On July 21, 2022, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill (SB) 906, creating new obligations for local educational agencies (LEAs) designed to prevent firearm-related incidents at schools and addressing threats made by students in middle schools and high schools.
New case law suggests social media accounts created by public officials may be considered public forums subject to constitutional scrutiny under the First Amendment.
Assembly Bill (AB) 181, signed into law June 30, 2022, makes a number of changes to California special education laws impacting students, families, and local educational agencies (LEAs).
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued guidance reinforcing the obligations of public elementary and secondary schools to provide the services, supports, interventions, strategies, and modifications to policies, all to address disability-based behavior of students with disabilities, including behavior that could lead to discipline.
The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) recently updated its COVID-19 related guidance for K-12 schools for the 2022-2023 school year, which addresses and updates guidance on masking requirements, reporting, and paid leave.
The plaintiffs in Brach v. Newsom (9th Cir. June 15, 2022, No. 20-56291) __ F.4th __, originally filed a case in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, challenging various orders, including the 2020-2021 Reopening Framework, issued by California government officials concerning the operation of both public and private schools during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In Carson v. Makin (2022) ___U.S.___ [141 S.Ct. 1987], the United States Supreme Court, by a 6-3 decision, ruled that Maine’s tuition assistance program, which prohibits funding to nonsectarian schools, violated the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment.
Governor Newsom signed the Education Omnibus Budget Trailer Bill (AB 181) on June 30, 2022, which was effective immediately and includes significant changes to independent study requirements.
Last month, the State Allocation Board (SAB) affirmed its position that school districts and county offices of education must competitively bid contracts to acquire modular building components for installation on a permanent foundation, and that “piggybacking” may not be used.