SAN DIEGO — The San Diego City Council's Rules Committee on Wednesday unanimously approved two changes to the way in which San Diego Unified School District board members are elected and how they can be removed.
Currently, board members participate in a by-district election during the primary. The top-two finishers in each district then compete in a citywide general election that can result in the board not always including representatives from each district.
The ballot measure would change the general election to a by-district system to mirror the primary election system. The committee supported putting the proposal on the November 2020 ballot.
"This is not a partisan issue, this is just an equity issue," said Councilman Chris Cate, noting support from Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, D-San Diego. "This is how we treat elected officials in this region: no better or worse than each other."
The second change would allow the council to remove district board members if they are convicted of a felony or serious crime, if they are determined to be physically or mentally incapacitated, or if they are found to be in dereliction of official duties.
Currently, the council can only take such an action for the mayor, council members and the city attorney under the city charter. The proposal is expected to be placed on the March 2020 ballot.
The proposal is something of a response to the scandal surrounding district board member Kevin Beiser. In March, four men accused Beiser of sexual misconduct and abuse.
Although Beiser has maintained his innocence, he has not returned to his job as a teacher at Castle Park Middle School and remains in his position due to the board's inability to vote for his removal.
The board could only vote in favor of a resolution calling for his resignation, which it did in April.
The San Diego City Council's Rules Committee also voted to send roughly a half dozen proposed March and November 2020 ballot measures to a second committee review session.
Proposals that are approved in committee a second time are scheduled to go before the full council in October and November. The city attorney's office must file approved ballot measures with the county Registrar of Voters by Dec. 6 to be placed on the March 3, 2020, ballot.