BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Gloria Romero, Chair
2009-2010 Regular Session
BILL NO: SB 518
AUTHOR: Lowenthal
AMENDED: April 22, 2009
FISCAL COMM: Yes HEARING DATE: April 29, 2009
URGENCY: No CONSULTANT:Kathleen Chavira
SUBJECT : Community College Parking Fees
SUMMARY
This bill prohibits community college districts from using
state funds to directly or indirectly subsidize the
construction or operation of parking for students,
employees, or other persons on or after January 1, 2011,
and authorizes , rather than requires , districts to exempt
students who receive financial assistance, as specified, or
students who regularly commute with two or more passengers,
from fees in excess of specified amounts.
BACKGROUND
Current law authorizes a community college district to
require students and employees to pay a maximum fee for
parking services of forty dollars ($40) per semester and
twenty dollars ($20) per intersession, not to exceed the
actual cost of providing parking services (which includes
purchase, construction, operation and maintenance of
parking facilities). Current law authorizes parking fees in
excess of these limits to fund the construction of
on-campus parking facilities if specified conditions exist
at the campus.
To encourage ridesharing and carpooling, parking fees are
capped at thirty dollars ($30) per semester and ten dollars
($10) per intersession if a student certifies he/she
regularly commutes with two or more passengers to the
college. Students who receive financial assistance pursuant
to specified programs are exempt from parking fees above
twenty dollars ($20) per semester.
Community college districts may require fees for the use of
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parking services by persons other than students and
employees.
ANALYSIS
This bill :
1) Eliminates the statutory caps on the parking fees that
a community college district may require of students
and employees.
2) Prohibits a community college district from using
state funds, directly or indirectly, to subsidize the
construction or operation of parking for students,
employees, or other persons on or after January 1,
2011.
3) Clarifies that construction and operations of parking
are not subsidized if the fees cover land and
construction costs within no less than 15 years and
operation and maintenance costs on an annual basis.
4) Authorizes, rather than requires, a community college
district to establish maximum parking fees for certain
students. Specifically, the district has the
discretion to:
a) Exempt students who receive
financial assistance under specified programs
from parking fees in excess of $20 per semester.
b) Exempt students who regularly
commute with two or more passengers from parking
fees in excess of $30 per semester, and $10 per
intersession.
5) Generally prohibits the use of state funds to
subsidize parking after January 1, 2011.
6) Creates mandates and incentives for local governments
to adopt parking reforms.
7) Exempts rural counties and any city or county that
participates in specified regional efforts to
implement parking reforms from the bill's provisions.
STAFF COMMENTS
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1) Double-referred bill . This bill was previously heard
and passed by a vote of 6-4 in the Senate
Transportation and Housing Committee. Although the
bill's provisions affect various state agencies and
local government entities, for purposes of this
Committee, the analysis focuses upon the provisions
affecting the California Community Colleges.
2) Intent of the bill . According to the author, "free"
parking has significant social, economic, and
environmental costs. This bill seeks to facilitate
economic development, reduce traffic congestion and
greenhouse gas emissions and save scarce public
resources by reducing governmental or
government-required subsidies for parking.
3) UC and CSU . According the UC, their campuses do not
subsidize parking for their students or faculty.
Parking fees at the UC campuses range from $189 per
quarter at UCLA to annual fees of $578 for students
and $792 for faculty/staff/grad students at UC Santa
Cruz. At the CSU, unsubsidized parking fees range
from $68 per semester at CSU Fresno to $248 per
semester for students at CSU San Marcos.
4) CCC student population . Unlike the UC and some CSU
campuses, community colleges do not generally provide
campus housing options. CCC students are generally
older than UC students, typically work, and may take
courses at more than one campus within a district.
Many CCC students are employed and require child-care
in order to attend classes. Several campuses are
located in rural or remote areas with no access to
public transportation systems. Would increased
parking fees encourage these students to use public
transit or simply increase their costs and make it
even more difficult for them to pursue postsecondary
educational opportunities? While it is unclear
whether/how much parking fees would increase, a
cursory review of unsubsidized UC and CSU parking fees
indicates that semester parking costs could
potentially exceed the $240 fee ($20/unit for 12
units) currently paid by students to enroll in CCC
classes full time.
5) Why are CCC treated differently than other locally
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governed entities ? This bill generally prohibits the
use of state funds to subsidize parking. It also
provides a number of options for local government
entities to comply with its requirements, presumably,
in recognition of the need to allow the local
governing bodies to determine the best way to comply
while meeting the needs of their local constituencies.
This bill does not provide the same discretion for
community college governing boards. Shouldn't a
locally elected governing board also be allowed to
determine how to best meet state goals for emissions
reductions while still meeting the needs of its
students and faculty?
6) Other strategies . Current law authorizes community
college districts to impose a transit fee with student
and/or voter approval. Current law also provides
additional flexibility to three districts to
authorize, rather than require exemptions from this
fee for low-income students and to require minimum
enrollment in order to be eligible for the discounted
permit. These recently enacted provisions attempt to
encourage and facilitate the ability of three local
districts to locally negotiate subsidized public
transit options for students and faculty. Rather than
restrict parking, the author may want to consider
extending such flexibility to all community college
districts. Staff recommends the bill be amended to
delete the parking provisions affecting community
colleges from the bill and to instead, modify existing
law to facilitate all CCC districts' ability to enter
into agreements with local public transit entities.
SUPPORT
None received.
OPPOSITION
California Community College League
Riverside Community College District