Existing law requires the governing board of each school district to establish rules and regulations governing procedures for the expulsion of pupils including, but not limited to, an expulsion hearing and a right to appeal. Existing law requires the county superintendent of schools in counties that operate community schools, in conjunction with superintendents of the school districts within the county, to develop a plan for providing education services to all expelled pupils in that county.

This bill would prohibit a school operated by a county office of education from expelling a pupil accused of certain offenses unless the county board of education contracts with the Office of Administrative Hearings or appoints an impartial administrative panel for purposes of an expulsion hearing, as specified. The bill would require that the pupil or the pupils parent or guardian be provided with notice of the hearing, as specified. The bill would authorize a pupil expelled from a school operated by a county office of education to appeal the hearing officers or the impartial administrative panels decision to expel to the county board of education. The bill would require the county superintendent of schools or his or her designee, if the county board of education upholds an expulsion, to provide a written notice of the decision to expel, as specified. The bill would also require the plan for providing education services to all expelled pupils in a county that operates one or more community schools to include pupils expelled by the county board of education. By imposing new duties upon county boards of education, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

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 requires the governing board of each school district to establish rules and regulations governing procedures for the expulsion of pupils including, but not limited to, an expulsion hearing and a right to appeal.

This bill would prohibit a school operated by a county office of education from suspending, expelling, or otherwise denying attendance to expelling a pupil accused of certain offenses without a hearing before unless the county board of education contracts with the Office of Administrative Hearings or appoints an impartial administrative panel. panel for purposes of an expulsion hearing, as specified. The bill would authorize a pupil suspended from, expelled from, or otherwise denied attendance to a expelled from a school operated by a county office of education to appeal the hearing officers or the impartial administrative panels decision to expel to the county board of education. By imposing new duties upon county boards of education, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

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 requires the governing board of each school district to establish rules and regulations governing procedures for the expulsion of pupils including, but not limited to, an expulsion hearing and a right to appeal.

Existing law requires the governing board of each school district to establish rules and regulations governing procedures for the expulsion of pupils including, but not limited to, an expulsion hearing and a right to appeal.

This bill would express the intent of the Legislature to ensure a pupil attending a comprehensive high school who is accused of an expellable offense receives due process, including an expulsion hearing and the right to appeal an expulsion, and to enact future legislation to provide a pupil attending a comprehensive high school operated by a county office of education a process for an expulsion hearing and a right to appeal an expulsion.

Date of Hearing: August 3, 2016

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS

Lorena Gonzalez, Chair

SBPCA Bill Id:SB 1309

Author:(Leyva) – As Amended Ver:June 29, 2016

Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: Yes Reimbursable: Yes

SUMMARY:

This bill establishes a process for expulsion of a student enrolled in a school operated by a county office of education (COE). Specifically, this bill:

1. Requires, if a principal or designee recommends a student for expulsion, the county board of education to contract with the Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH) to conduct the expulsion hearing or appoint an impartial administrative panel, as specified, to conduct the expulsion hearing.
2. Requires the OAH hearing officer or the impartial administrative panel to prepare and submit to the county board of education, findings of fact in support of a decision to expel. Final action to expel a student must be taken only by the county board of education in a public session.
3. Requires parents or guardians of the student to be provided with a written notice of the hearing at least 10 days before the date of the hearing, including a statement of specific facts and charges upon which the proposed expulsion is based. The notice must also inform parents of their right to be represented by legal counsel or by a nonattorney adviser.
4. Authorizes a student, or his or her guardian, within 30 days of a decision to expel, to file an appeal with the county board of education. Requires the county board of education to hold a hearing and determine the outcome.  If the county board of education upholds an expulsion, the county superintendent of schools or his or her designee must provide the student, or the parent or guardian, a written notice of the decision to expel along with an education plan or notice of the education alternative placement.

FISCAL EFFECT:

1. Unknown costs to the Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH) to conduct expulsion hearings, to the extent a county board of education chooses to contract with OAH. According to OAH, estimated costs for a one-day hearing are approximately $4,500.

There is no statewide data on the number of hearings that were conducted to determine whether a student attending a county school should be suspended or expelled. Although only six students were expelled from county schools last year, over 7,000 students were suspended from these schools. It is possible that some of the suspension cases began as expulsion cases. For illustration, if OAH was required to conduct 50 hearings, OAH would incur costs in the range of $225,000 (special funds).

