AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 23, 2026

AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 19, 2026

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION

97

Introduced by Assembly Member Fong

February 5, 2026

An act to add the heading of Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 70900) to, and to add Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 70920) to, Part 43 of Division 7 of Title 3 of the Education Code, relating to community colleges, and making an appropriation therefor.

Vote: majority   Appropriation: yes   Fiscal committee: yes   Local program: yes

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

Existing law establishes the California Community Colleges, administered by the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, as one of the segments of public postsecondary education in the state. Existing law establishes community college districts throughout the state under the administration of community college district governing boards.

Existing law prohibits a person from being subjected to discrimination on the basis of specified attributes, including, among others, disability, gender, nationality, race or ethnicity, or immigration status, in a program or activity conducted by a postsecondary educational institution that receives, or benefits from, state financial assistance or enrolls students who receive state student financial aid, including, among others, community colleges.

This bill would require the board of governors, on or before June 1, 2027, and every 3 years thereafter, within one year of appropriation, to enter into a contract with a managing entity, as defined, to administer on behalf of the California Community Colleges external resolution services for civil rights compliance, including, among other services, developing and recommending a nondiscrimination policy, assisting the office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges in developing a an annual campus discrimination prevention training program for students and employees, and addressing grievances and complaints alleging discrimination, as specified. The bill would also require the board of governors to approve and annually update the nondiscrimination policy recommended by the managing entity, entity and require the governing boards of community college districts to adopt the policy, and impose a fine on community college districts that do not adopt the policy, as provided. The bill would further require community college districts districts, within one year of appropriation, to designate a staff person as a Title IX civil rights coordinator tasked with specified duties, including, among others, responding to complaints alleging discrimination and maintaining a record system of files on those complaints, as specified. The bill would establish, for a complainant or respondent dissatisfied with an administrative decision made by the managing entity or the Title IX coordinator regarding the outcome of the complaint, a process to appeal that decision to the chancellor’s office, as provided.

By imposing new duties on community college districts, this 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.

(a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:

(1) California has long been at the forefront of educational equity.

(2) In 2020, the Legislature, in partnership with Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson, took a necessary step in addressing sexual harassment on college and university campuses by providing a codified process for adjudicating complaints of sexual or gender-based violence, including dating or domestic violence, at postsecondary educational institutions in the state.

(3) In 2024, the chair of the Assembly Committee on Higher Education, Assembly Member Mike Fong, published a report on how postsecondary educational institutions in California can address sex discrimination and provide educational justice on campus. The report led to widespread reform with new laws restricting the use of informal resolutions, requiring public postsecondary educational institutions to report on the outcomes of complaints on campuses within their respective systems, and establishing staffing requirements for campus-based Title IX offices at the California State University and the University of California.

(4) In compliance with Chapter 694 of the Statutes of 2024 (Assembly Bill 2048) the office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, in consultation with stakeholders, submitted a report to the Legislature with recommendations for establishing systemic campus reforms that effectively prevent, detect, and address sexual harassment on community college campuses.

(5) The report contained research to uncover the obstacles preventing community colleges from complying with existing state and federal laws pertaining to gender equity on campus. The report found all of the following:

(A) No single community college district reviewed had campus policies or procedures in full compliance with state or federal laws or regulations.

(B) Community college Title IX coordinators spent a fraction of their time working on sexual harassment prevention compliance, often balancing it with roles in student conduct, human resources, disability services, or general compliance.

(C) The system lacked the finances to adequately address complaints by students and staff which has greatly contributed to the breakdown in student’s and employee’s trust in the system’s ability to handle address complaints of discrimination.

(6) California set out to be the gold standard in educational equity on campus, but without structural change, California is instead creating a compliance system where community college students and employees are left unprotected.

(b) (1) Given the findings and declarations described in subdivision (a), it is the intent of the Legislature to provide adequately funded infrastructure for the California Community Colleges to address complaints alleging discrimination on community college campuses, and for the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges to enter into a contract with a managing entity for purposes of externally resolving those complaints in a professional, compliant, and impartial manner.

(2) It is the further intent of the Legislature that the managing entity accomplishes all of the following purposes:

(A) Operating as an independent entity contracted with the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges for providing civil rights services to each community college district and campus.

(B) Providing centralized, professional, and consistent trauma-informed responses to civil rights complaints received by community college districts and campuses.

