AB 1661, as amended, McCarty. Local government: sexual harassment training and education.
Existing law requires all local agency officials to receive training in ethics, at specified intervals, if the local agency provides any type of compensation, salary, or stipend to those officials. Existing law also requires any civil or political subdivision of the state and all cities to provide at least 2 hours of training and education regarding sexual harassment to all supervisory employees, as specified.
This bill would additionally require local agency officials, as defined, to receive sexual harassment training and education if the local agency provides any type of compensation, salary, or stipend to those officials, and would allow a local agency to require employees to receive sexual harassment training or information.begin insert The bill would also require an entity that develops curricula to satisfy this requirement to consult with the Attorney General regarding the sufficiency and accuracy of that proposed content.end insert
Vote: majority.
Appropriation: no.
Fiscal committee: begin deleteno end deletebegin insertyesend insert.
State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Article 2.4.5 (commencing with Section 53237)
2is added to Chapter 2 of Part 1 of Division 2 of Title 5 of the 3Government Code, to read:
4
For the purposes of this article, the following terms
8have the following meanings:
9(a) “Legislative body” means the governing body of a city,
10county, city and county, or special district.
11(b)
end delete
12begin insert(a)end insert “Local agency” means a city, county, city and county, charter
13city, charter county, charter city and county, or
special district.
14(c)
end delete
15begin insert(b)end insert “Local agency official” means any member of a local agency
16begin delete governingend deletebegin insert legislativeend insert
body and any elected local agency official.
(a) If a local agency provides any type of
18compensation, salary, or stipend to a local agency official of that
19agency, then all local agency officials of that agency shall receive
20sexual harassment training and education pursuant to this article.
21A local agency may also require any of its employees to receive
22sexual harassment training and education pursuant to this article.
23(b) Each local agency official, or employee who is so required,
24shall receive at least two hours of sexual harassment training and
25education within the first six months of taking office or
26commencing employment, and every two years thereafter.
27
(c) An entity that develops curricula to satisfy the requirements
28of this section shall consult with the Attorney General regarding
29the sufficiency and accuracy of that proposed content. An entity
30is permitted to include local sexual harassment training and
31education policies in the curricula.
26 32(c)
end delete
P3 1begin insert(d)end insert The training and education required by this section shall
2
include information and practical guidance regarding the federal
3and state statutory provisions concerning the prohibition against,
4and the prevention and correction of, sexual harassment and the
5remedies available to victims of sexual harassment in employment.
6The training and education shall also include practical examples
7aimed at instructing the local agency official in the prevention of
8sexual harassment, discrimination, and retaliation, and shall be
9presented by trainers or educators with knowledge and expertise
10in the prevention of sexual harassment, discrimination, and
11retaliation.
37 12(d)
end delete
13begin insert(e)end insert A local agency or an association of local agencies may offer
14one or more training courses, or sets of self-study materials with
15tests, to meet the requirements of this section. These courses may
16be taken at home, in person, or online.
3 17(e)
end delete
18begin insert(f)end insert All providers of training courses shall provide participants
19with proof of participation to meet the requirements of this article.
5 20(f)
end delete
21begin insert(g)end insert A local agency shall provide information on training
22available to meet the requirements of this article to its local agency
23officials and its employees at least once annually.
24
(h) A local agency official who serves more than one local
25agency shall satisfy the requirements of this article once every two
26years without regard to the number of local agencies he or she
27serves.
(a) A local agency that requires its local agency
29officials or employees to complete the sexual harassment training
30and education prescribed by this article shall maintain records
31indicating both of the following:
32(1) The dates that local agency officials or employees satisfied
33the requirements of this article.
34(2) The entity that provided the training.
35(b) Notwithstanding any other law, a local agency shall maintain
36these records for at least five years after local agency officials or
37employees receive the training. These records are public records
38subject
to disclosure under the California Public Records Act
39 (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 6250) of Division 7 of
40Title 1).
The requirements of this article are in addition to
2any other law requiring similar or related training, and nothing
3in this article shall be construed to supersede the requirements of
4Section 12940 or 12950.1.
The Legislature finds and declares that all employees
6should have the same opportunity to work in a safe andbegin delete harassment begin insert harassment-freeend insert environment and therefore, sexual harassment
7freeend delete
8training and education for all local agency officials is a matter of
9statewide concernbegin delete and,end deletebegin insert andend insert not merely a municipal affair, as that
10term is used in Section 5 of Article XI of the
California
11Constitution. Therefore, this act shall apply to charter cities, charter
12counties, and charter cities and counties.
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