BILL ANALYSIS
SB 1075
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Date of Hearing: June 22, 2010
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HIGHER EDUCATION
Marty Block, Chair
SB 1075 (Correa) - As Amended: April 28, 2010
SENATE VOTE : 33-0
SUBJECT : Military service: benefits.
SUMMARY : Requires academic institutions to reasonably
accommodate and assist students who are called to active
military duty so they can meet any and all coursework
requirements missed due to military service. Specifically, this
bill :
1)Requires academic institutions, upon request by a student
granted an academic leave of absence, to do one of the
following:
a) Make arrangements to reasonably accommodate and assist
the student so that he or she is able to meet any and all
coursework requirements that he or she may have missed due
to military service;
b) Credit tuition and fee charges toward a subsequent
academic term in an amount that is equal to 100% of what
the student paid for the academic term in which the student
is required to report for military service; and,
c) Refund tuition and fees paid for the academic term,
provided the student withdraws before the withdraw date
established by the institution.
2)Revises the definitions of "service member" and "military
service" for purposes of the California Military Families and
Financial Relief Act.
EXISTING LAW : The federal Service members Civil Relief Act
(SCRA), which expanded the former Soldiers' and Sailors' Civil
Relief Act (SSCRA), provides a wide range of protections for
individuals entering, called to active military duty, and
deployed service members. The intent is to postpone or suspend
certain civil and financial obligations to enable service
members to devote "full attention to duty." Reservists and
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members of the National Guard when in active federal service are
also protected under SCRA. State law provides various
protections including:
1)Protections to service members that are consistent with those
found within SCRA, including but not limited to protections
regarding court proceedings, credit contract obligations,
rental agreements, and eviction protections.
2)The California Military Families Financial Relief Act of 2005,
which protects college students called to active duty from
tuition loss by requiring institutions to either 1) credit
100% of the tuition and fees toward a subsequent academic year
or 2) provide a full refund of the tuition and fees if the
student withdraws before the withdraw date established by the
institution.
3)Existing state law requests the University of California (UC)
and requires the California State University (CSU) and the
California Community Colleges (CCC) to grant priority
registration for enrollment to former members of the Armed
Forces of the United States within two years of leaving active
military duty.
FISCAL EFFECT : The Senate Appropriations Committee estimated
indeterminate, although likely minor, costs.
COMMENTS : Double-referral : The Assembly Veterans Affairs
Committee approved this bill on June 15, 2010, by a vote of 9-0.
Background : It has become increasingly common to activate
reserves for short periods of time to provide service to
communities affected by natural or man-made disasters. While
students ordered to federal active duty service may have enough
advance notice to plan for and request a formal academic leave
of absence, students called to state military active duty
service are often called to service for shorter periods within a
grading term and may not have sufficient notice to work out
arrangements in advance with their instructors. Students in
such situations may miss critical assignments or tests, which
can delay their educational progress if their instructors do not
allow the students to make up missed coursework.
Need for this bill : According to the author, it appears that
CSU and CCC have varying policies concerning academic leaves of
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absence for students ordered into military service. The author
maintains that there have been instances in which postsecondary
institutions have not extended statutory protections to
California National Guard members who are ordered into Emergency
State Active duty by the Governor. This bill adds to the
protections currently provided with regard to tuition by
providing students the option to request reasonable
accommodations to enable them to meet "any and all" coursework
requirements they may have missed due to military service.
Since these students do not realistically have the option of
refusing to report to duty, this bill helps ensure they are not
treated in the same ways as students who voluntarily choose to
miss class or complete required coursework.
Which institutions are included ? Existing law does not define
"institution" for the purposes of this section of law. Staff
suggests the following amendment to ensure that service members
are assured of these protections regardless of the institution
they attend:
Sec. 824 (e): For purposes of this section, "institution"
includes any public postsecondary education institution and
any institution as defined in Education Code Section 94858.
Previous legislation : SB 361 (Runner, Chapter 351, Statutes of
2009) limited priority registration for enrollment at the
California State University (CSU) and the University of
California (UC) to former military members who received an
honorable discharge. SB 272 (Chapter 356, Statutes of 2007)
required the CSU and requested the University of California to
give priority registration for enrollment to former members of
the armed forces as specified.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
None on file.
Opposition
None on file.
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Analysis Prepared by : Sandra Fried / HIGHER ED. / (916)
319-3960