1| STATE OF OKLAHOMA | | | 2| 1st Session of the 59th Legislature (2023) | | | 3|SENATE BILL 865 By: Bullard | | | 4| | | | 5| | | | 6| AS INTRODUCED | | | 7| An Act relating to teachers; creating the Teachers' | | Bill of Rights; providing short title; affording | 8| certain rights to certain teachers, administrators, | | and support staff; directing creation of certain due | 9| process plan; requiring plan to include certain | | components; providing for codification; providing an | 10| effective date; and declaring an emergency. | | | 11| | | | 12| | | | 13|BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA: | | | 14| SECTION 1. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified | | | 15|in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 6-101.9 of Title 70, unless | | | 16|there is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows: | | | 17| A. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Teachers' | | | 18|Bill of Rights". | | | 19| B. Teachers, administrators, and support staff employed by a | | | 20|school district, public charter school, or public virtual charter | | | 21|school in this state shall be afforded the following rights: | | | 22| 1. The right to free expression of religion, speech, and | | | 23|peaceable assembly including, but not limited to: | | | 24| | | | Req. No. 26 Page 1 ___________________________________________________________________________
1| a. the right to keep the Holy Scriptures in their | | | 2| classroom for personal use, | | | 3| b. the right to use the Holy Scriptures as they pertain | | | 4| to the teaching of American history or American | | | 5| literature if presented objectively as part of a | | | 6| secular program of education, | | | 7| c. the right to wear faith-based or religious symbols | | | 8| including jewelry on their persons, | | | 9| d. the right to pray with, over, or in front of students | | | 10| as provided for in Section 11-101.1 of Title 70 of the | | | 11| Oklahoma Statutes, and | | | 12| e. the right to a working environment in which the | | | 13| employing school district, public charter school, or | | | 14| public virtual charter school does not endorse, favor, | | | 15| promote, demean, show hostility toward, or | | | 16| intentionally undermine any particular religion or | | | 17| nonreligious faith or religious perspective; | | | 18| 2. The right to be free from the use of vulgar or abusive | | | 19|language by students and other teachers, administrators, or support | | | 20|staff; | | | 21| 3. The right to be free from physical harm or threats from | | | 22|students, parents or legal guardians of students, and other | | | 23|employees of the school district, public charter school, or public | | | 24|virtual charter school; | | | Req. No. 26 Page 2 ___________________________________________________________________________
1| 4. The right to provide for the control and discipline of | | | 2|students as may be assigned to him or her and to keep good order in | | | 3|the classroom and other places in which he or she is assigned to be | | | 4|in charge of students including: | | | 5| a. the right to have disobedient, disrespectful, | | | 6| violent, abusive, or disruptive students removed from | | | 7| the classroom, | | | 8| b. the right to refuse to allow a student who has been | | | 9| suspended for a violent offense to return to his or | | | 10| her classroom, as provided for in Section 24-101.3 of | | | 11| Title 70 of the Oklahoma Statutes, and | | | 12| c. the right to use established and reasonable methods | | | 13| of discipline, as provided for in the policy adopted | | | 14| pursuant to Section 24-100.4 of Title 70 of the | | | 15| Oklahoma Statutes, and to be immune from civil | | | 16| liability for any action taken in good faith as | | | 17| provided for Section 24-101.3 of Title 70 of the | | | 18| Oklahoma Statutes; | | | 19| 5. The right of designated school personnel to carry and use a | | | 20|firearm, as provided for in Section 5-149.2 of Title 70 of the | | | 21|Oklahoma Statutes; | | | 22| 6. The right to a safe working environment with adequate safety | | | 23|protocols and structural safety measures to ensure protection from | | | 24|exterior or interior threats of violence; | | | Req. No. 26 Page 3 ___________________________________________________________________________
1| 7. The right to medical privacy, to refuse a vaccination as a | | | 2|condition of employment, and to refuse to wear a mask or any other | | | 3|medical device as a condition of employment, except as provided for | | | 4|in Section 1210.190 of Title 70 of the Oklahoma Statutes; | | | 5| 8. The right to refuse to provide instruction or participate in | | | 6|training on any topic that violates the individual's conscience, | | | 7|ethics, or religion; provided, however, the individual shall be | | | 8|prohibited from refusing to provide instruction prescribed by state | | | 9|law, including the subject matter standards provided for in Section | | | 10|11-103.6 of Title 70 of the Oklahoma Statutes, or prescribed by | | | 11|State Board of Education rules; | | | 12| 9. The right to adequate planning time including at least one | | | 13|hour not to be infringed by additional responsibilities or requests; | | | 14|provided, however, an individual may voluntarily relinquish his or | | | 15|her planning hour; | | | 16| 10. The right to a lunch period of a minimum of twenty (20) | | | 17|minutes during the school day; | | | 18| 11. The right to information regarding complaints filed by a | | | 19|student or the parent or legal guardian of a student, unless the | | | 20|complaint is part of a law enforcement investigation; | | | 21| 12. The right to be protected by school administrators when | | | 22|helping students better understand, analyze, critique, and review in | | | 23|an objective manner the strengths and weaknesses of existing | | | 24|theories, issues, and subjects which may be controversial when | | | Req. No. 26 Page 4 ___________________________________________________________________________
1|covered in a course being taught using evidence-based, peer-reviewed | | | 2|material; and | | | 3| 13. The right to privately petition a school administrator, a | | | 4|school district board of education, or a governing body of a public | | | 5|charter school or public virtual charter school to modify a school | | | 6|policy. | | | 7| C. A school district board of education or the governing body | | | 8|of a public charter school or public virtual charter school shall | | | 9|create a due process plan for teachers, administrators, and support | | | 10|staff to report violations of the rights provided for in subsection | | | 11|B of this section. The due process plan shall include, at a | | | 12|minimum, the following: | | | 13| 1. Designation of a school employee or employees to receive | | | 14|reports of violation; | | | 15| 2. Provisions for anonymous reports to protect the identity of | | | 16|the accuser from retribution; | | | 17| 3. A requirement that reported violations be investigated by | | | 18|designated school employees in a timely manner; | | | 19| 4. Procedures for investigating and implementing punishment for | | | 20|false accusations; | | | 21| 5. Procedures for reporting to law enforcement suspected | | | 22|violations that may constitute criminal activity or reasonably have | | | 23|the potential to endanger school safety; and | | | 24| | | | Req. No. 26 Page 5 ___________________________________________________________________________
1| 6. A procedure for appealing findings of designated school | | | 2|employees to a school district board of education or the governing | | | 3|body of a public charter school or public virtual charter school. | | | 4| SECTION 2. This act shall become effective July 1, 2023. | | | 5| SECTION 3. It being immediately necessary for the preservation | | | 6|of the public peace, health, or safety, an emergency is hereby | | | 7|declared to exist, by reason whereof this act shall take effect and | | | 8|be in full force from and after its passage and approval. | | | 9| | | | 10| 59-1-26 EB 1/19/2023 11:39:31 AM | | | 11| | | | 12| | | | 13| | | | 14| | | | 15| | | | 16| | | | 17| | | | 18| | | | 19| | | | 20| | | | 21| | | | 22| | | | 23| | | | 24| | | | Req. No. 26 Page 6