AB 1917: Local educational agencies: governance training.

(1)Existing law requires all local agency officials to receive training in ethics, at specified intervals, if the local agency provides certain monetary payments to a member of a legislative body, as provided. Existing law requires a local agency to provide information on available ethics training to its officials and authorizes a local agency or an association of local agencies to offer the ethics training, as provided. Existing law requires a local agency to maintain specified records related to the ethics training of its officials. Existing law defines local agency to include, among others, a school district, county office of education, and charter school, and defines local agency official to include, among others, a member of the governing board of a school district, a county board of education, or the governing body of a charter school, for these purposes.

This bill would require all local educational agency officials, as defined to include any member of a governing board of a school district, a county board of education, or the governing body of a charter school, to receive training in K12 public education governance laws, as defined, and would prescribe the timelines within which the training is required to be completed. The bill would authorize a local educational agency or an association of local educational agencies to offer these training courses or to arrange for its officials to receive these training courses from a different entity, as specified. The bill would require local educational agencies to maintain specified records related to this training.

By imposing new duties on school districts, county offices of education, and charter schools, the bill would constitute 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 the statutory provisions noted above.