Existing law requires the governing board of a school district, and the governing board of a community college district, to provide for a leave of absence from duty for a certificated employee or an academic employee of the district who is required to be absent from duty because of pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, and recovery from those conditions.

Existing law authorizes the governing board of a school district, and the governing board of a community college district, to provide for a leave of absence from duty as it deems appropriate for a female employee in the classified service of the district who is required to be absent from duty because of pregnancy or convalescence following childbirth. Existing law authorizes a governing board to adopt rules and regulations about leaves of absence for classified employees for these purposes, and authorizes a governing board to provide in the rules and regulations whether the leave granted shall be with or without pay, as provided.

This bill would delete the latter provisions authorizing a governing board of a school district and the governing board of a community college district to adopt those rules and regulations. The bill instead would require a public school employer to, for a certificated employee or an employee in the classified service of the public school employer, and would require a community college district to, for an academic employee or an employee in the classified service of the community college district, provide up to 14 weeks of a leave of absence with specified pay benefits for an employee who is required to be absent from duty because of pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions, as provided. The bill would authorize the paid leave to begin before and continue after childbirth if the employee is actually disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or a related condition. The bill would prohibit a leave of absence taken pursuant to these provisions from being deducted from other leaves of absence, as provided, and would require public school employers and community college districts to maintain group health coverage for an employee who takes a leave of absence under these provisions for the duration of the leave of absence at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken a leave of absence. The bill would prohibit any other eligibility requirements, including, but not limited to, minimum hours worked or length of service, before an employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions is eligible for a paid leave of absence under these provisions.

 THIRD READING  

Bill No: AB 65

Author: Aguiar-Curry (D), et al.

Introduced: 12/3/24

Vote: 21

SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE: 5-0, 6/17/26

AYES: Pérez, Cabaldon, Cortese, Gonzalez, Reyes

NO VOTE RECORDED: Ochoa Bogh, Choi

SENATE LABOR, PUB. EMP. & RET. COMMITTEE: 4-1, 7/1/26

AYES: Smallwood-Cuevas, Cortese, Durazo, Laird

NOES: Strickland

SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 5-0, 8/13/26

AYES: Cervantes, Cabaldon, Grayson, Richardson, Wahab

NO VOTE RECORDED: Seyarto, Dahle

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 62-0, 5/29/25 - See last page for vote

SUBJECT: School and community college employees: paid disability and parental leave

SOURCE: California Teachers Association

DIGEST:

This bill (1) requires school districts, charter schools, county offices of education, and community college districts (CCDs) to provide up to 14 weeks of fully paid pregnancy disability leave to certificated, classified, and academic employees who are unable to work due to pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related recovery; (2) prohibits the leave from being charged against other available leave balances, requires continuation of health benefits during the leave, and establishes the benefit regardless of an employee’s length of service or hours worked.

ANALYSIS:

Existing law:

1. Prohibits, under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), employers from denying a reasonable period of pregnancy disability leave, not to exceed four months, for employees disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions.
2. Provides, under the California Family Rights Act (CFRA), eligible employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for specified family and medical purposes and requires maintenance of health benefits during the leave.
3. Requires school districts to provide certificated employees with a leave of absence due to pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, and recovery, with the duration determined by the employee and physician.
4. Requires school districts to provide classified employees with a leave of absence due to pregnancy, childbirth, and related recovery, with the duration determined by the employee and physician.
5. Requires certificated, academic, and classified employees who exhaust available sick leave and remain absent due to illness, injury, or parental leave to receive differential pay, generally equal to the employee’s salary less the cost of a substitute, and not less than 50% of the employee’s regular salary.
6. Requires governing boards of CCDs to provide pregnancy leave for academic employees and authorizes governing boards to establish pregnancy leave policies for classified employees.

This bill:

1. Requires public school employers and CCDs to provide up to 14 weeks of fully paid leave to certificated, classified, and academic employees who are unable to work because of pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. The duration of the leave is determined by the employee and the employee’s physician.
2. Authorizes the paid leave to begin before childbirth and continue afterward when the employee is disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or a related medical condition.
3. Prohibits leave provided under this bill from being deducted from any other leave entitlement available under state or federal law, including sick leave and family and medical leave.
4. Requires public school employers and CCDs to maintain group health coverage during the leave at the same level and under the same conditions as if the employee had remained actively employed.
5. Prohibits public school employers and CCDs from imposing eligibility requirements, including minimum hours worked or minimum length of service, before an employee may access the leave.
6. Requires pregnancy-related disabilities to be treated under employer policies and practices on the same terms and conditions as other temporary disabilities.
7. Specifies that the bill does not diminish any greater disability or parental leave rights provided through collective bargaining agreements.

Comments

1. Need for the bill. According to the author, “Today, teachers in California do not receive paid pregnancy leave. This forces teachers to deplete all of their sick leave and then receive reduced ‘differential’ pay where they effectively pay for their own substitute teacher. This practice makes it hard for pregnant teachers to care for their families and has long term financial consequences. 70% of teachers are women, and studies have shown that the women in the teaching ranks will receive nearly $100,000 less than their male counterparts in their retirement because they are forced to use up all of their accrued sick leave. At a time when our educators are leaving this vital profession due to the pressures of the pandemic, and college students seek other paths for their careers, AB 65 takes a necessary step to invest in our educators by giving them 14 weeks of paid pregnancy leave. AB 65 will help to attract and retain educators. But, more importantly, it will grant the basic human right to care for one’s child to the people we count on every day to educate our children and grandchildren.”
2. Significant expansion of existing leave benefits. Existing law already provides several overlapping forms of job-protected leave and wage replacement for pregnancy-related absences, including Pregnancy Disability Leave under FEHA, bonding leave under CFRA and Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), differential pay requirements specific to school employees, and, in some districts, access to State Disability Insurance or private disability insurance programs. This bill creates a new standalone entitlement of up to 14 weeks of fully paid leave that would not be charged against any existing leave balances and would operate in addition to other available leave benefits. As a result, the measure represents a significant expansion of current leave protections for K-14 employees.
3. Fiscal and workforce considerations. The principal policy question raised by this bill is not whether pregnancy-related leave should be available, but who should bear the cost of providing enhanced wage replacement. Existing law generally spreads costs among employees, employers, and, in some cases, disability insurance programs. By contrast, this bill places responsibility for providing up to 14 weeks of full salary directly on school districts and CCDs. While supporters argue that enhanced leave policies may improve recruitment and retention of educators, opponents have expressed concern regarding the potentially substantial ongoing Proposition 98 costs, the need to secure qualified substitutes during extended absences, and the cumulative impact on local budgets during a period of continuing fiscal pressure.
4. Similar measures have faced fiscal concerns in prior years. The Legislature has considered similar proposals multiple times. AB 500 (Gonzalez, 2019) would have required six weeks of paid pregnancy disability leave for school and community college employees and was vetoed by Governor Newsom, who stated that the costs should be considered through the annual budget process and collective bargaining. More recently, AB 2901 (Aguiar-Curry, 2024), which was substantially similar to this bill and also proposed 14 weeks of paid leave, advanced through the policy process but was ultimately held on the Senate Floor. The recurring history of these measures reflects broad interest in expanding pregnancy-related leave benefits, while also highlighting persistent questions regarding fiscal sustainability and implementation.

FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No Local: No

According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:

• This bill could result in local costs potentially in the high tens of millions to low hundreds of millions of dollars each year for K-12 LEAs and community college districts to provide the new employee benefit of six weeks of paid pregnancy-related leave. This estimate includes all statutory benefits and the costs associated with hiring substitute teachers. The exact cost will depend on the number of employees utilizing this benefit as well as the salary structure of the employees. Staff notes that the AB 126 (Committee on Budget, Chapter 65, Statutes of 2026), the education trailer bill, requires all TK-14 LEAs to provide employees with up to 14 weeks of paid pregnancy disability leave beginning on January 1, 2027. The related costs are intended to be absorbable within the funding allocated to LEAs for the discretionary Local Control Funding Formula “super COLA.”
• To the extent that this bill results in employees accumulating higher sick leave balances that are converted to service credit at retirement, this bill could result in additional General Fund costs to the California Public Employees’ Retirement System or California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS). The extent of these costs is unknown and would depend on the number of impacted employees and the amount of sick days that are accumulated and converted to service credit. According to CalSTRS, the increase in pension costs for the average CalSTRS member to convert one day of sick leave to service credit is $4 per year.
• This bill could result in additional Proposition 98 General Fund costs to school and community college districts to the extent that employees accumulate larger sick leave balances and receive larger pay outs when leaving employment from public education.

SUPPORT: (Verified 8/13/26)

California Teachers Association (source)
California State Treasurer

AFSCME California
Alhambra Teachers Association
American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists - District IX
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees
Anaheim Elementary Education Association
Anaheim Secondary Teachers Association
Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Southern California
Asian Law Alliance
Asociación De Maestros Unidos
Associated Pomona Teachers
Association of Carmel Teachers
Association of Colton Educators
BreastfeedLA
Buellton Education Association
California Breastfeeding Coalition
California Child Care Resource and Referral Network
California Commission on the Status of Women and Girls
California Community College Independents
California Domestic Workers Coalition
California Employment Lawyers Association
California Faculty Association
California Federation of Business & Professional Women
California Federation of Labor Unions
California Federation of Teachers
California Immigrant Policy Center
California Latinas for Reproductive Justice
California Legislative Women’s Caucus
California Pan-Ethnic Health Network
California Retired Teachers Association
California School Employees Association
California State Teachers’ Retirement System
California Virtual Educators United
California WIC Association
California Women’s Law Center
California Work & Family Coalition
Campbell Elementary Teachers Association
Caring Across Generations
Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice
Center for Workers’ Rights
Child Care Law Center
Children Now
Citizens for Choice
City of Glendale
Corona-Norco Teachers Association
Covina Unified Education Association

CTA/NEA- Retired
Early Edge California
El Monte Elementary Teachers Association
Electric Universe
Equal Rights Advocates
Faculty Association of California Community Colleges
Food Empowerment Project
Fresno Unified School District
Friends Committee on Legislation of California
GRACE - End Child Poverty CA
Hacienda LA Puente Teachers Association
Health Access California
Health in Partnership
Jewish Center for Justice
LA Alliance for a New Economy
LA Best Babies Network
Lammersville Teachers Association
Legal Aid At Work
Livermore Education Association
Marin Child Care Council
Merced College Faculty Association
Moreno Valley Educators Association
National Council for Jewish Women LA
National Partnership for Women & Families
National Women’s Political Caucus of California
Natomas Teachers’ Association
Nea-Jurupa
Nevada Joint Union High School Teachers Association
Nourishing Justly
Oak Grove Educators Association
Oakland Unified School District
Orange County Equality Coalition
Our Family Coalition
Oxnard Educators Association
Parent Voices California
Partnership for Los Angeles Schools
Poder Latinx
Portola Valley Teachers Association
Public Counsel
Redlands Teachers Association
Rocklin Teachers’ Professional Association
Roseville Teachers Association
Sacramento City Teachers Association
San Benito Joint Union High School District Teachers Association
San Diego County Breastfeeding Coalition
San Jose Teachers Association
Santa Maria Elementary Education Association
Santa Monica-Malibu Classroom Teachers Association
Santa Rosa Teachers Association
SEIU California
Special Educators of Amador County
Tahoe Truckee Education Association
Teach Plus California
Teachers Association of Long Beach
Tustin Educators Association
Twin Rivers United Educators
UAW Region 6
UFCW - Western States Council
United Teachers of Richmond
Universidad Popular
Vacaville Teachers Association
Walnut Creek Teachers Association
Walnut Valley Educators Association
Women’s Foundation California
Woodland Education Association
Worksafe

OPPOSITION: (Verified 8/13/26)

Kern County Superintendent of Schools Office

Small School Districts Association

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 62-0, 5/29/25

AYES: Addis, Aguiar-Curry, Ahrens, Alanis, Arambula, Ávila Farías, Bains, Bauer-Kahan, Bennett, Berman, Boerner, Bonta, Calderon, Caloza, Carrillo, Castillo, Connolly, Davies, Elhawary, Flora, Fong, Gabriel, Garcia, Gipson, Jeff Gonzalez, Mark González, Haney, Harabedian, Hart, Hoover, Irwin, Jackson, Kalra, Krell, Lackey, Lee, Lowenthal, McKinnor, Muratsuchi, Ortega, Pacheco, Papan, Patel, Patterson, Pellerin, Petrie-Norris, Quirk-Silva, Ramos, Ransom, Celeste Rodriguez, Michelle Rodriguez, Rogers, Blanca Rubio, Sanchez, Schiavo, Schultz, Stefani, Valencia, Wallis, Wicks, Zbur, Rivas

NO VOTE RECORDED: Alvarez, Bryan, Chen, DeMaio, Dixon, Ellis, Gallagher, Hadwick, Macedo, Nguyen, Sharp-Collins, Solache, Soria, Ta, Tangipa, Ward, Wilson

Prepared by: Ian Johnson / ED. / (916) 651-4105

8/14/26 10:42:23

**** END ****

SENATE COMMITTEE ON

Senator Sabrina Cervantes, Chair

2025 - 2026 Regular Session

AB 65 (Aguiar-Curry) - School and community college employees: paid disability and parental leave

Bill Summary:

This bill requires local educational agencies (LEAs) and community college districts to provide up to 14 weeks of paid pregnancy disability leave to employees who are unable to work due to pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. The bill also prohibits the leave from being charged against other available leave balances.

Fiscal Impact:

• This bill could result in local costs potentially in the high tens of millions to low hundreds of millions of dollars each year for K-12 LEAs and community college districts to provide the new employee benefit of six weeks of paid pregnancy-related leave. This estimate includes all statutory benefits and the costs associated with hiring substitute teachers. The exact cost will depend on the number of employees utilizing this benefit as well as the salary structure of the employees. Staff notes that the AB 126 (Committee on Budget, Chapter 65, Statutes of 2026), the education trailer bill, requires all TK-14 LEAs to provide employees with up to 14 weeks of paid pregnancy disability leave beginning on January 1, 2027. The related costs are intended to be absorbable within the funding allocated to LEAs for the discretionary Local Control Funding Formula “super COLA.”
• To the extent that this bill results in employees accumulating higher sick leave balances that are converted to service credit at retirement, this bill could result in additional General Fund costs to the California Public Employees' Retirement System or California State Teachers' Retirement System (CalSTRS). The extent of these costs is unknown and would depend on the number of impacted employees and the amount of sick days that are accumulated and converted to service credit. According to CalSTRS, the increase in pension costs for the average CalSTRS member to convert one day of sick leave to service credit is $4 per year.
• This bill could result in additional Proposition 98 General Fund costs to school and community college districts to the extent that employees accumulate larger sick leave balances and receive larger pay outs when leaving employment from public education.

Background:

Existing law establishes the California Family Rights Act (CFRA), which provides certain employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per year for the purpose of bonding with a child, care for a parent, spouse, or child with a serious health condition, or due to an employee’s own serious health condition, and requires group health benefits to be maintained during the leave as if employees continued to work instead of taking leave. Further, existing law requires school districts to provide for a leave of absence from duty for a certificated employee of the school district who is required to be absent from duties because of pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, and recovery therefrom. Existing law requires that the length of the leave of absence be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician.

School districts are required to provide for a leave of absence from duty for a classified employee of the school district who is required to be absent from duties because of pregnancy, childbirth, and convalescence therefrom, and the length of the leave of absence shall be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician.

Existing law specifies that during each school year, when a person employed in a position requiring certification qualifications has exhausted all available sick leave, including all accumulated sick leave, and continues to be absent from his or her duties on account of illness or accident for an additional period of five school months, the amount deducted from the salary due him or her for any of the additional five months in which the absence occurs shall not exceed the sum that is actually paid a substitute employee employed to fill his or her position during his or her absence or, if no substitute employee was employed, the amount that would have been paid to the substitute had he or she been employed. The sick leave, including accumulated sick leave, and the five-month period shall run consecutively and the benefit is limited to one five-month period per illness or accident. Certificated and classified employees that participate in the differential pay program shall receive no less than 50 percent of their regular salary during the period of such absence.

Proposed Law:

This bill requires public school employers and community college districts to provide up to 14 weeks of fully paid leave to certificated, classified, and academic employees who are unable to work because of pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. The duration of the leave is determined by the employee and the employee’s physician. The bill authorizes the paid leave to begin before childbirth and continue afterward when the employee is disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or a related medical condition.

This bill prohibits the leave from being deducted from any other leave entitlement available under state or federal law, including sick leave and family and medical leave.

This bill requires public school employers and community college districts to maintain group health coverage during the leave at the same level and under the same conditions as if the employee had remained actively employed. It also prohibits them from imposing eligibility requirements, including minimum hours worked or minimum length of service, before an employee may access the leave.

This bill requires pregnancy-related disabilities to be treated under employer policies and practices on the same terms and conditions as other temporary disabilities. The bill also specifies that it does not diminish any greater disability or parental leave rights provided through collective bargaining agreements.

Related Legislation:

AB 2901 (Aguiar-Curry, 2024) was similar to this bill and would have required 14 weeks of paid pregnancy leave. This bill was held on the Senate Floor.

AB 500 (Gonzalez, 2019) would have required that school districts, charter schools, and community colleges to provide at least six weeks of full pay for pregnancy-related leaves of absence taken by certificated, academic, and classified employees. This bill was vetoed by the Governor with the following message:

Providing every California worker with paid family leave is a noble goal and a priority for my administration. However, this bill will likely result in annual costs of tens of millions of dollars that should be considered as part of the annual budget process and as part of local collective bargaining. Moreover, this proposal should be considered within the broader context of the Paid Family Leave Task Force, which is assessing increased paid family leave for all of California's workers.

