California Education Interagency Council.

Added an entirely new Section 1 establishing the California Education Interagency Council in the Government Operations Agency, with goals including evaluating the changing nature of work, integrating education and employment systems, maximizing funding impact, supporting adult skill development, aligning regional education and workforce needs, and serving as a forum for intersegmental and cross-sector policy issues.

Added an operative condition: the new council provisions (Section 1) only become operative if Senate Bill 638 of the 2025-26 Regular Session is enacted, creating a dependency on another bill passing.

Added Senator Padilla as co-author alongside Assembly Member Fong, reflecting the expanded scope of the bill beyond its original pregnancy discrimination focus to include statewide education-workforce coordination.

Established council membership of 10 members including the President of the State Board of Education, Superintendent of Public Instruction, UC President, CSU Chancellor, CCC Chancellor, Director of Consumer Affairs, Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development, Director of the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development, Director of Finance, and President of the Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities. Limited to one nongovernmental entity representative. Governor designates the chairperson.

Established the Office of the California Education Interagency Council as a neutral administrative body (managing entity) within the Government Operations Agency, overseen by an executive officer appointed by the Governor who reports to the Secretary of Government Operations and is exempt from civil service.

Required the council to establish a principal advisory committee composed of TK-12, postsecondary education, workforce, and business practitioners, with the Senate Committee on Rules and Speaker of the Assembly each appointing two workforce and business representatives. Also required a faculty and employer advisory committee contingent upon a separate appropriation.

Set specific deadlines: first council meeting by June 30, 2026; subsequent meetings at least every six months; MOU with Office of Cradle-to-Career Data within one year of first meeting; strategic plan adopted by November 30, 2027; work plan released by November 30, 2027 or within 120 days of the strategic plan; biennial reports to the Legislature and Governor on outcomes.

Changed the state-mandated local program designation from 'yes' to 'no' in the fiscal note, indicating the bill no longer imposes reimbursable state mandates on local agencies or school districts (likely because the new council provisions do not impose duties on community college districts).

Added chapter number (Chapter 446) and the Governor's approval and filing date (October 7, 2025), replacing the blank approval block in the enrolled version.

Removed legislative passage tracking language including Assembly and Senate passage dates, clerk signatures, and the 'received by the Governor' line with blank fields.

Reformatted page headers from 'AB 1098' to 'Ch. 446' and adjusted line breaks and indentation throughout the statutory text without changing any substantive content.

The flat prohibition on reducing institution-based financial aid upon return from leave is replaced with a requirement that the institution inform the student how the leave may affect their financial aid and, if applicable, visa status. A new legislative intent statement says it is the intent for institutions to ensure financial aid continuity 'to the extent feasible' and 'in compliance with state and federal laws,' which is weaker than a hard prohibition.

The timing for implementing accepted accommodations changes from 'immediately implement it' to 'implement it as soon as practicable,' giving institutions more flexibility on response time.

The determination of whether an accommodation would fundamentally alter the education program must now be made in consultation with relevant faculty, administrators, the institution's coordinator, and if necessary the Title IX coordinator, rather than being left to the institution alone.

The normative time to degree extension is restructured. Previously it was granted as part of the leave period. Now the student first takes the leave, and upon return is given an extension toward normative time to degree, with the added limitation that the extension must not constitute a fundamental alteration of the education program.

The online education accommodation is narrowed from 'Access to online or homebound education' to 'If readily available, access to online education,' making it conditional on availability rather than an absolute right.

A new specific accommodation option is added: 'Mental health counseling as provided by the institution to all students.'

The physical space and supplies accommodation is narrowed from 'Changes in physical space or supplies' to 'Changes in physical space or supplies in the educational classroom,' limiting it to classroom settings.

The documentation requirement for accommodations is modified to add that documentation standards must be 'as consistent with the policies of the postsecondary educational institution,' giving institutions more discretion in setting documentation requirements.

The purpose of reasonable accommodations is reworded from helping the student 'complete their courses of study and research' to supporting 'the student's ability to complete their courses of study and research,' a subtle shift in framing.

A new implementation deadline requires all postsecondary educational institutions to implement the bill's provisions on or before September 1, 2026.

A new federal preemption savings clause provides that if any provision conflicts with federal law, that provision shall be rendered inoperative for the duration of the conflict without affecting the rest of the section. A separate provision requires implementation in compliance with state and federal laws.

The group of employees who must inform students of their rights is broadened. In addition to 'responsible employees' as defined in Section 66281.8, all employees obligated to report pursuant to the institution's nondiscrimination policy must now provide contact information and explain what the coordinator can do.

The policy statement is restructured. The old version referenced Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 directly. The new version adds a standalone declaration that 'All students have the right to participate fully in the educational process free from discrimination and harassment' and references Sections 66251 and 66270 instead.

The definition of 'coordinator' is expanded beyond the Title IX coordinator to also include an employee responsible for implementing the institution's nondiscrimination policy as designated by the institution. Throughout the bill, references shift from 'Title IX coordinator' to the broader term 'coordinator.'

The bill no longer amends Section 66281.7 of the Education Code to extend pregnancy-related protections (reasonable accommodations, leave of absence, time-to-degree extensions, lactation room access, anti-discrimination provisions) from graduate students to undergraduate students at postsecondary institutions.

The act description no longer references amendments to the Education Code relating to postsecondary education; it now only references adding Chapter 12.5 to the Government Code for education coordination.

Formatting changes: removal of line-number markers used in the amendment process, addition of passage dates (Assembly September 13, Senate September 12, 2025), governor receipt language, and approval block. The note indicating omitted matter from a prior version was removed as expected for an enrolled bill.

Protections expanded from primarily graduate students to all undergraduate and graduate students throughout the bill, including leave of absence rights, financial aid protections, and reinstatement rights.

Non-birth parent leave of absence now covers 'the birth, adoption, or placement of the student's child' instead of only 'the birth of the student's child,' extending protections to adoptive and foster parents.

Reinstatement upon return from leave now includes 'extracurricular and employment status' in addition to academic status, protecting students who hold positions such as teaching assistants or research assistants.

Website posting and medical center notice requirements expanded from only 'public postsecondary educational institutions' to all postsecondary educational institutions, including private ones.

Written policy requirement expanded from covering only 'graduate students on pregnancy discrimination' to all 'students on pregnancy discrimination,' and now must include procedures consistent with the institution's other discrimination complaint procedures.

Financial aid protection expanded from only undergraduate birth parents to all birth parent and nonbirth parent students (both graduate and undergraduate) who return from a voluntary leave of absence.

New definition of 'Coordinator' added, specifying it means the employee designated by the institution pursuant to Section 66281.8(b)(2).

Accommodation list item (xi) clarified to specify 'a leave of absence that is not medically necessary,' distinguishing it from medically required absences covered elsewhere.