BILL NUMBER: AB 1361	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Burke

                        FEBRUARY 27, 2015

   An act to amend Sections 69436 and 69437.6 of the Education Code,
relating to student financial aid.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 1361, as introduced, Burke. Student financial aid: Cal Grant
Program: veterans.
   Existing law, the Ortiz-Pacheco-Poochigian-Vasconcellos Cal Grant
Program, establishes the Cal Grant A and B Entitlement awards, the
California Community College Transfer Cal Grant Entitlement awards,
the Competitive Cal Grant A and B awards, the Cal Grant C awards, and
the Cal Grant T awards under the administration of the Student Aid
Commission, and establishes eligibility requirements for awards under
these programs for participating students attending qualifying
institutions.
   Under the California Community College Transfer Cal Grant
Entitlement Program, a student who transfers from a California
community college to a qualifying institution that offers a
baccalaureate degree and who was not awarded a Cal Grant A or B
Entitlement award, receives a Cal Grant A or B award if, at the time
of the transfer, the student meets specified requirements, among
which is a requirement that the student not be 28 years of age or
older by December 31 of the award year.
   This bill would provide that the requirement that a student not be
28 years or older by December 31 of the award year, as described
above, would not apply to a former member of the Armed Forces of the
United States, as defined, who was seeking a Cal Grant A or B award
under this provision, unless he or she received a dishonorable or bad
conduct discharge.
   The bill would also make nonsubstantive and conforming changes to
these provisions.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section 69436 of the Education Code is amended to read:

