BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                  AB 1965
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   April 17, 2012

                       ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HIGHER EDUCATION
                                 Marty Block, Chair
                      AB 1965 (Pan) - As Amended:  April 9, 2012
           
          SUBJECT  :   California State University: trustees.

           SUMMARY  :   Authorizes ex officio members of the California State 
          University (CSU) Board of Trustees (BOT) to designate a 
          representative to attend, speak, and vote at CSU BOT meetings in 
          the ex officio member's absence and authorizes the non-voting 
          student trustee to vote at a BOT meeting if the voting student 
          member is absent from the meeting.  Specifically,  this bill  :  

          1)Authorizes ex officio members of the CSU BOT to designate a 
            representative to attend CSU BOT meetings in the ex officio 
            member's absence and to speak and vote on his or her behalf at 
            those meetings.

          2)Prohibits the designated representative from participating in 
            closed sessions.

          3)Allows the ex officio member to designate only one person in a 
            calendar year to attend a CSU BOT meeting or meetings in the 
            ex officio member's absence.

          4)Authorizes the non-voting student trustee to vote at a BOT 
            meeting if the voting student member is absent from that 
            meeting. 

           EXISTING LAW  :

          1)Provides that the CSU BOT be composed of the following ex 
            officio members: the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Speaker of 
            the Assembly, Superintendent of Public Instruction, and CSU 
            Chancellor.

          2)Provides that the CSU BOT be composed of the following 
            members:

             a)   16 members appointed by the Governor and subject to 
               confirmation by two-thirds of the membership of the Senate;

             b)   A representative of the CSU alumni associations, 








                                                                  AB 1965
                                                                  Page  2

               selected for a two-year term by the CSU alumni council 
               (this person cannot be a CSU employee during the two-year 
               term);

             c)   Two CSU students, appointed by the Governor for two-year 
               terms; and,

             d)   A tenured CSU faculty member, appointed by the Governor 
               for a two-year term.

           FISCAL EFFECT  :   Unknown 

           COMMENTS  :    Need for this bill  .  According to the author, CSU 
          BOT ex officio members are not able to participate in meetings 
          due to scheduling conflicts, and the first year student Trustee 
          is not able to act as an alternate in the second year student's 
          absence.  This bill is necessary to facilitate increased 
          representation of the public and constituents to ensure a more 
          responsive and transparent decision-making process by the BOT.

           Virtue of the office  . The Legislature established the importance 
          of certain state-elected offices participating on the boards of 
          public postsecondary institutions as a means to ensure that 
          elected leaders are able to share their perspective in the 
          formulation of system policy.  By virtue of the office they 
          hold, these individuals bring unique perspective and experience 
          to the policy and governance discussions of the Trustees.  
          Presumably, this bill would allow an ex officio Trustee to send 
          a designee to act in the official's place and stead with the 
          same rights and responsibilities, including the right of the 
          deputy to be counted in constituting a quorum, participating in 
          the proceedings of the Board, and to vote upon any and all 
          matters, excluding closed sessions.  Is it appropriate for 
          nonelected proxies to vote on behalf of elected officials who 
          represent the people of California in the governance of the CSU? 
           Will designees be held to the same confidentiality and 
          fiduciary requirements as the ex officio members?  

           Effect on ex officio participation  .  While the intent of the 
          bill is to increase ex officio involvement in CSU BOT decisions 
          by ex officio members, does the ability to appoint a designee 
          serve as a disincentive for the ex officio to participate?  
          While both the Trustees and ex officio members could benefit 
          from regular contact, it is not clear that this bill will, by 
          itself, ensure more responsible and transparent decision making, 








                                                                  AB 1965
                                                                  Page  3

          as it will continue to be incumbent on the ex officio members to 
          be informed about Trustee agendas and meeting outcomes.    

           Designee requirements  .  This bill allows the ex officio to 
          choose anyone as their designee, regardless of employment 
          qualifications.  The Committee may wish to consider whether this 
          should be further defined.

           Other entities  .  The California Public Employees' Retirement 
          System, California State Teachers' Retirement System, Board of 
          Equalization, and Franchise Tax Board allow ex officio members 
          to send a deputy to act on their behalf at board meetings.  The 
          Committee may wish to consider whether these boards are an 
          appropriate comparison group for governance of a state 
          university system.

           Student members  .  Two students serve staggered two-year terms on 
          the CSU BOT.  During a student's first year, he or she may 
          participate fully in BOT meetings but may not vote.  The student 
          may vote during his or her second year on the BOT.  The intent 
          of this staggered voting provision is to allow the student a 
          year to transition onto the board and learn the issues before 
          exercising their voting responsibilities in the second year.  

           Clarifying amendments  .  

          1)Staff recommends amending the bill to remove the Chancellor's 
            authority to designate a staff person to attend Trustee 
            meetings, since this does not seem logical or appropriate.  

          2)Staff recommends amending the bill to establish a process 
            whereby the BOT Secretary is notified in a timely manner of an 
            ex officio's designation of a representative.

           Related legislation  .  SB 1515 (Yee), pending in the Senate 
          Education Committee, would change the CSU BOT composition, 
          increasing the number of faculty, students and represented 
          staff.  AB 690 (Ammiano, 2009), AB 1413 (Portantino, 2007) and 
          AB 2339 (McLeod, 2004), which were all vetoed by Governor 
          Schwarzenneger, contained provisions substantially similar to 
          this bill.  In his veto statement of AB 690, the Governor 
          stated:

               As I stated before, it is unnecessary to statutorily 
               authorize a person to attend a board meeting in the absence 








                                                                  AB 1965
                                                                  Page  4

               of an ex-officio member since the meetings are open to 
               anyone from the public to attend and provide comment.  
               Moreover, ex officio members serve by virtue of their 
               experience and qualifications in sharing their perspective 
               on issues impacting higher education.  Allowing these 
               members to appoint a substitute to attend in their absence 
               creates a disincentive for the member to actually attend 
               the meetings, and diminishes the value of an ex-officio 
               member's contribution to the public discourse.

           REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION  :   

           Support 
           
          California Faculty Association (sponsor)
          California Labor Federation

           Opposition 
           
          California State University
           

          Analysis Prepared by  :    Sandra Fried / HIGHER ED. / (916) 
          319-3960