Amended in Assembly March 16, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 42

Introduced by Assembly Member Kim

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(Principal coauthor: Senator Huff)

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(Coauthors: Assembly Members Achadjian, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Brough, Chávez, Gallagher, Grove, Jones, Lackey, Linder, Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, Melendez, Olsen, Patterson, Steinorth, Wagner, Waldron, and Wilk)

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(Coauthors: Senators Bates, Nguyen, Nielsen, Stone, and Vidak)

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December 1, 2014

An act to add Chapter 3.7 (commencing with Section 66170) and Chapter 3.8 (commencing with Section 66180) to Part 40 of Division 5 of Title 3 of the Education Code, relating to public postsecondary education, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 42, as amended, Kim. Public postsecondary education: funding and mandatory fees.

(1) Existing law establishes the California State University, under the administration of the Trustees of the California State University, the University of California, under the administration of the Regents of the University of California, and the California Community Colleges, under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, as the 3 segments of public postsecondary education in this state. Existing law appropriates funding, in the annual Budget Act and in other statutes, from the state General Fund for the support of these segments. Existing law also authorizes these segments to require their students to pay mandatory systemwide fees and tuition, among other costs, for matriculation at these institutions.

Proposition 30, known as the Schools and Local Public Safety Protection Act of 2012, was approved by the voters at the November 6, 2012, statewide general election and, among other things, increases personal income tax and sales and use tax rates and provides revenue for public elementary and secondary schools and community colleges.

This bill would express a finding and declaration of the Legislature, and express the intent of the Legislature, relating to the enactment of Proposition 30 by the voters and to the provision of funding to the California State University, the University of California, and the California Community Colleges.

The bill, from the 2015-16 fiscal year to the 2018-19 fiscal year, inclusive, would prohibit mandatory systemwide fees or tuition charged to students of the California State University from exceeding the level of the mandatory systemwide fees or tuition charged to students of the California State University for the 2014-15 fiscal year.

The bill, from the 2015-16 fiscal year to the 2018-19 fiscal year, inclusive, would prohibit the mandatory systemwide fees charged to students of the California Community Colleges from increasing beyond the level of the mandatory systemwide fees charged to students of the California Community Colleges for the 2014-15 fiscal year.

The bill, from the 2015-16 fiscal year to the 2018-19 fiscal year, inclusive, would prohibit the mandatory systemwide fees or tuition charged to students of the University of California from exceeding the level of the mandatory systemwide fees or tuition charged to students of the University of California for the 2014-15 fiscal year.

(2) Existing law prohibits a campus of the California State University, or the Chancellor of the California State University, or both, from approving a student success fee before January 1, 2016. Existing law requires, during the 2014-15 fiscal year, the chancellor to conduct a review of the California State University Student Fee Policy relating to student success fees and to recommend to the Trustees of the California State University changes to the fee policy.

This bill, commencing with the 2015-16 fiscal year, would prohibit the imposition of a student success fee at a campus of a segment of public postsecondary education unless the student success fee is approved by a favorable vote of begin delete end delete begin delete 2⁄3 end delete begin insert a majority end insert of those students voting at an election of the student body held at that campus within the preceding 48 months.

(3) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

Vote: ²⁄₃. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

(a) The Legislature finds and declares that
Proposition 30, known as the Schools and Local Public Safety
Protection Act of 2012, which was enacted by the voters at the
statewide general election on November 6, 2012, is estimated to
raise fifty billion dollars ($50,000,000,000) over a period of seven
years.

(b) It is the intent of the Legislature to accomplish both of the
following:

(1) In recognition of the promises made to the voters of
California that the imposition of tax rate increases by the Schools
and Local Public Safety Protection Act of 2012 would protect
education, to provide General Fund support for the California State
University, the University of California, and the California
Community Colleges in amounts that are at least as large as the
amounts provided to those respective segments for the 2012-13
fiscal year, for as long as those higher tax rates are in effect.

(2) To increase funding to the California State University,
University of California, and California Community Colleges
systems to ensure that increases in mandatory systemwide student
fees or tuition are not required during the period when the higher
tax rates imposed by the Schools and Local Public Safety
Protection Act of 2012 will be in effect.

SEC. 2.  

Chapter 3.7 (commencing with Section 66170) is added
to Part 40 of Division 5 of Title 3 of the Education Code, to read:

 

Chapter  3.7. Funding for Public Postsecondary
Education

 

66170.  

(a) Notwithstanding any other law, from the begin delete 2015-16 end delete
begin insert 2015- end insert begin insert 16 end insert fiscal year to the 2018-19 fiscal year, inclusive,
mandatory systemwide fees or tuition charged to students of the
California State University shall not exceed the level of the
mandatory systemwide fees or tuition charged to students of the
California State University for the 2014-15 fiscal year.

(b) Notwithstanding Section 76300 or any other law, from the
2015-16 fiscal year to the begin delete 2018-19 end delete begin insert 2018- end insert begin insert 19 end insert fiscal year, inclusive,
the mandatory systemwide fees charged to students of the
California Community Colleges shall not increase beyond the level
of the mandatory systemwide fees charged to students of the
California Community Colleges for the 2014-15 fiscal year.

(c) Notwithstanding any other law, from the 2015-16 fiscal year
to the 2018-19 fiscal year, inclusive, mandatory systemwide fees
or tuition charged to students of the University of California shall
not exceed the level of the mandatory systemwide fees or tuition
charged to students of the University of California for the 2014-15
fiscal year.

SEC. 3.  

Chapter 3.8 (commencing with Section 66180) is added
to Part 40 of Division 5 of Title 3 of the Education Code, to read:

 

Chapter  3.8. Mandatory Fees

 

66180.  

Commencing with the 2015-16 fiscal year:

(a) A student success fee, as defined in this section, shall not
be imposed on a student of a campus of the California Community
Colleges unless the student success fee has been approved by a
favorable vote of begin delete two-thirds end delete begin insert a majority end insert of those students voting at
an election of the student body held at that campus within the
preceding 48 months.

(b) A student success fee, as defined in this section, shall not
be imposed on a student of a campus of the California State
University unless the student success fee has been approved by a
favorable vote of begin delete two-thirds end delete begin insert a majority end insert of those students voting at
an election of the student body held at that campus on or after
January 1, 2016, and within the preceding 48 months.

(c) Notwithstanding Section 67400, a student success fee, as
defined in this section, shall not be imposed on a student of a
campus of the University of California unless the student success
fee has been approved by a favorable vote of begin delete two-thirds end delete begin insert a majority end insert
of those students voting at an election of begin delete a end delete begin insert the end insert student body held
at that campus within the preceding 48 months.

(d) “Student success fee,” as used in this section, is defined to
mean a type of campus-based mandatory fee that must be paid by
a student to enroll or attend a campus of the California Community
Colleges, the California State University, or the University of
California, as determined by that campus or the office of the
Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, the Chancellor
of the California State University, or the Regents of the University
of California, respectively.

SEC. 4.  

This act is an urgency statute necessary for the
immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within
the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into
immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:

In order to protect the students of the California State University,
the University of California, and the California Community
Colleges and their families from unjustified increases in mandatory
systemwide fees and tuition commencing with the 2015-16 fiscal
year, it is necessary that this act take effect immediately.