(1) Existing law prohibits discrimination on the basis of specified protected characteristics, including, but not limited to, actual and perceived gender identification and sexual orientation, in any program or activity conducted by an educational institution, as specified.

This bill would require the State Department of Education to monitor adherence to the antidiscrimination and antiharassment requirements as part of its regular monitoring and review of public schools and school districts and to assess whether schools have done certain things, including, among others, adopted a policy that prohibits discrimination and harassment and adopted a process for receiving and investigating complaints of discrimination and harassment. The department would be required to display information on trainings, curricula, and other resources that specifically address bias-related discrimination and harassment on specified Internet Web sites. The bill would require a school district to publicize, as defined, its antidiscrimination and antiharassment policies, and to take specified actions related to increasing awareness of, identifying, and responding to, discrimination and harassment based on those protected characteristics. By requiring school districts to perform additional duties, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

(2) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.

Existing law declares the intent of the Legislature with respect to the adoption and selection of instructional materials for use in the elementary and secondary schools and recognizes the need to establish broad minimum standards and general educational guidelines for the selection of instructional materials.

This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to those provisions.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no yes . State-mandated local program: no yes .

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

(a) All pupils in public primary, elementary, middle, junior high, and senior high schools have the inalienable right to attend school at school campuses that are safe, secure, and peaceful.

(b) Pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 201 of the Education Code, public schools in California have an affirmative obligation to combat racism, sexism, and other forms of bias, and a responsibility to provide equal educational opportunity.

(c) The California Student Safety and Violence Prevention Act of 2000 reaffirmed the right of all pupils to a safe school environment by prohibiting a person from being subjected to discrimination on the basis of sex, ethnic group identification, race, national origin, religion, color, mental or physical disability, or an actual or perceived characteristic that is contained in the definition of hate crimes set forth in Section 422.55 of the Penal Code in an program or activity conducted by an educational institution that receives, or benefits from, state financial assistance or enrolls pupils who receive state student financial aid.

(d) Hate motivated incidents jeopardize the safety and well-being of all pupils because they target not only the individual victim, but everyone who shares the identity that motivated the particular incident. Unfortunately, there have been increasing reports of hate motivated incidents and crimes in California schools.

(e) (1) Numerous studies point to an ongoing problem of discrimination, harassment, and violence in schools that has severe consequences for pupils. For example, the 2004-06 California Healthy Kids Survey results found that between 27 to 30 percent of California middle and high school pupils reported experiencing bias-related harassment at school related to their race, ethnicity, gender, religion, sexual orientation, or disability.

(2) Many teachers, school staff members, and pupils are unaware of the rights and obligations regarding discrimination and harassment set forth in Sections 200, 201, and 220 of the Education Code.

(3) Many teachers and school staff members have not received effective and comprehensive training to prevent or respond to illegal discrimination and harassment, despite the need for effective interventions. Pupils with teachers or school staff who intervene are less likely to be harassed on the basis of actual or perceived sexual orientation.

(4) Many school districts are not effectively addressing discrimination and harassment on campus. Less than half of grade 9 pupils express feeling safe at school, while 46 percent of pupils said their schools were not safe for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) pupils.

(5) Many pupils do not know the manner in which to file a discrimination or harassment complaint.

(6) Many school districts are responding to complaints about discrimination and harassment in an inconsistent manner.

(f) In a public hearing conducted on October 3, 2002, by the California Senate Select Committee on School Safety, pupils, teachers, parents, researchers, and advocates from all over the state testified about incidents of ongoing discrimination and harassment and an inadequate response from school authorities.

(g) Bias-related discrimination and harassment have negative consequences for pupil health, well-being, and academic success. For example, the Safe Place to Learn report issued by the California Safe Schools Coalition and the 4-H Center for Youth Development at the Davis campus of the University of California found that pupils who are harassed based on actual or perceived sexual orientation are at least three times more likely to carry a weapon to school, to seriously consider suicide, to make a plan for attempting suicide, or to miss at least one day of school per 30 schooldays because they do not feel safe. In addition, a survey of San Francisco Asian American youth found that 36 percent cited racial tension as the primary cause for fights on campus.