(C) Ensuring compliance with state and federal laws and regulations for preventing, and responding to complaints of, discrimination on community college campuses.

(D) Providing scalable access to external investigators, adjudicators, advisors, advisers, advocates, and educational programming for each community college campus.

SEC. 2.

The heading of Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 70900) is added to Part 43 of Division 7 of Title 3 of the Education Code, to read:

Chapter 1. Walter Stiern Act

SEC. 3.

Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 70920) is added to Part 43 of Division 7 of Title 3 of the Education Code, to read:

Chapter 2. California Community College External Resolution for Civil Rights Compliance

70920.

This chapter shall be known, and may be cited, as the California Community College External Resolution for Civil Rights Compliance.

70921.

For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions apply:

(a) “Board of Governors” means the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges established in Section 70900.

(b) “California Community Colleges” means a postsecondary education system consisting of community college districts and community college campuses described in Section 70900.

(c) “Chancellor” means the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges.

(d) “Chancellor’s office” means the office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges.

(e) “Governing board” means a board of trustees that oversees a community college district pursuant to Section 70902.

(f) “Managing entity” means the entity contracted pursuant to Section 70922.

(g) “Sexual harassment” has the same meaning as used in Section 66262.5.

70922.

(a) On or before June 1, 2027, and every three years thereafter, Within one calendar year of an appropriation by the Legislature for this express purpose, the board of governors shall enter into a three-year contract with a managing entity to administer on behalf of the California Community Colleges external resolution services for civil rights compliance. The three-year contract shall not be subject to the competitive bidding process outlined in Sections 10339 and 10340 of the Public Contract Code. The contract shall comply with the requirements established pursuant to this chapter.

(b) The services provided by the managing entity shall include all the following:

(1) Developing and recommending a nondiscrimination policy for the California Community Colleges. The nondiscrimination policy shall comply with all of the following:

(A) The policy shall include federal and state nondiscrimination laws and regulations, including, but not limited to, Subchapter 5 (commencing with Section 59300) of Chapter 10 of Division 6 of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations, Title IX of the federal Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1681 et seq.), Title VI, Title VII, and Title VIII of the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 2000d et seq., 42 U.S.C. Sec Sec. 2000e et seq., and 42 U.S.C. Sec. 3601 et seq.), Section 504 of the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Sec. 794), the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (Part 2.8 (commencing with Section 12900) of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code), Section 304 of the federal Violence Against Women Act of 2013, as amended into the federal Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1092(f)), and Sections 66281.4, 66281.5, 66281.8, 67385, 67385.7, and 67386.

(B) The policy shall be updated annually to reflect changes in federal regulations and state law.

(C) The policy shall include nationally recognized best practices for policies and procedures to address and prevent discrimination on community college campuses.

(D) The policy shall provide streamlined procedures to ensure complaints alleging discrimination are handled addressed in a trauma-informed and timely manner.

(E) The policy shall provide prevention plans and awareness programming for community college districts to implement annually.

(2) Conducting, Providing a pool of well-trained individuals available to oversee and conduct, in coordination with the Title IX civil rights coordinator for a community college district, full-service grievance procedures for all Title IX and sexual harassment complaints filed, pursuant to Section 66281.8, by students and employees of a community college maintained by the community college district. These procedures shall include intake, supportive measures, investigations, live hearings, formal and informal resolutions, and appeals of Title IX complaints. Appeals shall be handled in collaboration with the chancellor’s office pursuant to Section 70927.

(3) Addressing grievances and complaints alleging a violation of the nondiscrimination policy described in paragraph (1).

(4) Providing access to trauma-informed investigators, advocates, advisors, advisers, process facilitators, and decisionmakers for the grievance and complaint processes and procedures.

(5) Maintaining a roster of external investigators and hearing officers. The individuals on the roster shall comply with applicable due process requirements and impartiality standards, and shall be trained on the nondiscrimination laws and regulations described in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) and trauma-informed practices.

(6) Coordinating with the Title IX civil rights coordinator for each community college district to implement disciplinary sanctions on respondents who are found to have violated the nondiscrimination policy described in paragraph (1). These sanctions may include, but are not limited to, educational programs for respondents.

(7) (A) Offering complainants and respondents referrals to advocacy and support services.

