ARTICLE 3. Prohibition of Discrimination [66268 - 66271.1]
( Article 3 added by Stats. 1998, Ch. 914, Sec. 49. )
(a) It is the policy of the State of California, pursuant to Section 66251, that all persons, regardless of their race, color, or national origin, should enjoy freedom from discrimination of any kind, including harassment based on a person’s actual or perceived shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics, or citizenship or residency in a country with a dominant religion, as described in Title VI of the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 2000d, et seq.), in the postsecondary educational institutions of the state.
(b) (1) The California Community Colleges, the California State University, independent institutions of higher education that receive
state financial assistance, and private postsecondary educational institutions that receive state financial assistance shall, and the University of California is requested to, include training to address discrimination against the five most targeted groups in the state, as determined pursuant to paragraph (2), as part of any general antidiscrimination training or diversity, equity, and inclusion training that is offered by the institution, except any trainings targeted to solely address discrimination based on specific groups, including, but not limited to, age, disability, or sexual orientation.
(2) To determine the five most targeted groups in the state, postsecondary educational institutions shall refer to the subcategory bias motivations with the highest number of events, as provided in Table 1 of the annual “Hate Crime in California”
publication by the Attorney General, which reports hate crime data required to be submitted to the Attorney General by law enforcement agencies pursuant to Section 13023 of the Penal Code.
(c) The training required pursuant to subdivision (b) shall not be incorporated into the sexual violence and sexual harassment prevention training required pursuant to Section 67385.7.
(d) This section does not preclude the trainings required pursuant to subdivision (b) from incorporating discrimination against groups that are not listed in the five most targeted groups in the state. Trainings offered pursuant to subdivision (b) are encouraged to promptly address incidents of discrimination against one or more particular groups on the respective campus, especially groups that historically
underreport incidents, even if they are not among the five most targeted groups in the state.
(e) It is the intent of the Legislature that all general antidiscrimination trainings and diversity, equity, and inclusion trainings address the complex and cumulative way in which the effects of multiple forms of discrimination combine, overlap, or intersect, especially in the experiences of marginalized individuals or groups.
(Added by Stats. 2024, Ch. 844, Sec. 4. (AB 2925) Effective January 1, 2025.)
No person shall be subjected to discrimination on the basis of disability, gender, gender identity, gender expression, nationality, race or ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, or any characteristic listed or defined in Section 11135 of the Government Code or any other characteristic that is contained in the prohibition of hate crimes set forth in subdivision (a) of Section 422.6 of the Penal Code, including immigration status, in any program or activity conducted by any postsecondary educational institution that receives, or benefits from, state financial assistance or enrolls students who receive state student financial aid.
(Amended by Stats. 2018, Ch. 779, Sec. 3. (SB 183) Effective January 1, 2019.)
Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to require a postsecondary institution to offer admission or student financial aid to a person excluded from the term “immigrant,” for purposes of the federal Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. Sec. 1101), pursuant to paragraph (15) of subdivision (a) of Section 1101 of Title 8 of the United States Code, as that paragraph exists on January 1, 2019. However, students granted status pursuant to subparagraphs (T) or (U) of paragraph (15), as specified, shall not be subjected to discrimination in admission or financial aid on the basis of immigration status. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to change a student’s eligibility for state financial aid.
(Amended by Stats. 2021, Ch. 296, Sec. 20. (AB 1096) Effective January 1, 2022.)
(a) As used in this section,“Hostile environment” means unwelcomed conduct based on a person’s actual or perceived race, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, or disability status, that based on the totality of circumstances, is subjectively and objectively offensive, and is so severe or pervasive that it limits or denies a person’s ability to participate in or benefit from an institution’s education program or activity.
(b) The Trustees of the California State University and the Regents of the University of California have the primary responsibility to prevent and address conduct that either creates a hostile environment for students on campus, or results in differential treatment of students on campus based on a student’s actual or
perceived race, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, or disability status.
(c) The Trustees of the California State University shall do all of the following:
(1) Adopt rules and procedures in the student codes of conduct to provide all of the following elements:
(A) Prohibit violent, harassing, intimidating, or discriminatory conduct that creates a hostile environment on campus.
(B) Prohibit conduct that limits or denies a person’s ability to participate in or benefit from the free exchange of ideas or the educational mission of the California State University.
(C) Establish reasonable content-neutral time, place, and manner restrictions, and, if applicable, any advance permitting
requirements for protests on campus.
(2) Adopt rules and procedures to take reasonable steps to respond to each incident described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (1) that creates a hostile environment on campus.
(3) Require each campus to publish on the campus’s internet website the time, place, and manner restrictions, and any advance permitting requirements for protests on campus.
(4) Develop mandatory training programs to educate students on all of the following:
(A) What constitutes violent, harassing, intimidating, or discriminatory conduct that creates a hostile environment on campus, and the procedures for investigating violations of the student code of conduct.
(B) When
and where protests and gatherings may be held, including the difference between public fora, limited public fora, nonpublic fora, and private property, consistent with the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and Section 2 of Article I of the California Constitution.
(C) How to exchange views in an atmosphere of mutual respect and civility.
(5) Require, as a condition of enrollment at a California State University campus, each student attending the campus to acknowledge the campus’s student code of conduct.
(d) The Trustees of the California State University and each California State University campus shall ensure that any policy adopted or enforced pursuant to this section, as applicable, is consistent with the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, Section 2 of Article I of the California
Constitution, and Title VI of the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 2000d et seq.).
(e) (1) On or before January 2, 2025, and annually thereafter, the Trustees of the California State University shall submit a report to the Legislature on the implementation and administration of this section. This report shall include information on student code of conduct violations relating to incidents described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (c).
(2) A report submitted pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
(f) The University of California is requested to comply with this section.
(g) This section is intended to be interpreted consistent
with the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and Section 2 of Article I of the California Constitution.
(h) The provisions of this section are severable. If any provision of this section or its application is held invalid, that invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application.
(Added by Stats. 2024, Ch. 892, Sec. 2. (SB 1287) Effective January 1, 2025.)
This chapter shall not apply to an educational institution that is controlled by a religious organization if the application would not be consistent with the religious tenets of that organization.
(Added by renumbering Section 66270.5 by Stats. 2007, Ch. 569, Sec. 45. Effective January 1, 2008.)
The Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges and the Trustees of the California State University shall, and the Regents of the University of California may, adopt regulations as required by law to implement this chapter.
(Added by Stats. 1998, Ch. 914, Sec. 49. Effective January 1, 1999.)