(h) A number of school districts have paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages to settle lawsuits by pupils claiming their schools failed to protect them from harassment, intimidation, and violence, including a June 2005 jury award of three hundred thousand dollars ($300,000) in San Diego to two former high school pupils for the harassment they received at school based on their actual or perceived sexual orientation and a January 2007 settlement of forty-five thousand dollars ($45,000) in a Contra Costa County lawsuit alleging that school officials failed to protect a pupil from repeated attacks motivated by racial and ethnic prejudice. SEC. 2. Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 234) is added to Chapter 2 of Part 1 of Division 1 of Title 1 of the Education Code , to read:

Article 5.5. Safe Place To Learn Act

234. (a) This article shall be known and may be cited as the Safe Place to Learn Act.

(b) It is the policy of the State of California to ensure that all school districts and schools continue to work to reduce discrimination, harassment, and violence. It is further the policy of the state to improve pupil safety at schools and the connections between pupils and supportive adults, schools, and communities.

234.1. The department, pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 64001, shall monitor adherence to the requirements of Chapter 5.3 (commencing with Section 4900) of Division 1 of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations and Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 200) as part of its regular monitoring and review of public schools and school districts, commonly known as the Categorical Program Monitoring process. The department shall assess whether schools have done all of the following:

(a) Adopted a policy that prohibits discrimination and harassment based on the characteristics set forth in Section 422.55 of the Penal Code and Section 220.

(b) Adopted a process for receiving and investigating complaints of discrimination and harassment based on the characteristics set forth in Section 422.55 of the Penal Code and Section 220.

(c) Included in its antidiscrimination and antiharassment policy the person or persons, employee or employees, or local educational agency office or unit responsible for receiving and investigating complaints, and ensuring local educational agency compliance.

(d) Maintained documentation of complaints and their resolution.

(e) Ensured that complainants are protected from retaliation and that the identity of a complainant alleging discrimination or harassment remains confidential, as appropriate.

234.2. The department shall display information on trainings, curricula, and other resources that specifically address bias-related discrimination and harassment based on the characteristics set forth in Section 422.55 of the Penal Code and Section 220 on the California Healthy Kids Resource Center Internet Web site and other appropriate department Internet Web sites where information about discrimination and harassment is posted.

234.3. A school district shall do all of the following:

(a) During the normal course of reprinting, update all applicable publications on school safety, bullying, tolerance, bias-motivated behavior, and hate-related violence to include information on bias-related discrimination and harassment based on the characteristics set forth in Section 422.55 of the Penal Code and Section 220. For purposes of this subdivision, "all applicable publications" does not include instructional materials as defined in subdivision (h) of Section 60010.

(b) As required by Chapter 5.3 (commencing with Section 4900) of Division 1 of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations, publicize relevant antidiscrimination and antiharassment policies, including information about the manner in which to file a complaint, for pupils, parents, employees, agents of the governing board, and the general public. For purposes of this subdivision, "publicize" means to post the policies in all schools and school offices, including staff lounges and pupil government meeting rooms, and on the Internet Web site of the school district, to make written copies of the policies available, upon request, in the administrative office of the district, and to include the policies in the pupil handbook, during the normal course of their reprinting. This subdivision does not prohibit a school district from voluntarily engaging in any other means of publication or distribution, including, but not limited to, displaying the policies in locations accessible to pupils.

(c) During the normal course of offering trainings or disseminating information related to discrimination and harassment, include training and information on methods of identifying and responding to bias-related discrimination and harassment based on the characteristics set forth in Section 422.55 of the Penal Code and Section 220. A school district may use existing resources provided by the department pursuant to Section 234.2 and may use trainings that include the information described in this subdivision for purposes of the professional development of teachers and other school staff members.

(d) Maintain and centralize copies of all complaints of discrimination and harassment and documentation of their resolution for a period of no less than four years. The documentation may be either in hard copy or electronic form. SEC. 3. If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code. SECTION 1. Section 60000 of the Education Code is amended to read:

60000. (a) It is the intent and purpose of the Legislature in enacting this part to provide for the adoption and selection of quality instructional materials for use in elementary and secondary schools.

(b) The Legislature recognizes that, because of the common needs and interests of the citizens of this state and the nation, there is a need to establish broad minimum standards and general educational guidelines for the selection of instructional materials for the public schools, but that because of economic, geographic, physical, political, educational, and social diversity, specific choices about instructional materials need to be made at the local level.

