BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 1375
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Date of Hearing: June 21, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ARTS, ENTERTAINMENT, SPORTS, TOURISM, AND
INTERNET MEDIA
Kansen Chu, Chair
SB
1375 (Jackson) - As Amended June 20, 2016
SENATE VOTE: 39-0
SUBJECT: Educational equity: sex equity in education: federal
Title IX notifications.
SUMMARY: Requires educational institutions to post information
about Title IX on their websites, as specified. Specifically,
this bill:
1)Requires, by July 1, 2017, public schools, private schools
that receive federal funds and are subject to the requirements
of Title IX, school districts, county offices of education,
and charter schools to post in a prominent and conspicuous
location on their websites all of the following:
a) the name and contact information of the Title IX
coordinator, including the coordinator's phone number and
email address
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b) the rights of students and the public and the
responsibilities of the school under Title IX, including,
links that information on the websites of the California
Department of Education (CDE) Office for Equal Opportunity
and the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Civil
Rights (OCR)
c) a description of how to file a complaint under Title IX,
including:
i) an explanation of the statute of limitations within
which a complaint must be filed after an alleged incident
of discrimination has occurred, and how a complaint may
be filed beyond the statute of limitations
ii) an explanation of how the complaint will be
investigated and how the complainant may further pursue
the complaint, including links to this information on the
OCR website
iii) a link to the OCR complaint form, and the contact
information for the office
2)Allows schools which do not maintain their own website to
comply by posting the required information on their school
district or county office of education website.
3)Declares that nothing in this act shall be construed to
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require schools or local educational agencies subject to
establish a website if they do not already maintain one.
4)Requires, by April 1, 2017, and annually thereafter, the
Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) to email a letter
to all schools informing them of the requirements of the bill
and of their responsibilities under Title IX.
EXISTING FEDERAL LAW:
1) Provides that, in part, "no person in the United States
shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation
in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to
discrimination under any educational program of activity
receiving Federal financial assistance." Enforcement of
compliance is initiated upon the filing of a complaint
alleging a violation of Title IX.
2) Requires each school district and county office of
education, or a local public or private agency that
receives funding from the state or federal government, to
designate a person to serve as the Title IX compliance
coordinator to enforce compliance at the local level,
including coordinating any complaints of non-compliance.
(Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 to the 1964
Civil Rights Act)
EXISTING STATE LAW:
1) Requires the California Department of Education (CDE) to
post on its website, in both English and Spanish, and at a
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reading level that may be comprehended by students in high
school, the information set forth in the federal
regulations implementing Title IX. (Education Code §
221.6)
2) Establishes a list of rights which are based on the
relevant provisions of Title IX, and authorizes the CDE to
use this list to meet the posting requirement described
above. Statutes provide that students have the right to:
a) Fair and equitable treatment and you shall not be
discriminated against based on your sex.
b) Be provided with an equitable opportunity to
participate in all academic extracurricular
activities, including athletics.
c) Inquire of the athletic director of your school
as to the athletic opportunities offered by the
school.
d) Apply for athletic scholarships.
e) Receive equitable treatment and benefits in the
provision of all of the following:
i) Equipment and supplies.
ii) Scheduling of games and practices.
iii) Transportation and daily allowances.
iv) Access to tutoring.
v) Coaching.
vi) Locker rooms.
vii) Practice and competitive facilities.
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viii) Medical and training facilities and
services.
ix) Publicity.
f) Have access to a gender equity coordinator to
answer questions regarding gender equity laws.
g) Contact the California Department of Education
(CDE) and the California Interscholastic Federation to
access information on gender equity laws.
h) File a confidential discrimination complaint with
the United States Office of Civil rights or the CDE if
you believe you have been discriminated against or if
you believe you have received unequal treatment on the
basis of your sex.
i) Pursue civil remedies if you have been
discriminated against.
j) Be protected against retaliation if you file a
discrimination complaint.
