BILL NUMBER: AB 515 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 10, 2011
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 27, 2011
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 5, 2011
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Brownley
(Coauthor: Assembly Member Smyth)
FEBRUARY 15, 2011
An act to add and repeal Section 78302 of the Education Code,
relating to community colleges.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 515, as amended, Brownley. Public postsecondary education:
community colleges: extension program.
Existing law establishes the California Community Colleges, which
are administered by the Board of Governors of the California
Community Colleges. The governing board of any community college
district is authorized, without approval of the board of governors,
to establish and maintain community service classes in civic,
vocational, literacy, health, homemaking, technical, and general
education, as specified.
This bill would authorize the governing board of any community
college district, without approval of the board of governors, to
establish and maintain an extension program offering credit courses.
The bill would specify that the courses be required to be
self-supporting, open to the public, and developed and conducted in
conformance with specified statutory and regulatory guidelines. No
General Fund moneys would be expended to establish or maintain the
courses except program revenues generated by these
provisions, nor would an extension program course be allowed to
supplant regularly funded courses. Administrative costs would be
required to be minimized to the greatest extent possible. Extension
courses would not be allowed to reduce state-funded courses relating
to basic skills. This bill provisions. The bill would
prohibit districts from allowing extension credit courses to supplant
courses funded with state apportionments and from reducing certain
state -funded course sections with the intent of
reestablishing those course sections as part of an extension program,
and would require district boards to annually certify
compliance with these requirements
prohibitions , as specified. The bill would also prohibit
extension credit courses from being conducted in a manner that
supplants the use of district instructional space for courses funded
with state apportionments.
This bill would allow community college districts to charge
students for the actual costs of the courses, as defined , and
would require administrative costs to be minimized to the greatest
extent possible . Each participating district would be required
to collect and keep records relating to the extension program and
submit them to the chancellor's office by October 1 of each year.
This information would, in turn, be submitted by the chancellor to
the Legislative Analyst by November 1 of each year. The bill would
require the Legislative Analyst to submit a written report to the
Legislature by November 1, 2015, summarizing the information provided
by the chancellor, assessing compliance of the program with the
Legislature's intent, and suggesting any needed statutory
improvements.
The bill would make the requirement for a report to the
Legislature inoperative on January 1, 2019. This act would remain in
effect only until January 1, 2019, unless that date is deleted or
extended.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 78302 is added to the Education Code, to read:
78302. (a) The governing board of any community college district
may, without the approval of the Board of Governors of the California
Community Colleges, establish and maintain an extension program
offering credit courses.
(b) An extension program offering credit courses established under
this section shall have the following characteristics:
(1) The program shall be self-supporting, and all costs associated
with the program must shall be
recovered.
(2) Program enrollment shall be open to the public.
(3) The program shall be developed in conformance with the
provisions of the Education Code and Title 5 of the California
Code of Regulations governing community college credit courses.
(4) The provisions of Section 87482.6 providing that 75 percent of
the hours of credit instruction should be taught by full-time
instructors shall apply to extension programs offering credit classes
established under this section.
(5) Program revenues, and program expenditures conforming to the
current expense of education as defined by subdivision (c) of Section
84362 , shall be included by the district in complying
with subdivision (d) of Section 84362 requiring
, which requires that 50 percent of the district's current
expense of education to be expended during each fiscal
year for payment of salaries of classroom instructors.
(6) The program shall be subject to district collective bargaining
agreements.
(c) Governing boards shall not expend any General Fund moneys to
establish and maintain extension courses other than program revenues
generated under this section.
(d) Extension credit courses shall not supplant courses funded
with state apportionment apportionments
. Districts shall not reduce state-funded course sections needed by
students to achieve basic skills, workforce training, or transfer
goals, with the intent of reestablishing those course sections as
part of the extension program. District boards of trustees
governors shall annually certify compliance with
this subdivision by board action taken at a regular session of the
district governing board.
(e) Extension credit courses shall not be conducted in district
instructional space in a manner that supplants the use of district
instructional space for courses funded with state apportionments.
(e)
(f) Governing boards may charge students enrolled in
extension courses a fee not to exceed the cost of maintaining
extension courses. Actual costs shall include the actual cost of
instruction, the cost of necessary equipment and supplies, student
services and institutional support costs, and other costs of the
district used in calculating the costs of education for nonresident
students. To the greatest extent possible, districts shall minimize
the costs of administration.
(f)
(g) Degree credit courses offered as extension courses
shall meet all the requirements in subdivision (a) of Section 55002
of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations.
(g)
(h) (1) Each community college district maintaining an
extension program offering credit courses under this section shall
collect and keep records that measure student participation, student
demographics, and student outcomes in a manner consistent with
measures collected by districts in regular credit programs supported
through state apportionment, including an analysis of program
effects, if any, on district workload and district financial status.
Districts shall submit this information to the Chancellor's
chancellor's office by October 1 of each year.
For districts operating more than one college, the evaluation shall
be for each participating college.
(2) The chancellor shall submit all district information provided
pursuant to paragraph (1) to the Legislative Analyst by November 1 of
each year. By January 1, 2015, the Legislative Analyst shall submit
to the Legislature a written report that includes a summary of the
information provided pursuant to subdivision (g)
paragraph (1) , an assessment of the extent to which
community college extension programs are operated in a manner
consistent with legislative intent, and suggestions to the
Legislature for needed statutory improvements.
(h)
(i) The requirement for submitting a report imposed
under paragraph (2) of subdivision (g) (h)
is inoperative on January 1, 2019, pursuant to Section 10231.5
of the Government Code.
(i)
(j) A report submitted pursuant to subdivision
(g) (h) shall be submitted in compliance with
Section 9795 of the Government Code.
(j)
(k) This section shall remain in effect only until
January 1, 2019, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later
enacted statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2019, deletes or
extends that date.