BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Bill No: SB 813
Author: Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, et al.
Amended: 8/22/11
Vote: 21
SENATE VETERANS AFFAIRS COMMITTEE : 8-0, 4/12/11
AYES: Correa, Cannella, Berryhill, Calderon, Negrete
McLeod, Rubio, Runner, Lieu
SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE : 10-0, 4/27/11
AYES: Lowenthal, Runner, Alquist, Blakeslee, Hancock,
Huff, Liu, Price, Simitian, Vargas
NO VOTE RECORDED: Vacancy
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 8-0, 5/16/11
AYES: Kehoe, Alquist, Emmerson, Lieu, Pavley, Price,
Runner, Steinberg
NO VOTE RECORDED: Walters
SENATE FLOOR : 39-0, 5/23/11
AYES: Alquist, Anderson, Berryhill, Blakeslee, Calderon,
Cannella, Corbett, Correa, De León, DeSaulnier, Dutton,
Emmerson, Evans, Fuller, Gaines, Hancock, Hernandez,
Huff, Kehoe, La Malfa, Leno, Lieu, Liu, Lowenthal,
Negrete McLeod, Padilla, Pavley, Price, Rubio, Runner,
Simitian, Steinberg, Strickland, Vargas, Walters, Wolk,
Wright, Wyland, Yee
NO VOTE RECORDED: Harman
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 78-0, 8/25/11 (Consent) - See last page
for vote
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SUBJECT : Public postsecondary education: veterans
enrollment
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill extends priority registration
enrollment for veterans at the California State University
and the California Community Colleges, from two to five
years.
Assembly Amendments grant priority enrollment to these
members or former members of the Armed Forces of the United
States, who are residents of California, and add coauthors.
ANALYSIS : Existing law
1. Declares legislative intent regarding the categories of
priorities for purposes of enrollment planning and
admission at the University of California (UC) and
California State University (CSU) (described below) with
one exception: CSU must admit with junior status any
California Community Colleges (CCC) student meeting the
associate degree for transfer requirements, who will
receive priority over other CCC transfers Education
Code Section66747 established by SB 1440 (Padilla),
Chapter 428, Statutes of 2010.
2. Declares the Legislature's intent regarding the
categories of priority for purposes of undergraduate
resident student enrollment planning and admission at UC
and CSU, in the following:
A. Continuing undergraduate students in good
standing.
B. CCC students who have successfully completed a
course of study in an approved transfer agreement
program.
C. Other CCC students who have met all requirements
for transfer.
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D. Other qualified transfer students.
E. California residents entering at the freshman or
sophomore levels.
3. Declares the Legislature's intent that within each of
the preceding categories, priority consideration for
admission be granted in the following order:
A. California residents who are recently released
veterans of the Armed Forces, with priority within
this group to be given to veterans who were enrolled
in good standing prior to military service.
B. CCC transfers, giving preference to students from
historically underrepresented or economically
disadvantaged families to the fullest extent possible
in transfer admissions decisions.
C. Previously enrolled applicants provided they left
the campus in good standing.
D. Applicants for a degree or credential objective
not generally offered at other public higher
education institutions in California.
E. Applicants for whom the distance to attend another
institution would create financial or other
hardship.
4. Requires UC and CSU maintain a student body comprised of
60 percent upper division and 40 percent lower division
students and declares the Legislature's intent that this
goal be reached and maintained by instituting programs
and policies that increase the number of transfer
students, rather than by denying places to eligible
freshmen applicants.
5. Requires CCC and CSU, and requests UC, to give priority
for registration for enrollment to any member or former
member of the Armed Services for any academic term
attended at one of these institutions within two years
of leaving active duty, if the institution already
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administers a priority enrollment system Education Code
Section 66025.8, established by SB 272 (Runner), Chapter
356, Statutes of 2007.
This bill:
1. Extends the period of time, from two years to five
years, that a former member of the Armed Forces of the
United States can receive priority registration
enrollment at the CSU and the CCC.
2. Requests that the University of California comply with
priority enrollment, as specified.
3. Requires reimbursement to local agencies and school
districts to be made if the Commission on State Mandates
determines that this act contains costs mandated by the
state.
Comments
According to the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs, even
though existing law permits an honorably discharged veteran
a two-year timeframe to exercise priority enrollment, the
two-year timeframe does not coincide with the various
enrollment and admission processes that are currently being
utilized at the public postsecondary education
institutions.
For example, a veteran separates from service in February,
gets home, looks for employment following their discharge
from service, but subsequently wishes to attend college,
and applies to a university or college. However, given the
state of public higher education funding, many campuses
have closed enrollment sooner and are offering less courses
than in recent history. Therefore this veteran may have
lost almost all of the two years of priority enrollment.
Prior/Related legislation
SB 272 (Runner), 2007-08 Session, gave veterans priority
registration for two years.
AB 649 (Harkey), passed the Assembly with a vote of 73-0 on
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5/2/11. This bill allows for five years of priority
enrollment.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2011-12 2012-13
2013-14 Fund
Extend CCC Possibly significant reimbursable mandate
General
priority registration
Extend CSU Likely minor and absorbable
General
priority registration
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 78-0, 8/25/11
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Beall, Bill
Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bradford, Brownley,
Buchanan, Butler, Charles Calderon, Campos, Carter,
Cedillo, Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Davis, Dickinson,
Donnelly, Eng, Feuer, Fletcher, Fong, Fuentes, Furutani,
Beth Gaines, Galgiani, Garrick, Gatto, Gordon, Grove,
Hagman, Halderman, Hall, Harkey, Hayashi, Roger
Hernández, Hill, Huber, Hueso, Huffman, Jeffries, Jones,
Knight, Lara, Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mansoor,
Mendoza, Miller, Mitchell, Monning, Morrell, Nestande,
Nielsen, Norby, Olsen, Pan, Perea, V. Manuel Pérez,
Portantino, Silva, Skinner, Smyth, Solorio, Swanson,
Torres, Valadao, Wagner, Wieckowski, Williams, Yamada,
John A. Pérez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Bonilla, Gorell
RM:do 8/26/11 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: NONE RECEIVED
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