California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 1452


Introduced by Assembly Member Hadley

February 27, 2015


An act to amend Section 44939.5 of the Education Code, relating to certificated employees.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1452, as introduced, Hadley. Certificated employees: personnel files: expungement: egregious misconduct.

Existing law prohibits a permanent school employee from being dismissed, except for one or more of certain enumerated causes, including egregious misconduct, as defined. Existing law prohibits school districts, county offices of education, and charter schools from entering into an agreement that would authorize expunging from a school employee’s personnel file credible complaints of, substantiated investigations into, or discipline for, egregious misconduct, unless the documents contain allegations that have been the subject of a hearing before an arbitrator, school board, personnel commission, Commission on Professional Competence, or administrative law judge, in which the employee prevailed, the allegations were determined to be false, not credible, or unsubstantiated, or a determination was made that the discipline was not warranted.

This bill would also prohibit school districts, county offices of education, and charters from directly expunging from an employee’s personnel file credible complaints of, substantiated investigations into, or discipline for, egregious misconduct, unless documents containing allegations that have been the subject of a hearing before an arbitrator, school board, personnel commission, Commission on Professional Competence, or administrative law judge, in which the employee prevailed, the allegations were determined to be false, not credible, or unsubstantiated, or a determination was made that the discipline was not warranted.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

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SECTION 1.  

Section 44939.5 of the Education Code is
2amended to read:

3

44939.5.  

(a) School districts, county offices of education, and
4charter schoolsbegin delete are prohibited from enteringend deletebegin insert shall not enterend insert into
5an agreement that would prevent a mandatory report of egregious
6misconduct, as defined in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of
7Section 44932, to the Commission on Teacher Credentialing or
8any other state or federal agency.

9(b) School districts, county offices of education, and charter
10begin delete schools are prohibited from enteringend deletebegin insert schools shall not expunge
11from an employee’s personnel file, nor shall they enterend insert
into an
12agreement that would authorize expunging frombegin delete a schoolend deletebegin insert anend insert
13 employee’s personnelbegin delete fileend deletebegin insert file,end insert credible complaints of, substantiated
14investigations into, or discipline for, egregiousbegin delete misconduct.end delete
15begin insert misconduct, as defined in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of
16Section 44932.end insert
This prohibition does not precludebegin insert removing, or
17entering intoend insert
any agreement tobegin delete removeend deletebegin insert remove,end insert documents
18containing allegations that have been the subject of a hearing before
19an arbitrator, school board, personnel commission, Commission
20on Professional Competence, or administrative law judge, in which
21the employee prevailed, the allegations were determined to be
22false, not credible, or unsubstantiated, or a determination was made
23that the discipline was not warranted.

24(c) A school district, county office of education, or charter
25school that has made a report of an employee’s egregious
26misconduct to the Commission on Teacher Credentialing shall
27disclose this fact to a school district, county office of education,
28or charter school considering an application for employment from
29the employee, upon inquiry.

30(d) Any school employee who alleges that another school
31employee has engaged in egregious misconduct, as defined in
P3    1paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 44932, knowing at the
2time of making the allegation that the allegation was false, shall
3be subject to certificate revocation, if applicable.



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