BILL NUMBER: AB 1721 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 22, 2016
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 31, 2016
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Medina
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Chiu, Low, Rodriguez, Santiago, and
Ting)
JANUARY 28, 2016
An act to amend Sections 69437 and 69439
Section 69437 of the Education Code, relating to student
financial aid.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1721, as amended, Medina. Student financial aid: Cal Grant
Program.
(1) The Cal Grant Program establishes the Cal Grant A and B
Entitlement awards, the California Community College Transfer
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, as defined.
This bill would express the intent of the Legislature to renew
California's commitment to college affordability by increasing the
aid available to needy students, and, specifically, broadening access
to financial aid to students enrolled in California community
college career technical education programs leading to
industry valued credentials, through expanding the Cal Grant Program.
colleges.
(2) Under existing law, no more than a total of 25,750 Competitive
Cal Grant A and B awards may be granted annually.
This bill, commencing with the 2016-17 academic year, would raise
that limit to 34,000. The bill would, effective with the
fall term or semester of the 2017-18 academic year, make students
enrolled in occupational or technical training courses leading to
industry valued credentials of no less than 4 months in length at a
California community college eligible for Cal Grant B awards under an
existing allocation reserved for community college students,
notwithstanding an existing requirement that limits Cal Grant B
awards to for-credit instructional programs that are not less than
one academic year in length.
(3) Existing law requires a Cal Grant C award to be utilized only
for occupational or technical training in a course of not less than 4
months. Existing law requires that there be the same number of Cal
Grant C awards each year as were made in the 2000-01 fiscal year.
This bill instead would require that there be the same number of
Cal Grant C awards each year as were paid in the 2015-16 fiscal year.
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. (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(1) To remain economically competitive, California will need to
produce 11,900,000 degrees and credentials by 2025, but the state is
only estimated to produce 9,500,000, which would create a degree and
credential attainment gap of 2,400,000 by 2025.
(2) California's community colleges have strong transfer
preparation and career technical education missions and are well
positioned to close this impending gap.
(3) Overall, only 32 percent of students at California colleges
complete credentials on time, and low-income students are much less
likely than higher income students to enroll in or complete college.
(4) A major factor in a student's enrollment and success in
college is his or her ability to pay for fees and tuition, textbooks,
transportation, housing, food, and other access costs.
(5) California has made an important investment in need-based
financial aid for California's college students through the Cal Grant
Program and the BOG Fee Waiver Program of the Board of Governors of
the California Community Colleges.
(6) The Cal Grant Program awards more than two billion dollars
($2,000,000,000) annually, and it is the largest state grant program
in the nation in terms of dollars awarded to students. The BOG Fee
Waiver Program is more extensive than any other "free community
college" plan in the nation, and it provides almost one-half of all
students of the California Community Colleges, and more than 60
percent of full-time students of the California Community Colleges,
with free tuition.
(7) Despite California's strong commitment to financial aid,
access grants for qualifying students are insufficient to cover
nontuition college costs, and many low-income students are left out
of the program entirely.
(8) Students at California's community colleges are
disproportionately more likely to be the first in their family to
attend college, come from an immigrant background, or be financially
needy.
(9) After taking into account the total cost of attendance and all
federal, state, and institutional financial aid available for
students, on average it is more expensive for a needy student to go
to a California community college than to attend the University of
California or the California State University.
(10) The affordability challenge faced by California's community
college students stems from nontuition costs, and the solution to
that challenge is to increase grant aid that covers nontuition costs.
(11) The 1960 California Master Plan for Higher Education in
California guarantees an affordable, high-quality education to every
Californian who can benefit.
(b) It is the intent of the Legislature to renew California's
commitment to college affordability by increasing the aid available
to needy students, and, specifically, broadening access to financial
aid to students enrolled in California community college
career technical education programs leading to industry valued
credentials, through expanding the Cal Grant Program.
colleges.
(c) It is the intent of the Legislature that California community
colleges provide outreach and education to students to inform them of
the expanded availability of financial aid for students
enrolled in career technical education programs and to
encourage these students to complete the Free
Application for Federal Student Aid by the September 2 deadline.
SEC. 2. Section 69437 of the Education Code is amended to read:
69437. (a) Commencing with the 2001-02 academic year, and each
academic year thereafter, there shall be established the Competitive
Cal Grant A and B award program for students who did not receive a
Cal Grant A or B entitlement award pursuant to Article 2 (commencing
with Section 69434), Article 3 (commencing with Section 69435), or
Article 4 (commencing with Section 69436). Awards made under this
section are not entitlements. The submission of an application by a
student under this section shall not entitle that student to an
award. The selection of students under this article shall be
determined pursuant to subdivision (c) and other relevant criteria
established by the commission.
