BILL NUMBER: SB 1309	CHAPTERED
	BILL TEXT

	CHAPTER  837
	FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE  SEPTEMBER 30, 2006
	APPROVED BY GOVERNOR  SEPTEMBER 30, 2006
	PASSED THE SENATE  AUGUST 30, 2006
	PASSED THE ASSEMBLY  AUGUST 24, 2006
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  AUGUST 21, 2006
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  AUGUST 10, 2006
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  AUGUST 7, 2006
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  JUNE 26, 2006
	AMENDED IN SENATE  MAY 17, 2006
	AMENDED IN SENATE  MAY 3, 2006
	AMENDED IN SENATE  APRIL 17, 2006

INTRODUCED BY   Senator Scott
   (Principal coauthor: Senator Perata)

                        FEBRUARY 16, 2006

   An act to amend Section 87482 of, to amend and renumber Sections
69616, 69616.1, 69616.2, 69616.3, 69616.4, 69616.5, 69616.6, 69616.7,
69616.8, 69616.9, and 69617 of, to add Article 3.51 (commencing with
Section 78260), Article 3.52 (commencing with Section 78261), and
Article 3.53 (commencing with Section 78262) to Chapter 2 of Part 48
of, to add Article 7.7 (commencing with Section 89267) to Chapter 2
of Part 55 of, to add Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 92645) to
Chapter 6 of Part 57 of, to add the heading of Chapter 3 (commencing
with Section 70100) to Part 42 of, and to add the heading of Article
1 (commencing with Section 70100) to Chapter 3 of Part 42 of, to add
and repeal Article 10 (commencing with Section 33430) of Chapter 3 of
Part 20 of, to add and repeal Article 2 (commencing with Section
70120) of Chapter 3 of Part 42 of, and to repeal the heading of
Article 5.3 (commencing with Section 69616) of Chapter 2 of Part 42
of, the Education Code, relating to nursing education.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SB 1309, Scott  Nursing education: grants, loan assumptions, and
faculty recruiting and retention.
   (1) Existing law establishes programs of nursing education at
public and private institutions of higher education.
   This bill would express legislative intent with respect to
expanding the capacity of the state's institutions of higher
education to prepare students for nursing careers.
   (2) Existing law establishes the State Department of Education
under the administration of the State Board of Education and the
Superintendent of Public Instruction, and provides the department
with numerous duties and responsibilities with respect to statewide
administration of public elementary and secondary education programs
and services.
   This bill would establish a Health Science and Medical Technology
Project to provide competitive grant funds to California public
schools offering grades 7 to 12, inclusive, to enhance existing or
establish new health-related career pathway programs, including
programs at California Partnership academies and regional
occupational centers and programs, as well as other health science
and medical technology pathway programs. The bill would express
legislative intent with respect to the funding of this project.
   The bill would require the State Department of Education to report
to the Legislature and the Governor on the efficacy of this project
on or before January 1, 2012. The bill would repeal the program as of
January 1, 2014.
   (3) Existing law establishes the Student Aid Commission as the
primary state agency for the administration of state-authorized
student financial aid programs available to students attending all
segments of postsecondary education.
   Existing law establishes the State Nursing Assumption Program of
Loans for Education (SNAPLE), administered by the commission, under
which any person enrolled in an institution of postsecondary
education and participating in that loan assumption program is
eligible to receive a conditional warrant for loan assumption, to be
redeemed upon becoming employed as a full-time nursing faculty member
at a California college or university.
   Among other things, the SNAPLE act establishes eligibility
requirements, including the receipt of a graduate degree from an
accredited, participating institution before loan assumption payments
may be made, limits each participant in the program to one loan
assumption agreement, and provides for a progressive assumption of
the amount of the loan over 3 consecutive years of teaching, up to a
total loan assumption of $25,000. The SNAPLE act requires the
commission to report annually to the Legislature, and states the
intent of the Legislature that, commencing with the 2006-07 fiscal
year, funding necessary for the administration of the program shall
be included within the annual budget of the commission.
   This bill would amend the SNAPLE act to authorize the award of
loan assumption agreements under the program to undergraduate
students and to authorize the making of loan assumption payments to
applicants who have taught on a part-time basis for the equivalent of
3 full-time academic years. The bill would authorize the extension
of the term of a loan assumption agreement if a natural disaster
prevents a program participant from completing one of the years of
required teaching service. The bill would express the intent of the
Legislature that the amendments made by the bill apply retroactively
to existing loan assumption agreements made under the program, and
would authorize the commission to amend any existing loan assumption
agreements and to issue new loan assumption agreements to conform to
this bill.  The bill would also make various technical,
nonsubstantive changes in the SNAPLE act.
   This bill would establish a loan assumption program for employees
of specified state facilities within the SNAPLE program. This program
would provide loan assumption benefits to persons who fulfill
agreements to work full time for 4 consecutive years as clinical
registered nurses in state-operated 24-hour facilities, as specified,
that employ registered nurses and that, at the time the person
commences employment at the facility, have a vacancy rate of greater
than 10% in clinical registered nursing positions, as reported,
pursuant to the bill, to the commission by the Department of
Personnel Administration. The program would provide for a progressive
assumption of the amount of a qualifying loan over 4 consecutive
years of qualifying clinical registered nursing service, up to a
total loan assumption of $20,000. The bill would require the
commission to report specified data about program participants
annually to the Legislature. The bill would require the Office of the
Legislative Analyst to submit, on or before May 1, 2011, a report to
the Legislature that includes the findings and recommendations of
the Legislative Analyst with respect to the efficacy of the program.

