BILL ANALYSIS
AB 2447
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 20, 2010
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HIGHER EDUCATION
Marty Block, Chair
AB 2447 (Furutani) - As Amended: April 8, 2010
SUBJECT : Student financial aid: Cal Grant Program.
SUMMARY : Includes campus-based fees and annual cost-of-living
increases in various Cal Grant awards. Specifically, this bill :
1)Requires the Cal Grant A and B awards to include an amount
equal to the sum of applicable mandatory campus-based fees in
each respective public or private higher education segment.
2)Requires the Cal Grant C award to equal the sum of the tuition
and fees and the book and supply award level included in the
Budget Act of 2009.
3)Requires the Cal Grant A, B, and C awards and the Cal Grant B
access award to be adjusted annually upward equal to the
change in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the prior year as
published by the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics and
provides that the award amount shall not be decreased when
there is a decrease in the CPI.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown.
COMMENTS : Background : Among the various Cal Grant programs,
there are two major grants-Cal Grant A and Cal Grant B. Each
has an "entitlement" component that guarantees a grant to all
needy, eligible students, although awards are generally
restricted to students just leaving high school or in their
first year of college. The Entitlement Cal Grant A is for
students with family incomes ranging up to $92,700 (family of
six) with at least a 3.0 high school grade point average (GPA).
The Entitlement Cal Grant B is for disadvantaged students from
much lower income families (ranging up to $50,900 for a family
of six), but students only need a 2.0 GPA to qualify. Both Cal
Grant A and B also have a "competitive" component that offers
only a limited number of awards that are generally available for
older students. Cal Grant C is for occupational or technical
training in a course of not less than four months.
AB 2447
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Cal Grant award amounts : Existing law requires the maximum
award amounts for Cal Grant awards to be identified in the
annual Budget Act, as follows:
1)The maximum Cal Grant A award for a student attending UC or
CSU to equal the mandatory systemwide fees in each of those
segments;
2)The maximum Cal Grant B award for a student attending UC or
CSU to equal the mandatory systemwide fees in each of those
segments, although only 2% of Cal Grant B recipients receive
funds for their first year of fees; the Cal Grant B awards
also include an award for access costs in an amount not
exceeding $1,551; and,
3)The maximum awards for students at independent institutions
and for Cal Grant C awards to equal the levels established in
the Budget Act of 2000 or the amount as adjusted in subsequent
annual budget acts (currently $576 at CCC, including books and
supplies, and $3,168 at private postsecondary
institutions--$576 for books and supplies and $2,592 for
tuition and fees).
Should campus-based fees be covered by Cal Grants ? Campus-based
fees are approved by students at each respective institution for
specific purposes, including facilities or services. The
Committee may wish to consider whether it is the best use of
scarce state funds to cover fees that students imposed upon
themselves for purposes from which the students would, in
theory, benefit.
Clarifying language : Staff recommends that language relating to
campus-based fees be clarified as follows:
1)Page 4, line 4: ?be an amount that is equal to the sum of the
mandatory systemwide fees and the applicable mandatory
campus-based fees in at the respective segment institution.
2)Page 4, line 9: ...be an amount that is equal to the sum of
the mandatory systemwide fees and the applicable mandatory
campus-based fees in at the segment institution attended by
the student.
CPI history : Over the past decade, the CPI has ranged from a
low of -0.4% in 2009 to a high of 3.8% in 2008; most years the
AB 2447
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CPI increased 2%-3%. Starting in 2013, the federal Pell Grant
will be linked to increases in the CPI.
Other available aid : UC and CSU return one-third of student fee
revenue to their institutional student aid programs, which are
need-based awards. In addition, the federal government provides
the Pell Grant, which was recently expanded to provide a maximum
grant of $5,550 per year in 2010, rising to $5,975 by 2017.
Related legislation : AB 1761 (Fong), which passed this
Committee on March 16, would phase in first-year tuition and fee
benefits for Cal Grant B students.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
University of California Student Association
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Sandra Fried / HIGHER ED. / (916)
319-3960