Staff Comments:

Existing law provides that it is unlawful to refuse to allow a female employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition to take leave not to exceed four months. The employee is entitled to use vacation leave during this time. Once the vacation time is exhausted, the employee can receive differential pay for the remaining time, for up to five months. This bill would allow up to 14 weeks of full pay for pregnancy-related leaves of absence taken by school employees at LEAs and community college districts. The bill prohibits a leave of absence taken from being deducted from any other leaves of absence available, and also authorizes the paid leave to begin before and continue after childbirth if the employee is actually disabled by the pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions.

-- END --

SENATE COMMITTEE ON LABOR, PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT AND RETIREMENT

Senator Lola Smallwood-Cuevas, Chair

2025 - 2026 Regular

Bill No: AB 65 Hearing Date: July 1, 2026

SUBJECT: School and community college employees: paid disability and parental leave

KEY ISSUE

This bill requires public school employers, for certificated or classified employees, and community college districts, for an academic or classified employee, to provide up to 14 weeks of fully paid pregnancy disability leave to employees who are unable to work due to pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions.

ANALYSIS

Existing federal law:

1. Establishes the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) to provide most employees the right to take up to 12 weeks of job-protected, unpaid time off work for the birth or adoption of a child, due to a serious health condition of the employee, for an exigency arising out of the fact that the employee’s close relative is a military member on active duty, and for the employee to care for a close relative with a serious health condition. Applies these provisions to private employers that employ 50 or more employees during each of 20 or more calendar workweeks in the current or preceding year. (28 U.S.C. §2601 et seq., §2611)

Existing state law:

1. Establishes the California Family Rights Act (CFRA) and makes it an unlawful employment practice for an employer to refuse to grant a request from an eligible employee to take up to a total of 12 weeks off (unpaid) in any 12-month period for specified family care and medical leave. Defines “family care and medical leave” to mean taking leave to care for a new child; to care for a child, parent, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, spouse, or domestic partner who has a serious health condition; to take leave because of the employee’s own serious health condition; or for a qualifying exigency related to the employee’s close family’s active duty as a member of the Armed Forces, as specified. Provides that these provisions only apply to employers with five or more employees, and to employees who have held their job for at least a year and worked at least 1,250 hours in the previous 12-month period. (Government Code §12945.2)
2. Under Pregnancy Disability Leave (PDL) provisions, makes it an unlawful employment practice, unless based upon a bona fide occupational qualification, for an employer to refuse to allow an employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition to take a leave for a reasonable period of time not to exceed four months and thereafter return to work. The employee is entitled to utilize any accrued vacation leave during this period of time. (Government Code §12945)
3. Provides, through the State Disability Insurance (SDI) program, short-term wage replacement benefits to eligible workers (those who have made contributions to the SDI program) who are unable to work due to a non-work-related illness or injury and for a maximum of 52 weeks. SDI benefits can be used for an illness or injury, either physical or mental, which prevents an employee from performing their regular and customary work and includes elective surgery, pregnancy, childbirth, or other medical conditions. (Unemployment Insurance Code §2601-3308)
4. Provides, through the Paid Family Leave (PFL) program, a component of SDI, eligible employees up to eight weeks of wage replacement benefits within a 12-month period to workers who need to take time off work to care for a seriously ill child, spouse, parent, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, or domestic partner; to bond with a minor child within one year of the birth or placement of the child in connection with foster care or adoption; or to participate in a qualifying event because of a family member’s military deployment. (Unemployment Insurance Code §3301)
5. Requires that school districts provide for a leave of absence from duty for a certificated employee of the school district who is required to be absent from duties because of pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, and recovery therefrom. Requires that the length of the leave of absence be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician. (Education Code §44965)
6. Authorizes a person employed in a school district in a position requiring certification qualifications to use their sick leave for purposes of parental leave for a period of up to 12 workweeks. Provides that when a person has exhausted all available sick leave and continues to be absent, the amount deducted from the salary due to the person for any remaining portion of the 12-workweek period shall not exceed the sum that is actually paid a substitute employee employed to fill their position during the absence, but in no case shall this pay be less than 50 percent of their regular salary for the remaining portion of the 12 weeks for parental leave. (Education Code §44977.5)
7. Requires school districts to provide for a leave of absence from duty for classified employees who are required to be absent from duties because of pregnancy, childbirth, and convalescence therefrom. Requires that the length of the leave of absence be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician. (Education Code §45193)
8. Requires a governing board of a community college district (CCD) to provide for leave of absence from duty for any academic employee of the district who is required to be absent because of pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, and recovery therefrom. The length of the leave of absence, including the date on which the leave shall commence and the date on which the employee shall resume duties, shall be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician. (Education Code §87766)
9. Authorizes the governing board of any CCD to provide a leave of absence, as it deems appropriate, for any female classified employee due to pregnancy or convalescence following childbirth, and may adopt rules and regulations prescribing the manner of proof of pregnancy, the time during pregnancy at which the leave of absence shall be taken, and the length of time for which the leave of absence shall continue after birth of the child. The board may also provide in the rules and regulations whether leave granted shall be with or without pay and, if with pay, the amount, if any, to be deducted from the salary due the employee for the period in which the absence occurs. (Education Code §88193)
10. Authorizes an academic or classified community college employee to use up to 12 weeks of their sick leave each school year for purposes of parental leave, including for the birth of a child, and when the employee has exhausted all available sick leave and continues to be absent due to parental leave, the amount deducted from the salary due them for any of the remaining portion of the 12-week period in which the absence occurs shall not exceed the sum that is actually paid a substitute employee and shall not be less than 50 percent of the academic or classified employees’ regular salary. (Education Code § 87780.1 and § 88196.1)

This bill:

Certificated or Classified School District Employees:

1. Requires a public school employer to provide for a leave of absence for a certificated or classified employee who is required to be absent from duty because the employee is experiencing or has experienced pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions.
2. Requires the leave of absence to be with full pay, subject to a maximum of 14 weeks.
3. Prohibits a leave of absence taken from being deducted from any other leaves of absence available to the employee pursuant to state or federal regulations or laws.
4. Authorizes the paid leave to begin before and continue after childbirth if the employee is actually disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions.
5. Requires a public school to maintain group health coverage for an employee who takes this leave of absence for the duration of the leave at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken a leave of absence.
6. Provides that, except as specified, there are no eligibility requirements, including, but not limited to, minimum hours worked or length of service, before an employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions is eligible for a paid leave of absence under these provisions.
7. Specifies that for part-time certificated or classified employees, the amount of paid leave per week, subject to a maximum of 14 weeks, shall be calculated in accordance with the following:
   1. If the part-time employee works a fixed number of hours per week, the employee shall receive weekly pay for the total number of hours the employee is normally scheduled to work for the public school employer.
   2. If the part-time employee does not work a fixed number of hours per week, the employee shall receive weekly pay in an amount equaling the employee’s average weekly pay during the six-month period immediately preceding the date that the employee began their paid leave.
      1. If the part-time employee has been employed for less than six months, the employee shall receive weekly pay in an amount equaling the employee’s average weekly pay during the entire period of that employment preceding the date that the employee began their paid leave.
8. Specifies that nothing shall diminish the obligation of a public school employer to comply with any collective bargaining agreement entered into by a public school employer and an exclusive bargaining representative, as specified, that provides greater disability or parental leave rights to employees than the rights established under these provisions.

Academic or Classified Community College District Employees:

1. Requires the governing board of a community college district to provide for a leave of absence from duty for an academic or classified employee of the community college district who is required to be absent from duty because the employee is experiencing or has experienced pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions.
2. Requires the leave of absence to be with full pay, subject to a maximum of 14 weeks.
3. Prohibits a leave of absence from being deducted from any other leaves of absence available to the employee pursuant to state or federal regulations or laws.
4. Authorizes the paid leave to begin before and continue after childbirth if the employee is actually disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions.
5. Requires a community college district to maintain group health coverage for an employee who takes this leave of absence for the duration of the leave at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken a leave of absence.
6. Provides that, except as specified, there are no eligibility requirements, including, but not limited to, minimum hours worked or length of service, before an employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions is eligible for a paid leave of absence under these provisions.
7. Specifies that for part-time academic or classified employees, the amount of paid leave per week, subject to a maximum of 14 weeks, shall be calculated in accordance with the following:
   1. If the part-time employee works a fixed number of hours per week, the employee shall receive weekly pay for the total number of hours the employee is normally scheduled to work for the community college district.
   2. If the part-time employee does not work a fixed number of hours per week, the employee shall receive weekly pay in an amount equaling the employee’s average weekly pay during the six-month period immediately preceding the date that the employee began their paid leave.
      1. If the part-time employee has been employed for less than six months, the employee shall receive weekly pay in an amount equaling the employee’s average weekly pay during the entire period of that employment preceding the date that the employee began their paid leave.
8. Specifies that nothing shall diminish the obligation of a community college district to comply with any collective bargaining agreement entered into by a community college district and an exclusive bargaining representative, as specified, that provides greater disability or parental leave rights to employees than the rights established under these provisions.

COMMENTS

1. Background:

Parental leave is proven to benefit families and communities by improving long-term health outcomes for mothers and children, decreasing stress for caregivers and new parents, encouraging equitable co-parenting, and reducing income volatility. Studies have found that longer paid maternity leave was associated with, among other things: 1) lower rates of postpartum depression and lower rates of depression later in life; 2) for mothers who chose to breastfeed, higher rates of breastfeeding that continued for twice as long; 3) a lower likelihood of the mother or child returning to the hospital with medical complications in the first year; and 4) babies were more likely to have well-child visits and timely vaccinations.^[1] Additionally, women who take paid leave are more likely to return to work and to see a wage increase and less likely to rely on public assistance and food stamps.^[2]

A 2010 study by the International Labour Organization of the United Nations found that out of 167 countries studied, 97 percent provide paid maternity leave for women. Only four out of the 167 countries studied did not: Lesotho, Papua New Guinea, Swaziland, and the United States.^[3]

Whether or not that leave is paid or has some wage replacement component is often the deciding factor on whether or not, and for how long, an employee is likely to take time to care for themselves and their families while financially providing for them. California has several medical leaves under which an employee may be able to take leave from work to care for their illness, that of specified family members or for the bonding with a new child. Below is a summary of some and their eligibility requirements, with the caveat that not all these programs may be available to all employees. Eligibility may depend on the employers covered by each program.

Points of note regarding these leaves:

• When both state and federal laws apply, the employee receives the benefit of the more protective law.
• PFL provides benefit payments but not job protection; however, the employee’s job may be protected if taken concurrently with FMLA or CFRA.
• There is no pay associated with the FMLA and CFRA, other than what the employee has earned in other accrued leaves that may apply.
• Employees may only be eligible for the PFL program if they are covered by the SDI program. SDI is employee funded. If an employee does not pay into the SDI program, they are not eligible to receive disability benefits PFL.
• Nonindustrial Disability Insurance (NDI) program may cover certain state employees and provides a partial wage replacement benefit to eligible employees when they lose wages due to a non-work-related disability.

Existing leave options for public school and community college district employees:

The pregnancy-leave compensation provided to public school and community college employees (beyond differential pay as required by law) likely varies considerably based on local bargaining agreements and participation in disability insurance programs. While standard SDI contributions are not mandatory for public employees, some bargaining units and districts may negotiate elective participation. It is unclear how many community college or school districts participate in SDI or other privately contracted disability insurance, and some do not provide any such benefit. Coverage for such disability programs is strictly governed by local collective bargaining agreements.

This bill:

As noted above, existing law provides several overlapping forms of job-protected leave and wage replacement for pregnancy-related absences. Unfortunately, not all employees have access to these programs and in the education sector, such leaves are negotiated as part of the collective bargaining process. This bill would create a new standalone entitlement of up to 14 weeks of fully paid leave that would not be charged against any existing leave balances and would operate in addition to other available leave benefits for certificated, classified, and academic employees of school districts, charter schools, county offices of education, and community college districts.

Similar prior measures and inclusion in this year’s budget:

The Legislature has considered similar proposals in recent years. Most recently through AB 2901 (Aguiar-Curry) of 2024, which was substantially similar to this bill and also proposed 14 weeks of paid leave but was ultimately held on the Senate Floor.

As noted by the Senate Education Committee analysis of this bill:

“The policy contained in this bill is largely aligned with a proposal included in the Governor’s 2026-27 May Revision. The Governor proposes requiring public school employers and CCDs to provide up to 14 weeks of paid pregnancy disability leave to all employees and proposes funding the associated costs through the discretionary Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) provided to local educational agencies (LEAs). Both the Senate and Assembly adopted the proposal as part of their budget actions, while utilizing placeholder trailer bill language to preserve ongoing negotiations regarding the appropriate funding mechanism. As a result, the central policy question raised by this bill is already being considered through the budget process. Committee staff notes that budget trailer legislation may ultimately establish a statewide framework for paid pregnancy disability leave before this bill completes the legislative process. Accordingly, AB 65 is best viewed as advancing a policy proposal that is currently the subject of active budget negotiations between the Administration and the Legislature.”

2. Need for this bill?

According to the author:

“AB 65 would require all public schools and community colleges to provide up to 14 weeks of fully paid pregnancy disability leave, ending the practice of forcing educators to deplete their sick leave and absorb pay cuts during pregnancy. The current system is inadequate and disproportionately impacts female educators, creating significant financial and health-related hardships. Without a legal mandate, school districts are not required to provide paid pregnancy leave, leaving educators to navigate a system where they must use up their sick leave—often leaving them financially vulnerable when they need it most. This lack of consistent support for pregnancy-related disabilities also contributes to gender inequality in the workforce, as women are more likely to bear the burden of depleted leave balances and lost retirement benefits compared to their male counterparts. Additionally, the current policy inadvertently encourages sick employees to continue working, potentially jeopardizing their health and the health of their students and colleagues.

By passing legislation to ensure paid pregnancy disability leave, the state can create a uniform standard across all public schools and community colleges, ensuring that educators are financially supported during pregnancy and recovery, and that they do not face discrimination for choosing to have children. This will promote gender equity, protect the health and well-being of educators and their families, and help retain qualified teachers by offering a benefit that supports work-life balance. Without legislative action, these disparities are likely to persist, continuing to harm women and the education system as a whole.”

3. Proponent Arguments:

According to a coalition letter with various employee representative organizations, including several of the sponsors:

“In California – the fifth largest economy worldwide – one of the largest and predominantly female workforces in the state are excluded from pregnancy disability leave – a fundamental standard for reproductive rights in most countries across the globe.

This bill will finally end the discriminatory practice of giving employees who are pregnant no choice but to deplete their sick leave. When an educator is forced to use up their sick leave for pregnancy leave, they return to the classroom with no leave to care for sick family members or themselves. The current policy encourages sick educators to come to school endangering other educators, parents, and students. When an educator retires, CalSTRS converts unused sick leave to additional service credit. But school employees who have exhausted their sick leave due to pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy or recovery from those conditions are penalized.

Establishing pregnancy disability leave will help retain educators during a historic educator shortage. By requiring school and community college districts to provide fully paid pregnancy disability leave, AB 65 will help employees working in public schools and community colleges to take necessary time off without sacrificing their financial security, the health of their families or the health of their school communities.”

4. Opponent Arguments:

This bill was first introduced in December 2024. When it was going through the legislative process in 2025, there was opposition from various statewide educational organizations and local educational agencies. The bill became a two-year bill once it reached the Senate Education Committee. This year, the proposal has been included in the Governor’s 2026-27 Budget. The organizations previously opposed to the measure in 2025 have submitted a letter this year of “support if amended” seeking amendments that address the funding source.

5. Double Referral:

This bill was double referred and prior to our hearing was heard and passed by the Senate Education Committee.

6. Prior/Related Legislation:

SB 1024 (Menjivar, 2026) would grant active firefighting members of specified fire departments, 26 weeks of fully paid postpartum and recovery leave for birth, stillbirth or miscarriage of a child and requires that, upon return, the firefighter be restored to their prior position, as provided. SB 1024 is pending before the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

AB 2901 (Aguiar-Curry, 2024) was substantially similar to this bill and would have required school and community college districts to provide up to 14 weeks of paid leave for employees experiencing pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. AB 2901 died on the Senate inactive file.

AB 1123 (Addis, Cervantes, 2023) would have required the California State University (CSU) to provide employees with a paid leave of absence of one semester of an academic year, as specified, following the birth of a child of the employee or the placement of a child with an employee in connection with adoption or foster care placement. AB 1123 was vetoed by Governor Newsom.

