BILL ANALYSIS �
ACR 22
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
ACR 22 (Hueso)
As Amended March 10, 2011
Majority vote
EDUCATION 6-0
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|Ayes:|Brownley, Ammiano, | | |
| |Buchanan, Butler, Carter, | | |
| |Williams | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
| | | | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY : Declares the month of March 2011 as the California
School Bullying Prevention Awareness Month. Specifically, this
bill :
1)Makes findings that include the following:
a) School bullying has become an increasingly significant
problem, with an estimated 8% of pupils in kindergarten
through grade 12 missing at least one day of school every
month due to a fear of being bullied; and,
b) Bullying can take many different forms, including
verbal, physical, psychological, and electronically; and,
is a public health problem that leads to depression and low
self-esteem well into adulthood.
2)Resolves that the Legislature declares March 2011 to be the
California School Bullying Prevention Awareness Month and
urges California schools to discuss the issue of bullying and
the methods to prevent it using appropriate activities during
this time.
3)Resolves that the Assembly Chief Clerk transmit copies of the
resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Encourages school districts, county offices of education, law
enforcement agencies, and agencies serving youth to develop
and implement interagency strategies, in-service training
ACR 22
Page 2
programs, and activities that will improve school attendance
and reduce school crime and violence, including vandalism,
drug and alcohol abuse, gang membership, gang violence, hate
crimes, bullying, including bullying committed personally or
by means of an electronic act, teen relationship violence, and
discrimination and harassment, including, but not limited to,
sexual harassment.
2)Prohibits the suspension, or recommendation for expulsion, of
a pupil from school unless the principal determines that the
pupil has committed any of various specified acts, including,
bullying, including but not limited to bullying by means of an
electronic act, as defined.
FISCAL EFFECT : Keyed non-fiscal by the Legislative Counsel.
COMMENTS : The American Psychological Association defines
bullying as a form of aggressive behavior in which someone
intentionally and repeatedly causes another person injury or
discomfort. Bullying can take the form of physical contact,
words or more subtle actions. A nationally representative
survey conducted by the National Institute of Child Health and
Human Development, finds that approximately 30% of American
schoolchildren in grades six through 10 have been bullied or
have bullied other children "sometimes" or more often within a
semester. According to the author, bullying contributes to
youth violence, including homicide and suicide. The author also
states that studies show that adult and peer intervention reduce
bullying incidents and that the best way to protect students
against bullying is to establish programs that create awareness
through education, training, and best practice methodologies.
In September of 2007, the National Association of Attorneys
General (NAAG) Task Force on School and Campus Safety released a
report that includes specific recommendations to address school
safety issues. Recommendations from the NAAG Task Force
included a recommendation for states to "continue to implement
and expand bullying prevention measures, including cyber
bullying." The report stated, "Bullying was recognized as an
important issue in examining school violence. The growth in the
use of technology and social networking sites by younger
Americans has fueled a fear among professionals that cyber
bullying will become the means most often utilized to harass,
threaten or otherwise cause distress. And while certainly more
ACR 22
Page 3
prevalent in the elementary and secondary school setting, issues
related to bullying or intimidation are increasingly relevant in
other nontraditional settings."
According to information provided by the author, the White House
called for a conference on bullying prevention in March and the
author's plan was to introduce this resolution as Bullying
Prevention Awareness Week to coincide with the President's
conference. But because the conference has already passed, as
it took place on March 11, 2011, the author decided to change
the resolution to declare March 2011 as California School
Bullying Prevention Awareness Month. This resolution urges
California schools to discuss the issue of bullying and the
methods to prevent it using appropriate unspecified activities.
The National Bullying Prevention Center, a project of the Parent
Advocacy Coalition for Educational Rights developed the National
Bullying Prevention Month campaign in the United States in 2006
and has been held during the month of October. The campaign had
typically been held during the first week of October and in 2010
it was expanded to include activities, education and awareness
building for the entire month. The campaign came in response to
the need to raise awareness of bullying and its devastating
effects such as school avoidance, loss of self-esteem, increased
anxiety, and depression. The campaign reached out to education
based organizations such as the National Parent Teacher
Association, the American Federation of Teachers and the
National Education Association to provide schools, parents and
students with resources to respond to bullying behavior and to
address the issue of bullying through education and support.
This campaign and has been recognized as an annual event in the
month of October.
Analysis Prepared by : Marisol Avi�a / ED. / (916) 319-2087
FN: 0000135