BILL ANALYSIS
SB 1460
Page 1
SENATE THIRD READING
SB 1460 (Cedillo)
As Amended August 16, 2010
Majority vote
SENATE VOTE :24-9
HIGHER EDUCATION 6-2 APPROPRIATIONS 12-5
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|Ayes:|Block, Chesbro, Fong, |Ayes:|Fuentes, Bradford, |
| |Galgiani, | |Huffman, Coto, Davis, De |
| |Portantino, Ruskin | |Leon, Gatto, Hall, |
| | | |Skinner, Solorio, |
| | | |Torlakson, Torrico |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Adams, Fuller |Nays:|Conway, Harkey, Miller, |
| | | |Nielsen, Norby |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Beginning July 1, 2011, requires the California State
University (CSU) and the California Community Colleges (CCC) and
requests the University of California (UC) to provide
institutional financial aid to students who are exempt from
nonresident tuition due to specified provisions in law, as
established by AB 540 (Firebaugh), Chapter 814, Statutes of
2001, financial aid to students exempted from paying nonresident
tuition through specified provisions and extends the AB 540
nonresident tuition exemption to graduates of adult education
and technical schools, provided the individual spent at least
one year in a California high school. Specifically, this bill :
1)Requests the UC Board of Regents and requires the CSU Board of
Trustees and the CCC Board of Governors (BOG), beginning July
1, 2011, to establish procedures and forms to enable AB 540
students to apply for and participate in all student aid
programs administered by these segments, to the full extent
permitted by federal law, and prohibits the number of
financial aid awards received by California resident students
from financial aid programs administered by the segments from
being diminished as a result of the application of this
requirement.
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2)Makes, beginning January 1, 2011, AB 540 students eligible to
receive a scholarship that is derived from nonstate funds
received for the purpose of scholarships.
3)Expands, beginning July 1, 2011, the AB 540 exemption to
include attendance and graduation from California technical
and adult schools, provided the student attended a California
high school for at least one year.
4)Finds and declares that this bill is a state law within the
meaning of subsection (d) of Section 1621 of Title 8 of the
United States Code.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Provides for a variety of student financial aid programs
including the Cal Grant programs, the CCC BOG fee waiver, a
variety of systemwide and/or campus-specific grant and/or loan
programs, and other state-administered financial aid programs.
Participation in these programs is, among other criteria,
typically needs-based and limited to California residents.
2)Exempts specified California nonresidents from paying
nonresident tuition at UC, CSU, and CCC, also known as the AB
540 nonresident tuition waiver, if they meet all of the
following:
a) Attended a California high school for three or more
years;
b) Graduated from a California high school or attained an
equivalent degree;
c) Registered or attended an accredited California higher
education institution beginning of after fall of the
2001-02 academic year; and,
d) If an alien without lawful immigration status, have
filed an affidavit stating that the student has filed an
application to legalize his or her immigration status or
will file such an application as soon as he or she is
eligible to so do.
3)Designates secondary schools as high schools, technical
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schools, and adult schools.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee:
1)UC and CSU: This bill will not result in increased spending
at UC and CSU, but may change the amounts received by other
recipients.
a) UC estimates, based on current numbers of AB 540
students, their demographic profile, and average aid
awards, that about 605 students would be eligible for $1.8
million in UC institutional aid; and,
b) CSU indicates enrollment of about 3,600 AB 540 students.
Assuming these students receive institutional aid in
proportion to all other CSU students (about 25%), about 900
students would be eligible for about $2.4 million in aid,
assuming an average award of $2,661.
2)CCC fee waivers: The revenue loss from CCC BOG fee waivers is
offset by increased Proposition 98 funding and is thus a
direct state cost. According to the CCC Chancellor's Office,
there were 34,000 AB 540 students in the system in 2008-09.
Assuming these students averaged six credits per semester,
total fee revenue would be $10.6 million. If 45% of those
students received fee waivers (the statewide average), the
revenue loss (and Proposition 98 cost) would be $4.8 million.
COMMENTS : This bill is an effort to expand the availability of
financial aid to those UC, CSU, and CCC students eligible for
nonresident tuition status under AB 540. These students are
typically aliens without lawful immigration status or United
States citizens or Permanent Residents who are residents of
another state and would be ineligible for state-administered or
campus-based financial aid programs without the provisions of AB
540.
Federal law prohibits undocumented students from receiving any
aid from the federal government, such as Pell Grants and federal
student loans, and prevents states from offering public benefits
to undocumented students unless the state passes a statute
expressly qualifying undocumented students for such benefits.
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Students who receive a waiver of non-resident tuition at UC,
CSU, and CCC still face significant costs, including resident
fees, books, supplies, food, rent, transportation, and other
miscellaneous items. The California Student Aid Commission
estimates the nine-month cost of education in 2010-11 for
California students living off-campus to be $16,497, in addition
to system wide and campus fees.
According to the segments, AB 540 students make up less than 1%
of enrollment at all three systems, as follows: UC enrolled
1,941 students (3/10% of the student body and 68% of the AB 540
students were U.S. citizens or "documented" immigrants); CSU
enrolled 3,633 AB 540 students (less than 1% of the student
body); and CCC enrolled 34,057 AB 540 students (less than 1% of
the student body). CSU and CCC do not identify the immigration
status of AB 540 students but believe that undocumented students
make up a larger proportion of these students than they do at
UC.
Current law defines a secondary school as a high school, adult
school or technical school. Since AB 540 considers only high
school attendance in order to qualify for the nonresident
tuition waiver, high school students who combine high school
attendance with attendance at an adult or technical school may
jeopardize their eligibility for the nonresident tuition
exemption if their attendance at the high school is for less
than three years. This bill addresses this situation by
allowing two of the three years of required attendance to be at
an adult or technical school, provided the student attends a
California high school for one year.
Since 2003, the Legislature has considered several bills that
were substantively similar to this measure. The most recent
similar bill to go before the Governor was SB 1301 (Cedillo) of
2008; the Governor's veto message read: "I share the author's
goal of making affordable education available to all California
students, but given the precarious fiscal condition the state
faces at this time, it would not be prudent to place additional
demands on our limited financial aid resources as specified in
this bill. For this reason, I am unable to sign this bill."
Analysis Prepared by : Sandra Fried / HIGHER ED. / (916)
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319-3960
FN: 0006092