(c) The Legislature further recognizes that the governing boards of school districts have the responsibility to establish courses of study and that they must have the ability to choose instructional materials that are appropriate to their courses of study.

An act to add Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 234) to Chapter 2 of Part 1 of Division 1 of Title 1 of the Education Code, relating to discrimination.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

(1) Existing

Existing law prohibits discrimination on the basis of specified protected characteristics, including, but not limited to, actual and perceived gender identification and sexual orientation, in any program or activity conducted by an educational institution, as specified.

This bill would require the State Department of Education to monitor adherence to the antidiscrimination and antiharassment requirements as part of its regular monitoring and review of public schools and school districts and to assess whether schools have done certain things, including, among others, adopted a policy that prohibits discrimination and harassment and adopted a process for receiving and investigating complaints of discrimination and harassment. The department would be required to display information on trainings, curricula , and other resources that specifically address bias-related discrimination and harassment on specified Internet Web sites. The bill would require a school district to publicize, as defined, its antidiscrimination and antiharassment policies, and to take specified actions related to increasing awareness of, identifying, and responding to, discrimination and harassment based on those protected characteristics. By requiring school districts to perform additional duties, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

(2) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes no .

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

(a) All pupils in public primary, elementary, middle, junior high, and senior high schools have the inalienable right to attend school at school campuses that are safe, secure, and peaceful.

(b) Pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 201 of the Education Code, public schools in California have an affirmative obligation to combat racism, sexism, and other forms of bias, and a responsibility to provide equal educational opportunity.

(c) The California Student Safety and Violence Prevention Act of 2000 reaffirmed the right of all pupils to a safe school environment by prohibiting a person from being subjected to discrimination on the basis of sex, ethnic group identification, race, national origin, religion, color, mental or physical disability, or an actual or perceived characteristic that is contained in the definition of hate crimes set forth in Section 422.55 of the Penal Code in an a program or activity conducted by an educational institution that receives, or benefits from, state financial assistance or enrolls pupils who receive state student financial aid.

(d) Hate-motivated incidents jeopardize the safety and well-being of all pupils because they target not only the individual victim, but everyone who shares the identity that motivated the particular incident. Unfortunately, there have been increasing reports of hate-motivated incidents and crimes in California schools.

(e) (1) Numerous studies point to an ongoing problem of discrimination, harassment, and violence in schools that has severe consequences for pupils. For example, the 2004-06 California Healthy Kids Survey results found that between 27 to 30 percent of California middle and high school pupils reported experiencing bias-related harassment at school related to their race, ethnicity, gender, religion, sexual orientation, or disability.

(2) Many teachers, school staff members, and pupils are unaware of the rights and obligations regarding discrimination and harassment set forth in Sections 200, 201, and 220 of the Education Code.

(3) Many teachers and school staff members have not received effective and comprehensive training to prevent or respond to illegal discrimination and harassment, despite the need for effective interventions. Pupils with teachers or school staff who intervene are less likely to be harassed on the basis of actual or perceived sexual orientation.

(4)

(2) Many school districts are not effectively addressing discrimination and harassment on campus. Less than half of grade 9 pupils express feeling safe at school, while 46 percent of pupils said their schools were not safe for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) pupils.

(5) Many pupils do not know the manner in which to file a discrimination or harassment complaint.

(6) Many school districts are responding to complaints about discrimination and harassment in an inconsistent manner.

(f) In a public hearing conducted on October 3, 2002, by the California Senate Select Committee on School Safety, pupils, teachers, parents, researchers, and advocates from all over the state testified about incidents of ongoing discrimination and harassment and an inadequate response from school authorities.

(g) Bias-related discrimination and harassment have negative consequences for pupil health, well-being, and academic success. For example, the Safe Place to Learn report issued by the California Safe Schools Coalition and the 4-H Center for Youth Development at the Davis campus of the University of California found that pupils who are harassed based on actual or perceived sexual orientation are at least three times more likely to carry a weapon to school, to seriously consider suicide, to make a plan for attempting suicide, or to miss at least one day of school per 30 schooldays because they do not feel safe. In addition, a survey of San Francisco Asian American youth found that 36 percent cited racial tension as the primary cause for fights on campus.

