California districts won't be able to suspend students for 'willful defiance' next school year

By July of next year, it will be illegal for public schools in California to suspend students for low-level behavior issues after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation banning "willful defiance" suspensions among TK through 12th grade students throughout the state.

Newsom on Oct. 8 approved Senate Bill 274, which takes effect July 1, 2024. Under SB 274, introduced by state Sen. Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, willful defiance suspensions are barred in grades 6-12, with a sunset of July 1, 2029, in all California public schools.

According to Skinner's office, SB 274 builds on Skinner's 2019 legislation, Senate Bill 419, which was signed into law by Newsom and permanently banned willful defiance suspensions in grades TK to 5 and prohibited them in grades 6 to 8 until 2025.

Please help put parents in charge of their child’s education by forwarding this article to other parents, family, friends and voters.

Other Articles

Santa Barbara teachers demand fair pay as negotiations with district loom
More than 150 community members turned out to demand the Santa Barbara Unified School District listen to teachers’ calls for fair pay during a school board meeting on Oct. 4, the Santa Barbara Independent reported.
Read More
Schools Need To Stop Accepting Forgotten Items From Home. There, I Said It.
Kids will not be hurt, and might be helped, if they don't always have access to forgotten items.
Read More
Fresno Teachers Win Historic Contract - California Teachers Association
WHEN BARGAINING STARTED last year, 4,000 Fresno teachers committed to each other to do whatever it took for the schools #EveryFresnoStudent deserves.
Read More
Beyond crayons and circle time: What California transitional kindergarten needs to succeed
California is rolling out its transitional kindergarten program, with the goal of offering it for all 4-year-olds by 2025-26. While some schools have had programs in place for years, others are just starting to create teaching guidelines.
Read More
California Legislature again rejects bill to make kindergarten mandatory
Legislation to make kindergarten a requirement for all young students has failed again in the California Capitol.
Read More
When we fail education, we fail democracy
There comes a time in every profession when it becomes imperative to address the big ideas and to leave aside, at least for a moment, the trivial pursuits that engage us.
Read More
Soaring chronic absenteeism in California schools is at ‘pivotal moment’
As a new school year gets underway in California, districts are desperately trying to lure thousands of missing, tardy and truant students back to the classroom in what many view as a pivotal moment for education in California.
Read More
California seeks more teachers to combat widespread shortage
California is facing a teacher shortage so severe and widespread that the state school superintendent held a summit Monday to try to recruit more teachers.
Read More

Get latest news delivered daily!

We will send you breaking news right to your inbox

© 2025 educationopportunity.org, Privacy Policy | FPPC #1460602