   The bill would provide that this program would become inoperative
on July 1, 2012, and would be repealed on January 1, 2013.
   (4) Existing law establishes the California Community Colleges,
under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California
Community Colleges, as one of the segments of public postsecondary
education in this state.  Existing law requires the board of
governors to appoint a chief executive officer, known as the
Chancellor of the California Community Colleges. Existing law
establishes community college districts throughout the state, and
authorizes these districts to provide instruction to students at the
community college campuses maintained by the districts.
   The bill would establish the California Community Colleges Nursing
Faculty Recruitment and Retention Program for purposes of
facilitating the recruitment and retention of qualified nursing
faculty. The bill would specify the amount of the grants that would
be disbursed, under the program, to each participating community
college district. The bill would repeal provisions of this program
relating to the development of 5 nursing resource centers, contingent
upon the receipt of funds from the United States Department of
Labor, as of January 1, 2012.
   (5) Existing law authorizes the governing board of a community
college district to employ any qualified individual as a temporary
faculty member for a complete school year, but prohibits the
employment of a person under this provision for more than 2 semesters
or 3 quarters within any period of 3 consecutive years.
   This bill would exempt persons serving as clinical nursing faculty
from this limit, and instead limit these persons to employment under
this provision for up to 4 semesters or 6 quarters within any period
of 3 consecutive academic years between July 1, 2007, and June 30,
2014. The bill would require districts employing persons under this
provision to provide specified data to the Chancellor of the
California Community Colleges on or before June 30, 2012, and would
require the chancellor to report to the Legislature and the Governor
on or before September 30, 2012, on specified topics related to this
provision. The bill would prohibit a district from employing a person
pursuant to this provision if the hiring of that person results in
an increase in the ratio of part-time to full-time nursing faculty in
that district.
   (6) Existing law establishes the California State University under
the administration of the Trustees of the California State
University, and provides for the operation of 25 component
institutions of the university.
   This bill would express legislative intent with respect to the
expansion and funding of baccalaureate degree nursing programs of the
university.
   (7) Existing law establishes the University of California under
the administration of the Regents of the University of California,
and authorizes the provision of instruction at the 10 component
institutions of the university.
   This bill would express legislative intent with respect to the
expansion and funding of baccalaureate and master's degree nursing
programs of the university.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


  SECTION 1.  (a) The Legislature hereby finds and declares that
California is facing a health care crisis of immense proportion in
major part due to a critical shortage of registered nurses.
California currently ranks 49th among states in nurses per capita.
This shortage is expected to increase over the next five years due to
the aging of both the general population and of the nursing
workforce. It is estimated that, in order to fill the projected
shortage, California will need to graduate an additional 3,300 nurses
a year.
   (b) Furthermore, state educational institutions do not currently
have the capacity to meet California's nursing workforce needs.
Schools are filled to capacity and have long waiting lists. A
shortage of faculty and clinical facilities makes it difficult for
schools to expand their programs. A significant number of students
fail to complete registered nursing programs because of a lack of
preparation, limited program support services, and college admission
policies.
   (c) The Legislature also finds that diversity in the health care
workforce is essential to providing quality access to health care to
the multicultural and ethnic communities in the state.
   (d) Therefore, the Legislature declares its intent to establish
the Nursing Education Pipeline Act of 2006 to expand the number of
nurses educated in California over the next five years by
accomplishing all of the following:
   (1) Expanding the capacity of health career programs at the
secondary level.
   (2) Increasing nursing education enrollment in community colleges
and the California State University system.
   (3) Recruiting and retaining nursing faculty.
   (4) Streamlining the clinical placement process and thereby
increasing clinical placement opportunities for both students and
hospitals.
   (5) Enhancing financial assistance for nursing students and nurses
choosing to become nursing faculty.
   (6) Providing additional resources to community colleges to reduce
program attrition.
   (7) Creating a statewide health workforce database to monitor
workforce supply and demand issues and educational capacity to meet
workforce needs.
  SEC. 2.  Article 10 (commencing with Section 33430) is added to
Chapter 3 of Part 20 of the Education Code, to read:

      Article 10.  Health Science and Medical Technology Project

   33430.  (a) This article establishes the Health Science and
Medical Technology Project, administered by the State Department of
Education to provide competitive grant funds to California public
schools offering grades 7 to 12, inclusive, to enhance existing or
establish new health-related career pathway programs. Programs
eligible for funding include, but are not necessarily limited to,
California partnership academies and regional occupational centers
and programs, as well as other health science and medical technology
pathway programs. Grant recipients shall, at a minimum, offer a
coherent sequence of standards-based academic and Career Technical
Education coursework in selected pathways that will result in higher
levels of achievement, technical skills, and knowledge necessary for
students to pursue a full range of health care employment at support,
technical, or professional levels.
   (b) Funding provided for the purposes of this article shall be
used for any of the following purposes:  standards-based curriculum
development, development of a sequence of courses in selected
pathways, program articulation in grades 7 to 14, inclusive, material
and equipment, student support, work-based learning experiences, and
professional development.
   33431.  The State Department of Education shall report to the
Legislature and the Governor on the efficacy of the project
established under this article on or before January 1, 2012.
   33432.  This article shall remain in effect only until January 1,
2014, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted
statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2014, deletes or extends
that date.
  SEC. 3.  The heading of Article 5.3 (commencing with Section 69616)
of Chapter 2 of Part 42 of the Education Code, as amended and
renumbered by Section 21 of Chapter 79 of the Statutes of 2006, is
repealed.
  SEC. 4.  Section 69616 of the Education Code, as amended by Section
22 of Chapter 79 of the Statutes of 2006, is amended and renumbered
to read:
   70100.  (a) The Legislature hereby recognizes the growing need for
new faculty members in the nursing field at California's colleges
and universities. This need will be fueled largely by the large
number of current faculty approaching retirement age who will need to
be replaced and the expected growth in enrollment demand in
California.  Further, to increase the supply of nurses in California,
there must be an expansion of nursing educator opportunities in
public colleges and universities that will produce the necessary
faculty to teach in nursing programs in the state.
   (b) The Legislature finds that the rising costs of higher
education, coupled with a shift in available financial aid from
scholarships and grants to loans, make loan repayment options an
important consideration in a student's decision to pursue a graduate
degree in nursing education or in a field related to nursing.
   (c) It is the intent of the Legislature that the State Nursing
Assumption Program of Loans for Education (SNAPLE) be designed to
encourage persons to complete their graduate educations and serve as
nursing faculty in a registered nursing program at an accredited
California college or university.
   (d) As used in this article, "commission" means the Student Aid
Commission.
  SEC. 5.  Section 69616.1 of the Education Code, as amended by
Section 23 of Chapter 79 of the Statutes of 2006, is amended and
renumbered to read:
   70101.  (a) Program participants shall meet all of the following
eligibility criteria prior to selection into the program and shall
continue to meet these criteria, as appropriate, during the payment
periods:
   (1) The participant shall be a United States citizen or eligible
noncitizen.
   (2) The participant shall be a California resident attending an
eligible school or college.
   (3) The participant shall be making satisfactory academic
progress.
   (4) The participant shall have complied with United States
Selective Service requirements.
   (5) The participant shall not owe a refund on any state or federal
educational grant or have delinquent or defaulted student loans.
   (b) Any person enrolled in an institution of postsecondary
education and participating in the loan assumption program set forth
in this article may be eligible to receive a conditional warrant for
loan assumption, to be redeemed pursuant to this act upon becoming
employed as a full-time nursing faculty member at a California
college or university or the equivalent of full-time service as a
nursing faculty member employed part time at one or more California
colleges or universities.
   (c) (1) The commission shall award loan assumption agreements to
undergraduate students with demonstrated academic ability and
financial need, as determined by the commission pursuant to Article
1.5 (commencing with Section 69503) of Chapter 2, and to graduate
students with demonstrated academic ability.
   (2) The applicant shall have completed a baccalaureate degree
program or be enrolled in an academic program leading to a
baccalaureate level or a graduate level degree.
   (3) The applicant shall be currently enrolled in or admitted to a
program in which he or she will be enrolled on at least a half-time
basis each academic term as defined by an eligible institution. The
applicant shall agree to maintain satisfactory academic progress.
   (4) The applicant shall have been judged by his or her
postsecondary institution to have outstanding ability on the basis of
criteria that may include, but need not be limited to, any of the
following:
   (A) Grade point average.
   (B) Test scores.
   (C) Faculty evaluations.
   (D) Interviews.
   (E) Other recommendations.
   (5) The applicant shall have received, or be approved to receive,
a loan under one or more of the following designated loan programs:
   (A) The Federal Family Education Loan Program (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1071
et seq.).
   (B) The Federal Direct Loan Program.
   (C) Any loan program approved by the commission.
   (6) The applicant shall have agreed to teach nursing on a
full-time basis at one or more accredited California colleges or
universities for at least three years, or on a part-time basis for
the equivalent of three full-time academic years, commencing not more
than 12 months after obtaining an academic degree, unless the
applicant, within 12 months after obtaining the academic degree,
enrolls in an academic degree program leading to a more advanced
degree in nursing or a field related to nursing.
   (7) An applicant who teaches on less than a full-time basis may
participate in the program, but is not eligible for loan repayment
until that person teaches for the equivalent of a full-time academic
year.
   (d) A person participating in the program pursuant to this section
shall not receive more than one loan assumption agreement, and shall
not be eligible to receive a grant pursuant to Article 3.51
(commencing with Section 78260) of Chapter 2 of Part 48.
  SEC. 6.  Section 69616.2 of the Education Code, as amended by
Section 24 of Chapter 79 of the Statutes of 2006, is amended and
renumbered to read:
   70102.  The commission shall commence loan assumption payments
pursuant to this article upon verification that the applicant has
fulfilled all of the following:
   (a) The applicant has received a baccalaureate degree or a
graduate degree from an accredited, participating institution.
   (b) The applicant has provided the equivalent of full-time nursing
instruction at one or more regionally accredited California colleges
or universities for one academic year or the equivalent.
   (c) The applicant has met the requirements of the loan assumption
agreement and all other conditions of this article.
  SEC. 7.  Section 69616.3 of the Education Code, as amended by
Section 25 of Chapter 79 of the Statutes of 2006, is amended and
renumbered to read:
   70103.  The terms of the loan assumptions granted under this
article shall be as follows, subject to the specific terms of each
loan assumption agreement:
   (a) After a program participant has completed one academic year,
or the equivalent of full-time teaching nursing studies, at one or
more regionally accredited, eligible California colleges or
universities, the commission shall assume up to eight thousand three
hundred thirty-three dollars ($8,333) of the outstanding liability of
the participant under one or more of the designated loan programs.
   (b) After the program participant has completed two consecutive
academic years, or the equivalent of full-time teaching, at one or
more regionally accredited California colleges or universities, the
commission shall assume up to an additional eight thousand three
hundred thirty-three dollars ($8,333) of the outstanding liability of
the participant under one or more of the designated loan programs,
for a total loan assumption of up to sixteen thousand six hundred
sixty-six dollars ($16,666).
   (c) After a program participant has completed three consecutive
academic years, or the equivalent of full-time teaching, at one or
more regionally accredited California colleges or universities, the
commission shall assume up to an additional eight thousand three
hundred thirty-four dollars ($8,334) of the outstanding liability of
the participant under one or more of the designated loan programs,
for a total loan assumption of up to twenty-five thousand dollars
($25,000).
   (d) The commission may assume liability for loans received by the
program participant to pay for the costs of obtaining the program
participant's undergraduate and graduate degrees.
   (e) The term of the loan assumption agreement shall be not more
than 10 years from the date on which the agreement was executed by
the program participant and the commission.
  SEC. 8.  Section 69616.4 of the Education Code, as amended by
Section 26 of Chapter 79 of the Statutes of 2006, is amended and
renumbered to read:
   70104.  (a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), if a program
participant fails to complete a minimum of three academic years of
teaching on a full-time basis or the equivalent on a part-time basis,
as required by this article under the terms of the agreement
pursuant to paragraph (6) of subdivision (c) of Section 70101, the
loan assumption agreement is no longer effective and shall be deemed
terminated, and the commission shall not make any further payments.
The participant shall resume responsibility for any remaining loan
obligations, but shall not be required to repay any loan payments
previously made through this program.
   (b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), if a program participant
becomes unable to complete one of the three years of teaching service
on a full-time basis, or the equivalent on a part-time basis, due to
a serious illness, pregnancy, or other natural causes, the term of
the loan assumption agreement shall be extended for a period not to
exceed one academic year. The commission shall make no further
payments under the loan assumption agreement until the applicable
teaching requirements specified in Section 70103 have been satisfied.

