BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 605|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 605
Author: Gaines (R)
Amended: 6/2/15
Vote: 21
SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE: 9-0, 4/22/15
AYES: Liu, Runner, Block, Hancock, Leyva, Mendoza, Monning,
Pan, Vidak
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 7-0, 5/28/15
AYES: Lara, Bates, Beall, Hill, Leyva, Mendoza, Nielsen
SUBJECT: Community colleges: exemption from nonresident
tuition fee: Lake Tahoe Community College District
SOURCE: Author
DIGEST: This bill, until July 1, 2022, (1) exempts up to 200
students in any academic year from paying non-resident tuition
fees if they attend the Lake Tahoe Community College (LTCC) and
reside in specified communities in the State of Nevada, and (2)
permits the LTCC to count these persons as resident full-time
equivalent students (FTES) for purposes of determining
California apportionment funding. This bill makes these
provisions contingent upon the Board of Governors of the
California Community Colleges (CCC) entering into an interstate
attendance agreement with the Nevada System of Higher Education
providing reciprocal rights to California residents attending
Western Nevada College that reasonably conform to the benefits
extended to Nevada residents by this bill's provisions.
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ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1)Authorizes a community college district (CCD) to admit
non-resident students and requires that these students be
charged a tuition fee that is twice the amount of the fee
established for in-state resident students, with certain
specified exemptions. State statute prescribes a formula for
the calculation of the non-resident fee. Beginning July 1,
2013, state law requires the non-resident tuition fee be
increased to a level that is three times the amount of the fee
established for in-state resident students.
2)Prohibits non-resident students from being reported as FTES
for state apportionment purposes, except where (a) the CCD has
less than 1500 FTES and is within 10 miles of another state
and has a reciprocity agreement with that state, or (b) if a
CCD has between 1501 and 3000 FTES and is within 10 miles of
another state and has a reciprocity agreement with that state,
they can claim up to 100 FTES for state apportionment
purposes. (Education Code § 76140)
3)Authorizes the Board of Governors of the CCC to enter into an
interstate attendance agreement with any statewide pubic
agency of another state that is responsible for public
institutions of postsecondary education providing the first
two years of college instruction, and that is an agency of a
state that is a member of Western Interstate Commission for
Higher Education (WICHE). (Education Code § 66801)
This bill exempts persons residing in specified communities in
the State of Nevada from paying non-resident tuition fees if
they attend the LTCC. More specifically, it:
1)Exempts up to 200 students in any academic year who attend LTCC
from being charged non-resident student tuition fees if they
reside in one of the following communities in Nevada:
a) Incline Village.
b) Kingsbury.
c) Round Hill.
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d) Skyland.
e) Stateline.
f) Zephyr Cove.
2)Deems a student to have residence in one of the communities
listed above if they lived in that community for more than one
year immediately prior to seeking the fee exemption.
3)Requires the LTCC to adopt rules and regulations for determining
a student's residence classification and for establishing
procedures to appeal and review this determination.
4)Authorizes the LTCC to report the non-resident students who are
exempt from paying non-resident fees pursuant to this bill's
provisions as resident FTES for state apportionment purposes.
5)Requires any non-resident students reported as resident FTES for
apportionment purposes under these provisions to pay a per
unit fee that is three times the amount of the fee established
for residents, consistent with existing law.
6)Sunsets these provisions on July 1, 2022.
7)Makes these provisions operative only if, by July 1, 2021:
a) The Board of Governors enters into an interstate
attendance agreement with the Nevada System of Higher
Education.
b) The agreement provides reciprocal rights to
California residents attending Western Nevada College that
reasonably conform to the benefits conferred upon Nevada
resident by this bill's provisions.
8)Requires the Chancellor of the CCC to promptly post notice of the
interstate attendance agreement on the CCC Internet Web site.
Comments
1)Need for the bill. According to the author, this bill is
intended to respond to the concerns raised regarding similar
legislation (introduced in prior sessions) to ensure that
Nevada students residing in close proximity to California can
attend CCCs without being compelled to pay non-resident
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tuition. This bill, unlike the prior bill, establishes a
six-year pilot program, limits its provisions to Lake Tahoe
Community College and specified Nevada communities, caps the
total number of students that may be exempted from
non-resident tuition, and makes the pilot program contingent
upon California residents being provided reciprocal rights by
the State of Nevada.
2)Reciprocity, a mutual exchange of interests, no longer exists
with Nevada. According to the Legislative Analyst Office, in
August 2011, the State of Nevada terminated the "Good
Neighbor" tuition agreement that allowed California students
from designated counties to attend Nevada colleges at
significantly reduced non-resident tuition rates. Under this
agreement, Nevada students were also able to enroll in the CCC
(specifically, Lassen, Feather River, Lake Tahoe, Palo Verde,
Siskiyou and Barstow) without having to pay full non-resident
tuition.
Effective, November 2011, California students enrolling for
the first time in Nevada colleges were charged the full
non-resident tuition and all the CCC were required to charge
non-resident tuition for Nevada residents enrolling for the
first time in California, effectively ending the ability of
the CCC to provide exemptions for Nevada students. From 1992
through 2011, California and Nevada had a "Good Neighbor"
agreement (reciprocity) in place.
3)Related Nevada activity. In March 2015, the Nevada legislature
introduced
SB 414 (Setelmayer) which encourages the Regents of the
University of Nevada to authorize waivers of non-resident
tuition to certain residents of the Lake Tahoe Basin.
Notwithstanding the proposed legislation, the setting of fees
and tuition, including general policies, is under the
jurisdiction of the Nevada Higher Education System (NHES)
Board of Regents in Nevada. According to the Chancellor of the
NHES Board of Regents, in March 2014 the Board adopted a
policy that authorizes an individual campus to bring forth a
tuition discount program if it chooses. Title 4, Chapter 17,
Section 13 establishes the following policy regarding tuition
or registration fee discounts:
NHES institutions may bring forward for Board
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approval tuition and/or registration fee discounts.
Proposals for such discounts must be accompanied by
documentation justifying the discount based on the
goals of the institution and any related market
considerations, including the ability to compete with
other non-NSHE institutions. Institutions may be
required to report periodically on approved tuition
or registration fee discounts upon request of the
Chancellor or the Board.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: Yes
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee, this bill
results in costs to the state of up to $136,000 Proposition 98
General Fund (net of tuition fee revenue and state apportionment
costs). This estimate assumes that 200 students equates to 100
FTES taking 24 semester units per year, and that these students
pay a per unit fee that is three times the amount of the fee
established for residents.
SUPPORT: (Verified6/1/15)
Lake Tahoe Community College District
Lake Tahoe Community College Foundation Board
Lake Tahoe South Shore Chamber of Commerce
Tahoe Mountain Lab
OPPOSITION: (Verified6/1/15)
None received
Prepared by:Kathleen Chavira / ED. / (916) 651-4105
6/2/15 22:23:42
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