(b) Commencing with the 2016-17 academic year, a total of up to
34,000 Cal Grant A and B awards shall be granted annually under this
article on a competitive basis for applicants who meet the general
eligibility criteria established in Article 1 (commencing with
Section 69430) and the priorities established by the commission
pursuant to subdivision (c).
(1) Fifteen thousand of the awards referenced in this subdivision
are available to all students, including California community college
students, who meet the financial need and academic requirements
established pursuant to this article. A student enrolling at a
qualifying baccalaureate degree granting institution shall apply by
the March 2 deadline. A California community college student is
eligible to apply at the March 2 or the September 2 deadline.
(2) Nineteen thousand of the awards referenced in this subdivision
are reserved for students who will be enrolled at a California
community college. The commission shall establish a second
application deadline of September 2 for community college students to
apply for these awards. Notwithstanding paragraph (1) of
subdivision (a) of Section 69435, effective with the fall term or
semester of the 2017-18 academic year, students enrolled in
occupational or technical training courses leading to industry valued
credentials of no less than four months in length at a California
community college shall be eligible for Cal Grant B awards issued
under this paragraph.
(3) If any awards are not distributed pursuant to paragraphs (1)
and (2) upon initial allocation of the awards under this article, the
commission shall make awards to as many eligible students as
possible, beginning with the students with the lowest expected family
contribution and highest academic merit, consistent with the
criteria adopted by the commission pursuant to subdivision (c), as
practicable without exceeding an annual cumulative total of 34,000
awards.
(c) (1) On or before February 1, 2001, acting pursuant to a public
hearing process that is consistent with the Bagley-Keene Open
Meeting Act (Article 9 (commencing with Section 11120) of Chapter 1
of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code), the
commission shall establish selection criteria for Cal Grant A and B
awards under the competitive program that give special consideration
to disadvantaged students, taking into consideration those financial,
educational, cultural, language, home, community, environmental, and
other conditions that hamper a student's access to, and ability to
persist in, postsecondary education programs.
(2) Additional consideration shall be given to both of the
following:
(A) Students pursuing Cal Grant B awards who reestablish their
grade point averages.
(B) Students who did not receive awards pursuant to Article 2
(commencing with Section 69434), Article 3 (commencing with Section
69435), or Article 4 (commencing with Section 69436).
(d) All other students who meet the eligibility requirements
pursuant to Article 1 (commencing with Section 69430) are eligible to
compete for an award pursuant to this article.
SEC. 3. Section 69439 of the Education Code is
amended to read:
69439. (a) For the purposes of this section, the following terms
have the following meanings:
(1) "Career pathway" has the same meaning as set forth in Section
88620.
(2) "Economic security" has the same meaning as set forth in
Section 14005 of the Unemployment Insurance Code.
(3) "Industry cluster" has the same meaning as set forth in
Section 88620.
(4) "Long-term unemployed" means, with respect to an award
applicant, a person who has been unemployed for more than 26 weeks at
the time of submission to the commission of his or her application.
(5) "Occupational or technical training" means that phase of
education coming after the completion of a secondary school program
and leading toward recognized occupational goals approved by the
commission.
(b) A Cal Grant C award shall be utilized only for occupational or
technical training in a course of not less than four months. There
shall be the same number of Cal Grant C awards each year as were paid
in the 2015-16 fiscal year. The maximum award amount and the total
amount of funding shall be determined each year in the annual Budget
Act.
(c) The commission may use criteria it deems appropriate in
selecting students to receive grants for occupational or technical
training and shall give special consideration to the social and
economic situations of the students applying for these grants, giving
additional weight to disadvantaged applicants, applicants who face
economic hardship, and applicants who face particular barriers to
employment. Criteria to be considered for these purposes shall
include, but are not limited to, all of the following:
(1) Family income and household size.
(2) Student's or the students' parent's household status,
including whether the student is a single parent or child of a single
parent.
(3) The employment status of the applicant and whether the
applicant is unemployed, giving greater weight to the long-term
unemployed.
(d) The Cal Grant C award recipients shall be eligible for renewal
of their grants until they have completed their occupational or
technical training in conformance with terms prescribed by the
commission. A determination by the commission for a subsequent award
year that the program under which a Cal Grant C award was initially
awarded is no longer deemed to receive priority shall not affect an
award recipient's renewal. In no case shall the grants exceed two
calendar years.
(e) Cal Grant C awards may be used for institutional fees,
charges, and other costs, including tuition, plus training-related
costs, such as special clothing, local transportation, required
tools, equipment, supplies, books, and living expenses. In
determining the individual award amounts, the commission shall take
into account the financial means available to the student to fund his
or her course of study and costs of attendance as well as other
state and federal programs available to the applicant.
