BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1691
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Date of Hearing: March 16, 2010
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HIGHER EDUCATION
Anthony Portantino, Chair
AB 1691 (Ammiano) - As Introduced: January 27, 2010
SUBJECT : Trustees of the California State University and
Regents of the University of California: meetings.
SUMMARY : Authorizes ex officio members of the California State
University (CSU) Board of Trustees (BOT), except for the CSU
Chancellor, to designate a non-voting representative, as
specified, to attend CSU BOT meetings in the ex officio member's
absence. Specifically, this bill :
1)Authorizes ex officio members of the CSU BOT, excluding the
CSU Chancellor, to designate a representative, who is an
officer or member of the same office or elective body as the
member, to attend CSU BOT meetings in the ex officio member's
absence, as follows:
a) Governor: a secretary of an executive agency appointed
by the Governor;
b) Lieutenant Governor: a member of the Senate;
c) Superintendent of Public Instruction: a county
superintendent of schools; and,
d) Speaker of the Assembly: a member of the Assembly.
2)Prohibits the designated representative from voting on behalf
of the ex officio member or being counted toward the
establishment of a quorum.
3)Allows the ex officio member to designate only one person in a
calendar year to attend a CSU BOT meeting or meetings in the
ex officio member's absence.
4)States legislative intent that each ex officio member of the
University of California (UC) Board of Regents (Regents)
designates a person to attend a UC Regents meeting or meetings
in the ex officio member's absence.
EXISTING LAW :
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1)Provides that the CSU BOT be composed of the following ex
officio members: the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Speaker of
the Assembly, Superintendent of Public Instruction, and CSU
Chancellor.
2)Provides that the CSU BOT be composed of the following
members:
a) 16 members appointed by the Governor and subject to
confirmation by two-thirds of the membership of the Senate;
b) A representative of the CSU alumni associations,
selected for a two-year term by the CSU alumni council
(this person cannot be a CSU employee during the two-year
term);
c) Two CSU students, appointed by the Governor for two-year
terms; and,
d) A tenured CSU faculty member, appointed by the Governor
for a two-year term.
FISCAL EFFECT : None
COMMENTS : This bill is identical to AB 690 (Ammiano) of 2009,
which was vetoed by the Governor as unnecessary, in part,
because ex officio representatives can currently send
representatives to CSU BOT meetings.
Purpose of this bill : This bill seeks to address situations
when UC and CSU governing board meetings conflict, by allowing
ex officio members to appoint representatives to attend on their
behalf. The author believes this will ensure important
oversight of these institutions.
Meeting schedules : The UC and CSU governing boards have six
standing meetings per year, as well as special meetings as
necessary. While these governing boards have often met on the
same dates in previous years, the systems have coordinated to
minimize conflicts: UC and CSU governing board meetings
conflicted just once in 2009 (November) and will conflict just
once in 2010 (July).
Virtue of the office : The Legislature established the importance
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of certain state-elected offices participating on the boards of
public postsecondary institutions as a means to ensure that
elected leaders are able to share their perspective in the
formulation of system policy. By virtue of the office they
hold, these individuals bring unique perspective and experience
to the policy and governance discussions of the UC and CSU
governing boards.
Other entities : The California Public Employees' Retirement
System, California State Teachers' Retirement System, Board of
Equalization, and Franchise Tax Board allow ex officio members
to send a deputy to act on their behalf at board meetings.
Closed session : This bill is silent on whether the
representative could participate in closed sessions, which are
not open to the public due to the confidential nature of the
discussion items. Since representative would probably not have
the same fiduciary responsibility as ex officio and standing
board members, should this bill be clarified to prohibit
representatives for ex officio members from participating in
closed sessions?
UC Regents : Given that the State Constitution specifies the ex
officio members of the UC Regents, it appears that ex officio
Regents cannot designate someone to attend a meeting or meetings
of the Regents.
Previous legislation : AB 690 (Ammiano) of 2009, AB 1413
(Portantino) of 2007, and AB 2339 (Negrete McLeod) of 2004,
which were all vetoed by the Governor, contained provisions
identical or substantially similar to this bill.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees,
AFL-CIO
Opposition
University of California
Analysis Prepared by : Sandra Fried / HIGHER ED. / (916)
AB 1691
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319-3960