BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Jack Scott, Chair
2005-2006 Regular Session
BILL NO: AB 606
AUTHOR: Levine
AMENDED: January 23, 2006
FISCAL COMM: Yes HEARING DATE: June 21, 2006
URGENCY: No CONSULTANT:James Wilson
NOTE : This bill has been double referred. Any "do pass"
motion should include referral to the Committee on
Judiciary.
SUBJECT : School Safety
SUMMARY
This bill establishes the Safe Place to Learn Act requiring
school districts to adopt and publicize policies, adapt
publications and take other actions to prevent or remedy
discrimination, and harassment based on specified
characteristics including actual or perceived gender
identity and sexual orientation. This bill also charges
the Department of Education to post specified information
of a web site and strengthen complaint and compliance
actions with regard to discrimination and harassment.
BACKGROUND
Current law (Education Code Section 220) declares that it
is the policy of the state to afford all persons in public
schools, regardless of their sex, ethnic group
identification, race, national origin, religion, mental or
physical disability, or regardless of any actual or
perceived characteristic that is contained in the
definition of hate crimes set forth in Section 422.55 of
the Penal Code, equal rights and opportunities in the
educational institutions of the state.
Current law (Penal Code 422.55) also defines a "Hate crime"
as a criminal act committed, in whole or in part, because
of one or more of the following actual or perceived
characteristics of the victim:
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1) Disability.
2) Gender.
3) Nationality.
4) Race or ethnicity.
5) Religion.
6) Sexual orientation.
7) Association with a person or group with one or more of
these actual or perceived characteristics.
Current law also provides that nothing in the California
Student Safety and Violence Prevention Act of 2000 requires
the inclusion of any curriculum,
textbook, presentation, or other material in any program or
activity
conducted by an educational institution.
ANALYSIS
This bill:
1) Establishes the Safe Place to Learn Act declaring that
it is the policy of the state to:
a) Ensure that all school districts and schools
continue to work to reduce discrimination,
harassment, and violence, and
b) Improve pupil safety at schools and the
connections between pupils and supportive adults,
schools, and communities.
2) Requires school districts to:
a) Establish and publicize a policy to prohibit
discrimination and harassment based on
characteristics set forth in current law,
including gender identity and sexual orientation.
b) Update specified publications on school
safety to include information on bias-related
discrimination and harassment based on
characteristics set forth in current law
including gender identity and sexual orientation.
c) Maintain documentation of all complaints of
discrimination and harassment.
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3) Requires the Department of Education to display
information on trainings, curricula, and other
resources that specifically address bias-related
discrimination and harassment based on the
characteristics set forth in current law, including
gender identity and sexual orientation, on the
California Healthy Kids Resource Center Internet Web
site.
4) Declares that a complaint alleging that a school
district is not complying with the law established by
this act may be filed with the Department of Education
pursuant to the Uniform Complaint Procedure.
5) Provides that the Superintendent of Public Instruction
may use any lawful means, including the withholding of
funds from school districts, to effect compliance with
this act, and further provides that any funds withheld
shall be used to implement the California Student
Safety and Violence Prevention Act of 2000.
6) Repeals current law that provides that nothing in the
California Student Safety and Violence Prevention Act
of 2000 requires the inclusion of any material in a
program or activity conducted by an educational
institution.
STAFF COMMENTS
1) Previous legislation. The California Student Safety
and Violence Prevention Act of 2000 was established by
Chapter 587 of 1999 (AB 537 Kuehl) to link prohibited
discrimination in public or private schools to the
list of characteristics that define a hate crime, and
to establish the need for safe, secure, and peaceful
schools in order to prevent discrimination and teen
suicide.
2) State Mandated Costs. The Legislative Counsel notes
that this bill would impose a state-mandated local
program by requiring a school district to establish
and publicize an anti-discrimination and
anti-harassment policy, take specified actions to
increase awareness of, and prevent incidences of
discrimination and harassment. The Assembly
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Appropriations Committee believes that these costs are
"likely less than $50,000, to develop an
antidiscrimination and anti-harassment policy", and
"less than $200,000, to update existing school safety
publications". The Committee also estimates that the
Department of Education will need "less than $40,000,
to display information on its website".
3) Need for the bill. According to the author, the 2004
California Healthy Kids Survey found that 7.5% of
California students reported being harassed on the
basis of actual or perceived sexual orientation.
Furthermore, the author argues that "many
teachers and administrators have not been trained to
prevent and respond to illegal harassment and
discrimination. Most students do not know how to file
a complaint. School districts are responding to
complaints in an inconsistent manner and many
districts are failing to address the issue entirely."
SUPPORT
AIDS Project Los Angeles
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
American Federation of State, County and Municipal
Employees
Asian Americans for Civil Rights & Equality
Attorney General's Office
California Schools Employees Association (AFL-CIO)
California State PTA
California Teachers Association
City of West Hollywood
Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund
Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund
(MALDEF)
National Association of Social Workers, California Chapter
Public Advocates, Inc.
San Francisco Unified School District
Service Employees International Union, Local 1000
State Treasurer Phil Angelides
OPPOSITION
California Catholic Conference
California Concerned Women for America
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Calvary Chapel of El Cajon
Traditional Values Coalition
Letters from Individuals