(EC § 221.8)
3)Requires each public school that offers competitive athletics to
publicly make available, beginning with the 2015-16 school
year and annually thereafter, information specific to athletic
participation. Schools are to use a three-prong test to
determine if athletic interests of both sexes have been
accommodated. These provisions are known as the Sex Equity in
Education Act. (EC § 221.5 - 231.5)
Requires each educational institution in California (K-12 and
postsecondary education) to have a written policy on sexual
harassment, and requires schools to display the policy in a
prominent location in the main administrative building or other
area of the campus or school site, be provided as part of any
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orientation program for new students, provided to each faculty
member, administrative staff and support staff, and appear in
any publication of the school that sets forth the rules,
regulations, procedures and standards of conduct. (EC § 231.5
and § 66281.5)
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee:
Mandate costs: One-time costs potentially in the hundreds of
thousands may be incurred to the extent schools and local
educational agencies claim reimbursement for costs to make the
Title IX information available on their websites.
(Proposition 98)
CDE cites minimal costs to develop and send the letter as
required by this bill.
COMMENTS:
1)Author and supporters statement of need for legislation: 44
years after its adoption Title IX awareness and compliance
remains low. According to the author, "On January 20, 2015 the
Senate Judiciary Committee held an informational hearing
entitled 'Attaining Equal Opportunity for Girls in
California's Secondary Schools: How our Schools are Complying
with Title IX.' During the hearing the committee heard from
the United States Department of Education's Office for Civil
Rights (OCR), which enforces Title IX compliance, and the
California Department of Education (CDE). According to
testimony provided by both the OCR and CDE, school districts
are often unaware that Title IX requires them to:
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Appoint a Title IX coordinator at both the district and
school level who is responsible for coordinating the school
and school district's Title IX compliance, and that the
coordinator should not have other responsibilities that
create a conflict of interest with his or her role as
coordinator.
Adopt and publish rules and procedures on how to
receive, investigate, and respond to a complaint filed
under Title IX.
Notify all students, their families, and staff of their
rights under Title IX.
"This lack of awareness can be seen in common day
interpretations of Title IX. Whereas many people typically
correlate Title IX with gender equity in interscholastic
athletics, many are unaware that Title IX forbids
discrimination on the basis of sex in any federally funded
education program or activity. This includes protections
against gender bias, gender-based harassment, sexual
harassment, and sexual violence.
"Although the CDE states on its website that 'many school
districts now have a Title IX coordinator,' schools remain
unaware of the consequences with being noncompliant with Title
IX. This can result in the school district being held legally
responsible if it becomes aware of or does not address, either
through lack of response or lack of awareness of a complaint
or violation of Title IX."
Legal Aid Society-Employment Law Center, Fair Play for Girls
in Sports Project, sponsor of SB 1375, share the following
in support, "Since we began working on Title IX matters, over
a decade ago, our staff members have encountered many students
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and families unable to fully address gender discrimination
issues, due to a lack of clarity as to how the Title IX
coordinator should be reached and how complaints should be
pursued. In fact, many of our Fair Play cases have resulted in
schools adding more detailed complaint processes and
coordinator contact information on their web sites and in
parent/guardian handbook materials. Simply put, Title
IX-related information needs to be more clearly communicated
and more accessible in school communities."
The author concludes, "SB 1375 can help to bridge the gap
between awareness and lack of compliance by providing a simple
yet effective way of ensuring districts uphold their
responsibilities under Title IX. By posting fundamental
information about Title IX and how students, their parents and
the public can be made aware of their rights, it can be an
effective yet modest approach to helping address this lack of
awareness and understanding of Title IX. Rather than pursuing
legislation to require direct oversight, which could prove
costly and difficult to achieve legislative success, this bill
would provide a cost effective and easily attainable way for
school administrators, teachers and staff to help ensure that
our public schools are compliant with Title IX and are
providing an equitable and gender discrimination free learning
environment."
1)Background: Title IX notifications under existing law and
regulations.
a) Existing posting requirements. Current state law
requires the CDE to post on its website the information set
forth in the federal regulations implementing Title IX.
