Bill Text: CA AB1549 | 2013-2014 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Postsecondary education: sexual assault: audits.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2014-08-11 - Re-referred to Com. on RLS. pursuant to Senate Rule 29.10(c). [AB1549 Detail]
Download: California-2013-AB1549-Amended.html
BILL NUMBER: AB 1549 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 7, 2014
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Rendon
JANUARY 27, 2014
An act to amend Section 66281.5 of add and
repeal Section 66281.6 of the Education Code, relating to
postsecondary education.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1549, as amended, Rendon. Postsecondary education:
Equity in Higher Education Act. sexual assault:
audits.
Existing law, known as the Donahoe Higher Education Act, sets
forth, among other things, the missions and functions of California's
public and independent segments of higher education and their
respective institutions of higher education. Provisions of the act
apply to the University of California only to the extent that the
Regents of the University of California, by appropriate resolution,
act to make a provision applicable.
A portion of the Donahoe Higher Education Act known as the Equity
in Higher Education Act requires, among other things, that
requires each postsecondary institution in the
state have a written policy on sexual harassment and display
a copy of that policy in a prominent location, as defined, in the
main administrative building or other areas of the campus or
schoolsite. state, prior to receipt of any state
financial assistance or student financial aid, to provide assurance
that each program or activity conducted by the institution will be
conducted in compliance with state laws prohibiting discrimination
based on sex.
Title IX of the federal Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX)
prohibits discrimination based on sex, including sexual harassment,
rape, and sexual assault, in an educational institution's programs or
activities.
This bill would add to the Equity in Higher Education Act
a provision requiring that the written policy on sexual harassment
also be displayed in a prominent location on the official Internet
Web site of each postsecondary educational institution.
require the California State Auditor, beginning January 1, 2015,
and every 3 years thereafter, until January 1, 2025, to audit 2
institutions selected by the California State Auditor from each
segment of public postsecondary education, including the University
of California, to determine if their practices are consistent with
Title IX, its implementing regulations, and federal guidance on Title
IX related to sexual harassment and assault. The bill would require
a public institution, including a campus of the University of
California, found to have practices that are inconsistent with those
federal requirements and guidance to transfer funds from that
institution's administrative budget to the institution's
Title IX compliance office to provide additional resources to that
office, in an amount determined by the governing board of the
institution, and would require the California State Auditor, within
one year of the audit, to report to the Legislature on those
transfers of funds.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all
of the following:
(a) Compliance with Title IX of the federal Education Amendments
of 1972 (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1681 et seq.) by postsecondary educational
institutions has become a national issue, with many college and
university campuses in the news for not reporting, or not assisting,
victims of sexual harassment and assault in violation of Title IX.
(b) Sexual harassment and assault can have a devastating effect on
victims that can be compounded when a college or university is
unresponsive to reported sexual harassment or assault claims or fails
to accommodate victims of sexual harassment or assault.
(c) Findings of a recent audit performed by the California State
Auditor provide further evidence that something has to be done to
ensure that colleges and universities comply with the requirements of
Title IX related to sexual harassment and assault.
(d) This act is necessary to ensure the health and safety of
students who choose to attend California's world renowned public
postsecondary educational institutions.
SEC. 2. Section 66281.6 is added to the
Education Code , to read:
66281.6. (a) (1) Beginning January 1, 2015, and every three years
thereafter, the California State Auditor shall audit the programs
and activities of public postsecondary institutions, including the
campuses of the University of California, to determine if the public
institution's practices are consistent with Title IX of the federal
Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1681 et seq.), its
implementing regulations, and federal guidance on Title IX related to
sexual harassment or assault.
(2) The audit shall be conducted at two institutions selected by
the California State Auditor from each of the three public
postsecondary education segments.
(b) (1) Notwithstanding Section 67400, if a public postsecondary
institution, including a campus of the University of California, is
found to have practices inconsistent with Title IX, its implementing
regulations, and federal guidance on Title IX pursuant to subdivision
(a), the governing board of the postsecondary institution shall
transfer funds from its administrative budget to the institution's
Title IX compliance office to provide more resources for that office.
(2) The amount transferred pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be at
the discretion of the governing board of the institution.
(c) Notwithstanding Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, the
California State Auditor, within one year of the audit performed
pursuant to subdivision (a), shall, pursuant to Section 9795 of the
Government Code, report to the Legislature on any transfer of funds
made pursuant to subdivision (b) as a result of the findings made in
the audit.
(d) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1,
2025, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted
statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2025, deletes or extends
that date.
SECTION 1. Section 66281.5 of the Education
Code is amended to read:
66281.5. (a) It is the policy of the State of California,
pursuant to Section 66251, that all persons, regardless of their sex,
should enjoy freedom from discrimination of any kind in the
postsecondary educational institution of the state. The purpose of
this section is to provide notification of the prohibition against
sexual harassment as a form of sexual discrimination and to provide
notification of available remedies.
(b) Each postsecondary educational institution in the State of
California shall have a written policy on sexual harassment. It is
the intent of the Legislature that each educational institution in
this state include this policy in its regular policy statement rather
than distribute an additional written document.
(c) The postsecondary educational institution's written policy on
sexual harassment shall include information on where to obtain the
specific rules and procedures for reporting charges of sexual
harassment and for pursuing available remedies.
(d) A copy of the postsecondary educational institution's written
policy on sexual harassment shall be displayed in a prominent
location in the main administrative building or other area of the
campus or schoolsite and on the official Internet Web site of the
institution. "Prominent location" means that location, or those
locations, in the main administrative building or other area, and on
the official Internet Web site of the institution, where notices
regarding the institution's rules, regulations, procedures, and
standards of conduct are posted.
(e) A copy of the postsecondary educational institution's written
policy on sexual harassment, as it pertains to students, shall be
provided as part of any orientation program conducted for new
students at the beginning of each quarter, semester, or summer
session, as applicable.
(f) A copy of the postsecondary educational institution's written
policy on sexual harassment shall be provided for each faculty
member, all members of the administrative staff, and all members of
the support staff at the beginning of the first quarter or semester
of the school year, or at the time that there is a new employee
hired.
(g) A copy of the postsecondary educational institution's written
policy on sexual harassment shall appear in any publication of the
institution that sets forth the comprehensive rules, regulations,
procedures, and standards of conduct for the institution.
