BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1401|
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CONSENT
Bill No: AB 1401
Author: Baker (R)
Introduced:2/27/15
Vote: 21
SENATE VETERANS AFFAIRS COMMITTEE: 5-0, 6/23/15
AYES: Nielsen, Hueso, Allen, Nguyen, Roth
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: Senate Rule 28.8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 74-0, 5/22/15 (Consent) - See last page for
vote
SUBJECT: Veterans: student financial aid
SOURCE: Author
DIGEST: This bill requests the Office of the Adjutant General
(OTAG) to provide specified assistance, regarding higher
education, to members of the California National Guard (CNG),
State Military Reserve (SMR), and Naval Militia, who do not have
a baccalaureate degree.
ANALYSIS: Existing law provides various benefits for veterans
including the GI Bill, California National Guard Education
Assistance Award Program (CNGEAAP), and other state and federal
benefits.
Prior law, in effect until January 1, 2012:
1)Requested OTAG to, among other things, make copies of the
enrollment fee waiver application of the Board of Governors of
the California Community Colleges and the Free Application for
Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) available to each member of the
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CNG, SMR, and Naval Militia not having a baccalaureate degree.
2)Requested OTAG to assist these persons in completing these
forms, as needed.
This bill:
1)Requests OTAG to, among other things, make copies of the
enrollment fee waiver application of the Board of Governors of
the California Community Colleges and the FAFSA available to
each member of the CNG, SMR, and Naval Militia not having a
baccalaureate degree.
2)Requests OTAG to assist these persons in completing these
forms, as needed.
3)Requests that OTAG also make available additional information
regarding the federal Post-9/11 GI Bill and the state's
CNGEAAP program, and contact information for veterans'
educational assistance.
Background
Higher education benefits: APLE-NG. In 2003, the Legislature
created the Assumption Program of Loans for Education program
for CNG members (APLE-NG) via AB 547 (Liu, Chapter 345, Statutes
of 2003). This program was sunsetted on January 1, 2012, but is
discussed here for historical context. Under APLE-NG, eligible
service members received a repayment of their loans for study at
a college or university, as follows:
1)For one year of service, up to $2,000 of the student loan is
assumed;
2)For two years of service, up to $5,000 of the student loan is
assumed;
3)For three years of service, up to $8.000 of the student loan
is assumed; and
4)For four years of service, up to $11,000 of the student loan
is assumed.
In addition, AB 547 did the following:
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1)Requested OTAG to:
a) Make copies of the enrollment fee waiver application of
the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges
and FAFSA available to each member of the CNG, SMR, and
Naval Militia who does not have a baccalaureate degree.
b) Assist these persons in completing these forms, as
needed.
2)Established protections for qualifying CNG members who are
deployed to active service during their academic term
including:
a) An academic leave of absence for any academic session
that the qualifying member is unable to attend or complete
because he or she is on active duty;
b) The protection that the CNG member does not forfeit
either any of the monetary value of the Cal Grant award or
any of the periods of eligibility for that award.
3)Directed OTAG to submit to the Legislature on the
effectiveness of the program, on or before July 1, 2006; and
4)Provided a sunset date of January 1, 2007, for APLE-NG and the
protections.
The original APLE-NG statute was scheduled to sunset on January
1, 2007; therefore, in 2004 the Legislature enacted SB 1322
(Denham, Chapter 554, Statutes of 2004), which:
1)Extended APLE-NG until January 1, 2012.
2)Provided that APLE-NG would serve as an incentive for
enlistment or reenlistment.
3)Authorized persons who otherwise qualify for participation in
the program and who are enrolled in or have completed a
program of study in a vocational diploma program, to
participate in the program.
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4)Required the California Student Aid Commission (CSAC) to
report annually to the Legislature on the total number of
program participants, as well as the number of participants
who receive a loan assumption benefit.
Higher education benefits: CNGEAAP. CNGEAAP is a state-funded
grant for members of the CNG or SMR (up to 1,000 participants -
or as many as the annual budget will allow). This program
authorizes CSAC to make payments to eligible program
participants. Participants can receive up to the amount of the
Cal Grant A award for attending the University of California or
the California State University, up to the Cal Grant B award for
attending a community college, or up to the University of
California Cal Grant A amount for attending a non-public
institution. Graduates may receive an additional $500 for books
and supplies.
Related/Prior Legislation
SB 1322 (Denham, Chapter 554, Statutes of 2004) (1) extends by
five years, from January 1, 2007, until January 1, 2012, the
sunset date for the provisions of
AB 547 (Liu, 2003), which established the APLE-NG program and
provided other academic benefits, (2) expands the pool of
beneficiaries for the provisions of this legislation, as
specified, and (3) makes technical and clarifying changes, as
specified.
AB 547 (Liu, Chapter 345, Statutes of 2003) establishes APLE-NG
- administered by CSAC - and awards qualifying members of the
CNG. SMR, and Naval Militia with an assumption of their
educational loans, according to specified schedules.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: No
SUPPORT: (Verified8/19/15)
AMVETS - Department of California
California Association of County Veterans Service Officers
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California Community Colleges, Chancellor's Office
County of Contra Costa
Military Officers Association of America - California Council of
Chapters
Veterans of Foreign Wars - Department of California
OPPOSITION: (Verified8/19/15)
None received
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 74-0, 5/22/15
AYES: Achadjian, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Bloom, Bonilla,
Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Campos, Chang, Chau,
Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly,
Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines, Gallagher, Cristina
Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez,
Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Roger Hernández, Holden,
Irwin, Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low,
Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin,
Nazarian, Obernolte, Patterson, Perea, Quirk, Rendon,
Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago, Steinorth, Mark
Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Atkins
NO VOTE RECORDED: Alejo, Jones, O'Donnell, Olsen, Waldron,
Weber
Prepared by:Wade Cooper Teasdale / V.A. / (916) 651-1503
8/19/15 20:43:00
**** END ****
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