(h) A number of school districts have paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages to settle lawsuits by pupils claiming their schools failed to protect them from harassment, intimidation, and violence, including a June 2005 jury award of three hundred thousand dollars ($300,000) in San Diego to two former high school pupils for the harassment they received at school based on their actual or perceived sexual orientation and a January 2007 settlement of forty-five thousand dollars ($45,000) in a Contra Costa County lawsuit alleging that school officials failed to protect a pupil from repeated attacks motivated by racial and ethnic prejudice. SEC. 2. Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 234) is added to Chapter 2 of Part 1 of Division 1 of Title 1 of the Education Code, to read:

Article 5.5. Safe Place To Learn Act

234. (a) This article shall be known and may be cited as the Safe Place to Learn Act.

(b) It is the policy of the State of California to ensure that all school districts and schools continue to work to reduce discrimination, harassment, and violence. It is further the policy of the state to improve pupil safety at schools and the connections between pupils and supportive adults, schools, and communities.

234.1. The department, pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 64001, shall monitor adherence to the requirements of Chapter 5.3 (commencing with Section 4900) of Division 1 of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations and Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 200) as part of its regular monitoring and review of public schools and school districts, commonly known as the Categorical Program Monitoring process. The department shall assess whether schools have done all of the following:

(a) Adopted a policy that prohibits discrimination and harassment based on the characteristics set forth in Section 422.55 of the Penal Code and Section 220.

(b) Adopted a process for receiving and investigating complaints of discrimination and harassment based on the characteristics set forth in Section 422.55 of the Penal Code and Section 220.

(c) Included in its antidiscrimination and antiharassment policy the person or persons, employee or employees, or local educational agency office or unit responsible for receiving and investigating complaints, and ensuring local educational agency compliance.

(d)

(c) Maintained documentation of complaints and their resolution.

(e)

(d) Ensured that complainants are protected from retaliation and that the identity of a complainant alleging discrimination or harassment remains confidential, as appropriate.

234.2. The department shall display information on trainings, curricula , and other resources that specifically address bias-related discrimination and harassment based on the characteristics set forth in Section 422.55 of the Penal Code and Section 220 on the California Healthy Kids Resource Center Internet Web site and other appropriate department Internet Web sites where information about discrimination and harassment is posted.

234.3. A school district shall do all of the following:

(a) During the normal course of reprinting, update all applicable publications on school safety, bullying, tolerance, bias-motivated behavior, and hate-related violence to include information on bias-related discrimination and harassment based on the characteristics set forth in Section 422.55 of the Penal Code and Section 220. For purposes of this subdivision, "all applicable publications" does not include instructional materials as defined in subdivision (h) of Section 60010.

(b) As required by Chapter 5.3 (commencing with Section 4900) of Division 1 of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations, publicize relevant antidiscrimination and antiharassment policies, including information about the manner in which to file a complaint, for pupils, parents, employees, agents of the governing board, and the general public. For purposes of this subdivision, "publicize" means to post the policies in all schools and school offices, including staff lounges and pupil government meeting rooms, and on the Internet Web site of the school district, to make written copies of the policies available, upon request, in the administrative office of the district, and to include the policies in the pupil handbook, during the normal course of their reprinting. This subdivision does not prohibit a school district from voluntarily engaging in any other means of publication or distribution, including, but not limited to, displaying the policies in locations accessible to pupils.

(c) During the normal course of offering trainings or disseminating information related to discrimination and harassment, include training and information on methods of identifying and responding to bias-related discrimination and harassment based on the characteristics set forth in Section 422.55 of the Penal Code and Section 220. A school district may use existing resources provided by the department pursuant to Section 234.2 and may use trainings that include the information described in this subdivision for purposes of the professional development of teachers and other school staff members.

(d) Maintain and centralize copies of all complaints of discrimination and harassment and documentation of their resolution for a period of no less than four years. The documentation may be either in hard copy or electronic form. SEC. 3. If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.

An act to add Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 234) to Chapter 2 of Part 1 of Division 1 of Title 1 of the Education Code, relating to discrimination.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

Existing law prohibits discrimination on the basis of specified protected characteristics, including, but not limited to, actual and perceived gender identification and sexual orientation, in any program or activity conducted by an educational institution, as specified.

