California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 1370

Introduced by Assembly Member Medina

February 27, 2015

An act to amend Sections 68051 and 68052 of, and to add Sections 68052.1 and 68052.2 to, the Education Code, relating to public postsecondary education.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1370, as introduced, Medina. Public postsecondary education: student residency.

Existing law expresses the intent of the Legislature that the University of California and the California State University establish nonresident student tuition policies that are consistent with their resident student fee policies. Existing law provides that nonresident student tuition shall be determined by each of these public postsecondary segments through the adoption of a methodology that annually establishes the nonresident student tuition rate. These provisions are applicable to the University of California only if the Regents of the University of California act, by resolution, to make them applicable.

Existing law expresses the intent of the Legislature that the California Postsecondary Education Commission annually review specified data with respect to making comparisons between the California postsecondary educational segments and the postsecondary educational systems of 7 specified major industrial states. The commission has not been funded in recent fiscal years.

This bill would delete the expression of legislative intent relating to the establishment of nonresident student tuition policies at the University of California and the California State University that are consistent with resident student fee policies. The bill would instead require that nonresident student tuition be determined by each of these segments through the adoption of a methodology that annually establishes the nonresident student tuition at each campus of the segment.

The bill would require that under no circumstances shall the level of nonresident tuition plus required student fees charged by a campus fall below the total nonresident charges imposed by each of their comparison institutions, as identified by the California Postsecondary Education Commission or a successor agency. The bill would also require that an unspecified percentage of the revenues generated from nonresident enrollment be directed to financial aid programs for resident students.

The bill would prohibit the number of nonresident students enrolled at any campus of the University of California from exceeding 10% of total student enrollment. The bill would further prohibit any campus of the University of California at which nonresident enrollment exceeds 10% of total student enrollment as of the operative date of the bill from increasing the enrollment of nonresident students from the amount of those students enrolled at that campus on that date. The bill would require the University of California to annually publish a report including specified data about the revenues generated by nonresident student enrollment, and to provide for equitable distribution of those revenues among the campuses.

The bill would declare that, notwithstanding the existing provision that would make this bill applicable to the University of California only upon the action of the regents, a campus of the University of California would not be deemed to be authorized by the State of California for purposes of its students receiving federal financial aid unless the campus is in compliance with this bill.

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 68051 of the Education Code is amended
to read:

68051.  

begin delete Unless otherwise provided by law, end delete begin insert In accordance with
Section 68052, end insert the governing board or district governing board
shall begin delete adopt rules and regulations relating to the method of
calculation of end delete begin insert calculate end insert the amount of nonresident tuition, the
method of payment, and the method and amount of refund.

SEC. 2.  

Section 68052 of the Education Code is amended to
read:

68052.  

(a)  begin delete It is the intent of the Legislature that California’s
public institutions of higher education shall establish nonresident
student tuition policies that are consistent with their resident student
fee policies. end delete Nonresident student tuition shall be determined by
each of the public postsecondary segments through the adoption
of a methodology that annually establishes the nonresident student
tuition begin delete rate. It is further the intent of the Legislature that, while the
public institutions are to be provided flexibility in establishing
their nonresident tuition, under no circumstances shall the level
of nonresident tuition plus required fees fall below the marginal
cost of instruction for that segment. end delete begin insert rate at each campus of that
segment. end insert

(b) The following state policies regarding nonresident student
tuition are hereby established:

(1) Unless otherwise prescribed by statute, an admission fee
and rate of tuition begin insert for each campus, end insert fixed by each public
postsecondary governing board begin insert , end insert shall be required of each
nonresident student. Each public postsecondary education
governing body shall develop its own methodology for establishing
the nonresident tuition level and its annual adjustment level of
nonresident student tuition begin insert at each campus end insert , unless otherwise
prescribed by statute.

(2) As California’s public postsecondary education segments
annually adjust the level of nonresident tuition they charge
out-of-state students, the nonresident tuition methodologies they
develop and use begin delete should take into consideration, at minimum, the
following two factors: end delete begin insert shall be based, at a minimum, on the total
nonresident charges imposed by each of their comparison
institutions, as identified by the California Postsecondary
Education Commission or a successor agency. end insert

begin delete

(A) For the University of California and the California State
University, the total nonresident charges imposed by each of their
public comparison institutions, as identified by the California
Postsecondary Education Commission.

end delete begin delete

(B) The full average cost of instruction of their segment.

end delete

(3)  begin delete It is the intent of the Legislature that under end delete begin insert Under end insert no
circumstances shall begin delete an institution’s end delete begin insert the end insert level of nonresident tuition
plus required student fees begin insert charged by a campus end insert fall below the
begin delete marginal cost of instruction for that segment. end delete begin insert total nonresident
charges imposed by its comparison institutions, as identified by
the California Postsecondary Education Commission or a
successor agency. end insert

(4) The University of California, the California State University,
the Hastings College of the Law, and the California Maritime
Academy should endeavor to ensure that increases in the level of
nonresident tuition are begin delete gradual, moderate, and end delete predictable by
providing nonresident students with begin delete a minimum of a 10-month end delete begin insert an
appropriate end insert notice of tuition increases.

begin insert

(5) __ percent of the revenues generated from nonresident
enrollment shall be directed to financial aid programs for resident
students.

end insert

(c) No provision of this section shall be applicable to the
California Community Colleges.

begin delete

(d) In the event that state revenues and expenditures are
substantially imbalanced due to factors unforeseen by the Governor
and the Legislature, including, but not limited to, initiative
measures, natural disasters, or sudden deviations from expected
economic trends, the nonresident student tuition at the University
of California, the California State University, the Hastings College
of the Law, and the California Maritime Academy, shall not be
subject to this section.

end delete

SEC. 3.  

Section 68052.1 is added to the Education Code, to
read:

68052.1.  

(a) The number of nonresident students enrolled at
any campus of the University of California shall not exceed 10
percent of total student enrollment. Any campus of the University
of California at which nonresident enrollment exceeds 10 percent
of total student enrollment as of the operative date of the act that
adds this section is prohibited from increasing the enrollment of
nonresident students from the amount of those students enrolled
at that campus on that date.

(b) The University of California shall establish a revenue sharing
agreement pursuant to which revenues generated by nonresident
student enrollment are distributed equitably to each campus of the
university.

(c) The University of California shall annually publish a report,
including, but not necessarily limited to, all of the following
information:

(1) The amount of revenues generated by nonresident enrollment
at each campus.

(2) The method by which these revenues were distributed among
the various campuses of the university.

(3) For each campus, the purposes for which these revenues
were expended.

SEC. 4.  

Section 68052.2 is added to the Education Code, to
read:

68052.2.  

Notwithstanding Section 68134, a campus of the
University of California shall not be deemed to be authorized by
the State of California for purposes of Title IV of the federal Higher
Education Act unless the campus is in compliance with this article.