1. Unknown Proposition 98/GF state mandated costs, likely in the tens of thousands, for county boards of education to amend their education plan to include a plan for students expelled from a county school and to process expulsion appeals. Actual costs will depend upon the number of appeals.

COMMENTS:

1. Purpose. Existing law does not provide a process for expulsion of students enrolled in COEs. According to the author, although there is a detailed process for handling student expulsion at the school district level, current law is silent on how expulsions should be handled by COE operated schools. This lack of clarity does not ensure that students have access to due process when going through expulsion proceedings. There is no requirement in current law for a COE to hold an expulsion hearing or to have an appeals hearing following an expulsion. Furthermore, if there is an appeal, the situation could arise where the COE board hears and decides both the expulsion and the appeal. This bill establishes a process that is similar to the expulsion process required of school districts.
2. Background on COEs and expulsion. COEs operate county community schools for students who have been expelled from a school district. COEs also run juvenile court schools for students who are in juvenile detention facilities and provide career technical education, special education and related services. Although rare, some COEs run comprehensive schools. Los Angeles County Office of Education and the Santa Clara County Office, for example, operate comprehensive high schools. Typically, students expelled from district schools enroll in county operated programs. Generally, COEs do not expel students. If a student is expelled from a county school, they are likely to be enrolled in other COE-operated programs, such as county community schools.
3. Impact on OAH. School district governing boards currently have the option to conduct a hearing for expulsion or to contract with OAH or an impartial administrative panel to conduct the hearing. Most governing boards conduct their own hearings. OAH indicates they have never been contacted by a school board to conduct an expulsion hearing.

This bill will require the county board to contract with OAH, or develop an impartial administrative panel, to conduct the expulsion hearing since the county board is also the body that processes appeals. Therefore, OAH will likely receive requests to conduct hearings as a result of this bill.

Analysis Prepared by: Misty Feusahrens / APPR. / (916) 319-2081

Date of Hearing: June 22, 2016

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Patrick O'Donnell, Chair

SBPCA Bill Id:SB 1309

Author:(Leyva) – As Amended Ver:April 27, 2016

SENATE VOTE: 39-0

SUBJECT: Pupil discipline: expulsion hearings: county schools

SUMMARY: Establishes a process for expulsion of a pupil enrolled in a school operated by a county office of education (COE). Specifically, this bill:

1. Prohibits a pupil enrolled in a school operated by a COE from being recommended for expulsion unless the principal of the school in which the pupil is enrolled or his or her designee determines that the pupil has committed an act for which a pupil may be subject to suspension or expulsion under current law and a hearing has been conducted.
2. Requires the county board of education to do either of the following, if expulsion is recommended by a principal or his or her designee:
   1. Contract with the Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH) for a hearing officer to conduct the expulsion hearing.
   2. Appoint an impartial administrative panel consisting of three or more certificated persons, none of whom is a member of the county board of education or employed on the staff of the school in which the pupil is enrolled, to conduct the expulsion hearing.
3. Requires the hearing officer or the impartial administrative panel to, if the decision is to expel, prepare and submit to the county board of education findings of fact in support of the decision to expel.
4. Requires the findings of fact to be based solely on the evidence presented at the expulsion hearing.
5. Authorizes a pupil who has been expelled or his or her parent or guardian to, within 30 days following the hearing officer’s or the impartial administrative panel’s decision, file an appeal to the county board of education, and requires the county board of education to hold a hearing on the matter and render a decision. Requires the appeal hearing to be held in the same manner and have the same effect as the appeal process established for a pupil enrolled in a school district.

EXISTING LAW:

1. Authorizes or requires a principal or a superintendent of schools to suspend or expel a student committing any of a number of specified acts. (EC Sections 48900, 48900.2, 48900.3, 48900.4, 48900.7, 48915)
2. Specifies the process for expulsion, the requirement for the governing board of a school district to recommend a plan of rehabilitation for the pupil at the time of the expulsion order, the process for readmission, the requirement for the governing board to establish rules and regulations for expulsions, the right of a pupil to have a hearing, the timeline for the hearing, and the process for appealing an expulsion. (EC Sections 48916, 48916.1, 48918, 48918.5, 48919, 48919.5, 48920, 48921, 48922, 48923, and 48924)
3. Requires county superintendent of schools in counties that operate community schools, in conjunction with superintendents of the school district in the county, to develop a plan for providing education services to all expelled pupils in the county. Requires the plan to enumerate existing educational alternatives for expelled pupils, identify gaps in educational services to expelled pupils, and strategies for filling those service gaps. (EC Section 48926)

FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:

1. Estimated costs for contracting with the OAH to conduct an expulsion hearing is $4,500. It is unknown how many hearings the OAH would conduct. Costs would be $68,000 if 15 hearings were conducted in a given year.
2. Statewide reimburseable state mandate costs could be in excess of $50,000 in a given year. Actual costs would depend upon the number of appeals that occur, which is currently unknown.

COMMENTS: Background. Under existing law, a principal or a superintendent may suspend or recommend expulsion of a pupil for committing any of a number of specified acts. For expulsions, current law specifies three categories: 1) acts committed by a pupil that result in immediate suspension and recommendation for expulsion; 2) acts committed by a pupil for which a principal or superintendent must recommend expulsion, unless the principal or superintendent finds that expulsion is inappropriate, due to the particular circumstance; and 3) acts committed by a pupil for which a principal or superintendent have discretion to determine expulsion.

Upon a recommendation of expulsion of a pupil, a school district governing board is required to hold a hearing and provide a student and his or her parents or legal guardians written notice that includes the charges upon which a proposed expulsion is based, within specified timelines. In lieu of conducting the hearing itself, existing law also authorizes the governing board to contract with the county hearing officer or the OAH, or appoint an impartial administrative panel of three or more certificated individuals to conduct the hearing. The governing board may meet in closed session, but the final action to expel a pupil must be made in a public session. A pupil who is expelled may file an appeal with the county board of education.

Existing law does not provide a process for expulsion of students enrolled in COEs. COEs operate county community schools for students who have been expelled from a school district, juvenile court schools for students who are in juvenile detention facilities, and provide career technical education, special education and related services. The author states, "Despite the existence of a detailed process for handling student expulsion at the school district level, current law remains silent on how expulsions should be handled by COE operated schools. This lack of clarity does not ensure that students have access to due process when going through expulsion proceedings. There is no requirement in current law for a COE to hold an expulsion hearing or to have an appeals hearing following an expulsion. Furthermore, even if there is an appeal, the situation could arise where the COE board hears and decides on both the expulsion and the appeal."

This bill establishes a process that is similar to the expulsion process required of school districts. The bill prohibits a pupil from being recommended for expulsion unless the principal finds that the pupil has committed one of the 18 acts that may lead to suspension or expulsion specified in the Education Code. If an expulsion is recommended, instead of requiring the county board of education to conduct a hearing, the bill requires the county board of education to either contract with the OAH or appoint an administrative panel comprised of three or more certificated persons who are not employed at the school where the pupil is enrolled or are members of the county board of education. These options are similar to options available to the governing boards of school districts should they choose not to conduct hearings themselves. If an expulsion is recommended, the bill requires the OAH or the administrative panel to submit findings of fact, based solely on the evidence provided at the hearing, to the county board of education. A pupil who has been expelled or his or her parent or guardian may request an appeal within 30 days of the OAH or administrative panel's decision. The appeal hearing is conducted by the county board of education, which is required to use the process a county board of education typically uses to conduct appeals for students expelled from district schools.

Do COEs expel students? According to the California County Superintendents Educational Services Association (CCSESA), most COEs do not expel students. County boards of education that do expel pupils either conduct hearings or convene administrative panels, but do not have a process for appeals. Some COEs initiate expulsion in order to "expel" the pupil from one county operated program to another. Expulsion data reported by COEs to the California Department of Education show that after excluding charter school expulsions^[1], there were only six expulsions from county-operated schools operated by two COEs in 2014-15. One of the COEs initiates an expulsion process only to expel a student from one county-operated program to another and may not count as true expulsions.

What happens to students who are expelled from COEs? When students are expelled from district schools, schools districts are required to notify the pupil and his/her parents or guardians of the education alternative placement to be provided to the pupil. Typically, students expelled from district schools enroll in county operated programs. This bill does not specify what happens to the pupils if they are expelled from COEs. If the role of COEs is to educate those students for which district schools are not appropriate (because they were expelled, involved in the juvenile court system, etc.), where would those students receive their required education if they are expelled from COEs? The Los Angeles County Office of Education and the Santa Clara County Office of Education operate comprehensive high schools. Students expelled from these schools can enroll in other COE-operated programs, such as county community schools. Establishing an expulsion process for COE-operated comprehensive high schools may make sense, but the Committee may wish to consider whether COEs should be allowed to expel students who were already expelled from district schools.