AB 500 (Gonzalez, 2019) would have required that school districts, charter schools, and community colleges provide at least six weeks of full pay for pregnancy-related leaves of absence taken by certificated, academic, and classified employees. AB 500 was vetoed by Governor Newsom

SUPPORT

California Teachers Association (Co-Sponsor)

California School Employees Association (Co-Sponsor)

California State Treasurer Fiona Ma (Co-Sponsor)

CFT – A Union of Educators & Classified Professionals (Co-Sponsor)

Faculty Association of California Community Colleges (Co-Sponsor)

Alhambra Teachers Association
American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists - District IX
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees California
Anaheim Elementary Education Association
Anaheim Secondary Teachers Association
Asian Americans Advancing Justice Southern California
Asian Law Alliance
Asociación De Maestros Unidos
Associated Pomona Teachers
Association of Carmel Teachers
Association of Colton Educators
BreastfeedLA
Buellton Education Association
California Breastfeeding Coalition
California Child Care Resource and Referral Network
California Commission on the Status of Women and Girls
California Community College Independents
California Domestic Workers Coalition
California Employment Lawyers Association
California Faculty Association
California Federation Business Professional Women
California Federation of Labor Unions
California Immigrant Policy Center
California Latinas for Reproductive Justice
California Legislative Women's Caucus
California Pan-Ethnic Health Network
California Retired Teachers Association
California State Teachers' Retirement System
California Virtual Educators United
California WIC Association
California Women's Law Center
California Work & Family Coalition
Campbell Elementary Teachers Association
Caring Across Generations
Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice
Center for Workers' Rights
Child Care Law Center
Children Now
Citizens for Choice
City of Glendale
Corona-Norco Teachers Association
Covina Unified Education Association
CTA/NEA – Retired
Early Edge California
El Monte Elementary Teachers Association
Electric Universe

Elk Grove Education Association
Equal Rights Advocates
Food Empowerment Project
Fresno Unified School District
Friends Committee on Legislation of California
Fund Her
Grace - End Child Poverty
Hacienda La Puente Teachers Association
Health Access California
Health in Partnership
Human Impact Partners
Insure the Uninsured Project
Jewish Center for Justice
Junior League of Palo Alto - Mid Peninsula
Junior Leagues of California State Public Affairs Committee
LA Alliance for a New Economy
LA Best Babies Network
Lammersville Teachers Association
Legal Aid At Work
Livermore Education Association
Marin Child Care Council
Merced College Faculty Association
Moreno Valley Educators Association
National Council for Jewish Women LA
National Partnership for Women & Families
National Women's Political Caucus of California
Natomas Teachers' Association
NEA-Jurupa
Nevada Joint Union High School Teachers Association
Nourishing Justly
Oak Grove Educators Association
Oakland Unified School District
Orange County Equality Coalition
Our Family Coalition
Oxnard Educators Association
Parent Voices California
Partnership for Los Angeles Schools
Poder Latinx
Portola Valley Teachers Association
Public Counsel
Redlands Teachers Association
Rocklin Teachers Professional Association
Roseville Teachers Association
Sacramento City Teachers Association
San Benito Joint Union High School District Teachers Association
San Diego County Breastfeeding Coalition
San Jose Teachers Association
Santa Maria Elementary Education Association
Santa Monica-Malibu Classroom Teachers Association
Santa Rosa Teachers Association
SEIU California
Special Educators of Amador County
Tahoe Truckee Education Association
Teach Plus California
Teachers Association of Long Beach
Temecula Valley Educators Association
Tustin Educators Association
Twin Rivers United Educators
UAW Region 6
UFCW - Western States Council
United Teachers of Richmond
Universidad Popular
Vacaville Teachers Association
Walnut Creek Teachers Association
Walnut Valley Educators Association
Women's Foundation California
Woodland Education Association
Worksafe

OPPOSITION

None received

-- END --

1. Waldron, Patricia citing Stanford psychiatrist Amy Alexander, “The case for national paid maternity leave,” Women’s Health, May 18, 2020. https://med.stanford.edu/news/insights/2020/05/the-case-for-national-paid-maternity-leave.html ↑

2. Ibid. ↑

3. International Labour Organization, “Maternity and paternity at work: Law and practice across the world.” https://www.ilo.org/sites/default/files/wcmsp5/groups/public/@dgreports/@dcomm/@publ/documents/publication/wcms_242615.pdf ↑

SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Senator Sasha Renée Pérez, Chair

2025 - 2026 Regular

Bill No: Hearing Date: June 17, 2026

Subject: .

NOTE: This bill has been referred to the Committees on Education and Labor, Public Employment and Retirement. A “do pass” motion should include referral to the Committee on Labor, Public Employment and Retirement.

SUMMARY

This bill requires school districts, charter schools, county offices of education, and community college districts (CCDs) to provide up to 14 weeks of fully paid pregnancy disability leave to certificated, classified, and academic employees who are unable to work due to pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related recovery. The bill prohibits the leave from being charged against other available leave balances, requires continuation of health benefits during the leave, and establishes the benefit regardless of an employee’s length of service or hours worked.

BACKGROUND

Existing law:

1. Prohibits, under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), employers from denying a reasonable period of pregnancy disability leave, not to exceed four months, for employees disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions.
2. Provides, under the California Family Rights Act (CFRA), eligible employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for specified family and medical purposes and requires maintenance of health benefits during the leave.
3. Requires school districts to provide certificated employees with a leave of absence due to pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, and recovery, with the duration determined by the employee and physician.
4. Requires school districts to provide classified employees with a leave of absence due to pregnancy, childbirth, and related recovery, with the duration determined by the employee and physician.
5. Requires certificated, academic, and classified employees who exhaust available sick leave and remain absent due to illness, injury, or parental leave to receive differential pay, generally equal to the employee’s salary less the cost of a substitute, and not less than 50% of the employee’s regular salary.
6. Requires governing boards of CCDs to provide pregnancy leave for academic employees and authorizes governing boards to establish pregnancy leave policies for classified employees.

ANALYSIS

This bill:

1. Requires public school employers and CCDs to provide up to 14 weeks of fully paid leave to certificated, classified, and academic employees who are unable to work because of pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. The duration of the leave is determined by the employee and the employee’s physician.
2. Authorizes the paid leave to begin before childbirth and continue afterward when the employee is disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or a related medical condition.
3. Prohibits leave provided under the bill from being deducted from any other leave entitlement available under state or federal law, including sick leave and family and medical leave.
4. Requires public school employers and CCDs to maintain group health coverage during the leave at the same level and under the same conditions as if the employee had remained actively employed.
5. Prohibits public school employers and CCDs from imposing eligibility requirements, including minimum hours worked or minimum length of service, before an employee may access the leave.
6. Requires pregnancy-related disabilities to be treated under employer policies and practices on the same terms and conditions as other temporary disabilities.
7. Specifies that the bill does not diminish any greater disability or parental leave rights provided through collective bargaining agreements.

STAFF COMMENTS

1. Need for the bill. According to the author, “Today, teachers in California do not receive paid pregnancy leave. This forces teachers to deplete all of their sick leave and then receive reduced ‘differential’ pay where they effectively pay for their own substitute teacher. This practice makes it hard for pregnant teachers to care for their families and has long term financial consequences. 70% of teachers are women, and studies have shown that the women in the teaching ranks will receive nearly $100,000 less than their male counterparts in their retirement because they are forced to use up all of their accrued sick leave. At a time when our educators are leaving this vital profession due to the pressures of the pandemic, and college students seek other paths for their careers, AB 65 takes a necessary step to invest in our educators by giving them 14 weeks of paid pregnancy leave. AB 65 will help to attract and retain educators. But, more importantly, it will grant the basic human right to care for one’s child to the people we count on every day to educate our children and grandchildren.”
2. Significant expansion of existing leave benefits. Existing law already provides several overlapping forms of job-protected leave and wage replacement for pregnancy-related absences, including Pregnancy Disability Leave under FEHA, bonding leave under CFRA and FMLA, differential pay requirements specific to school employees, and, in some districts, access to State Disability Insurance or private disability insurance programs. This bill would create a new standalone entitlement of up to 14 weeks of fully paid leave that would not be charged against any existing leave balances and would operate in addition to other available leave benefits. As a result, the measure represents a significant expansion of current leave protections for K-14 employees.
3. Fiscal and workforce considerations. The principal policy question raised by the bill is not whether pregnancy-related leave should be available, but who should bear the cost of providing enhanced wage replacement. Existing law generally spreads costs among employees, employers, and, in some cases, disability insurance programs. By contrast, this bill places responsibility for providing up to 14 weeks of full salary directly on school districts and CCDs. While supporters argue that enhanced leave policies may improve recruitment and retention of educators, opponents have expressed concern regarding the potentially substantial ongoing Proposition 98 costs, the need to secure qualified substitutes during extended absences, and the cumulative impact on local budgets during a period of continuing fiscal pressure.
4. Similar measures have faced fiscal concerns in prior years. The Legislature has considered similar proposals multiple times. AB 500 (Gonzalez, 2019) would have required six weeks of paid pregnancy disability leave for school and community college employees and was vetoed by Governor Newsom, who stated that the costs should be considered through the annual budget process and collective bargaining. More recently, AB 2901 (Aguiar-Curry, 2024), which was substantially similar to this bill and also proposed 14 weeks of paid leave, advanced through the policy process but was ultimately held on the Senate Floor. The recurring history of these measures reflects broad interest in expanding pregnancy-related leave benefits, while also highlighting persistent questions regarding fiscal sustainability and implementation.
5. This proposal is currently part of budget negotiations. The policy contained in this bill is largely aligned with a proposal included in the Governor’s 2026-27 May Revision. The Governor proposes requiring public school employers and CCDs to provide up to 14 weeks of paid pregnancy disability leave to all employees and proposes funding the associated costs through the discretionary Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) provided to local educational agencies (LEAs). Both the Senate and Assembly adopted the proposal as part of their budget actions, while utilizing placeholder trailer bill language to preserve ongoing negotiations regarding the appropriate funding mechanism.

As a result, the central policy question raised by this bill is already being considered through the budget process. Committee staff notes that budget trailer legislation may ultimately establish a statewide framework for paid pregnancy disability leave before this bill completes the legislative process. Accordingly, AB 65 is best viewed as advancing a policy proposal that is currently the subject of active budget negotiations between the Administration and the Legislature.

1. Stakeholder discussion has evolved. As discussions regarding paid pregnancy disability leave have shifted into the budget process, some education stakeholders have moved beyond the question of whether such a benefit should be provided and have instead focused on implementation issues. In a recent letter regarding the Governor’s paid pregnancy disability leave proposal, a coalition of LEAs and education organizations expressed support for providing employees with paid pregnancy disability leave while identifying a number of outstanding administrative questions, including the interaction of the benefit with payroll systems, retirement programs, payroll taxes, and State Disability Insurance. The coalition also noted the need for LEAs to update policies, payroll practices, and employee communications before implementation.

This feedback suggests that, as the Legislature considers establishing a statewide paid pregnancy disability leave framework, questions regarding administration and benefit coordination may become increasingly important alongside the underlying policy considerations.

SUPPORT

California Teachers Association (sponsor)
American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists - District IX
American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees
California Community College Independents
California Domestic Workers Coalition
California Faculty Association

California Federation of Teachers
California Legislative Women’s Caucus
California Retired Teachers Association
California School Employees Association
California State Teachers’ Retirement System
California State Treasurer
City of Glendale
Early Edge California
Faculty Association of California Community Colleges
Fresno Unified School District
Health Access California
Oakland Unified School District
Partnership for Los Angeles Schools
Teach Plus - California

OPPOSITION

None received

-- END --

ASSEMBLY THIRD READING

ATR Bill Id:AB 65

Author:(Aguiar-Curry)

As Introduced Ver:December 3, 2024

Majority vote

SUMMARY

Requires K-12 public schools and community college districts to provide up to 14 weeks of paid leave for employees experiencing pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions.

Major Provisions

1. Requires a public school employer or community college district to maintain group health coverage for an employee who takes a leave of absence under this provision for the duration of the leave of absence at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken a leave of absence.
2. States that there are no eligibility requirements, including, but not limited to, minimum hours worked or length of service, before an employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions is eligible for a paid leave of absence under this provision.

COMMENTS

What do school districts currently provide for pregnancy-related leave? The pregnancy leave compensation provided to school district employees (beyond differential pay as required by law) varies considerably based on local bargaining agreements and participation in disability insurance programs.

It is unclear how many school districts participate in State Disability Insurance (SDI), but some as of 2021, including the Los Angeles Unified School District, do. Some districts do not participate in SDI but contract for private disability insurance, and some do not provide any such benefit. At least two school districts, the Grossmont Union High School District and the Palm Springs Unified School District, had agreed through collective bargaining to provide six weeks of paid maternity leave.

Paid Family Leave (PFL). The PFL program extends disability compensation to individuals (male or female) who take time off work to care for a seriously ill child, spouse, parent, or domestic partner or to bond with a new child or a child in connection with adoption or foster care placement. The PFL program is a component of the SDI program and workers covered by the SDI program are also covered for this benefit. Employees may only be eligible for the PFL program if they are covered by the SDI program through a negotiated agreement with the State. If an employee does not pay into the SDI program, he or she would not be eligible to receive disability compensation under PFL.

Pregnancy Disability Leave and FMLA: Typically, mothers are on pregnancy disability leave for the first six to eight weeks or longer after a baby's birth. Under the FMLA and state law, they are also entitled to take 12 weeks of additional leave for bonding.

Under current law, during pregnancy disability leave certificated school district employees use any sick leave and, once it is exhausted, are entitled to differential pay. During their subsequent FMLA leave, they are also entitled to use sick leave and then receive differential pay. Differential pay may be no less than 50% of the employee's salary.

Differential pay. The Moore-Brown-Roberti Family Rights Act (CFRA) is the state-law equivalent of the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Both acts provide for up to 12 weeks of unpaid family and medical leave for public and private employees. Current law requires that certificated employees of school districts be provided with differential pay during their FMLA leave.

Differential pay is calculated by subtracting the cost of a substitute employee from the certificated employee's salary. For example, if the certificated employee made $50,000 and the substitute cost $35,000, then the certificated employee would be paid the difference of $15,000 during maternity or paternity leave after exhausting all accrued sick time.

Maintenance of health coverage. This bill creates parity between workers on leave under SDI and teachers with regard to the maintenance of health coverage. Existing regulations require that an employer maintain and pay for group health coverage for an eligible female employee who takes pregnancy disability leave for the duration of the leave, not to exceed four months over the course of a 12-month period per pregnancy, beginning on the date the pregnancy disability leave begins, at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken pregnancy disability leave.

Eligibility requirements. This bill creates parity between workers on leave under SDI and teachers with regard to eligibility requirements. According to the Employment Development Department, the law does not require a minimum number of hours worked or days employed to qualify for benefits, except that, an employee must have earned at least $300 from which State Disability Insurance deductions were withheld during their claim base period.

According to the Author

"Today, teachers in California do not receive paid pregnancy leave. This forces teachers to deplete all of their sick leave and then receive reduced 'differential' pay where they effectively pay for their own substitute teacher. This practice makes it hard for pregnant teachers to care for their families and has long term financial consequences. 70% of teachers are women, and studies have shown that the women in the teaching ranks will receive nearly $100,000 less than their male counterparts in their retirement because they are forced to use up all of their accrued sick leave. At a time when our educators are leaving this vital profession due to the pressures of the pandemic, and college students seek other paths for their careers, AB 65 takes a necessary step to invest in our educators by giving them 14 weeks of paid pregnancy leave. AB 65 will help to attract and retain educators. But, more importantly, it will grant the basic human right to care for one's child to the people we count on every day to educate our children and grandchildren."

Arguments in Support

The California Teachers Association states, "This bill will finally end the discriminatory practice of giving employees who are pregnant no choice but to deplete their sick leave. When an educator is forced to use up their sick leave for pregnancy leave, they return to the classroom with no leave to care for sick family members or themselves. The current policy encourages sick educators to come to school endangering other educators, parents, and students. When an educator retires, CalSTRS converts unused sick leave to additional service credit. But school employees who have exhausted their sick leave due to pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy or recovery from those conditions are penalized. Establishing pregnancy disability leave will help retain educators during a historic educator shortage. By requiring school and community college districts to provide fully paid pregnancy disability leave, AB 65 will help employees working in public schools and community colleges to take necessary time off without sacrificing their financial security, the health of their families or the health of their school communities."

Arguments in Opposition

The Association of California School Administrators states, "We do not oppose the concept of granting employees leave for the purpose of pregnancy-related disability, family care, or other related needs. Our opposition to the bill is based on two factors and is consistent with concerns we expressed on prior legislation on the same topic. The first factor is the fiscal impact that AB 65 would have on local educational agencies (LEAs) since there is no dedicated funding source for this purpose. The second is the potential complexity this would add to an already complicated, extensive set of employee-leave programs. We agree with the assessment in Governor Newsom's veto message on similar legislation, AB 500 (Gonzalez; 2019), which would have provided six weeks of paid pregnancy disability leave. He wrote, "Providing every California worker with paid family leave is a noble goal and a priority for my administration. However, this bill will likely result in annual costs of tens of millions of dollars that should be considered as part of the annual budget process and as part of local collective bargaining." AB 500 proposed six weeks of paid leave, less than half of the paid leave time proposed by AB 65 and was introduced before state law extended bonding leave time."

FISCAL COMMENTS

According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee,

1. Ongoing Proposition 98 General Fund costs, potentially totaling in the hundreds of millions of dollars annually, to school districts, charter schools, and community colleges to provide maternity leave for up to 14 weeks at full pay and to provide substitute employees for that period, if needed. The cost would depend on the number of employees using the benefit and their salary. To the extent school districts or community colleges already pay into SDI or private disability insurance, costs would be lower.

California has about 300,000 public school teachers. If 1% of teachers salaried at $75,000 annually, or $417 daily for a 180 day school year, were to receive 14 weeks of full pay for pregnancy-related leaves of absence, statewide costs would be up to $120 million. New costs would be in excess of whatever amount of differential pay schools and colleges already pay for teachers on maternity leave under existing law, typically at least 50% of a teacher's salary. However, the bill creates additional costs by providing this benefit to approximately 300,000 certificated, classified, and academic employees at schools and community colleges.

