Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

HOUSE BILL NO. 5861
     June 26, 2024, Introduced by Rep. Paquette and referred to the Committee on Government
        Operations.
          A bill to amend 1976 PA 451, entitled
    "The revised school code,"
    by amending section 1535a (MCL 380.1535a), as amended by 2016 PA
    532, and by adding section 1179c.
                    THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
       Sec. 1179c. (1) The office of the student victims' rights
 ombudsman is created in the department.
       (2) The superintendent of public instruction shall designate
 an individual as the student victims' rights ombudsman, who shall
 serve as the principal executive officer of the office of the
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 student victims' rights ombudsman. The department may appoint
 employees and other agents of the office of the student victims'
 rights ombudsman and prescribe their duties, consistent with this
 section.
       (3) The duties of the office of the student victims' rights
 ombudsman include, but are not limited to, all of the following:
       (a) Assist students and parents and legal guardians of
 students in understanding their rights and responsibilities under
 school policies and local, state, and federal law related to sexual
 misconduct by school employees.
       (b) Subject to state and federal laws, based on a request as
 described in subsection (4) or at the direction of the
 superintendent of public instruction, investigate and report to all
 interested parties and the superintendent of public instruction
 findings of potential violations of a school's policies and local,
 state, and federal law.
       (c) Investigate school district and school policies related to
 sexual misconduct to ensure compliance with local, state, and
 federal law and ensure that the policies do not discourage
 reporting of sexual misconduct.
       (d) Issue statewide guidance on state and federal laws related
 to sexual misconduct and best practices to address sexual
 misconduct against students.
       (4) A student or the parent or legal guardian of a student may
 submit a request, in the form and manner prescribed by the office
 of the student victims' rights ombudsman, to the office of the
 student victims' rights ombudsman seeking aid in addressing
 concerns and grievances related to sexual misconduct by school
 employees.
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       (5) Subject to state and federal laws, a school district,
 intermediate school district, public school academy, nonpublic
 school, the board of a school district or intermediate school
 district, the board of directors of a public school academy, or the
 governing body of a nonpublic school shall cooperate with the
 office of the student victims' rights ombudsman for an
 investigation conducted under this section and release all
 information requested by the office of the student victims' rights
 ombudsman for an investigation conducted under this section to the
 office of the student victims' rights ombudsman.
       Sec. 1535a. (1) Subject to subsection (2), if a person an
 individual who holds a teaching certificate that is valid in this
 state has been convicted of a crime described in this subsection,
 within 10 working days after receiving notice of the conviction the
 superintendent of public instruction shall notify the person
 individual in writing that his or her the individual's teaching
 certificate may be suspended because of the conviction and of his
 or her the individual's right to a hearing before the
 superintendent of public instruction. The hearing shall must be
 conducted as a contested case under the administrative procedures
 act of 1969, 1969 PA 306, MCL 24.201 to 24.328. If the person
 individual does not avail himself or herself themselves of this
 right to a hearing within 15 working days after receipt of this
 written notification, the teaching certificate of that person shall
 individual must be suspended. If a hearing takes place, the
 superintendent of public instruction shall complete the proceedings
 and make a final decision and order within 120 working days after
 receiving the request for a hearing. Subject to subsection (2), the
 superintendent of public instruction may suspend the person's
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 individual's teaching certificate based upon on the issues and
 evidence presented at the hearing. This subsection applies to any
 of the following crimes:
       (a) Any felony.
       (b) Any of the following misdemeanors:
       (i) Criminal sexual conduct in the fourth degree or an attempt
 to commit criminal sexual conduct in the fourth degree.
       (ii) Child abuse in the third or fourth degree or an attempt to
 commit child abuse in the third or fourth degree.
       (iii) A misdemeanor involving cruelty, torture, or indecent
 exposure involving a child.
       (iv) A misdemeanor violation of section 7410 of the public
 health code, 1978 PA 368, MCL 333.7410.
       (v) A violation of section 115, 141a, 335a, or 359 of the
 Michigan penal code, 1931 PA 328, MCL 750.115, 750.141a, 750.335a,
 and 750.359, or a misdemeanor violation of section 81, 81a, or 145d
 of the Michigan penal code, 1931 PA 328, MCL 750.81, 750.81a, and
 750.145d.
       (vi) A misdemeanor violation of section 701 of the Michigan
 liquor control code of 1998, 1998 PA 58, MCL 436.1701.
