School accountability: school climate report., the official text

An act to add Section 52064.7 to the Education Code, relating to school accountability.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

Existing law requires the governing board of each school district and county board of education to adopt a local control accountability plan and to update its local control and accountability plan before July 1 of each year. Existing law requires a local control and accountability plan to include, among other things, a description of the annual goals to be achieved for each state priority, as specified, for all pupils and certain subgroups of pupils. The state’s delineated priorities include, among others, pupil engagement, as measured by specified attendance, dropout, and graduation rates, and school climate, as measured by pupil suspension and expulsion rates and other local measures, as provided.
This bill, commencing with the 2026–27 school year, would require a school district, county office of education, or charter school that serves pupils in any of grades 5 to 12, inclusive, to annually (1) compile a school climate report detailing the pupil engagement and school climate data collected for purposes of their local control and accountability plan, and (2) if the local educational agency identifies any deficiencies in school climate, detail a plan to improve school climate to be included in the report. The bill would require the school climate report, including the plan to improve school climate, if applicable, to be presented at a regularly scheduled meeting of the governing board or body of the local educational agency and made public accessibly on the local educational agency’s internet website, as provided. By imposing additional duties on local educational agencies, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
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 the statutory provisions noted above.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.
Section 52064.7 is added to the Education Code, to read:
52064.7.
(a) Commencing with the 2026–27 school year, and annually thereafter, a local educational agency serving pupils in any of grades 5 to 12, inclusive, shall compile a school climate report detailing data collected pursuant to paragraphs (5) and (6) of subdivision (d) of Section 52060. If the local educational agency identifies any deficiencies in school climate, the local educational agency shall detail a plan to improve school climate, which shall be included in the school climate report.
(b) A local educational agency shall present the school climate report, including the plan to improve school climate, if applicable, as its own agenda item at a regularly scheduled meeting of the governing board or body of the local educational agency for discussion and public input, and shall make the school climate report, including the plan to improve school climate, if applicable, publicly available on the local educational agency’s internet website within 30 days of being presented at the meeting.
(c) For purposes of this section, “local educational agency” means a school district, county office of education, or charter school.

SEC. 2.
If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.