Amended in Assembly August 31, 2015

Amended in Assembly July 14, 2015

Amended in Assembly July 1, 2015

Amended in Senate April 7, 2015

Senate BillNo. 42


Introduced by Senator Liu

December 2, 2014


An act to add and repeal Article 2.6 (commencing with Section 66010.96) of Chapter 2 of Part 40 of Division 5 of Title 3 of the Education Code, relating to postsecondary education.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 42, as amended, Liu. Postsecondary education: Office of Higher Education Performance and Accountability.

(1) Existing law establishes the University of California, under the administration of the Regents of the University of California, the California State University, under the administration of the Trustees of the California State University, and the California Community Colleges, under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, as the 3 public segments of postsecondary education in this state.

Existing law states the intent of the Legislature that budget and policy decisions regarding postsecondary education generally adhere to 3 specified goals and that appropriate metrics be identified, defined, and formally adopted, based upon metrics recommended by a working group, to monitor progress toward the achievement of the goals.

Existing law establishes the California Postsecondary Education Commission (CPEC) as the statewide postsecondary education coordinating and planning agency, and provides for its functions and responsibilities. Existing law also provides for the composition of CPEC’s membership. The annual state Budget Acts from the 2011-12 fiscal year to the 2015-16 fiscal year, inclusive, have provided no funding for CPEC.

This bill would establish the Office of Higher Education Performance and Accountability as the statewide postsecondary education coordination and planning entity. The bill would provide for the appointment by the Governor, subject to confirmation by a majority of the membership of the Senate, of an executive director of the office. The bill would establishbegin delete a 6-memberend deletebegin insert an 8-memberend insert advisory boardbegin delete to the officeend delete for the purpose ofbegin insert examining, and making recommendations to, the office regarding the functions and operations of the office andend insert reviewing and commenting on any recommendations made by the office to the Governor and the Legislaturebegin insert, among other specified dutiesend insert.

The bill would specify the functions and responsibilities of the office, which would include, among other things, participation, as specified, in the identification and periodic revision of state goals and priorities for higher education,begin insert reviewing and making recommendations regarding cross-segmental and interagency initiatives and programs,end insert advising the Legislature and the Governor regarding the need for, and the location of, new institutions and campuses of public higher education, acting as a clearinghouse for postsecondary education information and as a primary source of information for the Legislature, the Governor, and other agencies, and reviewing all proposals for changes in eligibility pools for admission to public institutions and segments of postsecondary education.

The bill would authorize the office to require the governing boards and institutions of public postsecondary education to submit data to the office on plans and programs, costs, selection and retention of students, enrollments, plant capacities, and other matters pertinent to effective planning, policy development, and articulation and coordination. To the extent that this provision would impose new duties on community college districts, it would constitute a state-mandated local program.

The bill would require the office to administer a study to evaluate the admissions policies used by the University of California and the California State University to determine the number of freshman and transfer students eligible for admission to those segments. The bill would require the office to submit a report summarizing the methodology and findings of this study to the Legislature and the Governor by December 1,begin delete 2016.end deletebegin insert 2017.end insert The bill would also require the office to report to the Legislature and the Governor on or before December 31 of each year regarding its progress in achieving specified objectives and responsibilities.

The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2021.

(2) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

P3    1

SECTION 1.  

Article 2.6 (commencing with Section 66010.96)
2is added to Chapter 2 of Part 40 of Division 5 of Title 3 of the 3Education Code, to read:

4 

5Article 2.6.  Office of Higher Education Performance and
6Accountability
7

 

8

66010.96.  

(a) The Office of Higher Education Performance
9and Accountability is hereby established as the statewide
10postsecondary education coordination and planning entity. The
11office shall be established in state government within the
12Governor’s office, and shall be under the direct control of an
13executive director.

14(b) The Governor shall appoint the Executive Director of the
15Office of Higher Education Performance and Accountability, who
16shall perform all duties, exercise all powers, assume and discharge
17all responsibilities, and carry out and effect all purposes vested by
18law in the office, including contracting for professional or
19consulting services in connection with the work of the office. The
20appointment of the executive director shall be subject to
21confirmation by the affirmative vote of a majority of the
22membership of the Senate. The executive director shall appoint
23persons to any staff positions the Governor may authorize.

P4    1(c) The Governor may appoint the executive director at a salary
2that shall be fixed pursuant to Section 12001 of the Government
3Code.

