Senate Bill No. 1225

Introduced by Senator Mendoza

February 18, 2016

An act to amend Section 44955 of the Education Code, relating to school employees.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 1225, as introduced, Mendoza. School employees: reduction in work force.

Under existing law, when school employees are terminated pursuant to a reduction in workforce, a school district is required to terminate the employees in order of seniority. Existing law authorizes a school district to deviate from the order of seniority for those purposes for specified reasons.

This bill would make various nonsubstantive, clarifying changes to those provisions.

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

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

SECTION 1.  

Section 44955 of the Education Code is amended
to read:

44955.  

(a)  begin delete No end delete begin insert A end insert permanent employee shall begin insert not end insert be deprived
of his or her position for causes other than those specified in
Sections 44907 and 44923, and Sections 44932 to 44947, inclusive,
and begin delete no end delete begin insert a end insert probationary employee shall begin insert not end insert be deprived of his or
her position for cause other than as specified in Sections 44948 to
44949, inclusive.

(b)  begin delete Whenever end delete begin insert (1) end insert begin insert   end insert begin insert If end insert in begin delete any end delete begin insert a end insert school year the average daily
attendance in all of the schools of a begin insert school end insert district for the first six
months begin delete in which end delete begin insert that end insert school is in session shall have declined below
the corresponding period of either of the previous two school years,
begin delete whenever end delete begin insert if end insert the governing board begin insert of a school district end insert determines
that attendance in a begin insert school end insert district will decline in the following
year as a result of the termination of an interdistrict tuition
agreement as begin delete defined end delete begin insert described end insert in Section 46304, begin delete whenever end delete begin insert if end insert a
particular kind of service is to be reduced or discontinued not later
than the beginning of the following school year, or begin delete whenever end delete begin insert if end insert
the amendment of state law requires the modification of curriculum,
and begin delete when in the opinion of end delete begin insert if end insert the governing board of the begin insert school end insert
district begin insert determines end insert it begin delete shall have become end delete necessary by reason of
any of these conditions to decrease the number of permanent
employees in the begin insert school end insert district, the governing board begin insert of a school
district end insert may terminate the services of not more than a
corresponding percentage of the certificated employees of the
begin insert school end insert district, permanent as well as probationary, at the close of
the school year. Except as otherwise provided by statute, the
services of begin delete no end delete begin insert a end insert permanent employee begin delete may end delete begin insert shall not end insert be terminated
under begin delete the provisions of end delete this section while begin delete any end delete begin insert a end insert probationary
employee, or any other employee with less seniority, is retained
to render a service begin delete which said end delete begin insert that the end insert permanent employee is
certificated and competent to render.

begin delete

In

end delete

begin insert (2) end insert begin insert   end insert begin insert In end insert computing a decline in average daily attendance for
purposes of this begin delete section end delete begin insert subdivision end insert for a newly formed or
reorganized school district, each school of the begin insert school end insert district shall
be deemed to have been a school of the newly formed or
reorganized begin insert school end insert district for both of the two previous school
years.

begin delete

As

end delete

begin insert (3) end insert begin insert   end insert begin insert As end insert between employees who first rendered paid service to
the begin insert school end insert district on the same date, the governing board begin insert of the
school district end insert shall determine the order of termination solely on
the basis of needs of the begin insert school end insert district and the begin delete students thereof. end delete
begin insert pupils of the school district. end insert Upon the request of begin delete any end delete begin insert an end insert employee
whose order of termination is so determined, the governing board
begin insert of the school district end insert shall furnish in begin delete writing end delete begin insert writing, end insert no later than
five days begin delete prior to end delete begin insert before end insert the commencement of the hearing held
in accordance with Section 44949, a statement of the specific
criteria used in determining the order of termination and the
application of the criteria in ranking each employee relative to the
other employees in the group. begin delete This end delete begin insert The end insert requirement that the
governing board begin insert of the school district end insert provide, on request, a written
statement of reasons for determining the order of termination shall
not be interpreted to give affected employees any legal right or
interest that would not exist without begin delete such a end delete begin insert the end insert requirement.

(c)  begin insert (1) end insert begin insert   end insert Notice of begin delete such end delete begin insert the end insert termination of services shall be given
before begin delete the 15th of May in the manner prescribed in end delete begin insert May 15
pursuant to end insert Section 44949, and services of begin delete such end delete begin insert those end insert employees
shall be terminated in the inverse of the order in which they were
employed, as determined by the begin insert governing end insert board begin insert of the school
district end insert in accordance with the provisions of Sections 44844 and
44845. begin delete In the event that end delete begin insert If end insert a permanent or probationary employee
is not given the notices and a right to a hearing as provided for in
Section 44949, he or she shall be deemed reemployed for the
ensuing school year.

begin delete

The

end delete

begin insert (2) end insert begin insert   end insert begin insert The end insert governing board begin insert of the school district end insert shall make
assignments and reassignments in begin delete such end delete a manner that employees
shall be retained to render any service begin delete which end delete their seniority and
qualifications entitle them to render. However, begin delete prior to end delete begin insert before end insert
assigning or reassigning begin delete any end delete begin insert a end insert certificated employee to teach a
subject begin delete which end delete begin insert that end insert he or she has not previously taught, and for
which he or she does not have a teaching credential or begin delete which end delete begin insert that end insert
is not within the employee’s major area of postsecondary study or
the equivalent thereof, the governing board begin insert of the school district end insert
shall require the employee to pass a subject matter competency
test in the appropriate subject.

(d) Notwithstanding subdivision (b), a school district may
deviate from terminating a certificated employee in order of
seniority for either of the following reasons:

(1) The begin insert school end insert district demonstrates a specific need for personnel
to teach a specific course or course of study, or to provide services
authorized by a services credential with a specialization in either
pupil personnel services or health for a school nurse, and that the
certificated employee has special training and experience necessary
to teach that course or course of study or to provide those begin delete services,
which end delete begin insert services that end insert others with more seniority do not possess.

(2) For purposes of maintaining or achieving compliance with
constitutional requirements related to equal protection of the laws.