There is no requirement in current law to post information
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about Title IX, or the contact information for the Title IX
coordinator, on school campuses or on websites of school
districts.
b) 2015 OCR guidance supports putting Title IX information
on websites. In an April, 2015 "Dear Colleague" letter, the
OCR reaffirmed schools' obligation to make Title IX
information visible in the community. It stated:
"The Title IX coordinator's contact information must be widely
distributed and should be easily found on the recipient's
website and in various publications?OCR encourages recipients to
create a page on the recipient's website that includes the name
and contact information of its Title IX coordinator(s), relevant
Title IX policies and grievance procedures, and other resources
related to Title IX compliance and gender equity. A link to this
page should be prominently displayed on the recipient's
homepage." (emphasis added)
As noted by the Education Committee analysis, this bill's
requirement to post information on school and district
websites is consistent with the recommendations in this
recent federal guidance.
2)Prior related legislation.
a) AB 1538 (Calderon), Chapter 43, Statutes of 2015,
updated the "Athletes' Bill of Rights" (which requires the
State Department of Education to post information set forth
in the federal regulations implementing Title IX on its
Internet Web site), by moving its provisions to within the
Sex Equity in Education Act, which declares the policy of
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the state that elementary and secondary school classes be
conducted without regard to the sex of the pupil enrolled
and incorporates federal Title IX into state law.
b) SB 429 (Jackson), of 2015, would have required the
Superintendent of Public Instruction to designate a county
office of education to create an instructional video on
Title IX compliance and a Title IX students' rights video.
SB 429 was held on the Senate Appropriations Committee's
suspense file.
c) AB 2512 (Bonilla), of 2014, would have authorized,
beginning January 1, 2018, school districts and county
offices of education to include information relative to
compliance with Title IX gender equity in the "school
climate" category of local control and accountability
plans. AB 2512 was vetoed by the Governor, whose message
read:
I appreciate the author's concerns but believe that the
recently enacted Local Control Funding Formula should not
now be subjected to a series of amendments. The law
envisions that local communities fashion the plans that
work best for them. State intervention in this process is
premature.
d) SB 248 (Oropeza), of 2009, would have required school
districts, the California Community Colleges (CCC), and the
California State University (CSU) to post the list of
rights afforded to students under Title IX on school
districts' websites and campuses of the CCC and CSU. SB 248
was vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger, whose veto message
read:
I have previously signed the author's bill into law that
required the posting of existing Title IX requirements on
school campuses and on the California Department of
Education website to help promote greater student and
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parental awareness of athletic equity issues in
California schools. This bill is largely duplicative and
unnecessary, and would result in costs that are imprudent
to incur at this time. Therefore, I am unable to sign
this bill.
e) AB 2240 (Oropeza), of 2004, would have required the
California Department of Education to post on its website
the Equity in Athletics Bill of Rights and required each
school district that offered competitive or club sports to
print and post posters setting forth the Equity in
Athletics Bill of Rights. AB 2240 was vetoed by Governor
Schwarzenegger, whose veto message read:
The Federal Title IX requirements that are intended to
ban sex discrimination in school academics and athletics
have provided a worthy benefit to improving equity in
athletics for women and men. However, establishing an
additional Equity in Athletics Bill of Rights is
generally duplicative and unnecessary. Instead, the
Legislature could approve a bill requiring the posting of
existing Title IX requirements, on school campuses and on
the California Department of Education website, to help
promote greater student and parental awareness of
athletic equity issues in California schools.
f) AB 2323 (Jackson), of 2004, would have required the
California Department of Education to develop a Gender
Equity Compliance Survey for high schools. AB 2323 was held
on the Assembly Appropriations Committee's suspense file.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
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Legal Aid Society-Employment Law Center, Fair Play for Girls in
Sports Project (sponsor)
American Association of University Women
California Faculty Association
Equal Rights Advocates
Equality California
San Francisco Unified School District
Santa Barbara Women's Political Committee
Opposition
There is no opposition on file.
Analysis Prepared by:Dana Mitchell / A.,E.,S.,T., & I.M. / (916)
319-3450
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