(8) Developing and implementing an annual training for the Title IX civil rights coordinators for community college districts on the nondiscrimination policy described in paragraph (1) and prevention strategies. The curriculum of the this training shall satisfy all of the following:

(A) Be developed and delivered to each community college district Title IX civil rights coordinator with mandates and mandated annual recertification cycles.

(B) Include modules on trauma-informed practices, cultural competency, due process, and California-specific legal requirements.

(C) Have a flexible modality for both in-person and virtual completion of the training.

(D) Be annually updated to reflect changes in federal and state laws and regulations and in best practices, including, but not limited to, those described in subparagraph (C) of paragraph (1), and to address patterns of occurrences of discrimination incidents on campus.

(9) Assisting the chancellor’s office in developing a an annual campus discrimination prevention training program for students and employees. This training program shall include all of the following:

(A) Required bystander intervention training, policy awareness training, affirmative consent training, and primary prevention training.

(B) An approach of intersectionality that calls for a pursuit of culturally relevant programs and practices that name and meaningfully consider how students and employees with different characteristics, including, but not limited to, different races, national origins, gender identities, socioeconomic classes, sexual orientations, and abilities, interact with each other.

(C) Training that contains feedback Feedback loops to determine whether the training is having the intended effect.

(D) Training that complies Compliance with Section 67385.7.

(E) Annual updates to respond to patterns of discrimination occurrences based on complaints processed pursuant to paragraphs (2) and (3).

(F) Modalities offered in-person in person and online.

(10) Establishing a range of disciplinary sanctions for students and employees who are respondents found by the managing entity to have violated the nondiscrimination policy described in paragraph (1).

(11) Maintaining a case management system that includes, for each complaint alleging discrimination, including, but not limited to, sexual harassment, all of the following information:

(A) The date of the complaint, and the date, nature, and location of the alleged incident or incidents.

(B) The name of the person who reported the complaint and their affiliation with the campus, or whether the complaint was reported anonymously.

(C) The name and title of the person who received the complaint.

(D) The name of the person alleged to have experienced discrimination and their affiliation with the campus.

(E) The name of the respondent and their affiliation with the campus.

(F) Any campus community context, including, but not limited to, the athletic team, student organization, department, or office where the alleged incident or incidents occurred.

(G) A copy of the notice of allegations provided to the parties. If the complaint was dismissed, a copy of the written notice of dismissal shall be provided to the parties with the reason for the dismissal.

(H) Whether an investigation was opened, or, if applicable, the reason for declining to investigate the complaint.

(I) The name of the person assigned to investigate the complaint, and the name of the person assigned to implement any supportive measures in response to the complaint. complaint, and any advisers, if applicable.

(J) All supportive measures offered and implemented in response to the complaint.

(K) The names of all witnesses identified by either party, interview notes or summaries, if available, and, for any witnesses who were not interviewed, an explanation of why they were not interviewed.

(L) Once completed, the final investigative report for the complaint and any response made to the final investigative report by the complainant or respondent.

(M) The outcome of the complaint, including, if applicable, the rulings from a hearing on the complaint and any disciplinary sanctions.

(N) The remedies recommended and if those recommendations were implemented to deter and prevent the reoccurrence of discrimination incidents.

(12) Providing annual reporting on the services provided pursuant to this subdivision to ensure campus programs and activities are free from discrimination. The contents of this report shall be included in the report required pursuant to Section 66282.1.

(13) Providing a dashboard that allows each community college campus to have instant information about the status of all of the complaints filed by the community college or the community college district with the managing entity.

(14) Providing integration of federal Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1092(f)) and federal Campus Sexual Violence Elimination Act (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1092(f)) compliance imperatives.

(15) Liaising with community college representatives to ensure that local control is respected. All outcomes issued by the managing entity shall be subject to the approval of the Title IX civil rights coordinator and, as required pursuant to state law, the governing board.

(c) (1) The board of governors shall approve and annually update a the nondiscrimination policy developed and recommended by the managing entity pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (b).

(2) When the nondiscrimination policy is annually updated pursuant to paragraph (1), it shall be The nondiscrimination policy shall be annually updated to reflect changes in federal regulations and state law.