4(d) (1) An advisory boardbegin delete to the office isend deletebegin insert is herebyend insert established
5for the purpose of examining and making recommendationsbegin insert to the
6officeend insert
regarding the functions and operations of the office and
7reviewing and commenting on any recommendations made by the
8office to the Governor and the Legislature.

9(2) The advisory board shall consist ofbegin insert the chair of the Senate
10Committee on Education and the chair of the Assembly Committee
11on Higher Education, who shall serve as ex officio members, andend insert

12 six public members with experience in postsecondary education,
13appointed to terms of four years as follows:

14(A) Three members of the advisory board shall be appointed
15by the Senate Committee on Rules.

16(B) Three members of the advisory board shall be appointed by
17the Speaker of the Assembly.

18(3) The office shall actively seek input from, and consult with,
19the advisory board regarding its functions, operations and
20recommendations, and provide the advisory board with sufficient
21time to review and comment.

22(4) Advisory board meetings shall be subject to the
23Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act (Article 9 (commencing with
24Section 11120) of Chapter 1 of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of
25the Government Code). Advisory board materials shall be posted
26on the Internet.

27(5) The advisory board shall meet at least quarterly, and shall
28appoint one of its members to represent the board for purposes of
29communicating with the Legislature.

begin insert

30(6) The advisory board shall be responsible for developing an
31independent annual report on the condition of higher education
32in California.

end insert
begin insert

33(7) The advisory board shall be responsible for issuing an
34annual review of the performance of the Executive Director of the
35Office of Higher Education Performance and Accountability.

end insert
begin insert

36(8) Members of the advisory board shall serve without
37compensation, but shall receive reimbursement for actual and
38necessary expenses incurred in connection with the performance
39of their duties as board members.

end insert

P5    1(e) The office shall consult with the higher education segments
2and stakeholders, as appropriate, in the conduct of its duties and
3responsibilities. For purposes of this subsection, higher education
4segments shall have the same meaning as in Section 66010.95,
5and higher education stakeholders shall include, but not necessarily
6be limited to, postsecondary faculty and students, K-12
7representatives, and representatives of the business community.

8

66010.962.  

The Office of Higher Education Performance and
9Accountability shall exist for the purpose of advising the Governor,
10the Legislature, and other appropriate governmental officials and
11institutions of postsecondary education. The office shall have the
12following functions and responsibilities in its capacity as the
13statewide postsecondary education planning and coordinating
14agency and advisor to the Legislature and the Governor:

15(a) It shall, through its use of information and its analytic
16capacity, inform the identification and periodic revision of state
17goals and priorities for higher education in a manner that is
18consistent with the goals outlined in Section 66010.91 and takes
19into consideration the metrics outlined in Sections 89295 and
2092675. It shall, biennially, interpret and evaluate both statewide
21and institutional performance in relation to these goals and
22priorities.

begin delete

23(b)

end delete
begin insert

24(b) It shall review and make recommendations, as necessary,
25regarding cross-segmental and interagency initiatives and
26programs in areas that may include, but are not necessarily limited
27to, efficiencies in instructional delivery, financial aid, transfer,
28and workforce coordination.

end insert

29begin insert(end insertbegin insertc)end insert It shall advise the Legislature and the Governor regarding
30the need for, and the location of, new institutions and campuses
31of public higher education.

begin delete

32(c)

end delete

33begin insert(end insertbegin insertd)end insert It shall review proposals by the public segments for new
34programs, the priorities that guide the public segments, and the
35degree of coordination between those segments and nearby public,
36independent, and private postsecondary educational institutions,
37and shall make recommendations regarding those proposals to the
38Legislature and the Governor.

begin delete

39(d)

end delete

P6    1begin insert(end insertbegin inserte)end insert (1) It shall act as a clearinghouse for postsecondary
2education information and as a primary source of information for
3the Legislature, the Governor, and other agencies. It shall develop
4and maintain a comprehensive database that does all of the
5following:

6(A) Ensures comparability of data from diverse sources.

7(B) Supports longitudinal studies of individual students as they
8progress through the state’s postsecondary educational institutions
9through the use of a unique student identifier.

10(C) Maintains compatibility with California School Information
11Services and the student information systems developed and
12maintained by the public segments of higher education, as
13appropriate.

14(D) Provides Internet access to data, as appropriate, to the sectors
15of higher education.

