BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 288
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 288 (Fong)
As Amended August 30, 2011
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |60-0 |(April 14, |SENATE: |39-0 |(September 6, |
| | |2011) | | |2011) |
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Original Committee Reference: HIGHER ED.
SUMMARY : Authorizes the governing board of a community college
district (CCD) to deny admission to someone expelled from
another CCD within the previous five years, under specified
circumstances. Specifically, this bill:
1)Allows a district to deny enrollment upon a finding, through a
hearing, that an individual was expelled within the preceding
five years, or is undergoing expulsion procedures in another
district, for specified offenses and presents a continuing
danger to the physical safety of the district's students and
employees.
2)Requires a district, if requested by another district seeking
to make a determination per 1), to respond to an information
request within five working days.
3)Requires a student expelled for one of the specified actions
to inform the community college district of their prior
expulsion when seeking admission to the district. Failure of
the student to do so is to be considered by the district in
determining whether to grant admission.
4)Allows the governing board, upon making a determination
regarding a previously expelled student, to deny enrollment,
permit enrollment, or permit conditional enrollment.
5)Requires a district, prior to taking any action to deny
enrollment per the above, to establish an appeals process, and
allows a student denied enrollment per the above to appeal the
decision to the district governing board.
The Senate amendments clarify that the immunity from liability
for specified CCD employees for an injury resulting from an
AB 288
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exercise of the discretion provided pursuant to this bill must
be in accordance with existing Government Code provisions
relative to liability of public employees.
EXISTING LAW
1)Provides that a CCD governing board is authorized to expel a
student for good cause when other means of correction fail to
bring about proper conduct, or when the presence of the
student causes a continuing danger to the physical safety of
the student or others. Provides that the expulsion shall be
accompanied by a hearing.
2)Provides that a CCD governing body may exclude students from
attendance for "filthy or vicious habits, or students
suffering from contagious or infectious diseases" as well as
"any student whose physical or mental disability is such as to
cause his or her attendance to be inimical to the welfare of
other students."
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill was substantially similar
to the version approved by the Senate.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, potentially significant reimbursable mandate costs
for the CCD enrollment process and information requests.
COMMENTS :
Purpose of this bill : According to the author, CCC's are the
only public educational segment in California without the
ability to ensure campus safety at one CCCD through a screening
process of students who have been expelled from another CCCD.
Currently, a student who is expelled from one CCCD for a violent
offense can freely enroll in another CCCD without that CCCD's
knowledge of his or her expulsion. This bill addresses these
problems by requiring a student enrolling in a CCC to disclose
that he or she had been expelled for a violent offense from a
CCCD, requiring a CCCD that had expelled a student for one of
the specified reasons to provide the information to the
receiving CCCD upon request, authorizing a receiving CCCD to
conduct a hearing in order to determine if a student posed a
threat to the faculty, staff, or other students, and allowing
the CCCD to deny enrollment to this student if deemed necessary
to ensure the safety of those on campus.
AB 288
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Governor's veto of prior legislation : AB 1400 (Fong) of 2010
was substantially similar to this bill. In his veto of AB 1400,
Governor Schwarzenegger wrote, in part, "As drafted, the bill
creates an uneven standard between students who could be denied
admission because of criminal acts they may have committed in
the past. Since I am committed to having community colleges be
both safe places for quality education, as well as open
institutions of hope for all students, I am asking the CCC Board
of Governors to work in collaboration with CCC Chancellor Scott
to work on a policy that will most effectively address this
issue for the campuses." According to the CCC Chancellors
Office (CCCCO), discussions have occurred in response to the
Governor's request, however it appears that new statute would be
required in order for the CCCCO to issue regulations on this
matter.
Analysis Prepared by : Laura Metune / HIGHER ED. / (916)
319-3960
FN: 0002442