School employees: discipline: suspension and dismissal.

(1) Existing law prohibits a permanent school employee from being dismissed except for one or more specified causes. This bill would include serious or egregious unprofessional conduct, as defined, as a ground for dismissal of a permanent school employee. The bill would also prohibit a collective bargaining agreement entered into or renewed on or after January 1, 2015, from requiring the removal from an employee's record, after a specified time period, of records pertaining to discipline, complaints, reprimands, or investigations relating to the employee's commission, or potential commission, of one of those specified offenses. (2) Existing law authorizes a governing board of a school district to give notice to a permanent employee of its intention to dismiss or suspend him or her for specified causes at the expiration of 30 days from the date of service of the notice, unless the employee demands a hearing. Existing law prohibits that notice from being given between May 15th and September 15th in any year. This bill would remove that prohibition. (3) Existing law prohibits the governing board of a school district from acting upon any charges of unprofessional conduct, or unsatisfactory performance, unless at least 45, or 90, calendar days, respectively, prior to the date of the filing of the charges the governing board, or its authorized representative, has given the employee written notice, as specified. This bill would remove those 45-day and 90-day requirements. (4) Existing law authorizes the governing board of a school district, upon the filing of written charges or upon a written staetment of charges for certain conduct, to immediately suspend the employee from his or her duties in accordance with specified procedures. This bill would authorize the governing board to immediately suspend an employee for serious or egregious unprofessional conduct pursuant to those procedures. (5) Existing law establishes a Commission on Professional Competence for each dismissal or suspension hearing requested by an employee, consisting of specified members, and requires the proceeding to be conducted in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act. Existing law deems the decision of the Commission on Professional Competence to be the final decision of the governing board of the school district. This bill, for a hearing that involves serious or egregious unprofessional conduct, would require the proceedings to be conducted pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act by an administrative law judge. The bill would provide that the decision of the administrative law judge would be advisory, and the final decision regarding the discipline of the employee would be determined by action of the governing board of the school district. (6) By imposing additional requirements on governing boards of school districts, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (7) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.