   (c) If a natural disaster prevents a program participant from
completing one of the required years of teaching service due to the
interruption of instruction at the employing accredited California
college or university, the term of the loan assumption agreement
shall be extended for the period of time equal to the period from the
interruption of instruction at the employing accredited California
college or university to the resumption of instruction. The
commission shall make no further payments under the loan assumption
agreement until the applicable teaching requirements specified in
Section 70103 have been satisfied.
  SEC. 9.  Section 69616.5 of the Education Code, as amended by
Section 27 of Chapter 79 of the Statutes of 2006, is amended and
renumbered to read:
   70105.  (a) The commission shall accept nominations from
accredited colleges and universities made pursuant to this article.
   (b) The commission shall choose from among those nominations of
undergraduate students deemed financially needy with outstanding
student loans pursuant to Article 1.5 (commencing with Section
69503), and of graduate students with outstanding student loans,
based upon criteria that may include, but are not necessarily limited
to, all of the following:
   (1) Grades at the undergraduate level in a subject field related
to nursing.
   (2) Grades in the undergraduate program.
   (3) Aptitude for graduate work in the field of nursing.
   (4) General aptitude for graduate study.
   (5) Critical human resource needs.
   (c) The commission may develop additional criteria for the
selection of award recipients consistent with the purposes of this
article.
  SEC. 10.  Section 69616.6 of the Education Code is amended and
renumbered to read:
   70106.  The commission shall administer this article, and shall
adopt rules and regulations for that purpose.  The rules and
regulations shall include, but need not be limited to, provisions
regarding the period of time for which a warrant shall remain valid
and the development of projections for funding purposes. In
developing these rules and regulations, the commission shall solicit
the advice of representatives from postsecondary education
institutions, the Office of Statewide Health Planning and
Development, and the nursing community.
  SEC. 11.  Section 69616.7 of the Education Code is amended and
renumbered to read:
   70107.  The commission shall work to develop a streamlined
application process for participation in the program set forth in
this article.
  SEC. 12.  Section 69616.8 of the Education Code is amended and
renumbered to read:
   70108.  The commission shall report annually to the Legislature on
this program. The report shall include, but not be limited to, all
of the following:
   (a) The total number of loan assumption agreements offered, by
education level and institution.
   (b) The number of loan assumption agreements paid out, by
education level and institution.
   (c) The number of loan assumption agreements that are redeemed, by
year of service (year one through year three).
   (d) The annual and cumulative attrition rate of participants, by
education level and institution.
  SEC. 13.  Section 69616.9 of the Education Code is amended and
renumbered to read:
   70109.  Notwithstanding any other law, in any fiscal year, the
commission shall award no more than the number of warrants that are
authorized by the Governor and the Legislature in the annual Budget
Act for that year for the assumption of loans pursuant to this
article.
  SEC. 14.  Section 69617 of the Education Code is amended and
renumbered to read:
   70110.  It is the intent of the Legislature that, commencing with
the 2006-07 fiscal year, funding necessary for the administration of
the student loan assumption program implemented pursuant to this
article shall be included within the annual budget of the commission.

