AB 2247, as amended, Williams. Postsecondary education: accreditation documents.
Under existing law, there are 4 segments of postsecondary education in this state. These segments include the three public segments: the University of California, the California State University, and the California Community Colleges. Private postsecondary educational institutions and independent institutions of higher education constitute the other segment.
This bill would require each campus or other unit of the segments listed above that receives public funding through state or federal financial aid programs, is institutionally accredited by an accrediting agency recognized by the United States Department of Education, and offers education and training programs to California students to make final institutional accreditation documents available to the public via the institution’s Internet Web site, as specified.
To the extent that this bill would require community college districts to provide this service, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 66014.8 is added to the Education Code,
2to read:
(a) For purposes of this section, the following terms
4have the following meanings:
5(1) “Institutional accreditation documents” means the
6institution’s institutional accreditation visiting team reports and
7the institutional accreditation agency action letters following an
8accreditation agency’s action relating tobegin delete aend deletebegin insert an initial accreditation,
9reaffirmation,end insert comprehensive review, special visit, or any sanction
10or adverse action taken against an affiliated institution.
11(2) “Segment of postsecondary education” means the California
12Community Colleges, the California State University, the
13University of California, the independent institutions of higher
14education, as defined in Section 66010, or the private
15postsecondary educational institutions, as defined in Section 94858.
16(b) All campuses or other units of any segment of postsecondary
17education that receive public funding through state or federal
18financial aid programs, are institutionally accredited by an
19accrediting agency recognized by the United States Department
20of Education, and offer education and training programs to
21California students shall make final institutional accreditation
22documents available to the public, once those documents have
23been made final through an action of the accrediting agency, via
24display in a prominent location
on the institution’s Internet Web
P3 1site, with a link to these documents on the institutional Internet
2Web site homepage.
3(c) A campus or other unit of any segment of postsecondary
4education whose documents are not currently available to the public
5shall make all institutional accreditation documents finalized by
6the accrediting agency based on reviews that take place after July
71, 2015, available to the public pursuant to subdivision (b).
If the Commission on State Mandates determines that
9this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to
10local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made
11pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division
124 of Title 2 of the Government Code.
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