BILL ANALYSIS Ó ----------------------------------------------------------------- |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 1375| |Office of Senate Floor Analyses | | |(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | | |327-4478 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- UNFINISHED BUSINESS Bill No: SB 1375 Author: Jackson (D) Amended: 6/20/16 Vote: 21 SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE: 8-0, 3/30/16 AYES: Liu, Block, Huff, Leyva, Mendoza, Monning, Pan, Vidak NO VOTE RECORDED: Hancock SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 7-0, 5/27/16 AYES: Lara, Bates, Beall, Hill, McGuire, Mendoza, Nielsen SENATE FLOOR: 39-0, 6/2/16 AYES: Allen, Anderson, Bates, Beall, Berryhill, Block, Cannella, De León, Fuller, Gaines, Galgiani, Glazer, Hall, Hancock, Hernandez, Hertzberg, Hill, Hueso, Huff, Jackson, Lara, Leno, Leyva, Liu, McGuire, Mendoza, Mitchell, Monning, Moorlach, Morrell, Nguyen, Nielsen, Pan, Pavley, Roth, Stone, Vidak, Wieckowski, Wolk NO VOTE RECORDED: Runner ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 80-0, 8/23/16 - See last page for vote SUBJECT: Educational equity: sex equity in education: federal Title IX notifications SOURCE: Author DIGEST: This bill requires schools to post information on their Web sites relative to the designated Title IX coordinator, rights of students and responsibilities of schools, and a description of how to file a complaint. Assembly Amendments authorize a public school that does not have SB 1375 Page 2 a Web site to comply with the provisions of this bill by posting specified information on the Web site of its school district or county office of education, and specify that this bill does not require a local educational agency (LEA) to maintain a Web site if the LEA does not already have a Web site. ANALYSIS: 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 Web site, in both English and Spanish, and at a 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 students shall not be discriminated against based on sex. SB 1375 Page 3 b) Be provided with an equitable opportunity to participate in all academic extracurricular activities, including athletics. c) Inquire of the athletic director of the 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. 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 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 (OCR) or the CDE if the student believes he or she has been discriminated against or if the student believes he or she has received unequal treatment on the basis of sex. SB 1375 Page 4 i) Pursue civil remedies if the student has been discriminated against. j) Be protected against retaliation if the student files 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) 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 Web sites all of the following: a) The name and contact information of the Title IX coordinator for that school, school district, or county office of education, including the Title IX coordinator's phone number and email address. b) The rights of a students and the public, and the responsibilities of the school, school district, or county office of education under Title IX, which included but is not limited to links to Web sites with information about those rights and responsibilities located on the Web sites of CDE's Office for Equal Opportunity and the OCR, and the list of rights enumerated in existing law. c) A description of how to file a complaint under Title IX, which must include all of the following: 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. SB 1375 Page 5 ii) An explanation of how the complaint will be investigated and how the complainant may further pursue the complaint, including but not limited to links the information on OCR's Web site. iii) A link to OCR's Web site for the complaint form, and the contact information for OCR which shall include the phone number and email address for OCR. 2)Authorizes a public school that does not have a Web site to comply with the provisions of this bill by posting specified information on the Web site of its school district or county office of education. 3)Specifies that this bill does not require a LEA to maintain a Web site if the LEA does not already have a Web site. 4)Requires, by April 1, 2017, and annually thereafter, the Superintendent of Public Instruction to send a letter through electronic means to all 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 informing them of the requirements of this bill and of their responsibilities under Title IX. 5)States legislative findings and declarations relative to the lack of awareness about Title IX, and a lack of training on monitoring and ensuring compliance. Comments Existing requirements to post Title IX information. Existing law requires CDE to post on its Web site the information set forth in the federal regulations implementing Title IX. There is no requirement to post information about Title IX, or the contact information for the Title IX coordinator, on school campuses (despite a 2009 veto message claiming otherwise) or on Web sites of school districts. This bill requires 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 specific SB 1375 Page 6 information relative to Title IX rights and coordinators on their Web sites. This bill does not require Title IX information to be posted on school campuses. FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.:YesLocal: Yes According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee: 1)Proposition 98/General Fund state mandated costs, potentially in excess of $500,000, for public schools, school districts, and county offices of education to develop the notice required by the bill and post it online. There are over 11,000 LEAs that could be impacted by the requirements of this bill. Actual costs will depend on size and types of claims LEAs submit to the Commission on State Mandates (CSM) to implement this measure. Charter schools and private schools would also incur costs to implement the requirements of this bill; however, these schools are not eligible to seek reimbursement from the CSM for mandated activities. 2)Minor/absorbable costs to the CDE to monitor compliance and to develop and send the letter to LEAs annually. SUPPORT: (Verified8/23/16) None received OPPOSITION: (Verified8/23/16) None received ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 80-0, 8/23/16 AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Arambula, Atkins, Baker, SB 1375 Page 7 Bigelow, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Campos, Chang, Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines, Gallagher, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Roger Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Olsen, Patterson, Quirk, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Rendon Prepared by:Lynn Lorber / ED. / (916) 651-4105 8/23/16 20:19:33 **** END ****