foreign object, sexual battery, or the threat of any of
these.
c) "Hate crime" as any offense described in Penal Code §
422.55.
d) "Local law enforcement" as a city or county law
enforcement agency with operational responsibilities for
police services in the community in which a campus is
located. (EC § 67383)
ANALYSIS
This bill expands the existing written jurisdictional agreements
between postsecondary educational institutions and local law
enforcement to include responsibility for investigating sexual
assaults and hate crimes, and requires the written agreements to
be updated every five years. Specifically, this bill:
1)Adds sexual assaults and hate crimes to offenses that are
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included in written agreements with local law enforcement
agencies that clarify operational responsibilities for
investigations of those offenses.
2)Strikes the July 1, 1999, deadline by which the written
agreements are to be in place and instead requires written
agreements to be reviewed and updated, if necessary, by July
1, 2016.
3)Requires written agreements to be reviewed and updated, if
necessary, every five years.
4)Includes definitions of hate crime and sexual assault that are
identical to definitions on existing law.
STAFF COMMENTS
1)Need for the bill. According to the author, "The United States
Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights is
investigating over one hundred postsecondary institutions over
their handling of sexual violence complaints under Title IX.
Complainants allege these schools violated Title IX by failing
to thoroughly investigate sexual assaults, and other assert
schools violated federal law requiring reporting of campus
crime by underreporting sex crimes. The White House Task
Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault recommended
campus and local law enforcement agencies establish written
agreements regarding campus sexual assault, stating that
cooperation between campus and local law enforcement on sexual
assault is critical."
2)Written agreements with law enforcement. Existing law requires
postsecondary education campuses to report to law enforcement
any Part 1 violent crime, sexual assault, or hate crime,
committed on or off campus. Existing law requires
postsecondary education campuses to enter into written
agreements with local law enforcement agencies that clarify
operational responsibilities for investigations of Part 1
violent crimes occurring on each campus. Part 1 violent
crimes include willful homicide, forcible rape, robbery, or
aggravated assault, as defined in the Uniform Crime Reporting
Handbook of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Part 1
violent crimes do not include sexual assault or hate crimes,
and therefore, written agreements between campuses and law
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enforcement are not required to describe operational
responsibility for investigating those offenses.
3)Model Memorandum of Understanding. The California Attorney
General's Office recently released a model Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) to help law enforcement agencies and
postsecondary education institutions improve their
coordination and collaboration in response to incidents of
campus sexual assault. The model MOU also may assist with
compliance with other state and federal laws, including the
federal Clery Act and Title IX.
http://oag.ca.gov/campus-sexual-assault
4)Fiscal impact. According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, costs for each campus to modify their agreements
with local law enforcement agencies to incorporate
investigations for sexual assaults and hate crimes, and to
review every five years, should be minor and absorbable. For
most community colleges, the mandated costs for this activity
should not exceed $1,000, and thus would not result in a claim
for reimbursement.
5)Related legislation. AB 636 (Medina, 2015) requires
postsecondary education institutions to disclose to law
enforcement the identity of an alleged assailant if the
institution determines that the alleged assailant represents a
serious or ongoing threat to the safety of the campus
community and the immediate assistance of law enforcement is
necessary. AB 636 is pending in the Senate Public Safety
Committee.
AB 967 (Williams, 2015) requires the governing board of each
community college district, the Trustees of the California
State University, the Regents of the University of California,
and the governing board of each independent postsecondary
institution, as a condition of receiving state funds for
student financial aid, to adopt and implement a uniform
process, applicable to each campus of the institution, for
disciplinary proceedings relating to any claims of sexual
assault. AB 967 is pending referral in the Senate.
SUPPORT
Anti-Defamation League
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Association for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs
California Association of Code Enforcement Officers
California Coalition Against Sexual Assault
California College and University Police Chiefs Association
California District Attorneys Association
California Faculty Association
California Federation of Teachers
California Narcotic Officers Association
California State Lodge, Fraternal Order of Police
California Women's Law Center
Community College League of California
Crime Victims United of California
Long Beach Police Officers Association
Los Angeles Community College District
Los Angeles County Professional Peace Officers Association
Los Angeles Police Protective League
Riverside Sheriffs Association
Sacramento County Deputy Sheriffs' Association
San Jose-Evergreen Community College District
Santa Ana Police Officers Association
OPPOSITION
None received.
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