Due process rights. While similar, the process established by this bill to provide due process protections to students expelled from COEs is abbreviated and does not offer all the same protections as those provided to district students, such as providing students with written notice of the hearing that includes the reasons for recommending expulsion, establishing timelines, and allowing students to have representation. Upon a recommendation by the OAH or the administrative panel to expel, the bill also does not require the county board of education to take action in a public meeting. Under current law, the governing board of a school district is required to inform a pupil and his/her parents or guardians of the alternative placement of the pupil during the expulsion. This bill does not include this requirement.

Staff recommends the following amendments:

1. Incorporate in the hearing process other due process rights similar to those established in Education Code 48918 for district students.
2. Upon a recommendation to expel by the OAH or the administrative panel, require the county board of education to take action in a public meeting.
3. Require the county board of education that upholds an expulsion following an appeal to provide the pupil and the pupil's parents or guardians with an education plan or alternative placement.
4. Require the plan for providing education services to all expelled students specified in EC Section 48926 to include students expelled by COEs.

Related legislation. SB 322 (Leno), pending in the Assembly Appropriations Committee, would, among other provisions, establish procedures for the suspension and expulsion of pupils in charter schools.

REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:

Support

California Federation of Teachers

Opposition

None on file

Analysis Prepared by: Sophia Kwong Kim / ED. / (916) 319-2087

1. Suspension and expulsion rates of charter schools authorized by county boards of education are reported as COE statistics. ↑

 THIRD READING  

Bill No: SB 1309

Author:

:

Vote:

SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE: 9-0, 4/20/16

AYES: Liu, Block, Hancock, Huff, Leyva, Mendoza, Monning, Pan, Vidak

SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 7-0, 5/27/16

AYES: Lara, Bates, Beall, Hill, McGuire, Mendoza, Nielsen

SUBJECT:

SOURCE: Author

DIGEST: This bill establishes a new process for county offices of education to consider the expulsion of a student who attends a school operated by a county office of education.

ANALYSIS:

Existing law:

1. Requires the governing board of each school district to establish rules and regulations governing procedures for the expulsion of students. (Education Code § 48918)
   
2. Authorizes the governing board of a school district, instead of conducting an expulsion hearing itself, to contract with the county hearing officer, or with the Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH) for a hearing officer to conduct the hearing. (EC § 48918)
   
3. Authorizes the governing board of a school district to also appoint an impartial administrative panel of three or more certificated people, none of whom is a member of the governing board or employed on the staff of the school in which the student is enrolled. (EC § 48918)
   
4. Requires the hearing officer or administrative panel, if recommending expulsion, to prepare and submit to the governing board findings of fact in support of the recommendation. Existing law requires all findings of fact and recommendations to be based solely on the evidence considered at the hearing. (EC § 48918)
   
5. Authorizes a student or parent to file an appeal of an expulsion to the county board of education, and requires the county board of education to hold a hearing or have a hearing officer or an impartial administrative panel hear appeals. (EC § 48919 and § 48919.5)

This bill:

1. Prohibits a student who is enrolled in a school operated by a county office of education from being recommended for expulsion unless the principal of the school, or his or her designee, determines that the student has committed an act for which students may be expelled.
   
2. Requires a county board of education, if a principal of a school that is operated by the county office of education, or his or her designee, recommends expulsion, to do either of the following:
   
   1. Contract with the OAH for a hearing officer to conduct the expulsion hearing.
      
   2. Appoint an impartial administrative panel of three or more certificated persons, none of whom is a member of the county board of education or employed on the staff of the school in which the student is enrolled, to conduct the expulsion hearing.
      
3. Requires the hearing officer or administrative panel, if the decision is to expel, to prepare and submit to the county board of education findings of fact in support of the decision to expel.
   
