Executive Order Regarding Student Discipline and California’s SB 274 Regarding “Willful Defiance”

07.21.2025

On April 23, 2025, the White House issued Executive Order 14280 (“Reinstating Commonsense School Discipline Policies”) (“Executive Order”). The Executive Order states the “Federal Government will no longer tolerate known risks to children’s safety and well-being in the classroom that result from the application of school discipline based on discriminatory and unlawful ‘equity’ ideology.”

The Executive Order focuses on the evolution of student discipline practices following the January 2014 U.S. Department of Education (“USDOE”) and U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) joint “Dear Colleague” letter (“DCL”). The DCL stated schools could be found to violate Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 if disciplinary decisions, even if applied in an even-handed manner, resulted in members of any racial groups being suspended, expelled, or referred to law enforcement at higher rates than others, referred to as “disparate impact discrimination.” The Executive Order asserts the 2014 DCL effectively required schools to discriminate on the basis of race by directing school not to implement discipline in an equitable manner, and noted a 2018 report from the Federal Commission on School Safety found “schools ignored or covered up—rather than disciplined—student misconduct in order to avoid any purported racial disparity in discipline numbers.” Following the 2018 report, the DCL was rescinded; however, in 2023, the USDOE and DOJ issued new guidance noting statistical racial disparities in student discipline may indicate violations of law, and encouraged schools to collect, analyze, and adjust their disciplinary policies in light of racial disciplinary data.

The April 23, 2025 Executive Order requires:

Within 30 days of the order, the Secretary of Education, in consultation with the Attorney General, shall issue new guidance to local educational agencies (“LEAs”) and State educational agencies (“SEAs”) regarding school discipline and obligations to not engage in racial discrimination under Title VI.[1]
Within 60 days of the order, the Secretary of Education and the Attorney General shall initiate coordination with Governors and State Attorneys General regarding prevention of racial discrimination in the application of school discipline; and
Within 120 days of the order, the Secretary of Education, in coordination with the Attorney General, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall submit a report to the President regarding the status of discriminatory-equity-ideology-based school discipline and behavior modification.

The Executive Order also states that the Secretary of Education will take “appropriate action with respect to LEAs and SEAs who fail to comply with Title VI protections against racial discrimination in the application of school discipline.” It fails to clarify what is considered “appropriate action.”

Recent Changes in California Student Discipline

In California, Senate Bill (“SB”) 274 amended Education Code section 48900 regarding student discipline effective July 1, 2024. In an effort to reduce suspensions for students of color[2], homeless students, students with disabilities, students in foster care, and LGBTQIA+ students, SB 274 further amended section 48900(k) regarding student suspensions for “willful defiance.”

Under prior law and amendments to section 48900(k), high school students could be suspended from school for “disrupt[ing] school activities or otherwise willfully def[ying] the valid authority of supervisors, teachers, administrators, school officers, or other school personnel engaged in the performance of their duties.” SB 274 follows prior legislative efforts to restrict “willful defiance” suspensions for students in eighth grade and below.[3]

Under Education Code section 48900(k), as amended by SB 274, students in grades 9 through 12 may no longer be suspended for “willful defiance.” Currently, this provision expires on July 1, 2029. SB 274 also extended the previous sunset provision for grades 6 through 8, and the prohibition of suspension for willful defiance for those students now also expires on July 1, 2029.

SB 274 also added section 48900(k)(5) which addresses how administrators must address and document referrals of students for in-school interventions or supports due to acts of willful defiance. Specifically, when a certificated or classified employee refers a student to a school administrator for an act of “willful defiance,” the school administrator has five business days to document the act of willful defiance, place the documentation in the student’s record, and “inform the referring certificated or classified employee, verbally or in writing, what actions were taken [to address the conduct] and, if none, the rationale used for not providing any appropriate or timely in-school interventions or supports.”

SB 274 continues to maintain that students could be disciplined for “willful defiance” in the form of teacher suspensions from class (maximum of day of suspension plus one day) under Education Code section 48910.

Impact of the Executive Order on California Discipline

California has strong overarching non-discrimination laws, including in the Education Code. Over the last 15 years, the legislature has updated the Education Code to include a focus on equity in school discipline as evidenced by SB 274 and Assembly Bill 1078, the Safe Place to Learn Act, passed in 2023, which aimed to limit discrimination, harassment, intimidation, and bullying in educational settings. The Executive Order does not immediately impact or undermine current Education Code provisions governing school discipline but may provide an avenue to challenge the state’s focus on “equity” in school discipline and concern over imbalance or mistreatment due to a protected characteristic. As with any area, it is important to follow the law, and provide strong supports to students and teachers, to provide a safe and supportive educational environment.

If you have any questions about this Alert, please contact your AALRR attorney or the others of this Alert.

[1] As of the date of this Alert, such guidance has yet to be issued.

[2] According to the California Department of Education’s (“CDE”), “Fingertip Facts on Education in California”, non-Caucasian students comprised 78.9% of California’s K-12 public school students during the 2024-2025 school year. (See https://www.cde.ca.gov/ds/ad/ceffingertipfacts.asp)

[3] Assembly Bill 420 (2014) (restricting suspension to students in grades sixth through eighth) and SB 419 (2019) (restricting suspension to high school students).