(d) The managing entity shall be responsible for fulfilling the services described in subdivision (b) for each community college district by doing all of the following:

(1) Employing trained and competent staff with the capacity to provide the services described in subdivision (b) to each community college district within a reasonable timeframe, as agreed upon by the community college district and the managing entity.

(2) Maintaining a list of external investigators, hearing officers, and decisionmakers to assist the managing entity in performing the services described in subdivision (b). The managing entity shall be responsible for training and maintaining work product standards that ensure that the quality of work produced by investigators, hearing officers, and decisionmakers matches the quality of work of those directly employed by the managing entity. All work conducted shall be trauma informed and aligned with the nondiscrimination policy created pursuant to subdivision (b).

(3) Entering into contracts, as necessary, with law firms or consultants to assist the managing entity in performing the services provided in subdivision (b). The managing entity shall be responsible for training and maintaining work product standards that ensure that the quality of work produced by contracted law firms or consultants matches the quality of work of those directly employed by the managing entity. All work conducted shall be trauma informed and aligned with the nondiscrimination policy adopted pursuant to subdivision (c).

(4) (A) Reporting, in January and in July of each year, to the board of governors that includes, for the previous six months, all of the following:

(i) The services provided by the managing entity pursuant to subdivision (b), disaggregated by each community college district that requested those services.

(ii) The number of contracts entered into by the managing entity with law firms or consultants to perform the services described in subdivision (b).

(iii) The total costs of the services provided pursuant to subdivision (b) by the managing entity for community college districts.

(B) The January report described in clause (i) subparagraph (A) shall include an evaluation of the cost of the services provided pursuant to subdivision (b) by the managing entity, and whether any additional costs are required in the current or subsequent fiscal year to maintain those services. If additional staff or financial resources are needed, the board of governors shall make a request for the additional staffing or resources, as applicable, in compliance with the policies established for making budgetary changes to the annual systemwide budget requests for the California Community Colleges.

(e) (1) In selecting the managing entity, the board of governors shall select a qualified candidate pursuant to this subdivision with the capacity to perform the services described in subdivision (b).

(2) A qualified candidate for the managing entity is a candidate that has all the following:

(A) Existing capacity to provide all of the services described in subdivision (b), in alignment with industry standards and in a trauma-informed manner.

(B) A record of managing all procedures related to 500 college-based federal Title IX or sexual harassment complaints annually, with the capacity to scale to more than 1,000 complaints annually.

(C) Substantial experience with civil rights investigations and resolutions under the nondiscrimination laws and regulations described in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (b).

(D) The ability to employ staff with prior experience as Title IX civil rights coordinators, deputy coordinators, and investigators.

(E) The ability to provide in-person advisors or virtual advisers for complainants and respondents in the state.

(F) The ability to offer complainant advocacy and respondent support services through trained and dedicated professionals.

(G) The capacity to manage potential conflicts of interest and avoid overlapping roles that might create impermissible conflicts.

(H) The ability to complete complete, and a proven track record of completing, a high volume of resolutions in alignment with institutional timelines for prompt resolution.

(I) The ability to coordinate with more than 100 potential clients simultaneously, to keep community college district Title IX civil rights coordinators appraised of progress, and to engage in consultation, as necessary, to ensure local control, shared governance, and incorporation of the local culture and mission moral imperatives for each individual client.

(J) Expertise in managing contract staff and vendors and expertise in ensuring timely completion of work by each client’s deadlines.

(f) A contract entered into pursuant to subdivision (a) shall include all of the following:

(1) An agreement by the managing entity to perform the services described in subdivision (b) in a timely manner for each community college district.

(2) An agreement by the managing entity to fulfill the responsibilities of the managing entity pursuant to subdivision (d).

(3) A biannual twice per year fee structure for the payment of services rendered by the managing entity. Payment for services rendered by the managing entity shall be provided by the chancellor’s office from the External Resolution Services Fund established pursuant to Section 70923. funds appropriated by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act for this purpose.

(g) Upon entering into a contract with the board of governors pursuant to subdivision (a), the managing entity shall immediately begin offering the services described in subdivision (b) to community college districts. districts at the start date agreed upon in the contract.

70923.

To comply with Section 66270, a governing board shall, within 30 days of receiving from a timeframe designated by the board of governors and the managing entity a entity, vote to adopt the nondiscrimination policy approved by the board of governors pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 70922, vote to adopt the policy. 70922.