4. Requires the findings of fact to be based solely on the evidence considered at the hearing.
   
5. Authorizes a student who has been expelled, or the parent of that student, within 30 days following the decision of the hearing officer or administrative panel to expel the student, to file an appeal to the county board of education and requires the county board of education to hold a hearing on the matter and render a decision. This bill requires the appeal hearing to be held in the same manner and have the same effect as an appeal hearing held pursuant to existing law.

Comments

Need for the bill. According to the author, “Current law requires a school district to abide by a detailed process for the expulsion of a student and the following appeals process which is heard by the county office of education (COE). However, state law is silent on the process for expelling a student from a COE operated school. Because a COE is the board that would hear an appeal in a typical school district expulsion case, there is an obvious violation of due process should the COE be responsible for handling both the expulsion and the appeal of the expulsion. In order to ensure that students receive due process when appealing an expulsion, SB 1309 would create a formal process for the expulsion of a student from a COE operated school.”

Expulsion from a school operated by a county office of education. County offices of education typically operate county community schools for students who have been expelled from a school district, juvenile court schools for students who are in juvenile detention facilities, and provide some career technical education, and special education and related services. The Los Angeles County Office of Education also operates two comprehensive schools; it is unclear if other county offices of education operate comprehensive schools.

Existing law does not provide for a process by which a county office of education may expel a student. Anecdotally, the practice of some county offices of education to not expel students or remove students from school; those county offices of education typically use various interventions and preventative measures to keep students in school. If those measures are unsuccessful, some county offices of education transfer such students to other county-run programs, such as a military-style charter school or dropout recovery charter school.

This bill creates a process that is based upon the existing process for school district expulsion hearings and expulsion appeals heard by county boards of education. While county offices of education may not encounter many situations where they desire to expel a student, this bill establishes a process by which the potential expulsion of a student is considered by a body that is not affiliated with the school in which the student is enrolled.

FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: Fiscal Com.: Local:

According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:

• If a county office of education chooses to contract with the OAH to conduct an expulsion hearing, estimated costs for a one-day hearing could be approximately $4,500, including costs for the administrative law judge to prepare and conduct the hearing as well as to write the decision. It is unknown how many hearings the OAH would conduct. If the OAH was contracted for 15 hearings statewide in a given year, costs incurred would be about $68,000. Revenues from the hearings would be deposited into the Service Revolving Fund.
  
• This bill could result in reimbursable state mandate costs to conduct expulsion hearings appeals. Statewide reimbursable mandate costs could be in excess of $50,000 in a given year. Actual costs would depend upon the number of appeals that occur, which is currently unknown. Other activities for county offices of education included in this bill are unlikely to be determined a reimbursable state mandate as the activities are triggered by a decision to recommend a student for expulsion. Previous decisions made by the Commission on State Mandates when considering whether school district expulsion processes constitute a reimbursable state mandate align with this rationale. (Proposition 98)

SUPPORT: (Verified 5/27/16)

California Federation of Teachers

OPPOSITION: (Verified 5/27/16)

None received

Prepared by:

5/28/16 16:46:06

**** END ****

SENATE COMMITTEE ON

Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair

2015 - 2016 Regular Session

SB 1309 (Leyva) - Pupil discipline: expulsion hearings: county schools

This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File.

Bill Summary: This bill establishes a new process for county offices of education to consider the expulsion of a student who attends a school operated by a county office of education.

Fiscal Summary:

• If a county office of education chooses to contract with the Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH) to conduct an expulsion hearing, estimated costs for a one-day hearing could be approximately $4,500 including costs for the administrative law judge to prepare and conduct the hearing as well as to write the decision. It is unknown how many hearings the OAH would conduct. If the OAH was contracted for 15 hearings statewide in a given year, costs incurred would be about $68,000. Revenues from the hearings would be deposited into the Service Revolving Fund.
• This bill could result in reimbursable state mandate costs to conduct expulsion hearings appeals. Statewide reimbursable mandate costs could be in excess of $50,000 in a given year. Actual costs would depend upon the number of appeals that occur, which is currently unknown. Other activities for county offices of education included in the bill are unlikely to be determined a reimbursable state mandate as the activities are triggered by a decision to recommend a student for expulsion. Previous decisions made by the Commission on State Mandates (Commission) when considering whether school district expulsion processes constitute a reimbursable state mandate align with this rationale. (Proposition 98)
  

Background: Existing law establishes a process for a governing board of a school district to consider the expulsion of a student. This bill would create a similar process for students recommended for expulsions at a schools operated by a county offices of education. While county offices of education may not encounter many situations where they desire to expel a student, this bill establishes a process by which the potential expulsion of a student is considered by a body that is not affiliated with the school in which the student is enrolled.

