Postsecondary education: discrimination: sex.

Assembly Member Wilson's amendment to California's Education Code explicitly adds sex as a protected characteristic in anti-discrimination provisions governing postsecondary institutions that receive state funding or enroll students with state financial aid.

The measure builds upon existing protections that prohibit discrimination based on disability, nationality, race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, and other characteristics in college and university programs and activities. The amendment aligns the Education Code's anti-discrimination framework with parallel provisions in the Government Code and Penal Code, which address hate crimes and protected classes. Under the revised statute, postsecondary institutions must ensure their non-discrimination policies and compliance protocols specifically address sex-based discrimination alongside other protected characteristics.

The bill requires no state appropriations or additional funding mechanisms for implementation. Postsecondary institutions may need to update relevant policies and training materials to reflect the explicit inclusion of sex as a protected characteristic, though existing administrative frameworks for handling discrimination complaints remain unchanged.