  SEC. 15.  The heading of Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 70100)
is added to Part 42 of the Education Code, to read:
      CHAPTER 3.  State Nursing Assumption Program of Loans for
Education (SNAPLE)

  SEC. 16.  The heading of Article 1 (commencing with Section 70100)
is added to Chapter 3 of Part 42 of the Education Code, to read:

      Article 1.  Nursing Faculty

  SEC. 17.  Article 2 (commencing with Section 70120) is added to
Chapter 2 of Part 42 of the Education Code, to read:

      Article 2.  Employees of State Facilities

   70120.  (a) (1) Any person enrolled in an eligible institution, or
any person who agrees to work full time as a registered nurse in a
state-operated 24-hour facility that employs registered nurses, may
be eligible to enter into an agreement for loan assumption, to be
redeemed pursuant to Section 70122 upon becoming employed as a
clinical registered nurse in a state-operated 24-hour facility that
employs registered nurses and that has a clinical registered nurse
vacancy rate of greater than 10 percent as reported annually to the
commission by the Department of Personnel Administration pursuant to
Section 70121. In order to be eligible to enter into an agreement for
loan assumption, an applicant shall satisfy all of the conditions
specified in subdivision (b).
   (2) As used in this article, "eligible institution" means a
postsecondary institution that is determined by the Student Aid
Commission to meet both of the following requirements:
   (A) The institution is eligible to participate in state and
federal financial aid programs.
   (B) The institution maintains an accredited program of
professional preparation for licensing as a registered nurse in
California.
   (3) As used in this article, "state-operated 24-hour facility"
includes, but is not necessarily limited to, a state-operated prison,
psychiatric hospital, or veterans' home.
   (b) (1) The applicant has been admitted to, or is enrolled in, an
accredited program of professional preparation for licensing as a
registered nurse in California.
   (2) The applicant is currently enrolled, or has been admitted to a
program in which he or she will be enrolled, on a full-time basis,
as determined by the participating institution. The applicant shall
agree to maintain satisfactory academic progress and a minimum of
full-time enrollment, as defined by the participating eligible
institution.
   (3) The applicant has been judged by his or her postsecondary
institution to have outstanding ability on the basis of criteria that
may include, but need not be limited to, any of the following:
   (A) Grade point average.
   (B) Test scores.
   (C) Faculty evaluations.
   (D) Interviews.
   (E) Other recommendations.
   (4) The applicant has received, or is approved to receive, a loan
under one or more of the following designated loan programs:
   (A) The Federal Family Education Loan Program (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1071
et seq.).
   (B) Any loan program approved by the Student Aid Commission.
   (5) The applicant has agreed to work full time for at least four
consecutive years as a clinical registered nurse in a state-operated
24-hour facility that employs registered nurses and that has a
clinical registered nurse vacancy rate of greater than 10 percent as
reported annually to the commission by the Department of Personnel
Administration.
   (c) No applicant who has completed fewer than 60 semester units,
or the equivalent, shall be eligible under this section to
participate in the loan assumption program set forth in this article.

   (d) An agreement shall remain valid even if the state-operated
facility at which the applicant is employed ceases to be listed
pursuant to Section 70121 after the applicant is employed there.
   (e) A person participating in the program pursuant to this section
shall not enter into more than one agreement.
   70121.  On or before January 31, 2007, and each January 31
thereafter until, and including, January 31, 2012, the Department of
Personnel Administration shall provide the commission with a list
including each state-operated 24-hour facility that employs
registered nurses where, as of the immediately preceding January 1,
there is a vacancy rate in clinical registered nurse positions that
exceeds 10 percent.
   70122.  The commission shall commence loan assumption payments, as
specified in Section 70123, upon verification that the applicant has
fulfilled all of the following:
   (a) The applicant has become a registered nurse licensed to
practice in California.
   (b) The applicant is working full time as a clinical registered
nurse in a state-operated 24-hour facility that employs registered
nurses and that, at the time the applicant commenced employment
there, had a clinical registered nurse vacancy rate of greater than
10 percent as reported, pursuant to Section 70121, by the Department
of Personnel Administration in its most recent annual report to the
commission.
   (c) The applicant has met the requirements of the agreement and
all other pertinent conditions of this article.
   70123.  The terms of a loan assumption granted under this article
shall be as follows, subject to the specific terms of each agreement:

   (a) After a program participant has completed one year of
full-time employment as described in subdivision (b) of Section
70122, the commission shall assume up to five thousand dollars
($5,000) of the participant's outstanding liability under one or more
of the designated loan programs.
   (b) After a program participant has completed two years of
full-time employment as described in subdivision (b) of Section
70122, the commission shall assume up to an additional five thousand
dollars ($5,000) of the participant's outstanding liability under one
or more of the designated loan programs, for a total loan assumption
of up to ten thousand dollars ($10,000).
   (c) After a program participant has completed three years of
full-time employment as described in subdivision (b) of Section
70122, the commission shall assume up to an additional five thousand
dollars ($5,000) of the participant's outstanding liability under one
or more of the designated loan programs, for a total loan assumption
of up to fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000).
   (d) After a program participant has completed four years of
full-time employment as described in subdivision (b) of Section
70122, the commission shall assume up to an additional five thousand
dollars ($5,000) of the participant's outstanding liability under one
or more of the designated loan programs, for a total loan assumption
of up to twenty thousand dollars ($20,000).
   70124.  (a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), if a program
participant fails to complete a minimum of four consecutive years of
full-time employment as required by this article, under the terms of
the agreement pursuant to paragraph (5) of subdivision (b) of Section
70120, the participant shall assume full liability for all student
loan obligations remaining after the commission's assumption of loan
liability for the last year of qualifying clinical registered nursing
service pursuant to Section 70123.
   (b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), if a program participant
becomes unable to complete one of the four consecutive years of
qualifying clinical registered nursing service due to serious
illness, pregnancy, or other natural causes, the term of the loan
assumption agreement shall be extended for a period not to exceed one
year. The commission shall make no further payments under the loan
assumption agreement until the applicable work requirements as
specified in Section 70122 have been satisfied.
   (c) If a natural disaster prevents a program participant from
completing one of the required years of work due to the interruption
of employment at the employing state facility, the term of the loan
assumption agreement shall be extended for the period of time equal
to the period from the interruption of employment at the employing
state facility to the resumption of instruction. The commission shall
make no further payments under the loan assumption agreement until
the applicable teaching requirements specified in Section 70103 have
been satisfied.
   70125.  The commission shall administer this article, and shall
adopt rules and regulations for that purpose.  The rules and
regulations shall include, but need not be limited to, provisions
regarding the period of time during which an agreement shall remain
valid, the reallocation of resources in light of agreements that are
not utilized by program participants, the failure, for any reason, of
a program participant to complete a minimum of four consecutive
years of qualifying clinical registered nursing service, and the
development of projections for funding purposes.
   70126.  On or before January 31, 2008, and on or before each
January 31 thereafter until, and including, January 31, 2012, the
commission shall report annually to the Legislature regarding both of
the following, on the basis of sex, age, and ethnicity:
   (a) The total number of program participants and the type of
program of professional preparation they are attending or have
attended.
   (b) The numbers of participants who complete one, two, three, or
four years of qualifying clinical registered nursing service,
respectively.