       (vii) Any misdemeanor that is a listed offense.
       (c) A violation of a substantially similar law of another
 state, of a political subdivision of this state or another state,
 or of the United States.
       (2) If a person an individual who holds a teaching certificate
 that is valid in this state has been convicted of a crime described
 in this subsection, the superintendent of public instruction shall
 find that the public health, safety, or welfare requires emergency
 action and shall order summary suspension of the person's
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 individual's teaching certificate under section 92 of the
 administrative procedures act of 1969, 1969 PA 306, MCL 24.292, and
 shall subsequently provide an opportunity for a hearing as provided
 under that section. This subsection does not limit the
 superintendent of public instruction's ability to order summary
 suspension of a person's an individual's teaching certificate for a
 reason other than described in this subsection. This subsection
 applies to conviction of any of the following crimes:
       (a) Criminal sexual conduct in any degree, assault with intent
 to commit criminal sexual conduct, or an attempt to commit criminal
 sexual conduct in any degree.
       (b) Felonious assault on a child, child abuse in the first
 degree, or an attempt to commit child abuse in the first degree.
       (c) Cruelty, torture, or indecent exposure involving a child.
       (d) A violation of section 7401(2)(a)(i), 7403(2)(a)(i), 7410,
 or 7416 of the public health code, 1978 PA 368, MCL 333.7401,
 333.7403, 333.7410, and 333.7416.
       (e) A violation of section 83, 89, 91, 145a, 145b, 145c, 316,
 317, 350, 448, 455, or 529 of the Michigan penal code, 1931 PA 328,
 MCL 750.83, 750.89, 750.91, 750.145a, 750.145b, 750.145c, 750.316,
 750.317, 750.350, 750.448, 750.455, and 750.529, or a felony
 violation of section 145d of the Michigan penal code, 1931 PA 328,
 MCL 750.145d.
       (f) A violation of section 158 of the Michigan penal code,
 1931 PA 328, MCL 750.158, if a victim is an individual less than 18
 years of age.
       (g) Except for a juvenile disposition or adjudication, a
 violation of section 338, 338a, or 338b of the Michigan penal code,
 1931 PA 328, MCL 750.338, 750.338a, and 750.338b, if a victim is an
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 individual less than 18 years of age.
       (h) A violation of section 349 of the Michigan penal code,
 1931 PA 328, MCL 750.349, if a victim is an individual less than 18
 years of age.
       (i) An offense committed by a person an individual who was, at
 the time of the offense, a sexually delinquent person as defined in
 section 10a of the Michigan penal code, 1931 PA 328, MCL 750.10a.
       (j) Any other crime that is a listed offense.
       (k) An attempt or conspiracy to commit an offense listed in
 subdivision (a), (e), (f), (g), (h), (i), or (j).
       (l) A violation of a substantially similar law of another
 state, of a political subdivision of this state or another state,
 or of the United States.
       (m) Any other crime listed in subsection (1), if the
 superintendent of public instruction determines the public health,
 safety, or welfare requires emergency action based on the
 circumstances underlying the conviction.
       (3) All of the following apply to any proceedings affecting a
 person's an individual's teaching certificate under this section:
       (a) The superintendent of public instruction shall appoint a
 designee to perform the investigatory and prosecutorial functions
 involved in the proceedings. However, the superintendent of public
 instruction must approve any settlement, conditional agreement, or
 other decision not to proceed with charges.
       (b) Any final action that affects the status of a person's an
 individual's teaching certificate shall be taken by the
 superintendent of public instruction.
       (c) The superintendent of public instruction after a hearing
 shall not take action against a person's an individual's teaching
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 certificate under subsection (1) or (2) unless the superintendent
 of public instruction finds that the conviction is reasonably and
 adversely related to the person's individual's present fitness to
 serve in an elementary or secondary school in this state or that
 the conviction demonstrates that the person individual is unfit to
 teach in an elementary or secondary school in this state. Further,
 the superintendent of public instruction may take action against a
 person's an individual's teaching certificate under subsection (1)
 or (2) based on a conviction that occurred before April 1, 2004 if
 the superintendent of public instruction finds that the conviction
 is reasonably and adversely related to the person's individual's
 present fitness to serve in an elementary or secondary school in
 this state or that the conviction demonstrates that the person
 individual is unfit to teach in an elementary or secondary school
 in this state. For the purposes of this section, conviction of a
 listed offense is reasonably and adversely related to the person's
 individual's fitness to serve in an elementary or secondary school
 in this state and demonstrates that the person individual is unfit
 to teach in an elementary or secondary school in this state.