1. Ongoing Proposition 98 General Fund costs to educational employers or General Fund costs to California Public Employees' Retirement System or California State Teachers' Retirement System (CalSTRS) to the extent this bill results in employees accumulating larger sick leave balances that result in larger pay outs to employees leaving public education or retirement benefits if converted to service credit.

According to CalSTRS, the increase in pension costs for the average CalSTRS member to convert one day of sick leave to service credit is $4 per year. If a member converted 25 days of sick leave to service credit at the end of their career that they otherwise would not have converted, they would annually receive $100 more in retirement benefits. If 1% of teachers received this amount, costs would total $300,000 annually.

1. Ongoing Proposition 98 General Fund costs to educational employers to the extent this bill results in employees accumulating larger sick leave balances that result in larger pay outs to employees leaving public education.

The bill addresses conditions of employment, but does not require a higher level of service to the general public. Therefore, the bill does not create a new state mandated local program and would likely not be a reimbursable state mandate.

VOTES

ASM EDUCATION: 8-0-1

YES: Muratsuchi, Hoover, Addis, Alvarez, Bonta, Castillo, Lowenthal, Patel

ABS, ABST OR NV: Garcia

ASM HIGHER EDUCATION: 8-0-2

YES: Fong, Boerner, Jeff Gonzalez, Jackson, Muratsuchi, Patel, Celeste Rodriguez, Sharp-Collins

ABS, ABST OR NV: DeMaio, Tangipa

UPDATED

VERSION: December 3, 2024

CONSULTANT: Chelsea Kelley / ED. / (916) 319-2087 FN: 0000651

Date of Hearing: May 14, 2025

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS

Buffy Wicks, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 65

Author:(Aguiar-Curry) – As Introduced Ver:December 3, 2024

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

SUMMARY:

This bill requires schools and community colleges to provide up to 14 weeks of full pay for pregnancy-related leaves of absence taken by certificated, academic, and classified employees.

Specifically, the bill specifies the leave may begin before and continue after childbirth if the employee is actually disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions. The bill prohibits deduction from any other leaves of absence available to the employee pursuant to state or federal regulations or laws, including sick leave and Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leave for a leave of absence taken under this section. The bill requires a public school employer maintain health coverage for an employee taking leave pursuant to its provisions at the same level as if the employee had not taken a leave of absence. The bill also states there are no eligibility requirements, such as a minimum number of hours worked or length of service, for an employee to qualify for paid pregnancy-related leave.

FISCAL EFFECT:

1. Ongoing Proposition 98 General Fund costs, potentially totaling in the hundreds of millions of dollars annually, to school districts, charter schools, and community colleges to provide maternity leave for up to 14 weeks at full pay and to provide substitute employees for that period, if needed. The cost would depend on the number of employees using the benefit and their salary. To the extent school districts or community colleges already pay into State Disability Insurance (SDI) or private disability insurance, costs would be lower.

California has about 300,000 public school teachers. If 1% of teachers salaried at $75,000 annually, or $417 daily for a 180 day school year, were to receive 14 weeks of full pay for pregnancy-related leaves of absence, statewide costs would be up to $120 million. New costs would be in excess of whatever amount of differential pay schools and colleges already pay for teachers on maternity leave under existing law, typically at least 50% of a teacher’s salary. However, the bill creates additional costs by providing this benefit to approximately 300,000 certificated, classified, and academic employees at schools and community colleges.

1. Ongoing Proposition 98 General Fund costs to educational employers or General Fund costs to California Public Employees' Retirement System or California State Teachers' Retirement System (CalSTRS) to the extent this bill results in employees accumulating larger sick leave balances that result in larger pay outs to employees leaving public education or retirement benefits if converted to service credit.

According to CalSTRS, the increase in pension costs for the average CalSTRS member to convert one day of sick leave to service credit is $4 per year. If a member converted 25 days of sick leave to service credit at the end of their career that they otherwise would not have converted, they would annually receive $100 more in retirement benefits. If 1% of teachers received this amount, costs would total $300,000 annually.

1. Ongoing Proposition 98 General Fund costs to educational employers to the extent this bill results in employees accumulating larger sick leave balances that result in larger pay outs to employees leaving public education.

The bill addresses conditions of employment, but does not require a higher level of service to the general public. Therefore, the bill does not create a new state mandated local program and would likely not be a reimbursable state mandate.

COMMENTS:

1. Purpose. According to the author:

Today, teachers in California do not receive paid pregnancy leave. This forces teachers to deplete all of their sick leave and then receive reduced ‘differential’ pay where they effectively pay for their own substitute teacher. This practice makes it hard for pregnant teachers to care for their families and has long term financial consequences. 70% of teachers are women, and studies have shown that the women in the teaching ranks will receive nearly $100,000 less than their male counterparts in their retirement because they are forced to use up all of their accrued sick leave. At a time when our educators are leaving this vital profession due to the pressures of the pandemic, and college students seek other paths for their careers, AB 65 takes a necessary step to invest in our educators by giving them 14 weeks of paid pregnancy leave.

1. Background. Under current law, certificated, academic, and classified employees at K-12 schools and community colleges generally use pregnancy disability leave during the first six to eight weeks after their child’s birth. To qualify for pregnancy disability leave, an employee must be “disabled by pregnancy,” which means that a health care provider must certify that the employee's pregnancy, childbirth, loss of pregnancy, or related medical conditions prevent them from working.

During pregnancy disability leave, school and college employees may use any sick leave they have accrued and they are entitled to receive differential pay for the remainder of the six to eight weeks of leave. Differential pay is calculated by subtracting the cost of a substitute employee from the certificated employee's salary. Some employers participate in the SDI program or another private disability insurance program. In these cases, employees generally must pay into the program, which provides paid leave to the employee during the six-week to eight-week period. It is unclear to the committee how many school districts participate in SDI or private disability insurance. After the first six to eight weeks of leave, these employees may access FMLA leave for 12 weeks during any time in the year following the birth of their child. Generally, employees must first use any sick leave they have accrued and then receive differential pay for the duration of the 12 weeks.

This bill requires employers to provide K-12 and community college employees with up to 14 weeks of full pay for pregnancy-related absences. The bill states the leave is not to be deducted from any other leaves of absence available to the employee pursuant to state or federal regulations or laws. In other words, according to the bill’s sponsor, the leave granted by this bill is not to run concurrently with sick leave, pregnancy disability leave, FMLA leave, or any other leaves currently provided under state or federal law or regulation. For any leaves taken by an employee after the up to 14 weeks paid leave provided by this bill, an employee could use any sick leave and, thereafter, receive differential pay.

1. Prior Legislation. AB 2901 (Aguiar-Curry), of the 2023-24 Legislative Session, was substantially similar to this bill. AB 2901 was held on the Senate Floor.

Analysis Prepared by: Aaron Heredia / APPR. / (916) 319-2081

Date of Hearing: April 22, 2025

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HIGHER EDUCATION

Mike Fong, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 65 (

Author:Aguiar-Curry) – As Introduced Ver:December 3, 2024

SUBJECT: School and community college employees: paid disability and parental leave

SUMMARY: Requires K-12 public schools and community college districts (CCD’s) to provide up to 14 weeks of paid leave for employees experiencing pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. Specifically, this bill:

Community College Districts (CCD’s):

1. Requires the governing board of a CCD to provide for a leave of absence from duty for an academic or classified employee of the CCD who is required to be absent from duty because the employee is experiencing or has experienced pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. Requires the length of the leave of absence, including the date on which the leave commences and the date on which the employee resumes duties, to be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician. Requires the leave of absence be with full pay, subject to a maximum of 14 weeks. Prohibits a leave of absence from being deducted from any other leaves of absence available to the employee pursuant to state or federal regulations or laws. Authorizes the paid leave may begin before and continue after childbirth if the employee is actually disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions. 
2. Requires a CCD to maintain group health coverage for an employee who takes a leave of absence under this provision for the duration of the leave of absence at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken a leave of absence.
3. States that there are no eligibility requirements, including, but not limited to, minimum hours worked or length of service, before an employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions is eligible for a paid leave of absence under this provision.
4. Requires that written and unwritten employment policies and practices of a CCD be applied to disability due to pregnancy or childbirth on the same terms and conditions applied to other temporary disabilities.
5. States that nothing in this measure shall be construed to diminish the obligation of a CCD to comply with any collective bargaining agreement entered into by a CCD and an exclusive bargaining representative that provides greater disability or parental leave rights to employees than the rights established under this measure. 

K-12 public schools:

1. Requires a public school employer to provide for a leave of absence from duty for a certificated or classified employee of the public school employer who is required to be absent from duty because the employee is experiencing or has experienced pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. Requires that the length of the leave of absence, including the date on which the leave commences and the date on which the employee shall resume duties, be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician. Requires the leave of absence to be with full pay, subject to a maximum of 14 weeks. Prohibits a leave of absence from being deducted from any other leaves of absence available to the employee pursuant to state or federal regulations or laws. Authorizes the paid leave to begin before and continue after childbirth if the employee is actually disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions. 
2. Requires a public school employer to maintain group health coverage for an employee who takes a leave of absence under this provision for the duration of the leave of absence at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken a leave of absence.
3. States that there are no eligibility requirements, including, but not limited to, minimum hours worked or length of service, before an employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions is eligible for a paid leave of absence under this provision.
4. Requires written and unwritten employment policies and practices of a public school employer be applied to disability due to pregnancy or childbirth on the same terms and conditions applied to other temporary disabilities.
5. States that nothing in this measure shall be construed to diminish the obligation of a public school employer to comply with any collective bargaining agreement entered into by a public school employer and an exclusive bargaining representative that provides greater disability or parental leave rights to employees than the rights established under this measure. 

EXISTING LAW:

1. Under Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) and associated regulations, it is an unlawful employment practice, unless based upon a bona fide occupational qualification, for an employer to refuse to allow a female employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition to take a leave for a reasonable period of time not to exceed four months and thereafter return to work. The employee is entitled to utilize any accrued vacation leave during this period of time. (Government Code (GC) 12945) Also under the FEHA, reasonable accommodation of a disability related to pregnancy can include an extended leave of absence.
2. The California Family Rights Act (CFRA) provides certain employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave a year for the purpose of bonding with a child, caring for a parent, spouse, or child with a serious health condition, or due to an employee’s own serious health condition, and requires group health benefits to be maintained during the leave as if employees continued to work instead of taking leave. (GC 12945.2)
3. Requires the governing board of a CCD to provide a leave of absence for any academic employee required to be absent due to pregnancy, miscarriage and recovery therefrom. Stipulates that the length and time frame of the absence are determined by the employee and the employee's physician. (Education Code (EDC) 87766)
4. Authorizes the governing board of a CCD to provide a leave of absence, as it deems appropriate, for any female classified employee due to pregnancy or convalescence following childbirth, and to adopt rules and regulations prescribing the manner of proof of pregnancy, the time during pregnancy at which the leave shall be taken, and the length of time for which the leave of absence shall continue after the birth of the child. (EDC Section 88193).
5. Provides that when an academic or classified community college employee is absent for up to five months due to illness or accident, the amount deducted from the salary due them during the absence shall not exceed the sum that is actually paid a substitute employee. (EDC Sections 87780 and 88196.)
6. Authorizes an academic or classified community college employee to use up to 12 weeks of their sick leave each school year for purposes of parental leave, including for the birth of a child, and when the employee has exhausted all available sick leave and continues to be absent due to parental leave, the amount deducted from the salary due them for any of the remaining portion of the 12-week period in which the absence occurs shall not exceed the sum that is actually paid a substitute employee and shall not be less than 50 percent of the academic or classified employees’ regular salary. (EDC Sections 87780.1 and 88196.1)

FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown. This bill was keyed non-fiscal by Legislative Counsel.

COMMENTS: Double-referral. AB 65 (Aguiar-Curry) was previously heard in the Assembly Committee on Education on March 12, 2025, where it passed with unanimous support.

Purpose. According to the author, “California’s public school educators do not have the paid pregnancy leave they deserve. Only after they have used all their sick leave are educators eligible to receive differential pay for up to five months when they cannot work due to pregnancy-related disabilities. Differential pay is the educator’s regular salary subtracted by the cost of their substitute. School employees are left with the decision to either ‘schedule’ pregnancies based on the school calendar or try to get by with significantly less pay.  This current practice disproportionately discriminates against women as they are required to deplete their leave balances to bear children. When an educator retires, CalSTRS converts unused sick leave to additional service credit. But school employees who have exhausted their sick leave due to pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy or recovery from those conditions are penalized – on average, women earn almost $100,000 less in retirement than their male colleagues.”

Benefits of early bonding. In a study conducted by, Child Psychiatry & Human Development, the premise was to evaluate the bonding between the mother-figure and child derived from, “a birth cohort from which data were collected at four timepoints: prenatally during the third trimester, and postnatally at 3, 8 and 24 months, (with the findings) there is also theoretical evidence of the importance of an affectionate bond between mother and child for the child’s developmental outcomes. In a good, reciprocal relationship, both the mother-figure and the child value closeness and affectionate interaction and strive to promote it.” The article concludes that, “the link between perinatal mother–baby bonding and a child’s social-emotional development has been under-investigated. There is also a consensus on the need for further research on the development of prenatal bonding after childbirth and the association between perinatal bonding and a child’s developmental outcomes.”^[1]

Echoing the study above, in a detailed paper published by the National Institute for Health, it was determined that, “the first months after birth are a highly sensitive period for the development of the bonding between parents and their infant, and it has been found to predict the later relationship between babies and parents. However, bonding improves during the first months of a child’s life.”^[2]

Benefits of recovery time post pregnancy. Whether the pregnancy ends with a healthy baby or a less than ideal outcome, it is just as imperative that time off to heal is met without unnecessary hassle and worries. In a 2022 study conducted by the National Library of Medicine, it was noted that, “miscarriage is the most common reason for pregnancy loss, affecting around one in four pregnancies. It is classified as a traumatic event, associated with an increased risk for depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress, alcohol dependence, somatic symptoms, sexual dysfunction, suicide, and complicated grief...in the case of the pregnancy loss in the second trimester, the level of post-traumatic stress symptomatology 6 weeks after termination was found to be significantly higher compared to a first trimester pregnancy loss.”^[3]

A 2024 study by the Sage Journal titled, Improving access, understanding, and dignity during miscarriage recovery in British Columbia, Canada: A patient-oriented research study, concluded that, “the findings of this research demonstrate the need for improved prenatal care guidelines for early pregnancy loss, follow-up care after a miscarriage, mental health screening and supports, and bereavement leave legislation.”^[4]

Current pregnancy leave options. Please refer to page five of this analysis to see a comparison of four pregnancy related leave options for public school educators: California Family Rights Act (CFRA), Paid Family Leave (PFL), Pregnancy Disability Leave (PFL), and Family Medical Leave (FMLA). AB 65 is listed for comparison purposes.

**It is important to note that the above chart is a broad summary of a highly complex system and does not reflect all requirements and options. Local practice may vary significantly, since some of these benefits can be modified by collective bargaining agreements. It does not include all types of leave or apply to all employees, and it may not apply to all education employers. This chart is provided for summary purposes and should not be used to guide local decision-making.

Differential pay. The Moore-Brown-Roberti Family Rights Act (CFRA) is the state-law equivalent of the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Both acts provide for up to 12 weeks of unpaid family and medical leave for public and private employees. Current law requires that certificated employees of school districts be provided with differential pay during their FMLA leave. Differential pay is calculated by subtracting the cost of a substitute employee from the certificated employee's salary. For example, if the certificated employee made $50,000 and the substitute costs $35,000, then the certificated employee would be paid the difference of $15,000 during maternity or paternity leave after exhausting all accrued sick time.

Maintenance of health coverage. This bill creates parity between workers on leave under State Disability Insurance (SDI) and teachers with regard to the maintenance of health coverage. Existing regulations require that an employer maintain and pay for group health coverage for an eligible female employee who takes pregnancy disability leave for the duration of the leave, not to exceed four months over the course of a 12-month period per pregnancy, beginning on the date the pregnancy disability leave begins, at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken pregnancy disability leave.

Arguments in support. The bill’s sponsor, California Teachers Association (CTA), writes that, “this bill will finally end the discriminatory practice of giving employees who are pregnant no choice but to deplete their sick leave. When an educator is forced to use up their sick leave for pregnancy leave, they return to the classroom with no leave to care for sick family members or themselves… establishing pregnancy disability leave will help retain educators during a historic educator shortage. By requiring school and community college districts to provide fully paid pregnancy disability leave, AB 65 will help employees working in public schools and community colleges to take necessary time off without sacrificing their financial security, the health of their families or the health of their school communities.”

California School Employees Association, a co-sponsor, states that, “California law does not guarantee pregnancy leave for pregnant educators. This disproportionately penalizes women. Classified school employees are forced to plan their pregnancies around school breaks or take an unpaid leave of absence, after they exhaust all their sick leave. Many of them do not return to work, and those who do, return to a school site with no remaining leave to care for sick family members or themselves. As a result, the current policy encourages sick educators to come to school ill—endangering students, other school staff, and parents.”

Arguments in opposition. According to the California Association of School Business Officials (CASBO), “we acknowledge and appreciate the intent of the author to provide additional support to employees experiencing pregnancy-related conditions. However, our opposition to the bill stems from the fiscal impact that it would have on local educational agencies (LEAs) and the complexity it would add to an already complicated set of employee-leave programs.

