California Assembly Bill AB401 Amended / Bill

 BILL NUMBER: AB 401AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 26, 2012 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 12, 2011 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 26, 2011 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Ammiano FEBRUARY 14, 2011 An act to amend Section  47605 of, to add Section 47604.2 to, and to add and repeal Section 47602.1 of,   32228 of  the Education Code, relating to  charter schools   school safety  . LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 401, as amended, Ammiano.  Charter schools.   School safety: Carl Washington School Safety and Violence Prevention Act.   Existing law states the intent of the Legislature that public schools have access to supplemental resources to combat bias on the basis of race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, disability, gender, gender identity, gender expression, or sexual orientation, as defined, and to prevent and respond to acts of hate violence and bias-related incidents. A provision of existing law prohibits the term sexual orientation from including pedophilia.   This bill would remove that prohibition.   The Charter Schools Act of 1992 authorizes any one or more persons to submit a petition to the governing board of a school district to establish a charter school that operates independently from the existing school district structure as a method of accomplishing specified goals. The act limits the maximum number of charter schools authorized to operate in the 1998-99 school year to 250, and authorizes an additional 100 charter schools to operate in each year thereafter.   This bill would limit, until January 1, 2017, the maximum total number of charter schools authorized to operate in the state to 1,450. The bill would prohibit charter schools operated by a private entity from employing relatives of charter school personnel, as specified.   The Charter Schools Act of 1992 specifies the procedures for the submission, review, and approval or denial of a petition to establish a standard charter school. The act authorizes the governing board of a school district or a county board of education to deny a charter petition if the governing board makes written factual findings that demonstrate that the petition does not meet certain criteria.   This bill would add an additional criterion relating to the disclosure of relatives of charter school personnel, as specified.  Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:  SECTION 1.   Section 32228 of the   Education Code   is amended to read:  32228. (a) It is the intent of the Legislature that public schools serving pupils in any of grades 8 to 12, inclusive, have access to supplemental resources to establish programs and strategies that promote school safety and emphasize violence prevention among children and youth in the public schools. (b) It is also the intent of the Legislature that public schools have access to supplemental resources to combat bias on the basis of race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, disability, gender, gender identity, gender expression, or sexual orientation, as defined in subdivision (r) of Section 12926 of the Government Code, and to prevent and respond to acts of hate violence and bias-related incidents.  Sexual orientation shall not include pedophilia.  (c) It is further the intent of the Legislature that schoolsites receiving funds pursuant to this article accomplish all of the following goals: (1) Teach pupils techniques for resolving conflicts without violence. (2) Train school staff and administrators to support and promote conflict resolution and mediation techniques for resolving conflicts between and among pupils. (3) Reduce incidents of violence at the schoolsite with an emphasis on prevention and early detection. (4) Provide age-appropriate instruction in domestic violence prevention, dating violence prevention, and interpersonal violence prevention. All matter omitted in this version of the bill appears in the bill as amended in the Assembly, May 12, 2011. (JR11)