This bill would require the State Department of Education to monitor adherence to the antidiscrimination and antiharassment requirements as part of its regular monitoring and review of public schools and school districts local educational agencies and to assess whether schools local educational agencies have done certain things, including, among others, adopted a policy that prohibits discrimination and harassment and adopted a process for receiving and investigating complaints of discrimination and harassment. The department would be required to display information on curricula and other resources that specifically address bias-related discrimination and harassment on specified Internet Web sites. The department would also be required to develop, and post on appropriate department Internet Web sites, a model handout describing certain rights and obligations relating to antidiscrimination and antiharassment and the policies addressing bias-related discrimination and harassment in schools.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

(a) All pupils in public primary, elementary, middle, junior high, and senior high schools have the inalienable right to attend school at school campuses that are safe, secure, and peaceful.

(b) Pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 201 of the Education Code, public schools in California have an affirmative obligation to combat racism, sexism, and other forms of bias, and a responsibility to provide equal educational opportunity.

(c) The California Student Safety and Violence Prevention Act of 2000 reaffirmed the right of all pupils to a safe school environment by prohibiting a person from being subjected to discrimination on the basis of sex, ethnic group identification, race, national origin, religion, color, mental or physical disability, or an actual or perceived characteristic that is contained in the definition of hate crimes set forth in Section 422.55 of the Penal Code in a program or activity conducted by an educational institution that receives, or benefits from, state financial assistance or enrolls pupils who receive state student financial aid.

(d) Hate-motivated incidents jeopardize the safety and well-being of all pupils because they target not only the individual victim, but everyone who shares the identity that motivated the particular incident. Unfortunately, there have been increasing reports of hate-motivated incidents and crimes in California schools.

(e) (1) Numerous studies point to an ongoing problem of discrimination, harassment, and violence in schools that has severe consequences for pupils. For example, the 2004-06 California Healthy Kids Survey results found that between 27 to 30 percent of California middle and high school pupils reported experiencing bias-related harassment at school related to their race, ethnicity, gender, religion, sexual orientation, or disability.

(2) Many school districts are not effectively addressing discrimination and harassment on campus. Less than half of grade 9 pupils express feeling safe at school, while 46 percent of pupils said their schools were not safe for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) pupils.

(3) Many teachers have not received training to prevent or respond to illegal discrimination and harassment. A majority of school districts do not require training on how to address discrimination and harassment based on sexual orientation for their elementary, middle, or high school teachers.

(4) Many pupils and parents are unaware of nondiscrimination policies, with 23 percent of pupils and 29 percent of parents not being informed of the policies.

(f) In a public hearing conducted on October 3, 2002, by the California Senate Select Committee on School Safety, pupils, teachers, parents, researchers, and advocates from all over the state testified about incidents of ongoing discrimination and harassment and an inadequate response from school authorities.

(g) Bias-related discrimination and harassment have negative consequences for pupil health, well-being, and academic success. For example, the Safe Place to Learn report issued by the California Safe Schools Coalition and the 4-H Center for Youth Development at the Davis campus of the University of California found that pupils who are harassed based on actual or perceived sexual orientation are at least three times more likely to carry a weapon to school, to seriously consider suicide, to make a plan for attempting suicide, or to miss at least one day of school per 30 schooldays because they do not feel safe. In addition, a survey of San Francisco Asian American youth found that 36 percent cited racial tension as the primary cause for fights on campus.

(h) A number of school districts have paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages to settle lawsuits by pupils claiming their schools failed to protect them from harassment, intimidation, and violence, including a June 2005 jury award of three hundred thousand dollars ($300,000) in San Diego to two former high school pupils for the harassment they received at school based on their actual or perceived sexual orientation and a January 2007 settlement of forty-five thousand dollars ($45,000) in a Contra Costa County lawsuit alleging that school officials failed to protect a pupil from repeated attacks motivated by racial and ethnic prejudice. SEC. 2. Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 234) is added to Chapter 2 of Part 1 of Division 1 of Title 1 of the Education Code, to read:

Article 5.5. Safe Place To to Learn Act

234. (a) This article shall be known and may be cited as the Safe Place to Learn Act.

(b) It is the policy of the State of California to ensure that all school districts and schools local educational agencies continue to work to reduce discrimination, harassment, and violence. It is further the policy of the state to improve pupil safety at schools and the connections between pupils and supportive adults, schools, and communities.