We must take into account the impact of this additional fiscal burden, as well as the impact on our ability to fully staff classrooms and educational programs that are already experiencing a shortage. AB 65 would increase the financial pressures on LEAs and community colleges. According to the Assembly appropriations committee analysis for AB 2901 (2024), a very similar bill to AB 65, the bill would have ‘Ongoing Proposition 98 General Fund costs, potentially totaling in the hundreds of millions of dollars annually.’Aside from the direct costs of providing paid leave, LEAs are anticipated to bear additional expenses in the form of substitute employee wages, which could amount to a higher amount during the period when eligible employees are on leave.”

Related legislation. AB 2901 (Aguiar-Curry) of the 2023-24 Session which was held on the Suspense File in the Senate Committee on Appropriations was substantially similar in nature to this bill.

AB 500 (Gonzalez) of the 2019-20 Session would have required that school districts, charter schools, and community colleges provide at least six weeks of full pay for pregnancy-related leaves of absence taken by certificated, academic, and classified employees. This bill was vetoed by the Governor with the following message:

“Providing every California worker with paid family leave is a noble goal and a priority for my administration. However, this bill will likely result in annual costs of tens of millions of dollars that should be considered as part of the annual budget process and as part of local collective bargaining. Moreover, this proposal should be considered within the broader context of the Paid Family Leave Task Force, which is assessing increased paid family leave for all of California's workers.”

AB 2012 (Medina) Chapter 994, Statutes of 2018 requires that a person employed in a position requiring certification qualifications, a person employed in an academic position, or a classified employee receive no less than 50% of his or her regular salary during parental leave, after sick leave has been exhausted, regardless of the type of parental leave pay system used by the school district or community college district.

AB 568 (Gonzales-Fletcher) of the 2017-18 Session would have required that school districts and community colleges provide at least six weeks of full pay for pregnancy-related leaves of absence taken by certificated, academic, and classified employees. This bill was vetoed by the Governor, who stated:

“I have signed two previous bills, AB 2393 of 2016 and AB 375 of 2015, that allow these employees to receive differential pay for maternity and paternity leave. I believe further decisions regarding leave policies for school employees are best resolved through the collective bargaining process at the local level. I would also encourage districts to consider participating in the State Disability Insurance program that would allow these employees to receive pay in addition to what is already being provided.”

AB 375 (Campos) Chapter 400, Statutes of 2015, requires certificated school employees on maternity or paternity leave to receive differential pay after exhausting accrued sick leave.

AB 2393 (Campos), Chapter 883, Statutes of 2016, allowed school district classified employees and community college academic and classified to receive differential pay.

REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:

Support

California Teachers Association (Sponsor)
American Congress of Obstetricians & Gynecologists - District IX
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, AFL-CIO
Asian Americans Advancing Justice-southern California
Asian Law Alliance
Breastfeed LA
CA Commission on the Status of Women and Girls
California Breastfeeding Coalition
California Child Care Resource and Referral Network
California Community College Independents
California Domestic Workers Coalition
California Employment Lawyers Association
California Faculty Association
California Federation Business and Professional Women
California Immigrant Policy Center
California Legislative Women's Caucus
California Pan-ethnic Health Network
California Retired Teachers Association
California School Employees Association
California State Teachers' Retirement System
California State Treasurer
California Wic Association
California Work & Family Coalition
Caring Across Generations
Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice
Center for Workers' Rights
CFT- a Union of Educators & Classified Professionals, AFL, AFL-CIO
Child Care Law Center
Children Now
Citizens for Choice
Early Edge California
Electric Universe
Equal Rights Advocates
Faculty Association of California Community Colleges
Food Empowerment Project
Friends Committee on Legislation of California
Grace - End Child Poverty
Health Access California
Human Impact Partners
Insure the Uninsured Project
Jewish Center for Justice
Junior Leagues of California State Public Affairs Committee (CALSPAC)
LA Alliance for a New Economy
LA Best Babies Network
Legal Aid At Work
Marin Child Care Council
National Council of Jewish Women Los Angeles
National Partnership for Women & Families
National Women's Political Caucus of California
Nourishing Justly
Orange County Equality Coalition
Our Family Coalition
Parent Voices California
Poder Latinx
Public Counsel
San Diego County Breastfeeding Coalition
Teach Plus - Calfornia
UAW Region 6
UFCW - Western States Council
Women's Foundation California
Worksafe

Opposition

Association of California School Administrators

California Association of School Business Officials (CASBO)

Kern County Superintendent of Schools Office

Analysis Prepared by: Kiersten Wall / HIGHER ED. / (916) 319-3960

1. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10578-022-01398-5#Abs1 ↑

2. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10670067/#:~:text=The%20first%20months%20after%20birth,life%20%5B2%2C6%5D. ↑

3. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8775379/ ↑

4. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/17455057231224180 ↑

Date of Hearing: April 22, 2025

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HIGHER EDUCATION

Mike Fong, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 65 (

Author:Aguiar-Curry) – As Introduced Ver:December 3, 2024

SUBJECT: School and community college employees: paid disability and parental leave

SUMMARY: Requires K-12 public schools and community college districts (CCD’s) to provide up to 14 weeks of paid leave for employees experiencing pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. Specifically, this bill:

Community College Districts (CCD’s):

1. Requires the governing board of a CCD to provide for a leave of absence from duty for an academic or classified employee of the CCD who is required to be absent from duty because the employee is experiencing or has experienced pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. Requires the length of the leave of absence, including the date on which the leave commences and the date on which the employee resumes duties, to be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician. Requires the leave of absence be with full pay, subject to a maximum of 14 weeks. Prohibits a leave of absence from being deducted from any other leaves of absence available to the employee pursuant to state or federal regulations or laws. Authorizes the paid leave may begin before and continue after childbirth if the employee is actually disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions. 
2. Requires a CCD to maintain group health coverage for an employee who takes a leave of absence under this provision for the duration of the leave of absence at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken a leave of absence.
3. States that there are no eligibility requirements, including, but not limited to, minimum hours worked or length of service, before an employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions is eligible for a paid leave of absence under this provision.
4. Requires that written and unwritten employment policies and practices of a CCD be applied to disability due to pregnancy or childbirth on the same terms and conditions applied to other temporary disabilities.
5. States that nothing in this measure shall be construed to diminish the obligation of a CCD to comply with any collective bargaining agreement entered into by a CCD and an exclusive bargaining representative that provides greater disability or parental leave rights to employees than the rights established under this measure. 

K-12 public schools:

1. Requires a public school employer to provide for a leave of absence from duty for a certificated or classified employee of the public school employer who is required to be absent from duty because the employee is experiencing or has experienced pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. Requires that the length of the leave of absence, including the date on which the leave commences and the date on which the employee shall resume duties, be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician. Requires the leave of absence to be with full pay, subject to a maximum of 14 weeks. Prohibits a leave of absence from being deducted from any other leaves of absence available to the employee pursuant to state or federal regulations or laws. Authorizes the paid leave to begin before and continue after childbirth if the employee is actually disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions. 
2. Requires a public school employer to maintain group health coverage for an employee who takes a leave of absence under this provision for the duration of the leave of absence at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken a leave of absence.
3. States that there are no eligibility requirements, including, but not limited to, minimum hours worked or length of service, before an employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions is eligible for a paid leave of absence under this provision.
4. Requires written and unwritten employment policies and practices of a public school employer be applied to disability due to pregnancy or childbirth on the same terms and conditions applied to other temporary disabilities.
5. States that nothing in this measure shall be construed to diminish the obligation of a public school employer to comply with any collective bargaining agreement entered into by a public school employer and an exclusive bargaining representative that provides greater disability or parental leave rights to employees than the rights established under this measure. 

EXISTING LAW:

1. Under Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) and associated regulations, it is an unlawful employment practice, unless based upon a bona fide occupational qualification, for an employer to refuse to allow a female employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition to take a leave for a reasonable period of time not to exceed four months and thereafter return to work. The employee is entitled to utilize any accrued vacation leave during this period of time. (Government Code (GC) 12945) Also under the FEHA, reasonable accommodation of a disability related to pregnancy can include an extended leave of absence.
2. The California Family Rights Act (CFRA) provides certain employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave a year for the purpose of bonding with a child, caring for a parent, spouse, or child with a serious health condition, or due to an employee’s own serious health condition, and requires group health benefits to be maintained during the leave as if employees continued to work instead of taking leave. (GC 12945.2)
3. Requires the governing board of a CCD to provide a leave of absence for any academic employee required to be absent due to pregnancy, miscarriage and recovery therefrom. Stipulates that the length and time frame of the absence are determined by the employee and the employee's physician. (Education Code (EDC) 87766)
4. Authorizes the governing board of a CCD to provide a leave of absence, as it deems appropriate, for any female classified employee due to pregnancy or convalescence following childbirth, and to adopt rules and regulations prescribing the manner of proof of pregnancy, the time during pregnancy at which the leave shall be taken, and the length of time for which the leave of absence shall continue after the birth of the child. (EDC Section 88193).
5. Provides that when an academic or classified community college employee is absent for up to five months due to illness or accident, the amount deducted from the salary due them during the absence shall not exceed the sum that is actually paid a substitute employee. (EDC Sections 87780 and 88196.)
6. Authorizes an academic or classified community college employee to use up to 12 weeks of their sick leave each school year for purposes of parental leave, including for the birth of a child, and when the employee has exhausted all available sick leave and continues to be absent due to parental leave, the amount deducted from the salary due them for any of the remaining portion of the 12-week period in which the absence occurs shall not exceed the sum that is actually paid a substitute employee and shall not be less than 50 percent of the academic or classified employees’ regular salary. (EDC Sections 87780.1 and 88196.1)

FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown. This bill was keyed non-fiscal by Legislative Counsel.

COMMENTS: Double-referral. AB 65 (Aguiar-Curry) was previously heard in the Assembly Committee on Education on March 12, 2025, where it passed with unanimous support.

Purpose. According to the author, “California’s public school educators do not have the paid pregnancy leave they deserve. Only after they have used all their sick leave are educators eligible to receive differential pay for up to five months when they cannot work due to pregnancy-related disabilities. Differential pay is the educator’s regular salary subtracted by the cost of their substitute. School employees are left with the decision to either ‘schedule’ pregnancies based on the school calendar or try to get by with significantly less pay.  This current practice disproportionately discriminates against women as they are required to deplete their leave balances to bear children. When an educator retires, CalSTRS converts unused sick leave to additional service credit. But school employees who have exhausted their sick leave due to pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy or recovery from those conditions are penalized – on average, women earn almost $100,000 less in retirement than their male colleagues.”

Benefits of early bonding. In a study conducted by, Child Psychiatry & Human Development, the premise was to evaluate the bonding between the mother-figure and child derived from, “a birth cohort from which data were collected at four timepoints: prenatally during the third trimester, and postnatally at 3, 8 and 24 months, (with the findings) there is also theoretical evidence of the importance of an affectionate bond between mother and child for the child’s developmental outcomes. In a good, reciprocal relationship, both the mother-figure and the child value closeness and affectionate interaction and strive to promote it.” The article concludes that, “the link between perinatal mother–baby bonding and a child’s social-emotional development has been under-investigated. There is also a consensus on the need for further research on the development of prenatal bonding after childbirth and the association between perinatal bonding and a child’s developmental outcomes.”^[1]

Echoing the study above, in a detailed paper published by the National Institute for Health, it was determined that, “the first months after birth are a highly sensitive period for the development of the bonding between parents and their infant, and it has been found to predict the later relationship between babies and parents. However, bonding improves during the first months of a child’s life.”^[2]

Benefits of recovery time post pregnancy. Whether the pregnancy ends with a healthy baby or a less than ideal outcome, it is just as imperative that time off to heal is met without unnecessary hassle and worries. In a 2022 study conducted by the National Library of Medicine, it was noted that, “miscarriage is the most common reason for pregnancy loss, affecting around one in four pregnancies. It is classified as a traumatic event, associated with an increased risk for depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress, alcohol dependence, somatic symptoms, sexual dysfunction, suicide, and complicated grief...in the case of the pregnancy loss in the second trimester, the level of post-traumatic stress symptomatology 6 weeks after termination was found to be significantly higher compared to a first trimester pregnancy loss.”^[3]

A 2024 study by the Sage Journal titled, Improving access, understanding, and dignity during miscarriage recovery in British Columbia, Canada: A patient-oriented research study, concluded that, “the findings of this research demonstrate the need for improved prenatal care guidelines for early pregnancy loss, follow-up care after a miscarriage, mental health screening and supports, and bereavement leave legislation.”^[4]

Current pregnancy leave options. Please refer to page five of this analysis to see a comparison of four pregnancy related leave options for public school educators: California Family Rights Act (CFRA), Paid Family Leave (PFL), Pregnancy Disability Leave (PFL), and Family Medical Leave (FMLA). AB 65 is listed for comparison purposes.

**It is important to note that the above chart is a broad summary of a highly complex system and does not reflect all requirements and options. Local practice may vary significantly, since some of these benefits can be modified by collective bargaining agreements. It does not include all types of leave or apply to all employees, and it may not apply to all education employers. This chart is provided for summary purposes and should not be used to guide local decision-making.

Differential pay. The Moore-Brown-Roberti Family Rights Act (CFRA) is the state-law equivalent of the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Both acts provide for up to 12 weeks of unpaid family and medical leave for public and private employees. Current law requires that certificated employees of school districts be provided with differential pay during their FMLA leave. Differential pay is calculated by subtracting the cost of a substitute employee from the certificated employee's salary. For example, if the certificated employee made $50,000 and the substitute costs $35,000, then the certificated employee would be paid the difference of $15,000 during maternity or paternity leave after exhausting all accrued sick time.

Maintenance of health coverage. This bill creates parity between workers on leave under State Disability Insurance (SDI) and teachers with regard to the maintenance of health coverage. Existing regulations require that an employer maintain and pay for group health coverage for an eligible female employee who takes pregnancy disability leave for the duration of the leave, not to exceed four months over the course of a 12-month period per pregnancy, beginning on the date the pregnancy disability leave begins, at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken pregnancy disability leave.

Arguments in support. The bill’s sponsor, California Teachers Association (CTA), writes that, “this bill will finally end the discriminatory practice of giving employees who are pregnant no choice but to deplete their sick leave. When an educator is forced to use up their sick leave for pregnancy leave, they return to the classroom with no leave to care for sick family members or themselves… establishing pregnancy disability leave will help retain educators during a historic educator shortage. By requiring school and community college districts to provide fully paid pregnancy disability leave, AB 65 will help employees working in public schools and community colleges to take necessary time off without sacrificing their financial security, the health of their families or the health of their school communities.”

California School Employees Association, a co-sponsor, states that, “California law does not guarantee pregnancy leave for pregnant educators. This disproportionately penalizes women. Classified school employees are forced to plan their pregnancies around school breaks or take an unpaid leave of absence, after they exhaust all their sick leave. Many of them do not return to work, and those who do, return to a school site with no remaining leave to care for sick family members or themselves. As a result, the current policy encourages sick educators to come to school ill—endangering students, other school staff, and parents.”

Arguments in opposition. According to the California Association of School Business Officials (CASBO), “we acknowledge and appreciate the intent of the author to provide additional support to employees experiencing pregnancy-related conditions . However, our opposition to the bill stems from the fiscal impact that it would have on local educational agencies (LEAs) and the complexity it would add to an already complicated set of employee-leave programs.

Without a budget appropriation, AB 65 would increase the financial pressures on local education agencies and community colleges. We must take into account the impact of this additional fiscal burden, as well as the impact on our ability to fully staff classrooms and educational programs that are already experiencing a teacher shortage. For example, should one percent of K-14 staff utilize this leave provision, for 12 weeks, LEAs could face expenses ranging from $40 million to $100 million in Proposition 98 General Fund. Aside from the direct costs of providing paid leave, LEAs are anticipated to bear additional expenses in the form of substitute employee wages, which could amount to a higher amount during the period when eligible employees are on leave.”

Related legislation. AB 2901 (Aguiar-Curry) of the 2023-24 Session which was held on the Suspense File in the Senate Committee on Appropriations was substantially similar in nature to this bill.

AB 500 (Gonzalez) of the 2019-20 Session would have required that school districts, charter schools, and community colleges provide at least six weeks of full pay for pregnancy-related leaves of absence taken by certificated, academic, and classified employees. This bill was vetoed by the Governor with the following message:

“Providing every California worker with paid family leave is a noble goal and a priority for my administration. However, this bill will likely result in annual costs of tens of millions of dollars that should be considered as part of the annual budget process and as part of local collective bargaining. Moreover, this proposal should be considered within the broader context of the Paid Family Leave Task Force, which is assessing increased paid family leave for all of California's workers.”

AB 2012 (Medina) Chapter 994, Statutes of 2018 requires that a person employed in a position requiring certification qualifications, a person employed in an academic position, or a classified employee receive no less than 50% of his or her regular salary during parental leave, after sick leave has been exhausted, regardless of the type of parental leave pay system used by the school district or community college district.

AB 568 (Gonzales-Fletcher) of the 2017-18 Session would have required that school districts and community colleges provide at least six weeks of full pay for pregnancy-related leaves of absence taken by certificated, academic, and classified employees. This bill was vetoed by the Governor, who stated:

“I have signed two previous bills, AB 2393 of 2016 and AB 375 of 2015, that allow these employees to receive differential pay for maternity and paternity leave. I believe further decisions regarding leave policies for school employees are best resolved through the collective bargaining process at the local level. I would also encourage districts to consider participating in the State Disability Insurance program that would allow these employees to receive pay in addition to what is already being provided.”

