California Bill Banning Student Suspensions for Defying Teachers, Disrupting Classes Passes Legislature

A class at Stark Elementary School in Stamford, Conn., on March 10, 2021. John Moore/Getty Images

A California bill that would ban schools from suspending students who disrupt class or defy teachers—known as willful defiance suspensions—is one step away from becoming law.

The state Senate in May advanced Senate Bill 274, introduced by Sen. Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley), in a 36–3 vote to the state Assembly, where it was placed Aug. 23 on the “suspense file”—a holding place for bills that require a significant fiscal expense.