234.1. The department, pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 64001, shall monitor adherence to the requirements of Chapter 5.3 (commencing with Section 4900) of Division 1 of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations and Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 200) as part of its regular monitoring and review of public schools and school districts local educational agencies , commonly known as the Categorical Program Monitoring process. The department shall assess whether schools local educational agencies have done all of the following:

(a) Adopted a policy that prohibits discrimination and harassment based on the characteristics set forth in Section 422.55 of the Penal Code and Section 220.

(b) Adopted a process for receiving and investigating complaints of discrimination and harassment based on the characteristics set forth in Section 422.55 of the Penal Code and Section 220.

(c) Publicized antidiscrimination and antiharassment policies, including information about the manner in which to file a complaint, to pupils, parents, employees, agents of the governing board, and the general public. The information shall be translated pursuant to Section 48985.

(d) Posted antidiscrimination and antiharassment policies in all schools and offices, including staff lounges and pupil government meeting rooms.

(c)

(e) Maintained documentation of complaints and their resolution for a minimum of one review cycle .

(d)

(f) Ensured that complainants are protected from retaliation and that the identity of a complainant alleging discrimination or harassment remains confidential, as appropriate.

(g) Identified a responsible local educational agency officer for ensuring district or office compliance with the requirements of Chapter 5.3 (commencing with Section 4900) of Division 1 of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations and Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 200).

234.2. The department shall display information on curricula and other resources that specifically address bias-related discrimination and harassment based on the characteristics set forth in Section 422.55 of the Penal Code and Section 220 on the California Healthy Kids Resource Center Internet Web site and other appropriate department Internet Web sites where information about discrimination and harassment is posted.

234.3. The department shall develop a model handout describing the rights and obligations set forth in Sections 200, 201, and 220 and the policies addressing bias-related discrimination and harassment in schools. This model handout shall be posted on appropriate department Internet Web sites.

An act to add Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 234) to Chapter 2 of Part 1 of Division 1 of Title 1 of the Education Code, relating to discrimination.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 394, Levine. Safe schools: discrimination and harassment.

Existing law prohibits discrimination on the basis of specified protected characteristics, including, but not limited to, actual and perceived gender identification and sexual orientation, in any program or activity conducted by an educational institution, as specified.

This bill would require the State Department of Education to monitor adherence to the antidiscrimination and antiharassment requirements as part of its regular monitoring and review of local educational agencies and to assess whether local educational agencies have done certain things, including, among others, adopted a policy that prohibits discrimination and harassment and adopted a process for receiving and investigating complaints of discrimination and harassment. The department would be required to display information on curricula and other resources that specifically address bias-related discrimination and harassment on specified Internet Web sites. The department would also be required to develop, and post on appropriate department Internet Web sites, a model handout describing certain rights and obligations relating to antidiscrimination and antiharassment and the policies addressing bias-related discrimination and harassment in schools.

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

(a) All pupils in public primary, elementary, middle, junior high, and senior high schools have the inalienable right to attend school at school campuses that are safe, secure, and peaceful.

(b) Pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 201 of the Education Code, public schools in California have an affirmative obligation to combat racism, sexism, and other forms of bias, and a responsibility to provide equal educational opportunity.

(c) The California Student Safety and Violence Prevention Act of 2000 reaffirmed the right of all pupils to a safe school environment by prohibiting a person from being subjected to discrimination on the basis of sex, ethnic group identification, race, national origin, religion, color, mental or physical disability, or an actual or perceived characteristic that is contained in the definition of hate crimes set forth in Section 422.55 of the Penal Code in a program or activity conducted by an educational institution that receives, or benefits from, state financial assistance or enrolls pupils who receive state student financial aid.

(d) Hate-motivated incidents jeopardize the safety and well-being of all pupils because they target not only the individual victim, but everyone who shares the identity that motivated the particular incident. Unfortunately, there have been increasing reports of hate-motivated incidents and crimes in California schools.

(e) (1) Numerous studies point to an ongoing problem of discrimination, harassment, and violence in schools that has severe consequences for pupils. For example, the 2004-06 California Healthy Kids Survey results found that between 27 to 30 percent of California middle and high school pupils reported experiencing bias-related harassment at school related to their race, ethnicity, gender, religion, sexual orientation, or disability.