(f) (1) To ensure alignment with the state's dynamic economic
needs, the commission, in consultation with appropriate state and
federal agencies, including the Economic and Workforce Development
Division of the Office of the Chancellor of the California Community
Colleges and the California Workforce Investment Board, shall
identify areas of occupational and technical training for which
students may utilize Cal Grant C awards. The commission, to the
extent feasible, shall also consult with representatives of the state'
s leading competitive and emerging industry clusters, workforce
professionals, and career technical educators, to determine which
occupational training programs and industry clusters should be
prioritized.
(2) (A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the areas of
occupational and technical training developed pursuant to paragraph
(1) shall be regularly reviewed and updated at least every five
years, beginning in 2012.
(B) By January 1, 2016, the commission shall update the priority
areas of occupational and technical training.
(3) (A) The commission shall give priority in granting Cal Grant C
awards to students pursuing occupational or technical training in
areas that meet two of the following criteria pertaining to job
quality:
(i) High employer need or demand for the specific skills offered
in the program.
(ii) High employment growth in the occupational field or industry
cluster for which the student is being trained.
(iii) High employment salary and wage projections for workers
employed in the occupations for which they are being trained.
(iv) The occupation or training program is part of a
well-articulated career pathway to a job providing economic security.
(B) To receive priority pursuant to subparagraph (A), at least one
of the criteria met shall be specified in clause (iii) or (iv) of
that subparagraph.
(g) The commission shall determine areas of occupational or
technical training that meet the criteria described in paragraph (3)
of subdivision (f) in consultation with the Employment Development
Department, the Economic and Workforce Development Division of the
Office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, and
the California Workforce Investment Board using projections available
through the Labor Market Information Data Library. The commission
may supplement the analyses of the Employment Development Department'
s Labor Market Information Data Library with the labor market
analyses developed by the Economic and Workforce Development Division
of the Office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges
and the California Workforce Investment Board, as well as the
projections of occupational shortages and skills gap developed by
industry leaders. The commission shall publish, and retain, on its
Internet Web site a current list of the areas of occupational or
technical training that meet the criteria described in paragraph (3)
of subdivision (f), and update this list as necessary.
(h) Using the best available data, the commission shall examine
the graduation rates and job placement data, or salary data, of
eligible programs. Commencing with the 2014-15 academic year, the
commission shall give priority to Cal Grant C award applicants
seeking to enroll in programs that rate high in graduation rates and
job placement data, or salary data.
(i) (1) The commission shall consult with the Employment
Development Department, the Office of the Chancellor of the
California Community Colleges, the California Workforce Investment
Board, and the local workforce investment boards to develop a plan to
publicize the existence of the grant award program to California's
long-term unemployed to be used by those consulting agencies when
they come in contact with members of the population who are likely to
be experiencing long-term unemployment. The outreach plan shall use
existing administrative and service delivery processes making use of
existing points of contact with the long-term unemployed. The local
workforce investment boards are required to participate only to the
extent that the outreach efforts are a part of their existing
responsibilities under the federal Workforce Investment Act of 1998
(Public Law 105-220).
(2) The commission shall consult with the Workforce Services
Branch of the Employment Development Department, the Office of the
Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, the California
Workforce Investment Board, and the local workforce investment boards
to develop a plan to make students receiving awards aware of job
search and placement services available through the Employment
Development Department and the local workforce investment boards.
Outreach shall use existing administrative and service delivery
processes making use of existing points of contact with the students.
The local workforce investment boards are required to participate
only to the extent that the outreach efforts are a part of their
existing responsibilities under the federal Workforce Investment Act
of 1998 (Public Law 105-220).
(j) (1) Notwithstanding Section 10231.5 of the Government Code,
the Legislative Analyst's Office shall submit a report to the
Legislature on the outcomes of the Cal Grant C program on or before
April 1, 2015, and on or before April 1 of each odd-numbered year
thereafter. This report shall include, but not necessarily be limited
to, information on all of the following:
(A) The age, gender, and segment of attendance for recipients in
two prior award years.
(B) The occupational and technical training program categories
prioritized.
(C) The number and percentage of students who received selection
priority as defined in paragraph (3) of subdivision (f).
(D) The extent to which recipients in these award years were
successfully placed in jobs that meet local, regional, or state
workforce needs.
(2) For the report due on or before April 1, 2015, the Legislative
Analyst's Office shall include data for two additional prior award
years and shall compare the mix of occupational and technical
training programs and institutions in which Cal Grant C award
recipients enrolled before and after implementation of subdivision
(f).
(3) A report to be submitted pursuant to this subdivision shall be
submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.