BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Senator Carol Liu, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: AB 1449
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|Author: |Lopez |
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|Version: |June 20, 2016 Hearing |
| |Date: June 29, 2016 |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes |
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|Consultant:|Olgalilia Ramirez |
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Subject: Student financial aid: California Community College
Transfer Cal Grant Entitlement Program
SUMMARY
This bill exempts a student from the high school graduation
requirement of the California Community College (CCC) Transfer
Cal Grant Entitlement Program, as long as the student was a
California resident on his or her 18th birthday.
BACKGROUND
Existing law:
1) Authorizes the Cal Grant program, administered by the
Commission, to provide grants to financially needy students
to attend a college or university. The Cal Grant programs
include both the entitlement and the competitive Cal Grant
awards. The program consists of the Cal Grant A, Cal Grant
B, and Cal Grant C programs, and eligibility is based upon
financial need, grade point average (GPA), California
residency and other criteria. (Education Code §
69430-69433)
2) Establishes the Transfer Entitlement, to provide Cal
Grant A and B awards to every student who graduated from a
California high school after June 30, 2000, was a
California resident at the time of high school graduation,
transferred to a qualifying baccalaureate-degree granting
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institution from a CCC during the award year, was under the
age of 28 at the time of the transfer, and had a minimum
CCC GPA of 2.4. (EC § 69436)
3) Requires the commission, or a qualifying institution to
require that applicant to affirm, in writing, under penalty
of perjury, that he or she meets the requirements for Cal
Grant eligibility and notify each person who receives a
preliminary award that his or her award is subject to an
audit. (EC § 69436 (d)(3)(A))
4) Requires the commission to select, at random, a minimum
of 10 percent of the new and renewal awards and require,
prior to the disbursement of Cal Grant funds to the
affected postsecondary institution, that the institution
verify that the recipient meets specified requirements.
(EC § 69436 (d)(3)(B))
ANALYSIS
This bill exempts a student from the high school graduation
requirement of the California Community College (CCC)
Transfer Cal Grant Entitlement Program, as long as the
student was a California resident on his or her 18th
birthday.
STAFF COMMENTS
1) Need for the bill. Under the current Transfer Entitlement
requirements, a student must graduate from a California
high school or equivalent to qualify for an award payment.
According to the author, California has established an
unnecessary barrier for nontraditional low-income transfer
students by requiring Transfer Entitlement award recipients
to possess a California high school diploma or equivalent.
The author notes that CCCs are required to admit all
California students over the age of 18 regardless of
whether they have obtained a high school diploma or
equivalency, and a high school diploma or equivalency is
not a requirement for admittance at University of
California (UC) or California State University (CSU)
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campuses if a student has satisfied requirements for
upper-division transfer from a CCC. This bill seeks to
allow returning students, who did not graduate high school,
to earn a Cal Grant upon transferring to a 4-year college
or university.
2) California Community College Transfer Entitlement program.
The CCC Transfer Entitlement program extends the guarantee
of Cal Grant eligibility to financially needy students that
start at a community college and transfer to a four-year
university, similar to the guarantee provided to high
school students entering directly into four year college or
university. This award covers tuition at CSU and the UC,
as well as tuition support at qualified private California
colleges and universities. Transfer Entitlement Award
applicants must meet certain requirements at the time of
transfer from a California Community College to a
qualifying institution offering baccalaureate degree
programs.
A CCC transfer student by nature must demonstrate an
ability to complete college course work, and perform at a
level sufficient to gain admission to a 4-year institution.
For those students who did not graduate from high school,
this bill would provide a new education benefit that
otherwise would not have been available.
3) Verification of California residency status. A student
must be a California resident on his or her 18th birthday
to qualify for an award under the provisions of this bill.
Current transfer students are required to complete a
Certification Form (G6) that includes information on high
school attendance and graduation, CCC attendance, and
California residency. The form serves as the final piece of
a completed Transfer Entitlement application. According to
the California Student Aid Commission, the "resident at 18"
requirement would be added to the form, and go through
similar verification as is other information that is
required to establish eligibility including being subject
to an audit.
4) Fiscal Effect. According to the Assembly Appropriation
Committee the bill imposes first-year General Fund costs of
about $2 million and annual costs thereafter would be
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around $4 million. Additionally, the California Student
Aid Commission is requesting administrative support to
ensure that necessary changes to the Grant Delivery System,
as well as necessary changes to the application process,
can be implemented in a timeframe consistent with the bill.
SUPPORT
None received.
OPPOSITION
None received.
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