   69436.  (a) A student who was not awarded a Cal Grant A or B award
pursuant to Article 2 (commencing with Section 69434) or Article 3
(commencing with Section 69435) at the time of his or her high school
graduation but, at the time of transfer from a California community
college to a qualifying baccalaureate program, meets all of the
criteria set forth in subdivision (b), shall be entitled to a Cal
Grant A or B award.
   (b) Any California resident transferring from a California
community college to a qualifying institution that offers a
baccalaureate degree is entitled to receive, and the commission, or a
qualifying institution pursuant to Article 8 (commencing with
Section 69450), shall award, a Cal Grant A or B award depending on
the eligibility determined pursuant to subdivision (c), if all of the
following criteria  , other than paragraphs (8) and (9), 
are met:
   (1) A complete official financial aid application has been
submitted or postmarked pursuant to Section 69432.9, no later than
the March 2 of the year immediately preceding the award year.
   (2) The student demonstrates financial need pursuant to Section
69433.
   (3) The student has earned a community college grade point average
of at least 2.4 on a 4.0 scale and is eligible to transfer to a
qualifying institution that offers a baccalaureate degree.
   (4) The student's household has an income and asset level not
exceeding the limits set forth in Section 69432.7.
   (5) The student is pursuing a baccalaureate degree that is offered
by a qualifying institution.
   (6) He or she is enrolled at least part time.
   (7) The student meets the general Cal Grant eligibility
requirements set forth in Article 1 (commencing with Section 69430).
   (8) The student will not be 28 years of age or older by December
31 of the award year.  This paragraph does not apply to a former
member of the Armed Forces of the United States, as defined in
Section 66025.8, unless he or she received a dishonorable or bad
conduct discharge. 
   (9) The student graduated from a California high school or its
equivalent during or after the 2000-01 academic year.
   (10) (A) Except as provided for in subparagraph (B), the student
attended a California community college in the academic year
immediately preceding the academic year for which the award will be
used.
   (B) A student otherwise eligible to receive an award pursuant to
this section, who attended a California community college in the
2011-12 academic year, may use the award for the 2012-13 and 2013-14
academic years.
   (c) The amount and type of the award pursuant to this article
shall be determined as follows:
   (1) For applicants with income and assets at or under the Cal
Grant A limits, the award amount shall be the amount established
pursuant to Article 2 (commencing with Section 69434).
   (2) For applicants with income and assets at or under the Cal
Grant B limits, the award amount shall be the amount established
pursuant to Article 3 (commencing with Section 69435).
   (d) (1) A student meeting the requirements of paragraph (9) of
subdivision (b) by means of high school graduation, rather than its
equivalent, shall be required to have graduated from a California
high school, unless that California resident graduated from a high
school outside of California due solely to orders received from a
branch of the United States Armed Forces by that student or by that
student's parent or guardian that required that student to be outside
of California at the time of high school graduation.
   (2) For the purposes of this article, both of the following are
exempt from the requirements of subdivision (e) of Section 69433.9
and paragraph (9) of subdivision (b) of this section:
   (A) A student for whom a claim under this article was paid prior
to December 1, 2005.
   (B) A student for whom a claim under this article for the 2004-05
award year or the 2005-06 award year was or is paid on or after
December 1, 2005, but no later than October 15, 2006.
   (3) (A) The commission, or a qualifying institution pursuant to
Article 8 (commencing with Section 69450), shall make preliminary
awards to all applicants currently eligible for an award under this
article. At the time an applicant receives a preliminary award, the
commission, or a qualifying institution pursuant to Article 8
(commencing with Section 69450), shall require that applicant to
affirm, in writing, under penalty of perjury, that he or she meets
the requirements set forth in subdivision (e) of Section 69433.9,
paragraph (9) of subdivision (b) of this section, and paragraph (1)
of this subdivision. The commission, or a qualifying institution
pursuant to Article 8 (commencing with Section 69450), shall notify
each person who receives a preliminary award under this paragraph
that his or her award is subject to an audit pursuant to subparagraph
(B).
   (B) The commission shall select, at random, a minimum of 10
percent of the new and renewal awards made under subparagraph (A),
and shall require, prior to the disbursement of Cal Grant funds to
the affected postsecondary institution, that the institution verify
that the recipient meets the requirements of subdivision (e) of
Section 69433.9, paragraph (9) of subdivision (b) of this section,
and paragraph (1) of this subdivision. An award that is audited under
this paragraph and found to be valid shall not be subject to a
subsequent audit.
   (C) Pursuant to Section 69517.5, the commission shall seek
repayment of any and all funds found to be improperly disbursed under
this article.
   (D) On or before November 1 of each year, the commission shall
submit a report to the Legislature and the Governor including, but
not necessarily limited to, both of the following:
   (i) The number of awards made under this article in the preceding
12 months.
   (ii) The number of new and renewal awards selected, in the
preceding 12 months, for verification under subparagraph (B), and the
results of that verification with respect to students at the
University of California, at the California State University, at
independent nonprofit institutions, and at independent for-profit
institutions.
  SEC. 2.  Section 69437.6 of the Education Code is amended to read:
   69437.6.  (a) An applicant competing for an award under this
article shall meet all the requirements of Article 1 (commencing with
Section 69430).
   (b) To compete for a competitive Cal Grant A award, an applicant
shall, at a minimum, meet all of the requirements of Article 2
(commencing with Section 69434), with the exception of paragraphs (1)
and (8) of subdivision (b) of Section 69434. However, in lieu of
meeting the grade point average requirement set forth in paragraph
(3) of subdivision (b) of Section 69434, an applicant may submit a
community college or college grade point average of at least 2.4 on a
4.0 scale.
   (c) To compete for a competitive Cal Grant B award, an applicant
shall, at a minimum, meet all of the requirements of Article 3
(commencing with Section 69435), with the exception of paragraphs (1)
and (8) of subdivision (a) of Section 69435.3. However, in lieu of
meeting the grade point average requirements of paragraph (3) of
subdivision (a) of Section 69435.3, a student may do either of the
following:
   (1) Demonstrate attainment of a community college or college grade
point average of at least 2.0 on a 4.0 scale.
   (2) Reestablish his or her grade point average by completing at
least 16 cumulative units of credit for academic coursework at an
accredited California community college, as defined by the
commission, by regulation, with at least a 2.0 community college
grade point average. 
   (d) To compete for a competitive California Community College
Transfer Cal Grant Award, an applicant shall, at a minimum, meet the
requirements of Article 4 (commencing with Section 69436), with the
exception of paragraphs (8) and (9) of subdivision (b) of Section
69436.  
   (e) 
    (d)  All other competitors shall, at a minimum, comply
with all of the requirements of subdivision (b) of Section 69432.9.

   (f) 
    (   e)  An individual selected for a Cal Grant
A award who enrolls in a California community college may elect to
have the award held in reserve for him or her for a period not to
exceed two academic years, except that the commission may extend the
period in which his or her award may be held in reserve for up to
three academic years if, in the commission's judgment, the rate of
academic progress has been as rapid as could be expected for the
personal and financial conditions that the student has encountered.
The commission shall, in this case, hold the award in reserve for the
additional year. Upon receipt of a request to transfer the award to
a tuition or fee charging qualifying institution, the individual
shall be eligible to receive the Cal Grant A award previously held in
reserve if, at the time of the request, he or she meets all of the
requirements of this article. Upon receipt of the request, the
commission shall reassess the financial need of the award recipient.
The commission may prescribe the forms and procedures to be utilized
for the purposes of this section. A recipient's years of eligibility
for payment of benefits shall be based upon his or her grade level at
the time the award is transferred to the tuition or fee charging
qualifying institution. Any award so held in reserve shall only be
counted once toward the 22,500 awards authorized by this article.