70926.70924.

(a) Notwithstanding any other law, to ensure compliance with Section 66270, on or before July 1, 2027, within one year of an appropriation by the Legislature to fund implementation of Section 70922, a community college district shall designate a staff person as a Title IX civil rights coordinator. The Title IX civil rights coordinator shall not have duties assigned other than those duties outlined in this section.

(b) The Title IX civil rights coordinator shall have all of the following duties:

(1) Ensuring a timely and effective response to each campus-based complaint filed by a student or an employee alleging discrimination by submitting the complaint to the managing entity for review, investigation, and resolution.

(2) Implementing, for each complaint described in paragraph (1), the outcome provided by the managing entity.

(3) Maintaining a record system of files with information provided by the managing entity on complaints. The record for a complaint in which the respondent is a student shall be maintained for seven years. The record for a complaint in which the respondent is an employee shall be maintained for seven years after the employee is no longer employed by the community college district. The record for a complaint shall include all of the following information provided by the managing entity:

(A) The date of the complaint and the date, nature, and location of the alleged incident or incidents.

(B) The name of the person who reported the complaint and the person’s affiliation with the campus, or whether the complaint was reported anonymously.

(C) The name and title of the person who received the complaint.

(D) The name of the person alleged to have experienced discrimination and the person’s affiliation with the campus.

(E) The name of the respondent and the respondent’s affiliation with the campus.

(F) Any campus community context, including, but not limited to, the athletic team, student organization, campus department, or campus office where the alleged incident or incidents occurred.

(G) A copy of the notice of the allegation or allegations provided to the parties. If the complaint was dismissed, a copy of the written notice of dismissal shall be provided to the parties with the reason for the dismissal.

(H) Whether an investigation of the complaint was opened and, if applicable, the reason an investigation of the complaint was declined.

(I) The name of the person assigned to investigate the complaint and the name of the person assigned to implement any supportive measures in response to the complaint.

(J) All supportive measures offered and implemented in response to the complaint.

(K) The names of all witnesses identified by either party of the complaint, interview notes or summaries, if available, and, for any witnesses who were not interviewed, an explanation of why they were not interviewed.

(L) Once completed, the final investigative report for the complaint and any response made to the final investigative report by the complainant or the respondent.

(M) The outcome of the complaint, including, if applicable, the rulings from a hearing on the complaint and any disciplinary sanctions.

(N) The recommended remedies and if those remedies were implemented to deter and prevent the recurrence of discrimination incidents.

(4) Developing and implementing a comprehensive prevention and outreach program on sexual harassment. This program shall do both of the following:

(A) Address a range of strategies to prevent sexual harassment, including a victim empowerment program, a public awareness campaign, and primary prevention, bystander intervention, and risk reduction.

(B) (i) Provide, pursuant to clause (ii), students and employees with information on the procedures for reporting incidents of sexual harassment, and the name, office location, and contact information of the Title IX civil rights coordinator.

(ii) The information described in clause (i) shall be provided through both of the following:

(I) An email to students and employees at the beginning of each academic term.

(II) The campus orientation described in Section 67385.7.

(5) Implementing training provided by the managing entity for students and employees.

(c) The Title IX civil rights coordinator shall have the experience, training, and expertise necessary to coordinate and implement the nondiscrimination policy adopted by the governing board pursuant to Section 70925. 70923. The Title IX civil rights coordinator shall operate, as appropriate, with the managing entity, and shall comply with both of the following:

(1) The Title IX civil rights coordinator shall meet with the chief executive officer of the community college district every three months to provide an evaluation of the activities conducted pursuant to subdivision (b) for preventing and addressing discrimination on community college campuses maintained by the community college district.

(2) The Title IX civil rights coordinator shall meet with a liaison of the managing entity each month to discuss activities conducted by the managing entity and the Title IX civil rights coordinator for preventing and addressing discrimination at each community college campus maintained by the community college district.

(d) Each year, the Title IX civil rights coordinator and the chief executive officer of the community college district shall assess whether additional staffing or resources are needed to implement the Title IX civil rights coordinator’s duties described in subdivision (b). If additional staff or resources are needed, the community college district shall make a written request for the additional resources to be included in the annual systemwide budget request for the California Community Colleges provided to the Legislature.

SEC. 4.

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.

SEC. 5.