16(E) Provides each of the educational segments access to the data
17made available to the commission for purposes of the database, in
18order to support, most efficiently and effectively, statewide,
19segmental, and individual campus educational research information
20needs.

21(2) The office, in implementing paragraph (1), shall comply
22with the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of
231974 (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1232g) as it relates to the disclosure of
24personally identifiable information concerning students.

25(3) The office may not make available any personally
26identifiable information received from a postsecondary educational
27institution concerning students for any regulatory purpose unless
28the institution has authorized the office to provide that information
29on behalf of the institution.

30(4) The office shall, following consultation with, and receipt of
31a recommendation from, the advisory board, provide 30-day
32notification to the chairpersons of the appropriate policy and budget
33committees of the Legislature, to the Director of Finance, and to
34the Governor before making any significant changes to the student
35information contained in the database.

begin delete

36(e)

end delete

37begin insert(end insertbegin insertf)end insert It shall review all proposals for changes in eligibility pools
38for admission to public institutions and segments of postsecondary
39education, and shall make recommendations regarding those
40proposals to the Legislature, the Governor, and institutions of
P7    1postsecondary education. In carrying out this subdivision, the office
2periodically shall conduct a study of the percentages of California
3public high school graduates estimated to be eligible for admission
4to the University of California and the California State University.

begin delete

5(f)

end delete

6begin insert(end insertbegin insertg)end insert It shall submit reports to the Legislature in compliance with
7Section 9795 of the Government Code.

begin delete

8(g)

end delete

9begin insert(end insertbegin inserth)end insert It shall manage data systems and maintain programmatic,
10policy, and fiscal expertise to receive and aggregate information
11reported by the institutions of higher education in this state.

12

66010.964.  

Notwithstanding any other law, the office is
13authorized to require the governing boards and the institutions of
14public postsecondary education to submit data to the office on
15plans and programs, costs, selection and retention of students,
16enrollments, plant capacities, and other matters pertinent to
17effective planning, policy development, and articulation and
18coordination. The office shall furnish information concerning these
19matters to the Governor and to the Legislature as requested by
20them.

21

66010.966.  

(a) (1) The office shall administer a study to
22evaluate the admissions policies used by the University of
23California and the California State University to determine the
24number of freshman and transfer students eligible for admission
25to each of these segments.

26(2) The director of the office, or his or her designee, shall
27convene a workgroup that includes, but is not necessarily limited
28to, representatives from the University of California, the California
29State University, the State Department of Education, the
30Department of Finance, and the Legislative Analyst’s Office, to
31consider the overall approach to the study.

32(b) The study shall report the number of students eligible for
33admission to each segment by race, gender, ethnicity, and region,
34and shall include an analysis of the factors affecting eligibility for
35admission to the University of California and the California State
36University, by racial or ethnic group and by income level.

37(c) The office shall submit a report summarizing the
38methodology and findings of the study to the Legislature and the
39Governor by December 1,begin delete 2016.end deletebegin insert 2017.end insert The report shall identify
40whether the University of California and the California State
P8    1University are admitting students as described in the Master Plan
2for Higher Education. The report shall also include a discussion
3of any adjustments the University of California and the California
4State University have made, or plan to make, to admissions policies
5in response to the findings of the study.

6(d) The report to be submitted pursuant to subdivision (c) shall
7be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government
8Code.

9(e) The office may execute contracts to perform the study
10specified in this section. Any contracts executed for the study
11specified in this section are not subject to the provisions of Article
121 (commencing with Section 10100) of Chapter 1 of Part 2 of
13Division 2 of the Public Contract Code, or Article 6 (commencing
14with Section 999) of Chapter 6 of Division 4 of the Military and
15Veterans Code.

16(f) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2018,
17and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
18is enacted before January 1, 2018, deletes or extends that date.

19

66010.968.  

(a) On or before December 31 of each year, the
20office shall report to the Legislature and the Governor regarding
21its progress in achieving the objectives and responsibilities set
22forth in subdivision (a) of Section 66010.962.

23(b) On or before January 1, 2020, the Legislative Analyst’s
24Office shall review and report to the Legislature regarding the
25performance of the office in fulfilling its functions and
26responsibilities as outlined in Section 66010.962.

27(c) This article shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2021,
28and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
29is enacted before January 1, 2021, deletes or extends that date.

30

SEC. 2.  

If the Commission on State Mandates determines that
31this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to
32local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made
33pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division
344 of Title 2 of the Government Code.



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