       (4) If a person an individual who has entered a plea of guilt
 or no contest to or who is the subject of a finding of guilt by a
 judge or jury of a crime listed in subsection (2) has been
 suspended from active performance of duty by a public school,
 school district, intermediate school district, or nonpublic school
 during the pendency of proceedings under this section, the public
 school, school district, intermediate school district, or nonpublic
 school employing the person individual shall discontinue the
 person's individual's compensation until the superintendent of
 public instruction has made a final determination of whether or not
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 to suspend or revoke the person's individual's teaching
 certificate. If the superintendent of public instruction does not
 suspend or revoke the person's individual's teaching certificate,
 the public school, school district, intermediate school district,
 or nonpublic school shall make the person individual whole for lost
 compensation, without interest.
       (5) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, after the
 completion of a person's an individual's sentence, the person
 individual may request a hearing on reinstatement of his or her the
 individual's teaching certificate. Based upon the issues and
 evidence presented at the hearing, the superintendent of public
 instruction may reinstate, continue the suspension of, or
 permanently revoke the person's individual's teaching certificate.
 The superintendent of public instruction shall not reinstate a
 person's an individual's teaching certificate unless the
 superintendent of public instruction finds that the person
 individual is currently fit to serve in an elementary or secondary
 school in this state and that reinstatement of the person's
 individual's teaching certificate will not adversely affect the
 health, safety, and welfare of pupils. If a person's an
 individual's conviction was for a listed offense, the person
 individual is not entitled to request a hearing on reinstatement
 under this subsection, and the superintendent of public instruction
 shall not reinstate the person's individual's teaching certificate
 under this subsection.
       (6) All of the following apply to a person an individual
 described in this section whose conviction is reversed upon final
 appeal:
       (a) The person's individual's teaching certificate shall be
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 reinstated upon his or her the individual's notification to the
 superintendent of public instruction of the reversal.
       (b) If the suspension of the person's individual's teaching
 certificate under this section was the sole cause of his or her the
 individual's discharge from employment, the person individual shall
 be reinstated, upon his or her the individual's notification to the
 appropriate local or intermediate school board of the reversal,
 with full rights and benefits, to the position he or she the
 individual would have had if he or she the individual had been
 continuously employed.
       (c) If the person's individual's compensation was discontinued
 under subsection (4), the public school, school district,
 intermediate school district, or nonpublic school shall make the
 person individual whole for lost compensation.
       (7) If the prosecuting attorney in charge of a case receives a
 form as provided under section 1230d, the prosecuting attorney
 shall notify the superintendent of public instruction, and any
 public school, school district, intermediate school district, or
 nonpublic school in which the person individual is employed by
 forwarding a copy of the form to each of them not later than 7 days
 after receiving the form. If the court receives a form as provided
 under section 1230d, the court shall notify the superintendent of
 public instruction and any public school, school district,
 intermediate school district, or nonpublic school in which the
 person individual is employed by forwarding to each of them a copy
 of the form and information regarding the sentence imposed on the
 person individual not later than 7 days after the date of
 sentencing, even if the court is maintaining the file as a
 nonpublic record.
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       (8) Not later than 7 days after receiving notification from
 the prosecuting attorney or the court under subsection (7) or
 learning through an authoritative source that a person an
 individual who holds a teaching certificate has been convicted of a
 crime listed in subsection (1), the superintendent of public
 instruction shall request the court to provide a certified copy of
 the judgment of conviction and sentence or other document regarding
 the disposition of the case to the superintendent of public
 instruction and shall pay any fees required by the court. The court
 shall provide this certified copy within 7 days after receiving the
 request and fees under this section or after entry of the judgment
 or other document, whichever is later, even if the court is
 maintaining the judgment or other document as a nonpublic record.
       (9) If the superintendent of a school district or intermediate
 school district, the chief administrative officer of a nonpublic
 school, the president of the board of a school district or
 intermediate school district, or the president of the governing
 board of a nonpublic school is notified or learns through an
 authoritative source that a person an individual who holds a
 teaching certificate and who is employed by the school district,
 intermediate school district, or nonpublic school has been
 convicted of a crime described in subsection (1) or (2), the
 superi