       70127.  On or before May 1, 2011, the Office of the
Legislative Analyst shall submit a report to the Legislature that
includes the findings and recommendations of the Legislative Analyst
with respect to the efficacy of the program established by this
article.
   70128.  In selecting applicants for participation in this program,
the commission shall grant priority to applicants who, in the
determination of the commission, are included in any of the following
categories:
   (a) Persons who possess a baccalaureate degree at the time of
initial application.
   (b) Persons who are enrolled in an accelerated program of
professional preparation for licensing as a registered nurse in
California.
   (c) Persons who are recipients of federally subsidized student
loans or other need-based student loans.
   70129.  This article shall become inoperative on July 1, 2012,
and, as of January 1, 2013, is repealed, unless a later enacted
statute, that becomes operative on or before January 1, 2013, deletes
or extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is
repealed.
  SEC. 18.  Article 3.51 (commencing with Section 78260) is added to
Chapter 2 of Part 48 of the Education Code, to read:

      Article 3.51.  Nursing Faculty

   78260.  (a) (1) In order to further the state's interests in a
major expansion in the number of educated nurses in California, the
Legislature finds that it is necessary to ensure a significant
expansion in the number of qualified nursing faculty at California
Community Colleges. Therefore, the Legislature hereby creates the
California Community Colleges Nursing Faculty Recruitment and
Retention Program in the Chancellor's Office of the California
Community Colleges for purposes of facilitating the recruitment and
retention of qualified nursing faculty. The Chancellor of the
California Community Colleges shall allocate funds on a competitive
grant basis to community college districts that commit to sustained
increases in the number of full-time equivalent students taught in
the district's nursing programs, as specified by the chancellor, and
that also commit to the terms and conditions specified in this
section.
   (2) It is the intent of the Legislature that the grants awarded
under this article should be one-time grants and that the total
amount of the funding for this article in any fiscal year should be
limited to the amount appropriated for that purpose in the annual
Budget Act. The Legislature finds and declares that the initial
funding for this article is the appropriation contained in paragraph
(30) of subdivision (a) of Section 43 of Chapter 79 of the Statutes
of 2006.
   (b) (1) (A) The grant amount to each participating district shall
be based on the number of full-time faculty at the district who are
in their first through fifth year of service as an instructor in a
California Community College registered nursing program in the fiscal
year for which funds are disbursed. Notwithstanding any other
provision of law, a community college district that receives an
allocation for the making of grants under this article shall have up
to five years to disburse these funds.
   (B) Except as provided in paragraph (3), the amount granted to any
person under this article shall not exceed a total of twenty
thousand dollars ($20,000) disbursed over a five-year period with a
maximum of six thousand dollars ($6,000) in any one year.
   (2) Disbursements under this section shall be based on the
following schedule:
   (A) Six thousand dollars ($6,000) for each instructor in his or
her first year.
   (B) Five thousand dollars ($5,000) for each instructor in his or
her second year.
   (C) Four thousand dollars ($4,000) for each instructor in his or
her third year.
   (D) Three thousand dollars ($3,000) for each instructor in his or
her fourth year.
   (E) Two thousand dollars ($2,000) for each instructor in his or
her fifth year.
   (3) Notwithstanding the amounts listed in paragraph (2), the
amount granted to a person under this article may be supplemented, in
any year of the five-year cycle of disbursements under paragraph
(2), by up to one thousand dollars ($1,000) in local matching funds,
plus an equal amount of funds disbursed pursuant to this program.
   (4) A person who receives a grant under this article shall not be
eligible for participation in the State Nursing Assumption Program of
Loans for Education Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 70100) of
Part 42.
   (c) Each district is authorized, through its shared governance and
collective bargaining relationships, to allocate actual payments to
faculty in their first through fifth years of service as a nursing
instructor on a different basis if the district finds that its
ability to recruit and retain nursing faculty is thereby enhanced.
   (d) Each district may use a portion of the grant proceeds to offer
incentives to either full-time or part-time nursing instructors for
the purpose of instruction in clinical settings during weekends and
evenings. This subdivision shall not construed to be limited to
faculty in their first through fifth years of service as nursing
instructors.
   (e) As a condition of receiving grant funds under this article,
each district agrees to provide the chancellor with all data
requested by the chancellor on the expenditure of funds and program
outcomes.
   (f) The chancellor shall report annually by March 1 to the
Legislature and the Governor on program expenditures and outcomes by
participating district and college.
  SEC. 19.  Article 3.52 (commencing with Section 78261) is added to
Chapter 2 of Part 48 of the Education Code, to read:

      Article 3.52.  Nursing Students

   78261.  (a) The Legislature finds and declares both of the
following:
   (1) The Legislature intends to facilitate both the expansion of
associate degree nursing programs and the improvement in completion
rates in those programs.
   (2) The Legislature also intends that community colleges employ
nationally validated diagnostic assessment tools that are aligned
with national nursing certification requirements. Both students and
the state benefit when diagnostic assessments are supplemented with
educational opportunities to assist students in meeting skill levels.