Existing law authorizes the governing board of a school district, instead of conducting an expulsion hearing itself, to contract with the county hearing officer, or with the Office of Administrative Hearings for a hearing officer to conduct the hearing. It authorizes the governing board of a school district to also appoint an impartial administrative panel. If recommending expulsion, the hearing officer or administrative panel must prepare and submit to the governing board findings of fact in support of the recommendation. It also authorizes a student or parent to file an appeal of an expulsion to the county board of education. Existing law requires a county board of education to adopt rules and regulations establishing procedures for expulsion appeal hearings. It requires the county board to then hold a hearing and render a decision on the appeal. It authorizes a county with at least 180,000 average daily attendance, to have a hearing officer or an impartial administrative panel hear the appeals.

County offices of education typically operate county community schools for students who have been expelled from a school district, juvenile court schools for students who are in juvenile detention facilities, and provide some career technical education and special education and related services. Existing law does not provide for a process by which a county office of education may expel a student.

Proposed Law: This bill establishes a new process for county offices of education to consider the expulsion of a student who attends a school operated by a county office of education. Specifically, it provides that:

• If a principal, or designee, recommends expulsion after determining a student committed a certain act, the county board of education must either: (1) contract with the Office of Administrative Hearings for a hearing officer to conduct the expulsion hearing; or (2) appoint an impartial administrative panel, as specified, to conduct the expulsion hearing.
• The hearing officer or panel, whichever one is used, is required to prepare and submit to the county board of education findings of fact in support of the decision to expel, if that is the decision made.
• A student that has been expelled from a school operated by a county office of education may, or his or her parent or guardian may, file an appeal within 30 days of the hearing officer’s or the panel’s decision to the county board of education, which must hold a hearing on the matter and render a decision.

Staff Comments: This bill establishes a requirement similar to the one for school districts that the county board of education hold a hearing upon the filing of an appeal. The Commission has decided on these provisions and determined that costs mandated by the state related to student expulsion appeals include conducting an initial hearing on an appeal and rendering a decision. Therefore, it is possible for county offices of education to submit a test claim for reimbursement to the Commission for this activity. However, it is unclear how many appeals may materialize.

Staff notes that the most recent data available for expulsions of students from county offices of education is 15 students in 2010-11. Though only 15 hearings resulted in an expulsion, it is possible that more hearings were conducted that did not result in expulsion. However, it is also possible that in a given year no expulsions may occur.

-- END --

SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Senator Carol Liu, Chair

2015 - 2016 Regular

Bill No:

Subject:

SUMMARY

This bill establishes a new process for county offices of education, utilizing an impartial administrative panel, to consider the suspension or expulsion of a student who attends a school operated by a county office of education.

BACKGROUND

Existing law:

1. Authorizes the principal of a school, the principal’s designee, or the district superintendent of schools to suspend a student from school for specified reasons, for up to five consecutive schooldays. Existing law requires suspension to be proceeded by an informal conference between the students, teacher, supervisor, or school employee who referred the student to the principal. Existing law authorizes a student to be suspended without affording the student an opportunity for a conference only if the principal, the principal’s designee, or the district superintendent determines that an emergency situation exists. (Education Code § 48911)
   
2. Requires the governing board of each school district to establish rules and regulations governing procedures for the expulsion of students. (EC § 48918)
   
3. Authorizes the governing board of a school district, instead of conducting an expulsion hearing itself, to contract with the county hearing officer, or with the Office of Administrative Hearings for a hearing officer to conduct the hearing. (EC § 48918)
   
4. Authorizes the governing board of a school district to also appoint an impartial administrative panel of three or more certificated people, none of whom is a member of the governing board or employed on the staff of the school in which the student is enrolled. (EC § 48918)
   
5. Requires the hearing officer or administrative panel, if recommending expulsion, to prepare and submit to the governing board findings of fact in support of the recommendation. Existing law requires all findings of fact and recommendations to be based solely on the evidence considered at the hearing. (EC § 48918)
   
6. Authorizes a student or parent to file an appeal of an expulsion to the county board of education, and requires the county board of education to hold a hearing or have a hearing officer or an impartial administrative panel hear appeals.

