BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó






                         SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
                             Alan Lowenthal, Chair
                           2011-2012 Regular Session
                                        

          BILL NO:       SB 451
          AUTHOR:        Price
          AMENDED:       February 16, 2011
          FISCAL COMM:   Yes            HEARING DATE:  March 23, 2011
          URGENCY:       No             CONSULTANT:Kathleen Chavira

           SUBJECT  :  Cal Grant C awards.
          
           SUMMARY  

          This bill requires the California Student Aid Commission 
          (CSAC) to give priority in granting the Cal Grant C to 
          students pursuing study in areas of high employment need, 
          high salary or wage projection, or high growth and 
          establishes related authority and requirements.  

           BACKGROUND  

          Current law authorizes the Cal Grant Program, administered 
          by the CSAC, to provide grants to financially needy 
          students to attend college. 

          Cal Grant C awards assist with tuition and training costs 
          at occupational or vocational programs and may be used for 
          institutional fees, charges, and other costs, including 
          tuition, plus training-related costs, such as special 
          clothing, local transportation, required tools, equipment, 
          supplies, and books.  Current law establishes the total 
          number of Cal Grant C awards as the number awarded in the 
          2000-01 fiscal year (7,761) with the maximum award amount 
          and the total amount of funding being determined in the 
          annual Budget Act. 

          Current law requires the CSAC to consult with appropriate 
          state and federal agencies order to determine areas of 
          occupational or technical training in which the Cal Grant C 
          can be awarded and authorizes the CSAC to use criteria it 
          deems appropriate to select students to receive grants.  
          The CSAC is also required to take into account other state 
          and federal programs available to the applicant.  The Cal 
          Grant C may be renewed until the completion of the 




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          training, up to a maximum of two calendar years.  
          (Education Code § 69439)

          ANALYSIS
          
           This bill  :

          1)   Authorizes the CSAC to consult with nongovernmental 
               stakeholders that develop or provide workforce 
               training or employ graduates of occupational and 
               technical training programs for the purpose of 
               developing areas of occupational and technical 
               training for which students may use Cal Grant C 
               awards.

          2)   Requires the California Student Aid Commission (CSAC), 
               at least every five years beginning in 2012, to 
               regularly review and update the areas of occupational 
               and technical training for which students may use Cal 
               Grant C awards.

          3)   Requires the CSAC to prioritize the granting of Cal 
               Grant C awards to students  pursuing occupational or 
               technical training in areas that meet at least two of 
               the following criteria:

               a)        High employment need.
               b)        High employment salary or wage projections.
               c)        High employment growth.

          4)   Requires the CSAC to consult with the Employment 
               Development Department and use projections available 
               through the Labor Market Information Data Library to 
               determine areas of occupational or technical training 
               that meet the criteria outlined in (3).

          5)   Requires the CSAC to publish and retain on its 
               Internet web site a current list of the areas of 
               occupational or technical training that meet the 
               criteria outlined in (3) and to update this list as 
               necessary.

          6)   Requires the Legislative Analyst's Office to submit a 
               report to the Governor and the Legislature by April 1, 
               2015, and every two years thereafter, and that the 
               report include, but not be limited to, information on 




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               the age, gender, segment of attendance, the 
               occupational and technical training program categories 
               prioritized, and the number/percentage of students who 
               received selection priority established by the bill.

           STAFF COMMENTS  

           1)   Need for the bill  .  According to the author, although 
               the Cal Grant C program awards almost 8,000 grants 
               annually for occupational and technical training, 
               these awards do not track well with the state's most 
               urgent labor needs.  This bill has been introduced to 
               ensure that CSAC strategically directs Cal Grant C 
               funds to recipients seeking occupations in areas with 
               high employment demand, growth potential, wages and/or 
               importance to California's strategic initiatives.  
               This bill will maximize the opportunities for 
               Californians to acquire the necessary job skills to 
               gain and keep employment. 

