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In the past few weeks, thousands of letters were sent to Governor Brown urging him to enact a package of bills addressing school discipline reform. While the outcome could have been better, we wanted to let you know that the Governor signed five of the seven bills that were in play into law.

The following bills were enacted:

• AB 1729 by Assemblymember Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco) changes existing law to strengthen the alternatives to suspension or expulsion and clarify that school removals should only happen after other means of correction fail to bring about proper conduct.

• AB 1909 by Assemblymember Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco) ensures that school districts provide notification to social workers and court-appointed attorneys when foster youth are facing school removal or expulsion, so that critical resources can be brought to the table to help those children.

• AB 2537 by Assemblymember V. Manuel Perez (D-Coachella) provides additional discretion to school administrators to use alternative means of correction in lieu of expulsion and further clarifies that possessing an imitation firearm, over-the-counter medicine or student’s prescription medicines are not “zero tolerance” offences that automatically require expulsion.

• AB 2616 by Assemblymember Wilmer Carter (D-Rialto) will help focus truancy reduction efforts on school- and parent-based solutions that are effective, so that law enforcement and courts are used only as a last resort.

• SB 1088 by Senator Curren Price (D-Los Angeles) helps ensure that children who have had contact with the juvenile justice system are not barred from reenrollment and are immediately reenrolled in school.

Thank you for taking action for kids and helping to reform unfair school discipline practices. We will continue to work to improve school climate and discipline policies throughout California and let you know when you can help again.