(EC § 48919 and § 48919.5)

ANALYSIS

This bill establishes a new process for county offices of education, utilizing an impartial administrative panel, to consider the suspension or expulsion of a student who attends a school operated by a county office of education. Specifically, this bill:

1. Prohibits a student who is enrolled in a school operated by a county office of education, and who is accused of committing an act for which a student may be suspended or expelled, from being suspended or expelled from, or otherwise denied attendance at the school, unless both of the following occur:
   
   1. The principal of the school recommends the student for removal to an impartial administrative panel of three or more certificated people appointed by the county board of education.
      
   2. The impartial administrative panel determines that the student has committed an act for which the student may be suspended or expelled.
      
2. Prohibits a member of the administrative hearing panel from being a member of the county board of education or be employed by the school from which the student is enrolled.
   
3. Authorizes a student who is enrolled in a school operated by a county office of education and who has been suspended or expelled from, or otherwise denied attendance at the school pursuant to this bill, within 30 days following the administrative panel’s decision, to file an appeal to the county board of education which shall hold a hearing on the matter and render a decision. This bill requires the appeal hearing to be held in the same manner and have the same effect as is provided for in existing law for an appeal hearing held by a county board of education for students who have been expelled by a school district.

STAFF COMMENTS

1. Need for the bill. According to the author, “Current law requires a school district to abide by a detailed process for the expulsion of a student and the following appeals process which is heard by the county office of education (COE). However, state law is silent on the process for expelling a student from a COE operated school. Because a COE is the board that would hear an appeal in a typical school district expulsion case, there is an obvious violation of due process should the COE be responsible for handling both the expulsion and the appeal of the expulsion. In order to ensure that students receive due process when appealing an expulsion, SB 1309 would create a formal process for the expulsion of a student from a COE operated school.”
   
2. Expulsion from a school operated by a county office of education. County offices of education typically operate county community schools for students who have been expelled from a school district, juvenile court schools for students who are in juvenile detention facilities, and provide some career technical education, and special education and related services. The Los Angeles County Office of Education also operates two comprehensive schools; it is unclear if other county offices of education operate comprehensive schools.
   
   Existing law does not provide for a process by which a county office of education may expel a student. Anecdotally, the practice of some county offices of education of to not expel students or remove students from school; those county offices of education typically use various interventions and preventative measures to keep students in school. If those measures are unsuccessful, some county offices of education transfer such students to other county-run programs, such as a military-style charter school or dropout recovery charter school.
   
   This bill creates a process that is based upon the existing process for school district expulsion hearings and expulsion appeals heard by county boards of education. While county offices of education may not encounter many situations where they desire to expel a student, this bill establishes a process by which the potential expulsion of a student is considered by a body that is not affiliated with the school in which the student is enrolled.
   
3. Suspension. Existing law authorizes the principal or principal’s designee of a school operated by a school district to suspend a student who has committed a specified act. Existing law does not provide for a process by which a county office of education may suspend a student. This bill creates a process by which a school that is operated by a county office of education may suspend or expel a student, using the same process for either. This bill creates a higher threshold to suspend a student who attends a school operated by a county office of education than currently exists for the suspension of a student who attends a school operated by a school district.
   
4. Alternative approach. As an alternative to the provisions currently in this bill, staff recommends amendments to:
   
   1. Delete any reference to suspension.
      
   2. Require a county board of education, if a principal of a school that is operated by the county office of education recommends expulsion, to contract with the Office of Administrative Hearings for a hearing officer to conduct the expulsion hearing, or appoint an impartial administrative panel of three or more certificated persons, none of whom is a member of the county board of education or employed on the staff of the school in which the student is enrolled.
      
   3. Require the hearing officer or administrative panel, if the decision is to expel, to prepare and submit to the county board of education findings of fact in support of the decision to expel.
      
   4. Require all findings of fact to be based solely on the evidence considered at the hearing.
      
   5. Authorize a student who has been expelled, or the parent of that student, within 30 days following the decision of the hearing officer or administrative panel to expel the student, to file an appeal to the county board of education which shall hold a hearing on the matter and render a decision. The appeal hearing shall be held in the same manner and have the same effect as an appeal hearing held pursuant to existing law.
      

SUPPORT

None received.

OPPOSITION

None received.

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