BILL ANALYSIS
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair
2079 (Torlakson)
Hearing Date: 08/12/2010 Amended: 07/15/2010
Consultant: Dan Troy Policy Vote: ED 5-2
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BILL SUMMARY: AB 2079 would require a collegiate athletic
recruiter disclose specified information to student athletes to
whom a scholarship offer has been made and would require a
written scholarship offer to be made in writing within one week
of a verbal offer, as specified.
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Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 Fund
UC/CSU Range of $200 to $900, ongoing
General
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STAFF COMMENTS: SUSPENSE FILE.
Current law prohibits the giving or the promise of giving money
or anything of monetary value to as student-athlete or his or
her family member to encourage or reward their application or
attendance at an Institution of Higher Education.
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a
voluntary association of about 1,200 colleges and universities,
athletic conferences, and sports organizations that administer
intercollegiate athletics. Volunteer representatives from these
schools and conferences establish rules that govern the NCAA and
programs designed to further its purposes and goals. Currently,
NCAA bylaws impose a number of restrictions on student athlete
financial assistance. NCAA Division 1 schools:
Cannot guarantee scholarships for more than one academic year.
Cannot finance student health insurance if the insurance is
provided or offered to the general student body only on an
optional basis.
Cannot award financial aid to a student athlete that exceeds
the cost of attendance that normally is incurred by students
enrolled in a comparable program at that institution or that
exceeds the limitations established by Division I, whichever
is less.
Must include earnings from the student athlete's employment
during semester or term time to determine whether a full
grant-in-aid is reached and can only allow $2,000 in earnings
over a full grant-in-aid award, as defined.
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AB 2079 (Torlakson)
This bill would require, as of January 1, 2011, an athletic
recruiter from a California postsecondary institution to provide
a written disclosure letter with specific information regarding
athletic scholarships, medical expenses, and athletic release
within one week of making any scholarship offer to a student
athlete, as specified, and would require a scholarship offer to
be made in writing within one week of a verbal offer for
student-athletes in the 12th grade. For student athletes who
have not yet entered grade 12, the recruiter would be required
to provide a disclosure letter and other specified information
to the student-athlete.
According to the author, the bill is intended to address the
lack of clarity about issues of importance that may accompany
verbal offers from college recruiters. The written offer and
disclosure letters are intended to make clear to student
athletes precisely what they are being offered, what medical
expenses are covered while on scholarship, when a scholarship
offer expires, summer school financial aid information, and
other items.
Opponents of the measure contend the provisions of the bill
would be costly and put the state at odds with the NCAA in some
instances. The bill would impose requirements on recruiters
from any school within and outside of California that that
recruit student-athletes who reside in California. Some
opponents suggest these requirements may disadvantage California
students relative to those from other states who would not
require similar activities form recruiters.
The cost of compliance would likely differ campus by campus,
depending on the scope of recruiting that is undertaken. UC
indicates costs of $325,000 (with higher costs at UCLA and Cal
than at other campuses), and CSU suggests costs of $575,000
(approximately $25,000 per campus). Staff suggests these
estimates may represent the high range of operating costs
attributable to the bill, as campuses already engage in detailed
tracking of recruits to ensure compliance with NCAA rules. Given
the number of campuses involved, though, it is reasonable to
expect costs in the low hundreds of thousands, particularly
given startup efforts.
Staff recommends that the bill be amended to clarify that the
California Community Colleges (CCCs) are not subject to the
provisions of the bill, as the CCCs do not offer athletic
scholarships.