AB 375 (Campos) Chapter 400, Statutes of 2015, requires certificated school employees on maternity or paternity leave to receive differential pay after exhausting accrued sick leave.

AB 2393 (Campos), Chapter 883, Statutes of 2016, allowed school district classified employees and community college academic and classified to receive differential pay.

REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:

Support

California Teachers Association (Sponsor)
American Congress of Obstetricians & Gynecologists - District IX
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, AFL-CIO
Asian Americans Advancing Justice-southern California
Asian Law Alliance
Breastfeed LA
CA Commission on the Status of Women and Girls
California Breastfeeding Coalition
California Child Care Resource and Referral Network
California Community College Independents
California Domestic Workers Coalition
California Employment Lawyers Association
California Faculty Association
California Federation Business and Professional Women
California Immigrant Policy Center
California Legislative Women's Caucus
California Pan-ethnic Health Network
California Retired Teachers Association
California School Employees Association
California State Teachers' Retirement System
California State Treasurer
California Wic Association
California Work & Family Coalition
Caring Across Generations
Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice
Center for Workers' Rights
CFT- a Union of Educators & Classified Professionals, AFL, AFL-CIO
Child Care Law Center
Children Now
Citizens for Choice
Early Edge California
Electric Universe
Equal Rights Advocates
Faculty Association of California Community Colleges
Food Empowerment Project
Friends Committee on Legislation of California
Grace - End Child Poverty
Health Access California
Human Impact Partners
Insure the Uninsured Project
Jewish Center for Justice
Junior Leagues of California State Public Affairs Committee (CALSPAC)
LA Alliance for a New Economy
LA Best Babies Network
Legal Aid At Work
Marin Child Care Council
National Council of Jewish Women Los Angeles
National Partnership for Women & Families
National Women's Political Caucus of California
Nourishing Justly
Orange County Equality Coalition
Our Family Coalition
Parent Voices California
Poder Latinx
Public Counsel
San Diego County Breastfeeding Coalition
Teach Plus - Calfornia
UAW Region 6
UFCW - Western States Council
Women's Foundation California
Worksafe

Opposition

Association of California School Administrators

California Association of School Business Officials (CASBO)

Kern County Superintendent of Schools Office

Analysis Prepared by: Kiersten Wall / HIGHER ED. / (916) 319-3960

1. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10578-022-01398-5#Abs1 ↑

2. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10670067/#:~:text=The%20first%20months%20after%20birth,life%20%5B2%2C6%5D. ↑

3. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8775379/ ↑

4. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/17455057231224180 ↑

Date of Hearing: March 12, 2025

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Al Muratsuchi, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 65 (

Author:Aguiar-Curry) – As Introduced Ver:December 3, 2024

[Note: This bill is double referred to the Assembly Higher Education Committee and will be heard by that Committee as it relates to issues under its jurisdiction.]

SUBJECT: School and community college employees: paid disability and parental leave

SUMMARY: Requires K-12 public schools and community college districts to provide up to 14 weeks of paid leave for employees experiencing pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. Specifically, this bill:

K-12 public schools

1. Requires a public school employer to provide for a leave of absence from duty for a certificated or classified employee of the public school employer who is required to be absent from duty because the employee is experiencing or has experienced pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. Requires that the length of the leave of absence, including the date on which the leave commences and the date on which the employee shall resume duties, be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician. Requires the leave of absence to be with full pay, subject to a maximum of 14 weeks. Prohibits a leave of absence from being deducted from any other leaves of absence available to the employee pursuant to state or federal regulations or laws. Authorizes the paid leave to begin before and continue after childbirth if the employee is actually disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions. 
2. Requires a public school employer to maintain group health coverage for an employee who takes a leave of absence under this provision for the duration of the leave of absence at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken a leave of absence.
3. States that there are no eligibility requirements, including, but not limited to, minimum hours worked or length of service, before an employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions is eligible for a paid leave of absence under this provision.
4. Requires written and unwritten employment policies and practices of a public school employer be applied to disability due to pregnancy or childbirth on the same terms and conditions applied to other temporary disabilities.
5. States that nothing in this measure shall be construed to diminish the obligation of a public school employer to comply with any collective bargaining agreement entered into by a public school employer and an exclusive bargaining representative that provides greater disability or parental leave rights to employees than the rights established under this measure. 

Community college districts

1. Requires the governing board of a community college district to provide for a leave of absence from duty for an academic or classified employee of the community college district who is required to be absent from duty because the employee is experiencing or has experienced pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. Requires the length of the leave of absence, including the date on which the leave commences and the date on which the employee resumes duties, to be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician. Requires the leave of absence be with full pay, subject to a maximum of 14 weeks. Prohibits a leave of absence from being deducted from any other leaves of absence available to the employee pursuant to state or federal regulations or laws. Authorizes the paid leave may begin before and continue after childbirth if the employee is actually disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions. 
2. Requires a community college district to maintain group health coverage for an employee who takes a leave of absence under this provision for the duration of the leave of absence at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken a leave of absence.
3. States that there are no eligibility requirements, including, but not limited to, minimum hours worked or length of service, before an employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions is eligible for a paid leave of absence under this provision.
4. Requires that written and unwritten employment policies and practices of a community college district be applied to disability due to pregnancy or childbirth on the same terms and conditions applied to other temporary disabilities.
5. States that nothing in this measure shall be construed to diminish the obligation of a community college district to comply with any collective bargaining agreement entered into by a community college district and an exclusive bargaining representative that provides greater disability or parental leave rights to employees than the rights established under this measure. 

EXISTING LAW:

1. Under Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) and associated regulations, it is an unlawful employment practice, unless based upon a bona fide occupational qualification, for an employer to refuse to allow a female employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition to take a leave for a reasonable period of time not to exceed four months and thereafter return to work. The employee is entitled to utilize any accrued vacation leave during this period of time. Also under the FEHA, reasonable accommodation of a disability related to pregnancy can include an extended leave of absence. (Government Code (GC) 12945)
2. The California Family Rights Act (CFRA) provides certain employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave a year for the purpose of bonding with a child, caring for a parent, spouse, or child with a serious health condition, or due to an employee’s own serious health condition, and requires group health benefits to be maintained during the leave as if employees continued to work instead of taking leave. (GC 12945.2)
3. Requires that school districts provide for a leave of absence from duty for a certificated employee of the school district who is required to be absent from duties because of pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, and recovery therefrom. Requires that the length of the leave of absence be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician. (Education Code (EC) 44965)
4. Requires that school districts provide for a leave of absence from duty for a classified employee of the school district who is required to be absent from duties because of pregnancy, childbirth, and convalescence therefrom. Requires that the length of the leave of absence be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician. (EC 45193)
5. Specifies that during each school year, when a person employed in a position requiring certification qualifications has exhausted all available sick leave, including all accumulated sick leave, and continues to be absent from his or her duties on account of illness or accident for an additional period of five school months, the amount deducted from the salary due him or her for any of the additional five months in which the absence occurs shall not exceed the sum that is actually paid a substitute employee employed to fill his or her position during his or her absence or, if no substitute employee was employed, the amount that would have been paid to the substitute had he or she been employed. Specifies the following:
   1. Requires the sick leave, including accumulated sick leave, and the five-month period to run consecutively; and
   2. Limits the benefit to one five-month period per illness or accident. However, if a school year terminates before the five-month period is exhausted, the employee may take the balance of the five-month period in a subsequent school year. (EC 44977)
6. Requires that certificated and classified employees participate in the differential pay program receive no less than 50% of their regular salary during the period of such absence. (EC 44983)
7. Requires an employer to maintain and pay for group health coverage for an eligible female employee who takes pregnancy disability leave for the duration of the leave, not to exceed four months over the course of a 12-month period per pregnancy, beginning on the date the pregnancy disability leave begins, at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken pregnancy disability leave. (Cal. Code Regs., Title 2, 11044(c)(1))

FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown

COMMENTS:

Need for the bill. According to the author, “Today, teachers in California do not receive paid pregnancy leave. This forces teachers to deplete all of their sick leave and then receive reduced ‘differential’ pay where they effectively pay for their own substitute teacher. This practice makes it hard for pregnant teachers to care for their families and has long term financial consequences. 70% of teachers are women, and studies have shown that the women in the teaching ranks will receive nearly $100,000 less than their male counterparts in their retirement because they are forced to use up all of their accrued sick leave. At a time when our educators are leaving this vital profession due to the pressures of the pandemic, and college students seek other paths for their careers, AB 65 takes a necessary step to invest in our educators by giving them 14 weeks of paid pregnancy leave. AB 65 will help to attract and retain educators. But, more importantly, it will grant the basic human right to care for one’s child to the people we count on every day to educate our children and grandchildren.”

Paid Family Leave (PFL). The PFL program extends disability compensation to individuals (male or female) who take time off work to care for a seriously ill child, spouse, parent, or domestic partner or to bond with a new child or a child in connection with adoption or foster care placement. The PFL program is a component of the State Disability Insurance (SDI) program and workers covered by the SDI program are also covered for this benefit. Employees may only be eligible for the PFL program if they are covered by the SDI program through a negotiated agreement with the State. If an employee does not pay into the SDI program, he or she would not be eligible to receive disability compensation under PFL.

Pregnancy Disability Leave and FMLA: Typically, mothers are on pregnancy disability leave for the first 6-8 weeks or longer after a baby's birth. Under the FMLA and state law, they are also entitled to take 12 weeks of additional leave for bonding.

Under current law, during pregnancy disability leave certificated school district employees use any sick leave and, once it is exhausted, are entitled to differential pay (as described above). During their subsequent FMLA leave, they are also entitled to use sick leave and then receive differential pay. Differential pay may be no less than 50% of the employee’s salary.

Differential pay. The Moore-Brown-Roberti Family Rights Act (CFRA) is the state-law equivalent of the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Both acts provide for up to 12 weeks of unpaid family and medical leave for public and private employees. Current law requires that certificated employees of school districts be provided with differential pay during their FMLA leave.

Differential pay is calculated by subtracting the cost of a substitute employee from the certificated employee's salary. For example, if the certificated employee made $50,000 and the substitute cost $35,000, then the certificated employee would be paid the difference of $15,000 during maternity or paternity leave after exhausting all accrued sick time.

The chart below provides an overview of current law and the effect of this measure on both certificated and classified employees who are pregnant and give birth. It is important to note that 1) it is a broad summary of a highly complex system and does not reflect all requirements and options, 2) local practice may vary significantly, since some of these benefits can be modified by collective bargaining agreements, and 3) it does not include all types of leave or apply to all employees, 4) it may not apply to all education employers. This chart is provided for summary purposes and should not be used to guide local decision-making.

*Employees are eligible for differential pay after sick leave is exhausted and for up to five months.

Maintenance of health coverage. This bill creates parity between workers on leave under SDI and teachers with regard to the maintenance of health coverage. Existing regulations require that an employer maintain and pay for group health coverage for an eligible female employee who takes pregnancy disability leave for the duration of the leave, not to exceed four months over the course of a 12-month period per pregnancy, beginning on the date the pregnancy disability leave begins, at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken pregnancy disability leave.

Eligibility requirements. This bill creates parity between workers on leave under SDI and teachers with regard to eligibility requirements. According to the Employment Development Department, the law does not require a minimum number of hours worked or days employed to qualify for benefits, except that, an employee must have earned at least $300 from which State Disability Insurance deductions were withheld during their claim base period.

What do school districts currently provide for pregnancy-related leave? The pregnancy leave compensation provided to school district employees (beyond differential pay as required by law) varies considerably based on local bargaining agreements and participation in disability insurance programs.

It is unclear how many school districts participate in SDI, but some as of 2021, including the Los Angeles Unified School District, do. Some districts do not participate in SDI but contract for private disability insurance, and some do not provide any such benefit. At least two school districts, the Grossmont Union High School District and the Palm Springs Unified School District, had agreed through collective bargaining to provide six weeks of paid maternity leave.

Parental leave in the United States and other countries. A 2019 study by the Institute for Women's Policy Research found that paid maternity leave keeps women in the workforce and lowers their need for public assistance. Most developed nations pay new mothers at least half of their salary during their time off, according to a December 2022 report by the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) that studied maternity leave in its 38 member countries policies in place as of April 2022. On average, maternity leave in the OECD countries lasts 18.5 weeks. Only one developed country — the United States — offers no national paid maternity leave, although some individual states and employers do offer it.

A 2010 study by the International Labor Organization of the United Nations found that out of 167 countries studied, 97% provide paid maternity leave for women. Only four out of the 167 countries studied did not: Lesotho, Papua New Guinea, Swaziland, and the United States. Australia was also listed in this study as not providing paid maternity leave, but its policy changed, and parents there currently receive 18 weeks of paid leave.

As of 2020, examples of countries with progressive paid maternity/paternity leave laws include Ireland, which has 6.5 months of paid leave, Italy, which has 5 months, England, which has nearly 10 months, and Sweden, which has nearly 16 months of paid leave.

Arguments in support. The California Teachers Association states, “This bill will finally end the discriminatory practice of giving employees who are pregnant no choice but to deplete their sick leave. When an educator is forced to use up their sick leave for pregnancy leave, they return to the classroom with no leave to care for sick family members or themselves. The current policy encourages sick educators to come to school endangering other educators, parents, and students. When an educator retires, CalSTRS converts unused sick leave to additional service credit. But school employees who have exhausted their sick leave due to pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy or recovery from those conditions are penalized. Establishing pregnancy disability leave will help retain educators during a historic educator shortage. By requiring school and community college districts to provide fully paid pregnancy disability leave, AB 65 will help employees working in public schools and community colleges to take necessary time off without sacrificing their financial security, the health of their families or the health of their school communities.”

Arguments in opposition. The Association of California School Administrators states, “We do not oppose the concept of granting employees leave for the purpose of pregnancy-related disability, family care, or other related needs. Our opposition to the bill is based on two factors and is consistent with concerns we expressed on prior legislation on the same topic. The first factor is the fiscal impact that AB 65 would have on local educational agencies (LEAs) since there is no dedicated funding source for this purpose. The second is the potential complexity this would add to an already complicated, extensive set of employee-leave programs. We agree with the assessment in Governor Newsom’s veto message on similar legislation, AB 500 (Gonzalez; 2019), which would have provided six weeks of paid pregnancy disability leave. He wrote, “Providing every California worker with paid family leave is a noble goal and a priority for my administration. However, this bill will likely result in annual costs of tens of millions of dollars that should be considered as part of the annual budget process and as part of local collective bargaining.” AB 500 proposed six weeks of paid leave, less than half of the paid leave time proposed by AB 65 and was introduced before state law extended bonding leave time.”

Related legislation. AB 2901 (Aguiar-Curry) of the 2023-24 Session was substantially similar to this bill. This bill was held on the Senate Floor.

AB 500 (Gonzalez) of the 2019-20 Session would have required that school districts, charter schools, and community colleges provide at least six weeks of full pay for pregnancy-related leaves of absence taken by certificated, academic, and classified employees. This bill was vetoed by the Governor with the following message:

Providing every California worker with paid family leave is a noble goal and a priority for my administration. However, this bill will likely result in annual costs of tens of millions of dollars that should be considered as part of the annual budget process and as part of local collective bargaining. Moreover, this proposal should be considered within the broader context of the Paid Family Leave Task Force, which is assessing increased paid family leave for all of California's workers.

AB 2012 (Medina) Chapter 994, Statutes of 2018 requires that a person employed in a position requiring certification qualifications, a person employed in an academic position, or a classified employee receive no less than 50% of his or her regular salary during parental leave, after sick leave has been exhausted, regardless of the type of parental leave pay system used by the school district or community college district.

AB 568 (Gonzales-Fletcher) of the 2017-18 Session would have required that school districts and community colleges provide at least six weeks of full pay for pregnancy-related leaves of absence taken by certificated, academic, and classified employees. This bill was vetoed by the Governor, who stated:

I have signed two previous bills, AB 2393 of 2016 and AB 375 of 2015, that allow these employees to receive differential pay for maternity and paternity leave. I believe further decisions regarding leave policies for school employees are best resolved through the collective bargaining process at the local level. I would also encourage districts to consider participating in the State Disability Insurance program that would allow these employees to receive pay in addition to what is already being provided.

AB 375 (Campos) Chapter 400, Statutes of 2015, requires certificated school employees on maternity or paternity leave to receive differential pay after exhausting accrued sick leave.

AB 2393 (Campos), Chapter 883, Statutes of 2016, allowed school district classified employees and community college academic and classified to receive differential pay.

REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:

Support

Afscme CA
Alhambra Teachers Association
American Congress of Obstetricians & Gynecologists - District Ix
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, Afl-cio
Anaheim Elementary Education Association
Anaheim Secondary Teachers Association
Asian Law Alliance
Asociación De Maestros Unidos
Associated Pomona Teachers
Association of Carmel Teachers
Association of Colton Educators
Breastfeedla
Buellton Education Association
CA Work and Families Coalition
California Breastfeeding Coalition
California Child Care Resource and Referral Network
California Community College Independents
California Domestic Workers Coalition
California Employment Lawyers Association
California Faculty Association
California Federation Business and Professional Women
California Federation of Labor Unions, Afl-cio
California Federation of Teachers
California Retired Teachers Association
California School Employees Association
California State Teachers' Retirement System
California State Treasurer
California Teachers Association
California Virtual Educators United
California Wic Association
California Work & Family Coalition
Campbell Elementary Teaches Association
Caring Across Generations
Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice
Center for Workers' Rights
Cft- a Union of Educators & Classified Professionals, Aft, Afl-cio
Child Care Law Center
Children Now
Citizens for Choice
Corona-norco Teachers Association
Covina Unified Education Association
Cta/nea-retired
El Monte Elementary Teachers Association
Electric Universe
Elk Grove Teachers Association
Equal Rights Advocates
Food Empowerment Project
Friends Committee on Legislation of California
Hacienda LA Puente Teachers Association
Health Access California
Human Impact Partners
Insure the Uninsured Project
Jewish Center for Justice
LA Alliance for A New Economy
LA Best Babies Network
Lammersville Teachers Association
Legal Aid At Work
Livermore Education Association
Marin Child Care Council
Merced College Faculty Association
Moreno Valley Educators Association
National Partnership for Women & Families
National Women's Political Caucus of California
Natomas Teachers' Association
Nea-jurupa
Nevada Joint Union High School Teachers Association
Oak Grove Educators Association
Orange County Equality Coalition
Our Family Coalition
Oxnard Educators Association
Parent Voices California
Poder Latinx
Portola Valley Teachers Association
Public Counsel
Redlands Teachers Association
Rocklin Teachers' Professional Association
Roseville Teachers Association
Sacramento City Teachers Association
San Benito Joint Union High School District Teachers Association
San Diego County Breastfeeding Coalition
San Jose Teachers Association
Santa Maria Elementary Education Association
Santa Monica-malibu Classroom Teachers Association
Santa Rosa Teachers Association
Seiu California
Special Educators of Amador County
Tahoe Truckee Education Association
Teach Plus
Teach Plus - Calfornia
Teachers Association of Long Beach
Temecula Valley Educators Association
Tustin Educators Association
Twin Rivers United Educators
UAW Region 6
Ufcw - Western States Council
United Teachers of Richmond
Vacaville Teachers Association
Walnut Creek Teachers Association
Walnut Valley Educators Association
Woodland Education Association
Worksafe

Opposition

Association of California School Administrators
California Association of School Business Officials (CASBO)
Charter Schools Development Center
Kern County Superintendent of Schools Office

San Bernardino County District Advocates for Better Schools (SANDABS)
School Employers Association of California
Small School Districts Association

Analysis Prepared by: Chelsea Kelley / ED. / (916) 319-2087

Date of Hearing: March 12, 2025

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Al Muratsuchi, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 65 (

Author:Aguiar-Curry) – As Introduced Ver:December 3, 2024

SUBJECT: School and community college employees: paid disability and parental leave

SUMMARY: Requires K-12 public schools and community college districts to provide up to 14 weeks of paid leave for employees experiencing pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. Specifically, this bill:

K-12 public schools

1. Requires a public school employer to provide for a leave of absence from duty for a certificated or classified employee of the public school employer who is required to be absent from duty because the employee is experiencing or has experienced pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. Requires that the length of the leave of absence, including the date on which the leave commences and the date on which the employee shall resume duties, be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician. Requires the leave of absence to be with full pay, subject to a maximum of 14 weeks. Prohibits a leave of absence from being deducted from any other leaves of absence available to the employee pursuant to state or federal regulations or laws. Authorizes the paid leave to begin before and continue after childbirth if the employee is actually disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions. 
2. Requires a public school employer to maintain group health coverage for an employee who takes a leave of absence under this provision for the duration of the leave of absence at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken a leave of absence.
3. States that there are no eligibility requirements, including, but not limited to, minimum hours worked or length of service, before an employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions is eligible for a paid leave of absence under this provision.
4. Requires written and unwritten employment policies and practices of a public school employer be applied to disability due to pregnancy or childbirth on the same terms and conditions applied to other temporary disabilities.
5. States that nothing in this measure shall be construed to diminish the obligation of a public school employer to comply with any collective bargaining agreement entered into by a public school employer and an exclusive bargaining representative that provides greater disability or parental leave rights to employees than the rights established under this measure. 

Community college districts

1. Requires the governing board of a community college district to provide for a leave of absence from duty for an academic or classified employee of the community college district who is required to be absent from duty because the employee is experiencing or has experienced pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. Requires the length of the leave of absence, including the date on which the leave commences and the date on which the employee resumes duties, to be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician. Requires the leave of absence be with full pay, subject to a maximum of 14 weeks. Prohibits a leave of absence from being deducted from any other leaves of absence available to the employee pursuant to state or federal regulations or laws. Authorizes the paid leave may begin before and continue after childbirth if the employee is actually disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions. 
2. Requires a community college district to maintain group health coverage for an employee who takes a leave of absence under this provision for the duration of the leave of absence at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken a leave of absence.
3. States that there are no eligibility requirements, including, but not limited to, minimum hours worked or length of service, before an employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions is eligible for a paid leave of absence under this provision.
4. Requires that written and unwritten employment policies and practices of a community college district be applied to disability due to pregnancy or childbirth on the same terms and conditions applied to other temporary disabilities.
5. States that nothing in this measure shall be construed to diminish the obligation of a community college district to comply with any collective bargaining agreement entered into by a community college district and an exclusive bargaining representative that provides greater disability or parental leave rights to employees than the rights established under this measure. 

EXISTING LAW:

1. Under Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) and associated regulations, it is an unlawful employment practice, unless based upon a bona fide occupational qualification, for an employer to refuse to allow a female employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition to take a leave for a reasonable period of time not to exceed four months and thereafter return to work. The employee is entitled to utilize any accrued vacation leave during this period of time. Also under the FEHA, reasonable accommodation of a disability related to pregnancy can include an extended leave of absence. (Government Code (GC) 12945)
2. The California Family Rights Act (CFRA) provides certain employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave a year for the purpose of bonding with a child, caring for a parent, spouse, or child with a serious health condition, or due to an employee’s own serious health condition, and requires group health benefits to be maintained during the leave as if employees continued to work instead of taking leave. (GC 12945.2)
3. Requires that school districts provide for a leave of absence from duty for a certificated employee of the school district who is required to be absent from duties because of pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, and recovery therefrom. Requires that the length of the leave of absence be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician. (Education Code (EC) 44965)
4. Requires that school districts provide for a leave of absence from duty for a classified employee of the school district who is required to be absent from duties because of pregnancy, childbirth, and convalescence therefrom. Requires that the length of the leave of absence be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician. (EC 45193)
5. Specifies that during each school year, when a person employed in a position requiring certification qualifications has exhausted all available sick leave, including all accumulated sick leave, and continues to be absent from his or her duties on account of illness or accident for an additional period of five school months, the amount deducted from the salary due him or her for any of the additional five months in which the absence occurs shall not exceed the sum that is actually paid a substitute employee employed to fill his or her position during his or her absence or, if no substitute employee was employed, the amount that would have been paid to the substitute had he or she been employed. Specifies the following:
   1. Requires the sick leave, including accumulated sick leave, and the five-month period to run consecutively; and
   2. Limits the benefit to one five-month period per illness or accident. However, if a school year terminates before the five-month period is exhausted, the employee may take the balance of the five-month period in a subsequent school year. (EC 44977)
6. Requires that certificated and classified employees participate in the differential pay program receive no less than 50% of their regular salary during the period of such absence. (EC 44983)
7. Requires an employer to maintain and pay for group health coverage for an eligible female employee who takes pregnancy disability leave for the duration of the leave, not to exceed four months over the course of a 12-month period per pregnancy, beginning on the date the pregnancy disability leave begins, at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken pregnancy disability leave. (Cal. Code Regs., Title 2, 11044(c)(1))

FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown

COMMENTS:

Need for the bill. According to the author, “Today, teachers in California do not receive paid pregnancy leave. This forces teachers to deplete all of their sick leave and then receive reduced ‘differential’ pay where they effectively pay for their own substitute teacher. This practice makes it hard for pregnant teachers to care for their families and has long term financial consequences. 70% of teachers are women, and studies have shown that the women in the teaching ranks will receive nearly $100,000 less than their male counterparts in their retirement because they are forced to use up all of their accrued sick leave. At a time when our educators are leaving this vital profession due to the pressures of the pandemic, and college students seek other paths for their careers, AB 65 takes a necessary step to invest in our educators by giving them 14 weeks of paid pregnancy leave. AB 65 will help to attract and retain educators. But, more importantly, it will grant the basic human right to care for one’s child to the people we count on every day to educate our children and grandchildren.”

Paid Family Leave (PFL). The PFL program extends disability compensation to individuals (male or female) who take time off work to care for a seriously ill child, spouse, parent, or domestic partner or to bond with a new child or a child in connection with adoption or foster care placement. The PFL program is a component of the State Disability Insurance (SDI) program and workers covered by the SDI program are also covered for this benefit. Employees may only be eligible for the PFL program if they are covered by the SDI program through a negotiated agreement with the State. If an employee does not pay into the SDI program, he or she would not be eligible to receive disability compensation under PFL.

Pregnancy Disability Leave and FMLA: Typically, mothers are on pregnancy disability leave for the first 6-8 weeks or longer after a baby's birth. Under the FMLA and state law, they are also entitled to take 12 weeks of additional leave for bonding.

Under current law, during pregnancy disability leave certificated school district employees use any sick leave and, once it is exhausted, are entitled to differential pay (as described above). During their subsequent FMLA leave, they are also entitled to use sick leave and then receive differential pay. Differential pay may be no less than 50% of the employee’s salary.

Differential pay. The Moore-Brown-Roberti Family Rights Act (CFRA) is the state-law equivalent of the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Both acts provide for up to 12 weeks of unpaid family and medical leave for public and private employees. Current law requires that certificated employees of school districts be provided with differential pay during their FMLA leave.

Differential pay is calculated by subtracting the cost of a substitute employee from the certificated employee's salary. For example, if the certificated employee made $50,000 and the substitute cost $35,000, then the certificated employee would be paid the difference of $15,000 during maternity or paternity leave after exhausting all accrued sick time.

The chart below provides an overview of current law and the effect of this measure on both certificated and classified employees who are pregnant and give birth. It is important to note that 1) it is a broad summary of a highly complex system and does not reflect all requirements and options, 2) local practice may vary significantly, since some of these benefits can be modified by collective bargaining agreements, and 3) it does not include all types of leave or apply to all employees, 4) it may not apply to all education employers. This chart is provided for summary purposes and should not be used to guide local decision-making.

*Employees are eligible for differential pay after sick leave is exhausted and for up to five months.

Maintenance of health coverage. This bill creates parity between workers on leave under SDI and teachers with regard to the maintenance of health coverage. Existing regulations require that an employer maintain and pay for group health coverage for an eligible female employee who takes pregnancy disability leave for the duration of the leave, not to exceed four months over the course of a 12-month period per pregnancy, beginning on the date the pregnancy disability leave begins, at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken pregnancy disability leave.

Eligibility requirements. This bill creates parity between workers on leave under SDI and teachers with regard to eligibility requirements. According to the Employment Development Department, the law does not require a minimum number of hours worked or days employed to qualify for benefits, except that, an employee must have earned at least $300 from which State Disability Insurance deductions were withheld during their claim base period.

What do school districts currently provide for pregnancy-related leave? The pregnancy leave compensation provided to school district employees (beyond differential pay as required by law) varies considerably based on local bargaining agreements and participation in disability insurance programs.

It is unclear how many school districts participate in SDI, but some as of 2021, including the Los Angeles Unified School District, do. Some districts do not participate in SDI but contract for private disability insurance, and some do not provide any such benefit. At least two school districts, the Grossmont Union High School District and the Palm Springs Unified School District, had agreed through collective bargaining to provide six weeks of paid maternity leave.

Parental leave in the United States and other countries. A 2019 study by the Institute for Women's Policy Research found that paid maternity leave keeps women in the workforce and lowers their need for public assistance. Most developed nations pay new mothers at least half of their salary during their time off, according to a December 2022 report by the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) that studied maternity leave in its 38 member countries policies in place as of April 2022. On average, maternity leave in the OECD countries lasts 18.5 weeks. Only one developed country — the United States — offers no national paid maternity leave, although some individual states and employers do offer it.

A 2010 study by the International Labor Organization of the United Nations found that out of 167 countries studied, 97% provide paid maternity leave for women. Only four out of the 167 countries studied did not: Lesotho, Papua New Guinea, Swaziland, and the United States. Australia was also listed in this study as not providing paid maternity leave, but its policy changed, and parents there currently receive 18 weeks of paid leave.

As of 2020, examples of countries with progressive paid maternity/paternity leave laws include Ireland, which has 6.5 months of paid leave, Italy, which has 5 months, England, which has nearly 10 months, and Sweden, which has nearly 16 months of paid leave.

Arguments in support. The California Teachers Association states, “This bill will finally end the discriminatory practice of giving employees who are pregnant no choice but to deplete their sick leave. When an educator is forced to use up their sick leave for pregnancy leave, they return to the classroom with no leave to care for sick family members or themselves. The current policy encourages sick educators to come to school endangering other educators, parents, and students. When an educator retires, CalSTRS converts unused sick leave to additional service credit. But school employees who have exhausted their sick leave due to pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy or recovery from those conditions are penalized. Establishing pregnancy disability leave will help retain educators during a historic educator shortage. By requiring school and community college districts to provide fully paid pregnancy disability leave, AB 65 will help employees working in public schools and community colleges to take necessary time off without sacrificing their financial security, the health of their families or the health of their school communities.”

Arguments in opposition. The Association of California School Administrators states, “We do not oppose the concept of granting employees leave for the purpose of pregnancy-related disability, family care, or other related needs. Our opposition to the bill is based on two factors and is consistent with concerns we expressed on prior legislation on the same topic. The first factor is the fiscal impact that AB 65 would have on local educational agencies (LEAs) since there is no dedicated funding source for this purpose. The second is the potential complexity this would add to an already complicated, extensive set of employee-leave programs. We agree with the assessment in Governor Newsom’s veto message on similar legislation, AB 500 (Gonzalez; 2019), which would have provided six weeks of paid pregnancy disability leave. He wrote, “Providing every California worker with paid family leave is a noble goal and a priority for my administration. However, this bill will likely result in annual costs of tens of millions of dollars that should be considered as part of the annual budget process and as part of local collective bargaining.” AB 500 proposed six weeks of paid leave, less than half of the paid leave time proposed by AB 65 and was introduced before state law extended bonding leave time.”

Related legislation. AB 2901 (Aguiar-Curry) of the 2023-24 Session was substantially similar to this bill. This bill was held on the Senate Floor.

AB 500 (Gonzalez) of the 2019-20 Session would have required that school districts, charter schools, and community colleges provide at least six weeks of full pay for pregnancy-related leaves of absence taken by certificated, academic, and classified employees. This bill was vetoed by the Governor with the following message:

Providing every California worker with paid family leave is a noble goal and a priority for my administration. However, this bill will likely result in annual costs of tens of millions of dollars that should be considered as part of the annual budget process and as part of local collective bargaining. Moreover, this proposal should be considered within the broader context of the Paid Family Leave Task Force, which is assessing increased paid family leave for all of California's workers.

AB 2012 (Medina) Chapter 994, Statutes of 2018 requires that a person employed in a position requiring certification qualifications, a person employed in an academic position, or a classified employee receive no less than 50% of his or her regular salary during parental leave, after sick leave has been exhausted, regardless of the type of parental leave pay system used by the school district or community college district.

AB 568 (Gonzales-Fletcher) of the 2017-18 Session would have required that school districts and community colleges provide at least six weeks of full pay for pregnancy-related leaves of absence taken by certificated, academic, and classified employees. This bill was vetoed by the Governor, who stated:

I have signed two previous bills, AB 2393 of 2016 and AB 375 of 2015, that allow these employees to receive differential pay for maternity and paternity leave. I believe further decisions regarding leave policies for school employees are best resolved through the collective bargaining process at the local level. I would also encourage districts to consider participating in the State Disability Insurance program that would allow these employees to receive pay in addition to what is already being provided.

AB 375 (Campos) Chapter 400, Statutes of 2015, requires certificated school employees on maternity or paternity leave to receive differential pay after exhausting accrued sick leave.

AB 2393 (Campos), Chapter 883, Statutes of 2016, allowed school district classified employees and community college academic and classified to receive differential pay.

REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:

Support

Afscme CA
Alhambra Teachers Association
American Congress of Obstetricians & Gynecologists - District Ix
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, Afl-cio
Anaheim Elementary Education Association
Anaheim Secondary Teachers Association
Asian Law Alliance
Asociación De Maestros Unidos
Associated Pomona Teachers
Association of Carmel Teachers
Association of Colton Educators
Breastfeedla
Buellton Education Association
CA Work and Families Coalition
California Breastfeeding Coalition
California Child Care Resource and Referral Network
California Community College Independents
California Domestic Workers Coalition
California Employment Lawyers Association
California Faculty Association
California Federation Business and Professional Women
California Federation of Labor Unions, Afl-cio
California Federation of Teachers
California Retired Teachers Association
California School Employees Association
California State Teachers' Retirement System
California State Treasurer
California Teachers Association
California Virtual Educators United
California Wic Association
California Work & Family Coalition
Campbell Elementary Teaches Association
Caring Across Generations
Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice
Center for Workers' Rights
Cft- a Union of Educators & Classified Professionals, Aft, Afl-cio
Child Care Law Center
Children Now
Citizens for Choice
Corona-norco Teachers Association
Covina Unified Education Association
Cta/nea-retired
El Monte Elementary Teachers Association
Electric Universe
Elk Grove Teachers Association
Equal Rights Advocates
Food Empowerment Project
Friends Committee on Legislation of California
Hacienda LA Puente Teachers Association
Health Access California
Human Impact Partners
Insure the Uninsured Project
Jewish Center for Justice
LA Alliance for A New Economy
LA Best Babies Network
Lammersville Teachers Association
Legal Aid At Work
Livermore Education Association
Marin Child Care Council
Merced College Faculty Association
Moreno Valley Educators Association
National Partnership for Women & Families
National Women's Political Caucus of California
Natomas Teachers' Association
Nea-jurupa
Nevada Joint Union High School Teachers Association
Oak Grove Educators Association
Orange County Equality Coalition
Our Family Coalition
Oxnard Educators Association
Parent Voices California
Poder Latinx
Portola Valley Teachers Association
Public Counsel
Redlands Teachers Association
Rocklin Teachers' Professional Association
Roseville Teachers Association
Sacramento City Teachers Association
San Benito Joint Union High School District Teachers Association
San Diego County Breastfeeding Coalition
San Jose Teachers Association
Santa Maria Elementary Education Association
Santa Monica-malibu Classroom Teachers Association
Santa Rosa Teachers Association
Seiu California
Special Educators of Amador County
Tahoe Truckee Education Association
Teach Plus
Teach Plus - Calfornia
Teachers Association of Long Beach
Temecula Valley Educators Association
Tustin Educators Association
Twin Rivers United Educators
UAW Region 6
Ufcw - Western States Council
United Teachers of Richmond
Vacaville Teachers Association
Walnut Creek Teachers Association
Walnut Valley Educators Association
Woodland Education Association
Worksafe

Oppose

Association of California School Administrators
California Association of School Business Officials (CASBO)
Charter Schools Development Center
Kern County Superintendent of Schools Office

San Bernardino County District Advocates for Better Schools (SANDABS)
School Employers Association of California
Small School Districts Association

Analysis Prepared by: Chelsea Kelley / ED. / (916) 319-2087

Date of Hearing: March 12, 2025

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Al Muratsuchi, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 65 (

Author:Aguiar-Curry) – As Introduced Ver:December 3, 2024

SUBJECT: School and community college employees: paid disability and parental leave

SUMMARY: Requires K-12 public schools and community college districts to provide up to 14 weeks of paid leave for employees experiencing pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. Specifically, this bill:

K-12 public schools

1. Requires a public school employer to provide for a leave of absence from duty for a certificated or classified employee of the public school employer who is required to be absent from duty because the employee is experiencing or has experienced pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. Requires that the length of the leave of absence, including the date on which the leave commences and the date on which the employee shall resume duties, be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician. Requires the leave of absence to be with full pay, subject to a maximum of 14 weeks. Prohibits a leave of absence from being deducted from any other leaves of absence available to the employee pursuant to state or federal regulations or laws. Authorizes the paid leave to begin before and continue after childbirth if the employee is actually disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions. 
2. Requires a public school employer to maintain group health coverage for an employee who takes a leave of absence under this provision for the duration of the leave of absence at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken a leave of absence.
3. States that there are no eligibility requirements, including, but not limited to, minimum hours worked or length of service, before an employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions is eligible for a paid leave of absence under this provision.
4. Requires written and unwritten employment policies and practices of a public school employer be applied to disability due to pregnancy or childbirth on the same terms and conditions applied to other temporary disabilities.
5. States that nothing in this measure shall be construed to diminish the obligation of a public school employer to comply with any collective bargaining agreement entered into by a public school employer and an exclusive bargaining representative that provides greater disability or parental leave rights to employees than the rights established under this measure. 

Community college districts

1. Requires the governing board of a community college district to provide for a leave of absence from duty for an academic or classified employee of the community college district who is required to be absent from duty because the employee is experiencing or has experienced pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from those conditions. Requires the length of the leave of absence, including the date on which the leave commences and the date on which the employee resumes duties, to be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician. Requires the leave of absence be with full pay, subject to a maximum of 14 weeks. Prohibits a leave of absence from being deducted from any other leaves of absence available to the employee pursuant to state or federal regulations or laws. Authorizes the paid leave may begin before and continue after childbirth if the employee is actually disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions. 
2. Requires a community college district to maintain group health coverage for an employee who takes a leave of absence under this provision for the duration of the leave of absence at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken a leave of absence.
3. States that there are no eligibility requirements, including, but not limited to, minimum hours worked or length of service, before an employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or related medical conditions is eligible for a paid leave of absence under this provision.
4. Requires that written and unwritten employment policies and practices of a community college district be applied to disability due to pregnancy or childbirth on the same terms and conditions applied to other temporary disabilities.
5. States that nothing in this measure shall be construed to diminish the obligation of a community college district to comply with any collective bargaining agreement entered into by a community college district and an exclusive bargaining representative that provides greater disability or parental leave rights to employees than the rights established under this measure. 

EXISTING LAW:

1. Under Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) and associated regulations, it is an unlawful employment practice, unless based upon a bona fide occupational qualification, for an employer to refuse to allow a female employee disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition to take a leave for a reasonable period of time not to exceed four months and thereafter return to work. The employee is entitled to utilize any accrued vacation leave during this period of time. Also under the FEHA, reasonable accommodation of a disability related to pregnancy can include an extended leave of absence. (Government Code (GC) 12945)
2. The California Family Rights Act (CFRA) provides certain employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave a year for the purpose of bonding with a child, caring for a parent, spouse, or child with a serious health condition, or due to an employee’s own serious health condition, and requires group health benefits to be maintained during the leave as if employees continued to work instead of taking leave. (GC 12945.2)
3. Requires that school districts provide for a leave of absence from duty for a certificated employee of the school district who is required to be absent from duties because of pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, and recovery therefrom. Requires that the length of the leave of absence be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician. (Education Code (EC) 44965)
4. Requires that school districts provide for a leave of absence from duty for a classified employee of the school district who is required to be absent from duties because of pregnancy, childbirth, and convalescence therefrom. Requires that the length of the leave of absence be determined by the employee and the employee’s physician. (EC 45193)
5. Specifies that during each school year, when a person employed in a position requiring certification qualifications has exhausted all available sick leave, including all accumulated sick leave, and continues to be absent from his or her duties on account of illness or accident for an additional period of five school months, the amount deducted from the salary due him or her for any of the additional five months in which the absence occurs shall not exceed the sum that is actually paid a substitute employee employed to fill his or her position during his or her absence or, if no substitute employee was employed, the amount that would have been paid to the substitute had he or she been employed. Specifies the following:
   1. Requires the sick leave, including accumulated sick leave, and the five-month period to run consecutively; and
   2. Limits the benefit to one five-month period per illness or accident. However, if a school year terminates before the five-month period is exhausted, the employee may take the balance of the five-month period in a subsequent school year. (EC 44977)
6. Requires that certificated and classified employees participate in the differential pay program receive no less than 50% of their regular salary during the period of such absence. (EC 44983)
7. Requires an employer to maintain and pay for group health coverage for an eligible female employee who takes pregnancy disability leave for the duration of the leave, not to exceed four months over the course of a 12-month period per pregnancy, beginning on the date the pregnancy disability leave begins, at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken pregnancy disability leave. (Cal. Code Regs., Title 2, 11044(c)(1))

FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown

COMMENTS:

Need for the bill. According to the author, “Today, teachers in California do not receive paid pregnancy leave. This forces teachers to deplete all of their sick leave and then receive reduced ‘differential’ pay where they effectively pay for their own substitute teacher. This practice makes it hard for pregnant teachers to care for their families and has long term financial consequences. 70% of teachers are women, and studies have shown that the women in the teaching ranks will receive nearly $100,000 less than their male counterparts in their retirement because they are forced to use up all of their accrued sick leave. At a time when our educators are leaving this vital profession due to the pressures of the pandemic, and college students seek other paths for their careers, AB 65 takes a necessary step to invest in our educators by giving them 14 weeks of paid pregnancy leave. AB 65 will help to attract and retain educators. But, more importantly, it will grant the basic human right to care for one’s child to the people we count on every day to educate our children and grandchildren.”

Paid Family Leave (PFL). The PFL program extends disability compensation to individuals (male or female) who take time off work to care for a seriously ill child, spouse, parent, or domestic partner or to bond with a new child or a child in connection with adoption or foster care placement. The PFL program is a component of the State Disability Insurance (SDI) program and workers covered by the SDI program are also covered for this benefit. Employees may only be eligible for the PFL program if they are covered by the SDI program through a negotiated agreement with the State. If an employee does not pay into the SDI program, he or she would not be eligible to receive disability compensation under PFL.

Pregnancy Disability Leave and FMLA: Typically, mothers are on pregnancy disability leave for the first 6-8 weeks or longer after a baby's birth. Under the FMLA and state law, they are also entitled to take 12 weeks of additional leave for bonding.

Under current law, during pregnancy disability leave certificated school district employees use any sick leave and, once it is exhausted, are entitled to differential pay (as described above). During their subsequent FMLA leave, they are also entitled to use sick leave and then receive differential pay. Differential pay may be no less than 50% of the employee’s salary.

Differential pay. The Moore-Brown-Roberti Family Rights Act (CFRA) is the state-law equivalent of the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Both acts provide for up to 12 weeks of unpaid family and medical leave for public and private employees. Current law requires that certificated employees of school districts be provided with differential pay during their FMLA leave.

Differential pay is calculated by subtracting the cost of a substitute employee from the certificated employee's salary. For example, if the certificated employee made $50,000 and the substitute cost $35,000, then the certificated employee would be paid the difference of $15,000 during maternity or paternity leave after exhausting all accrued sick time.

The chart below provides an overview of current law and the effect of this measure on both certificated and classified employees who are pregnant and give birth. It is important to note that 1) it is a broad summary of a highly complex system and does not reflect all requirements and options, 2) local practice may vary significantly, since some of these benefits can be modified by collective bargaining agreements, and 3) it does not include all types of leave or apply to all employees, 4) it may not apply to all education employers. This chart is provided for summary purposes and should not be used to guide local decision-making.

*Employees are eligible for differential pay after sick leave is exhausted and for up to five months.

Maintenance of health coverage. This bill creates parity between workers on leave under SDI and teachers with regard to the maintenance of health coverage. Existing regulations require that an employer maintain and pay for group health coverage for an eligible female employee who takes pregnancy disability leave for the duration of the leave, not to exceed four months over the course of a 12-month period per pregnancy, beginning on the date the pregnancy disability leave begins, at the same level and under the same conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had not taken pregnancy disability leave.

Eligibility requirements. This bill creates parity between workers on leave under SDI and teachers with regard to eligibility requirements. According to the Employment Development Department, the law does not require a minimum number of hours worked or days employed to qualify for benefits, except that, an employee must have earned at least $300 from which State Disability Insurance deductions were withheld during their claim base period.

What do school districts currently provide for pregnancy-related leave? The pregnancy leave compensation provided to school district employees (beyond differential pay as required by law) varies considerably based on local bargaining agreements and participation in disability insurance programs.

It is unclear how many school districts participate in SDI, but some as of 2021, including the Los Angeles Unified School District, do. Some districts do not participate in SDI but contract for private disability insurance, and some do not provide any such benefit. At least two school districts, the Grossmont Union High School District and the Palm Springs Unified School District, had agreed through collective bargaining to provide six weeks of paid maternity leave.

Parental leave in the United States and other countries. A 2019 study by the Institute for Women's Policy Research found that paid maternity leave keeps women in the workforce and lowers their need for public assistance. Most developed nations pay new mothers at least half of their salary during their time off, according to a December 2022 report by the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) that studied maternity leave in its 38 member countries policies in place as of April 2022. On average, maternity leave in the OECD countries lasts 18.5 weeks. Only one developed country — the United States — offers no national paid maternity leave, although some individual states and employers do offer it.

A 2010 study by the International Labor Organization of the United Nations found that out of 167 countries studied, 97% provide paid maternity leave for women. Only four out of the 167 countries studied did not: Lesotho, Papua New Guinea, Swaziland, and the United States. Australia was also listed in this study as not providing paid maternity leave, but its policy changed, and parents there currently receive 18 weeks of paid leave.

As of 2020, examples of countries with progressive paid maternity/paternity leave laws include Ireland, which has 6.5 months of paid leave, Italy, which has 5 months, England, which has nearly 10 months, and Sweden, which has nearly 16 months of paid leave.

Arguments in support. The California Teachers Association states, “This bill will finally end the discriminatory practice of giving employees who are pregnant no choice but to deplete their sick leave. When an educator is forced to use up their sick leave for pregnancy leave, they return to the classroom with no leave to care for sick family members or themselves. The current policy encourages sick educators to come to school endangering other educators, parents, and students. When an educator retires, CalSTRS converts unused sick leave to additional service credit. But school employees who have exhausted their sick leave due to pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, termination of pregnancy or recovery from those conditions are penalized. Establishing pregnancy disability leave will help retain educators during a historic educator shortage. By requiring school and community college districts to provide fully paid pregnancy disability leave, AB 65 will help employees working in public schools and community colleges to take necessary time off without sacrificing their financial security, the health of their families or the health of their school communities.”

Arguments in opposition. The Association of California School Administrators states, “AB 2901 would require LEAs to provide up to 14 weeks of full pay for pregnancy-related leaves of absence taken by certificated, academic and classified employees serving grades K-14. This leave may be taken before or after the pregnancy-related condition, and the employee is not required to use any sick leave prior to accessing this leave. There are no limitations on how frequently the leave may be taken, nor are there any required hours/weeks of employment to be completed before the employee qualifies for leave. Regrettably, the additional costs of this paid leave would be carried by the LEA and could easily reach the mid to high tens of millions of dollars annually between employee salary, benefits, and long-term substitute teaching positions needed for credentialed employees. It also would result in greater pension liability as sick leave accrual would count towards final benefit calculations. Given the nature of school finance, AB 2901 would draw from a finite pool of resources at the same time that the state is facing a significant budget deficit. LEAs are also implementing new student services such as Universal Transitional Kindergarten, school meals programs, and Extended Learning Opportunity Programs.”

Related legislation. AB 2901 (Aguiar-Curry) of the 2023-24 Session was substantially similar to this bill. This bill was held on the Senate Floor.

AB 500 (Gonzalez) of the 2019-20 Session would have required that school districts, charter schools, and community colleges provide at least six weeks of full pay for pregnancy-related leaves of absence taken by certificated, academic, and classified employees. This bill was vetoed by the Governor with the following message:

Providing every California worker with paid family leave is a noble goal and a priority for my administration. However, this bill will likely result in annual costs of tens of millions of dollars that should be considered as part of the annual budget process and as part of local collective bargaining. Moreover, this proposal should be considered within the broader context of the Paid Family Leave Task Force, which is assessing increased paid family leave for all of California's workers.

AB 2012 (Medina) Chapter 994, Statutes of 2018 requires that a person employed in a position requiring certification qualifications, a person employed in an academic position, or a classified employee receive no less than 50% of his or her regular salary during parental leave, after sick leave has been exhausted, regardless of the type of parental leave pay system used by the school district or community college district.

AB 568 (Gonzales-Fletcher) of the 2017-18 Session would have required that school districts and community colleges provide at least six weeks of full pay for pregnancy-related leaves of absence taken by certificated, academic, and classified employees. This bill was vetoed by the Governor, who stated:

I have signed two previous bills, AB 2393 of 2016 and AB 375 of 2015, that allow these employees to receive differential pay for maternity and paternity leave. I believe further decisions regarding leave policies for school employees are best resolved through the collective bargaining process at the local level. I would also encourage districts to consider participating in the State Disability Insurance program that would allow these employees to receive pay in addition to what is already being provided.

AB 375 (Campos) Chapter 400, Statutes of 2015, requires certificated school employees on maternity or paternity leave to receive differential pay after exhausting accrued sick leave.

AB 2393 (Campos), Chapter 883, Statutes of 2016, allowed school district classified employees and community college academic and classified to receive differential pay.

REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:

Support

Afscme CA
Alhambra Teachers Association
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, Afl-cio
Anaheim Elementary Education Association
Anaheim Secondary Teachers Association
Asociación De Maestros Unidos
Associated Pomona Teachers
Association of Carmel Teachers
Association of Colton Educators
Buellton Education Association
California Federation of Labor Unions, Afl-cio
California Federation of Teachers
California Retired Teachers Association
California School Employees Association
California State Teachers' Retirement System
California Teachers Association
California Virtual Educators United
Campbell Elementary Teaches Association
Children Now
Corona-norco Teachers Association
Covina Unified Education Association
Cta/nea-retired
El Monte Elementary Teachers Association
Elk Grove Teachers Association
Equal Rights Advocates
Hacienda LA Puente Teachers Association
Health Access California
Lammersville Teachers Association
Livermore Education Association
Merced College Faculty Association
Moreno Valley Educators Association
Natomas Teachers' Association
Nea-jurupa
Nevada Joint Union High School Teachers Association
Oak Grove Educators Association
Oxnard Educators Association
Portola Valley Teachers Association
Redlands Teachers Association
Rocklin Teachers' Professional Association
Roseville Teachers Association
Sacramento City Teachers Association
San Benito Joint Union High School District Teachers Association
San Jose Teachers Association
Santa Maria Elementary Education Association
Santa Monica-malibu Classroom Teachers Association
Santa Rosa Teachers Association
Seiu California
Special Educators of Amador County
Tahoe Truckee Education Association
Teachers Association of Long Beach
Tustin Educators Association
Twin Rivers United Educators
United Teachers of Richmond
Vacaville Teachers Association
Walnut Creek Teachers Association
Walnut Valley Educators Association
Woodland Education Association

Opposition

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Analysis Prepared by: Chelsea Kelley / ED. / (916) 319-2087