           2)   Current program  . According to the California Student 
               Aid Commission (CSAC), eligible students receive a Cal 
               Grant C Supplement application in mid-April, which 
               must be completed and returned by May 15. Supplements 
               are scored based on the student's work experience, 
               educational history and vocational aptitude. Eligible 
               students must enroll at least half-time in a 
               vocational program at a California community or 
               independent college or vocational school that is at 
               least four months, but not more than two years.

               CSAC reports that, as of the 2009-10 academic year, 
               Cal Grant C participating institutions included all 
               109 of the California Community Colleges, one 
               University of California program, six two-year 
               non-profit institutions, seven four-year for-profit 
               institutions, one hospital school, and 42 distinct 
               for-profit institutions.  Although the vast majority 
               of students who receive the Cal Grant C are enrolled 
               in community college programs, almost two-thirds of 
               the total funds awarded are paid to students enrolled 
               in vocational for-profit programs.  In order to 
               participate in the program, an institution must have 
               an approved Institutional Participation Agreement 
               (IPA), a document which details requirements for 
               participation as specified in statute, regulations, 




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               and CSAC policy.  In approving IPAs, CSAC considers 
               the length of a school's education programs and its 
               administrative capability. 

               CSAC does not currently restrict awards by 
               occupational area, nor has it consulted recently with 
               other agencies regarding occupational areas.  
               Additionally, a recent LAO analysis reveals that in 
               2008-09, only 43% of students awarded a Cal Grant 
               reported the occupational area which they were 
               pursuing.  

           3)   Who currently receives the Cal Grant  ?  According to 
               the Legislative Analyst's Office (LAO), students 
               meeting the general eligibility for the Cal Grant 
               award may be considered for the Cal Grant C.  There is 
               no high school graduation requirement, minimum grade 
               point average or maximum age for recipients.  However, 
               students must be California residents, have United 
               States or eligible noncitizen status, complete US 
               selective service requirements, enroll at least 
               half-time at an eligible California institution, 
               maintain satisfactory academic progress (defined by 
               the institution) once enrolled, meet family income and 
               asset ceilings, and not be in default on any student 
               loan or owe any federal or state grant refund.  
               According to the CSAC, approximately 50% of eligible 
               applicants receive the limited number of awards.  

               According to the LAO, about 80 percent of Cal Grant C 
               recipients are independent students. In 2008-09, 
               nearly 60 percent earned less than $18,000 annually, 
               and 80 percent earned less than $30,000 annually.  
               Two-thirds of the recipients were male, with nearly 
               three quarters age 25 and over.  

               According to an analysis provided by the author, the 
               most recent data available (2008-09 application cycle) 
               indicates that, of those Cal Grant awardees who 
               reported the occupational area which they were 
               pursuing, only 38% were in areas found by the 
               Employment Development Department to be among the 
               highest wage occupations in the state, 64% among the 
               highest need occupations, and 35% in the fastest 
               growing occupations





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           4)   What is the Labor Market Information Data Library  ? The 
               Labor Market Information Division (LMID) of the 
               California Labor and Workforce Development Agency is 
               the primary source of labor market and occupational 
               information for the state.  It maintains current labor 
               market data as well as employment projections and wage 
               data.  Projections of employment by occupation are 
               typically for a ten-year period.  

               The Library provides access to several regularly 
               generated reports, including reports detailing the 
               information required by this bill for purposes of 
               prioritizing Cal Grant C awards.  In addition, Labor 
               Market Consultants are available to assist workforce 
               partners (such as Workforce Investment Act boards and 
               staff, educators, and those engaged in economic 
               development) and employers find, access, and use labor 
               market information and services, and can assist in the 
               development of customized reports, if necessary, for a 
               nominal fee.

           5)   Prior Legislation  . SB 957 (Price, 2010), which was 
               substantively similar to this bill, passed this 
               committee in March 2010 by a vote of 6-0.  The bill 
               was subsequently vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger, 
               whose veto message read, in pertinent part:

               I am concerned that this bill could limit students' 
               choices or eliminate the possibility of an award for 
               lower income students, simply because the occupational 
               areas that they have chosen to pursue were not deemed 
               a priority by the state.
          
           SUPPORT  

          None received.

          OPPOSITION

           None received.