BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1889
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 1889 (Portantino)
As Amended August 20, 2010
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |50-24|(June 1, 2010) |SENATE: |23-13|(August 24, |
| | | | | |2010) |
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Original Committee Reference: HIGHER ED.
SUMMARY : Enacts several changes to the Private Postsecondary
Education Act of 2009 (Act). Specifically, this bill :
1)Prohibits the Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education (Bureau)
from enforcing the rules of the Act from July 1, 2010, until July
1, 2011, against institutions certified to offer programs in
flight instruction and aircraft maintenance by the Federal
Aviation Administration (FAA-approved schools), and requires these
institutions to notify the Bureau if the institution operates
during the period of July 1, 2010, to July 1, 2011.
2)Prohibits an unaccredited institution from offering doctoral
degrees without disclosing to the prospective student that the
degree program is unaccredited, and any known limitations of the
unaccredited degree including whether the degree is recognized for
licensure or certification in other states.
3)Allows the Bureau to publish a list of eligible examinations for
ability-to-benefit (ATB) students, if the United States Department
of Education (USDE) does not have an approved examination relevant
to the specific occupational training program.
4)Ensures students are provided until the first class day or the
seventh day after enrollment, whichever is later, to cancel a
program and receive a refund.
5)Alters the definition of "graduates employed in the field" to
require that graduates be gainfully employed within six months of
graduation in a position for which the skills obtained through the
education and training provided by the institution are required or
utilized to perform the purpose or objective of the position or
major responsibilities of the position.
AB 1889
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6)Clarifies that the education specialist and senior specialist
positions established within the Bureau are full-time, permanent
positions to perform work in conformity with the classification
specifications as directed by the bureau chief.
The Senate amendments :
1)Exempt FAA-approved schools from Bureau oversight from July 1,
2010, until July 1, 2011, and require the institutions to notify
the Bureau of operations during this time frame.
2)Require unaccredited institutions that offer doctoral degrees to
disclose specified information to prospective students.
3)Alter the definition of "graduates employed in the field."
4)Remove provisions that would have ensured legal remedies are
available to students filing legal claims after June 30, 2007, for
violations that occurred during the time that the former Private
Postsecondary and Vocational Education Act (Former Act) was in
place.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill proposed several changes to the
Private Postsecondary Education Act of 2009 (Act).
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations Committee,
the Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) contends that locating
Educational Specialists positions in Sacramento will result in
additional costs of approximately $200,000 related to travel.
COMMENTS : AB 48 (Portantino), Chapter 310, Statutes of 2009,
establishes the Act and creates the Bureau within DCA for the
purpose of regulating private postsecondary educational institutions
that provide educational services in California. The major changes
to the Act contained in this bill are as follows:
Temporary Exemption for FAA-Approved Schools: Under the Former Act,
flight schools were approved and monitored, with certain exemptions
from law, under a memorandum of understanding with the FAA. With
the expiration of the prior Act, the MOU also expired. The new Act
does not provide exception to the Act for flight schools. The
decision to regulate flight schools in the new Act was largely in
response to recent cases of abrupt flight school closures and lack
of appropriate disclosures to students by flight schools in
California. This bill provides a one-year exemption for
AB 1889
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FAA-approved schools from the requirements of the new Act, and
requires exempt institutions to notify the Bureau of operations
during this period.
Unaccredited Doctoral Degrees: Accreditation is a voluntary,
non-governmental peer review process utilized for the purpose of
determining academic quality of higher education institutions and
programs. The author notes that, while often cheaper for the
student, unaccredited degrees can limit a student's career options.
This bill would require institutions offering unaccredited doctoral
degrees to make disclosures about potential degree limitations to
prospective students.
Employment statistics: The Act requires institutions to report the
number of graduates who are gainfully employed in the field within
six months of graduation and allows for the inclusion of graduates
who are employed in positions where the training they received from
the institution provided a "significant advantage" to the graduate
in obtaining the position. This bill would require that the skills
obtained through the education or training provided be required for
or utilized in the position in order for the job to be counted as a
graduate placement. The author argues that this change is necessary
to ensure accurate job placement reporting.
Bureau staffing: AB 48 appropriated $580,000 to the Bureau for the
purpose of funding five postsecondary education specialist and
senior specialist positions and required that those specialist
positions be included in the annual budget for the Bureau. The
author contends that the intent of this language was to ensure that
employees of the former Bureau, with expertise in regulation and
oversight of private institutions, would have the opportunity to be
placed within the new Bureau. However, the author notes that the
Administration has established these positions as limited-term
positions located outside of the Sacramento area. This bill would
clarify that the education specialist and senior specialist
positions described in AB 48 are to be full-time, permanent
positions to perform work in conformity with the classification
specifications as directed by the bureau chief.
Analysis Prepared by : Laura Metune / HIGHER ED. / (916) 319-3960
FN: 0006605