Plain English Breakdown
The official text is truncated at the end of section (3), so details about how employers verify information after checking the database are incomplete.
AB-2365: Expanding Rules on Serious Misconduct in Schools
This law expands the list of serious misconduct offenses for school employees, bans those fired and disciplined by the state from working in education jobs statewide, and creates a new online system to track reports about teachers.
What This Bill Does
- Adds human trafficking, child abandonment and neglect, child abduction, impermissible contact with minors, certain assaults or batteries, spousal abuse, and failure to disclose previous employment to the list of serious misconduct offenses.
- Bans certified employees who are dismissed for serious misconduct and have had their teaching license revoked by the Commission on Teacher Credentialing from working in education-related positions at state agencies, universities, local agencies, or schools.
- Requires a new section in a statewide data system that lists reports of possible teacher misconduct submitted to the Commission on Teacher Credentialing by schools and other entities.
- Changes hiring rules so employers must first check this online database before asking previous employers about an applicant's history starting July 1, 2027.
Who It Names or Affects
- Certified school employees who face dismissal for serious misconduct or have their credentials revoked.
- School districts, charter schools, private schools, county offices of education, state special schools, and universities hiring new staff.
- The Commission on Teacher Credentialing, which manages the statewide data system.
Terms To Know
- Egregious misconduct
- Serious acts that include sex offenses, drug crimes, child abuse, and now also human trafficking, certain assaults, spousal abuse, illegal contact with minors, and failing to disclose past employment.
- Certificated person
- A school employee who holds a teaching credential or license issued by the state.
- Statewide data system
- An online database managed by the Commission on Teacher Credentialing that stores reports of misconduct investigations and complaints against employees.
Limits and Unknowns
- The new statewide data system must be developed only if money is approved in a future budget act.
- The requirement for employers to check the online database first begins on July 1, 2027.
- The official text provided cuts off before fully explaining how the commission confirms reports during the hiring process.