(2) Many school districts are not effectively addressing discrimination and harassment on campus. Less than half of grade 9 pupils express feeling safe at school, while 46 percent of pupils said their schools were not safe for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) pupils.

(3) Many teachers have not received training to prevent or respond to illegal discrimination and harassment. A majority of school districts do not require training on how to address discrimination and harassment based on sexual orientation for their elementary, middle, or high school teachers.

(4) Many pupils and parents are unaware of nondiscrimination policies, with 23 percent of pupils and 29 percent of parents not being informed of the policies.

(f) In a public hearing conducted on October 3, 2002, by the California Senate Select Committee on School Safety, pupils, teachers, parents, researchers, and advocates from all over the state testified about incidents of ongoing discrimination and harassment and an inadequate response from school authorities.

(g) Bias-related discrimination and harassment have negative consequences for pupil health, well-being, and academic success. For example, the Safe Place to Learn report issued by the California Safe Schools Coalition and the 4-H Center for Youth Development at the Davis campus of the University of California found that pupils who are harassed based on actual or perceived sexual orientation are at least three times more likely to carry a weapon to school, to seriously consider suicide, to make a plan for attempting suicide, or to miss at least one day of school per 30 schooldays because they do not feel safe. In addition, a survey of San Francisco Asian American youth found that 36 percent cited racial tension as the primary cause for fights on campus.

(h) A number of school districts have paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages to settle lawsuits by pupils claiming their schools failed to protect them from harassment, intimidation, and violence, including a June 2005 jury award of three hundred thousand dollars ($300,000) in San Diego to two former high school pupils for the harassment they received at school based on their actual or perceived sexual orientation and a January 2007 settlement of forty-five thousand dollars ($45,000) in a Contra Costa County lawsuit alleging that school officials failed to protect a pupil from repeated attacks motivated by racial and ethnic prejudice. SEC. 2. Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 234) is added to Chapter 2 of Part 1 of Division 1 of Title 1 of the Education Code, to read:

Article 5.5. Safe Place to Learn Act

234. (a) This article shall be known and may be cited as the Safe Place to Learn Act.

(b) It is the policy of the State of California to ensure that all local educational agencies continue to work to reduce discrimination, harassment, and violence. It is further the policy of the state to improve pupil safety at schools and the connections between pupils and supportive adults, schools, and communities.

234.1. The department, pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 64001, shall monitor adherence to the requirements of Chapter 5.3 (commencing with Section 4900) of Division 1 of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations and Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 200) as part of its regular monitoring and review of local educational agencies, commonly known as the Categorical Program Monitoring process. The department shall assess whether local educational agencies have done all of the following:

(a) Adopted a policy that prohibits discrimination and harassment based on the characteristics set forth in Section 422.55 of the Penal Code and Section 220.

(b) Adopted a process for receiving and investigating complaints of discrimination and harassment based on the characteristics set forth in Section 422.55 of the Penal Code and Section 220.

(c) Publicized antidiscrimination and antiharassment policies, including information about the manner in which to file a complaint, to pupils, parents, employees, agents of the governing board, and the general public. The information shall be translated pursuant to Section 48985.

(d) Posted antidiscrimination and antiharassment policies in all schools and offices, including staff lounges and pupil government meeting rooms.

(e) Maintained documentation of complaints and their resolution for a minimum of one review cycle.

(f) Ensured that complainants are protected from retaliation and that the identity of a complainant alleging discrimination or harassment remains confidential, as appropriate.

(g) Identified a responsible local educational agency officer for ensuring district or office compliance with the requirements of Chapter 5.3 (commencing with Section 4900) of Division 1 of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations and Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 200).

234.2. The department shall display information on curricula and other resources that specifically address bias-related discrimination and harassment based on the characteristics set forth in Section 422.55 of the Penal Code and Section 220 on the California Healthy Kids Resource Center Internet Web site and other appropriate department Internet Web sites where information about discrimination and harassment is posted.

234.3. The department shall develop a model handout describing the rights and obligations set forth in Sections 200, 201, and 220 and the policies addressing bias-related discrimination and harassment in schools. This model handout shall be posted on appropriate department Internet Web sites.