BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 13
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Date of Hearing: March 19, 2013
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HIGHER EDUCATION
Das Williams, Chair
AB 13 (Chávez and Quirk-Silva) - As Amended: March 11, 2013
SUBJECT : Nonresident tuition exemption: veterans.
SUMMARY : Exempts former members of the Armed Forces, who were
honorably discharged or released from active duty within the
immediately prior year, from paying nonresident tuition at the
California State University (CSU) and California Community
Colleges (CCC).
EXISTING LAW establishes uniform residency requirements for
purposes of ascertaining the amount of fees to be paid by
students at CSU and CCC and establishes various exceptions to
these residency requirements, including many for current and
former members of the Armed Forces (Education Code § 68074 and
68075). The University of California (UC), as a result of its
constitutional autonomy, establishes its tuition policies;
however, these policies traditionally mirror state policies.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown but potentially significant.
COMMENTS : This bill is double-referred to the Assembly
Veterans Affairs Committee.
Background . Current law establishes the requirements for
determining residency for purposes of paying the lower-cost
"in-state" student fees at UC, CSU, and CCC. To qualify for the
lower resident fees, students are generally required to have
resided in California for more than one year immediately
preceding the residence determination date and undertake other
specified actions such as registering to vote or registering
one's car in California.
What benefit does this bill provide ? By removing the
requirement that veterans must have served in California for one
year immediately prior to discharge, this bill would allow
veterans from other states to pay resident tuition rates instead
of the higher nonresident rate for up to one year. The
Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits fund a student's in-state tuition and
fees. Thus, this bill would provide a subsidy equaling the
difference between the resident and non-resident fees at the
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student's college or university during his or her first year.
After the first year, when the student will have had the
opportunity to establish residency, the Post-9/11 GI Bill would
fully cover the student's fees.
Benefits of California-resident classification . UC, CSU, and
CCC are publicly subsidized with the proceeds of state taxes;
the lower resident fees for students who reside in California
reflect the contribution they and their parents have already
made by paying taxes in California. The fees charged to
non-California residents are intended to cover the cost of the
subsidy that is generated by California taxpayers. In addition
to in-state tuition and fees, full-time undergraduate students
pay the following nonresident tuition:
UC $22,878 per year
CSU $11,140 per year
CCC $208 per unit
Need for this bill . According to the author, the difference
between resident and nonresident tuition is a significant
financial barrier for veterans from other states who wish to
attend a California public institution directly after discharge
and before they have had the opportunity to establish residency.
Federal legislation . This bill would extend a benefit to
veterans from other states that are not always provided to
California veterans. According to the author, only 19 states
currently offer similar residency waivers, although several
states are considering similar legislation. Federal legislation
has been introduced in both the House and the Senate to require
institutions that are eligible for Post 9/11 G.I. Bill benefits
to charge any veteran the resident tuition rate. The Committee
may wish to consider whether California should wait to see if
federal legislation is enacted to ensure that California
veterans receive the same tuition benefit in all 50 states that
we are providing to veterans from other states.
Oversight hearing on student veteran issues . On February 28,
2012, the Assembly Higher Education and Assembly Veterans
Affairs Committees held a joint oversight hearing on the
challenges facing California student veterans. Several students
and representatives from the higher education institutions spoke
for the need for more resources for veterans services, including
more transition assistance, improving outreach and campus-based
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programs, and easing the matriculation of prior military
learning. The Committee may wish to consider whether funding
fee waivers for out-of-state student veterans should be a
priority in light of the need to improve services for California
student veterans, who may or may not receive the reciprocal
benefit in other state.
Revenue loss to the segments . All three segments have seen
significant reductions in state support in recent years,
resulting in tuition and fee increases and enrollment
reductions. This measure would result in further revenue losses
to the segments and competition with California residents
struggling to get courses. If the intent of this bill is to
provide a benefit to non-Californian members of the military, it
may be more appropriate to provide this benefit directly, such
as through a Cal Grant dedicated to these students for the one
year it takes to establish residency. This would allow the
Legislature to more easily track the costs of the program, as
well as review its merits relative to other student financial
aid programs and other state-supported programs, and would spare
the segments revenue losses.
Related legislation . SB 290 (Knight), pending in the Senate, is
very similar to this bill. AB 2250 (Beth Gaines) of 2012, which
died in the Assembly Appropriations Committee, was substantially
similar to this bill. AB 2478 (Hayashi), Chapter 405, Statutes
of 2012, allowed a student veteran to establish residency within
two years, rather than one year, of discharge. Several similar
bills have been introduced annually since 2006, and all were
held in the Appropriations committees.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees,
AFL-CIO
American Legion-Department of California
AMVETS-Department of California
California Association of County Veterans Service Officers
California Community College, Chancellor's Office
California State Commanders Veterans Council
Kern Community College District
Legion of Valor of the United States of America, Inc.
MiraCosta Community College District
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San Diego Community College District
VFW-Department of California
Vietnam Veterans of America-California State Council
1 Individual
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Sandra Fried / HIGHER ED. / (916)
319-3960