   (b) It is the intent of the Legislature to create a Nursing
Enrollment Growth and Retention program in the Chancellor's Office of
the California Community Colleges. The purpose of this program shall
be to provide grants to community college associate degree of
nursing programs that meet either of the following conditions:
   (1) The nursing program has low or moderate program attrition
levels.
   (2) The nursing program provides a comprehensive program of
diagnostic assessment, prenursing preparation, and program-based
support to students.
   (c) It is the intent of the Legislature that this program shall be
funded, beginning in the 2006-07 fiscal year, by a redirection of
the ten million dollars ($10,000,000) provided annually pursuant to
the Budget Act of 2005, along with an additional investment of two
million eight hundred eighty-six thousand dollars ($2,886,000)
annually, for a total program budget of twelve million eight hundred
eighty-six thousand dollars ($12,886,000) annually. Unencumbered
funds that were appropriated in the Budget Act of 2005 may be used
for capacity building and equipment in the 2006 -07 fiscal year.
   (d) The Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges
and the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges may award
grants to community college districts with associate degree nursing
programs to expand enrollment, reduce program attrition, or both.
Funds shall be used only for the following purposes: expanding
enrollment, providing diagnostic assessments, and developing and
offering preentry coursework to prospective nursing students and
diagnostic assessments and supportive services to enrolled nursing
students. For purposes of this section, supportive services include,
but are not necessarily limited to, tutoring, case management,
mentoring, and counseling services. Funds may also be used to develop
alternative delivery models such as part-time, evening, weekend, and
summer program offerings.  In order to qualify for these funds, a
community college associate degree nursing program shall do either of
the following:
   (1) Have a program attrition rate, as determined by the Board of
Registered Nursing's Annual School Report or the Information Program
Data System of the Chancellor's Office of the California Community
Colleges, of 15 percent or less for the year prior to application for
funding.
   (2) Commit to implement a comprehensive program of diagnostic
assessment, prenursing enrollment preparation, and program-based
support to enrolled students, as defined in this article.
   (e) Prior to awarding any funds to be used for reducing program
attrition, the chancellor's office shall do all of the following:
   (1) Identify, in collaboration with community college associate
degree nursing programs, nationally validated diagnostic assessment
tools that determine the likelihood of academic success in registered
nursing education programs.
   (2) Establish, in collaboration with community college associate
degree nursing programs, the systemwide proficiency level necessary
for academic success for each diagnostic assessment tool.
   (3) Define the kinds of educational and support services that
qualify for funding under this program.
   (f) As a condition of receiving grants under paragraph (2) of
subdivision (d), a community college district shall, at a minimum, do
all of the following:
   (1) Utilize diagnostic assessment tools prior to enrollment to
determine readiness for community college associate degree nursing
programs.
   (2) Develop educational preentry coursework, including, but not
necessarily limited to, tutorials or noncredit instruction, aligned
to the entry level nursing standards and curriculum for students who
fail to demonstrate readiness based upon the diagnostic assessment
tools.
   (3) Provide access to prenursing coursework for all students who
do not demonstrate readiness based upon the diagnostic assessment
tools.
   (4) Require that students demonstrate readiness through the
diagnostic assessment or successful completion of the prenursing
coursework specified above prior to commencing the registered nursing
program.
   (5) Ensure that students that participate in educational preentry
coursework in order to demonstrate readiness based upon the
diagnostic assessment tools are not disadvantaged in the program
enrollment process.
   (g) As a condition of receiving grant funds pursuant to paragraph
(2) of subdivision (d), each recipient district shall report to the
chancellor's office the following data for the academic year on or
before a date determined by the chancellor's office:
   (1) The number of students enrolled in the nursing program.
   (2) The number of students taking diagnostic assessments.
   (3) The number of students failing to meet proficiency levels as
determined by diagnostic assessment tools.
   (4) The number of students failing to meet proficiency levels that
enroll in preentry preparation classes.
   (5) The number of students who successfully complete preentry
preparation classes.
   (6) The average number of months between initial diagnostic
assessment, demonstration of readiness, and enrollment in the nursing
program for students failing to meet proficiency standards on the
initial diagnostic assessment.
   (7) The average number of months between diagnostic assessment and
program enrollment for students meeting proficiency standards on the
initial diagnostic assessment.
   (8) The number of students who completed the associate degree
nursing program and the number of students who pass the National
Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX).
   (h) (1) Data reported to the chancellor under this article shall
be disaggregated by age, gender, ethnicity, and language spoken at
home.
   (2) The chancellor's office shall compile and provide this
information to the Legislature and the Governor by March 1 of each
year.
   (i) It is the intent of the Legislature that, pursuant to funding
to be provided in the annual Budget Act, in the 2009-10 academic
year, the California Community Colleges should increase the statewide
enrollment of full-time equivalent registered nursing students by
450 and, beginning in the 2010-11 academic year and continuing each
academic year thereafter, add 900 new full-time equivalent registered
nursing students.
  SEC. 20.  Article 3.53 (commencing with Section 78262) is added to
Chapter 2 of Part 48 of the Education Code, to read:

      Article 3.53.  Nursing Resource Centers

   78262.  (a) The Chancellor's Office of the California Community
Colleges shall fund the development of regional nursing resource
centers that bring together school, hospital, and faculty needs and
availability in a regionalized, online format to help schools match
their student clinical needs to available openings, assist hospitals
to manage their clinical rotation schedules, and facilitate the
filling of vacant nursing faculty positions.
   (b) The chancellor's office shall fund regional nursing resource
center startup grants to develop clinical placement and clinical
faculty resource systems. Each startup grant shall last for no more
than 30 months. An applicant for a grant under this article shall do
all of the following:
   (1) Select an entity for managing the grant.
   (2) Ensure the participation of at least 75 percent of the nursing
programs and hospitals in the coverage area.
   (3) Provide matching funds on a 1:1 basis.
   (4) Demonstrate the sustainability of the system after the grant
terminates.
   (c) The chancellor's office shall be responsible for developing a
request for funding application from hospital and school regional
partnerships seeking grant funds and providing technical assistance
to communities for the purpose of developing proposals.
  SEC. 21.  Section 87482 of the Education Code is amended to read:
   87482.  (a) (1) Notwithstanding Section 87480, the governing board
of a community college district may employ any qualified individual
as a temporary faculty member for a complete school year but not less
than a complete semester or quarter during a school year. The
employment of those persons shall be based upon the need for
additional faculty during a particular semester or quarter because of
the higher enrollment of students during that semester or quarter as
compared to the other semester or quarter in the academic year, or
because a faculty member has been granted leave for a semester,
quarter, or year, or is experiencing long-term illness, and shall be
limited, in number of persons so employed, to that need, as
determined by the governing board.
   (2) Employment of a person under this subdivision may be pursuant
to contract fixing a salary for the entire semester or quarter.
   (b) No person, other than a person serving as clinical nursing
faculty and exempted from this subdivision pursuant to subdivision
(c), shall be employed by any one district under this section for
more than two semesters or three quarters within any period of three
consecutive years.
   (c) (1) Notwithstanding subdivision (b), a person serving as
clinical nursing faculty may be employed by any one district under
this section for up to four semesters or six quarters within any
period of three consecutive academic years between July 1, 2007, and
June 30, 2014, inclusive.
   (2) A district that employs faculty pursuant to this subdivision
shall provide data to the chancellor's office as to how many faculty
members were hired under this subdivision, and what the ratio of
full-time to part-time faculty was for each of the three academic
years prior to the hiring of faculty under this subdivision and for
each academic year for which faculty is hired under this subdivision.
This data shall be submitted, in writing, to the chancellor's office
on or before June 30, 2012.
   (3) The chancellor shall report, in writing, to the Legislature
and the Governor on or before September 30, 2012, in accordance with
data received pursuant to paragraph (2), how many districts hired
faculty under this subdivision, how many faculty members were hired
under this subdivision, and what the ratio of full-time to part-time
faculty was for these districts in each of the three academic years
prior to the operation of this subdivision and for each academic year
for which faculty is hired under this subdivision.
   (4) A district may not employ a person pursuant to this
subdivision if the hiring of that person results in an increase in
the ratio of part-time to full-time nursing faculty in that district.

  SEC. 22.  Article 7.7 (commencing with Section 89267) is added to
Chapter 2 of Part 55 of the Education Code, to read:

      Article 7.7.  Baccalaureate Degree Nursing Programs

   89267.  It is the intent of the Legislature:
   (a) That, pursuant to funding to be appropriated in the Budget Act
of 2007, the trustees should increase, by at least 340, the number
of full-time equivalent students in baccalaureate degree nursing
programs, beginning in the 2007 -08 fiscal year.
   (b) That the trustees provide a report to the Governor and the
Legislature on or before March 15, 2007, on the proposed expenditure
plans to expand nursing programs to enroll an additional 340
full-time equivalent students as a result of the funds appropriated
in the Budget Act of 2007.
   (c) To support the expansion of future baccalaureate degree
nursing enrollment with annual appropriations in the State Budget
Act.
  SEC. 23.  Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 92645) is added to
Chapter 6 of Part 57 of the Education Code, to read:

      Article 5.5.  Baccalaureate and Master's Degree Nursing
Programs

   92645.  It is the intent of the Legislature that all of the
following occur:
   (a) That, pursuant to funding to be appropriated in the Budget Act
of 2007, the Regents of the University of California should offer at
least 175 full-time equivalent students in baccalaureate degree
nursing programs, at least 140 state-supported full-time equivalent
students in accelerated master's level nursing programs, including
entry-level master's programs and entry-level master's clinical
programs, at least 41 full-time equivalent associate degree nursing
(ADN) transitional to bachelor's of science of nursing (BSN) and
full-time equivalent master of science of nursing (MSN) students, and
at least 40 full-time equivalent students in traditional master of
science in nursing (MSN) degree programs by the 2007-08 academic
year.
   (b) That the regents provide a report to the Governor and the
Legislature on or before March 15, 2007, on the proposed expenditure
plans to expand nursing programs to enroll the additional students
identified in subdivision (a).
   (c) That the expansion of future baccalaureate, accelerated master'
s degree, ADN transitional to BSN and MSN degrees, and traditional
MSN degree nursing enrollment be supported with appropriations in the
annual Budget Act.