BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 752
Page 1
Date of Hearing: May 6, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Jimmy Gomez, Chair
AB
752 (Salas) - As Amended April 23, 2015
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|Policy |Higher Education |Vote:|13 - 0 |
|Committee: | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|-------------+-------------------------------+-----+-------------|
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|-------------+-------------------------------+-----+-------------|
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No
SUMMARY:
This bill requires the Bureau for Private Postsecondary
Education (BPPE), by July 1, 2016, to review the list of
examinations prescribed by the U.S. Department of Education
(USDE), and if the bureau determines there is no examination
AB 752
Page 2
appropriate for ability-to-benefit (ATB) students with limited
English proficiency, to approve an alternative examination for
these students.
FISCAL EFFECT:
As the review is already mandated in current law, any cost for
the BPPE to complete the review by July 1, 2016, will be minor
and absorbable.
COMMENTS:
1)Background. Under Federal law, students without a high school
diploma or equivalency can qualify for federal Title IV loans,
grants, and campus-based aid if they pass an independently
administered test of their basic math and English skills, an
ATB test, and are enrolled in college-level career pathways
programs. The test is intended to measure whether students
have the basic skills needed to benefit from higher education
and succeed in the institution. Tests are approved by the
USDE and administered by an independent party.
The Private Postsecondary Education Act of 2009 requires all
ATB students enrolling in private postsecondary educational
institutions to take and pass an ATB examination. In 2012,
out of concerns that existing USDE-approved ATB examinations
were not appropriate for ESL students, the Act was amended to
authorize the BPPE to publish a list of eligible examinations
if the USDE does not have a relevant examination. To date, the
BPPE has not published a list of alternative ATB examinations.
2)Purpose. According to the author, many immigrants and working
adults that do not have high school diplomas are seeking to
AB 752
Page 3
enroll in job and skills training programs, but are having
difficulty passing the USDE-approved ATB examinations. This
problem is disproportionality affecting those with limited
English proficiency and low income communities. This bill
establishes a deadline for the BPPE to implement the duty
imposed on it in 2012.
Analysis Prepared by:Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916)
319-2081