BILL ANALYSIS �
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Alan Lowenthal, Chair
2011-2012 Regular Session
BILL NO: AB 130
AUTHOR: Cedillo
AMENDED: May 2, 2011
FISCAL COMM: Yes HEARING DATE: June 8, 2011
URGENCY: No CONSULTANT:Kathleen Chavira
SUBJECT : California Dream Act of 2011
SUMMARY
This bill requires, beginning January 1, 2012, that AB 540
students attending the California State University (CSU),
the California Community Colleges (CCC), or the University
of California (UC) be eligible to receive a scholarship
derived from non-state funds (received for the purpose of
scholarships) at the segment where the student is enrolled.
BACKGROUND
Current law provides for a variety of student financial aid
programs including the Cal Grant programs, the Community
College Board of Governors (BOG) fee waiver, a variety of
systemwide and/or campus-specific grant and/or loan
programs and other state administered financial aid
programs. Participation in these programs is, among other
criteria, typically limited to California residents.
Current law, (established by AB 540, Chapter 814, Statutes
of 2001) exempts specified California nonresidents from
paying nonresident tuition at UC, CSU and the CCCs if they
meet all of the following:
1) Attended a California high school for three or more
years.
2) Graduated from a California high school or attained an
equivalent degree.
3) Registered or attended an accredited California higher
education institution not before fall of the 2001-02
academic year.
AB 130
Page 2
4) Filed an affidavit, if an alien without lawful
immigration status, stating that the student has filed
an application to legalize their immigration status or
will file such an application as soon as they are
eligible to so do. (Education Code � 68130)
In general, these students are not currently eligible for
federal, state and/or campus-based financial aid.
ANALYSIS
This bill:
1) Requires, beginning January 1, 2012, that any
student admitted under the provisions of AB 540 and
attending the CSU, CCC, or the UC, be eligible to
receive a scholarship derived from non-state funds
(received for the purpose of scholarships) at the
segment where he/she is enrolled.
2) Declares that the provisions of the bill are in
compliance with specified federal immigration law.
3) Extends immunity granted to California's public
postsecondary institutions from any monetary damages,
tuition refunds/waivers, or other retroactive relief
that may result from the implementation of AB 540 to
include any provisions adopted as a result of this
bill, should a state court declare them unlawful.
4) Makes related findings and declarations.
STAFF COMMENTS
1) Need for the bill . The author is concerned that
California high school graduates who have been
accepted to our premier public colleges and
universities may be ineligible for state financial
aid. According to the author, these students confront
a difficult challenge in financing their college
education because they are ineligible for any federal
grants or loans and are unable to legally work. The
California Dream Act established by this bill would
allow these students to apply for and receive
AB 130
Page 3
scholarships derived from non-state funds at no cost
to the state.
2) Related court case . In 2005, Martinez v. Regents of
the University of California et al. was filed against
the UC, CSU, and the Board of Governors of the
California Community Colleges, challenging the
legality of AB 540. In October 2006 a California
Superior Court ruled in favor of AB 540 stating its
provisions were in accordance with federal law. In
September 2008 a California Court of Appeal overturned
the Superior Court's ruling in Martinez v. Regents and
held that California state law authorizing in-state
tuition to "illegal aliens" is preempted by federal
immigration law and void. The decision was appealed
and in December 2008 the Supreme Court of California
agreed to review the case. In November 2010, the
California Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the
Court of Appeal, finding that the provisions of AB 540
did not violate the federal immigration law and
concluding that the plaintiffs' remaining challenges
to the provisions of AB 540 lacked merit.
3) Similar legislation . AB 131 (Cedillo), effective July
1, 2012, expands the existing exemption from
nonresident tuition established by AB 540 (Firebaugh,
Chapter 814, Statutes of 2001) to include students who
attend and graduate from California technical and
adult schools and expands eligibility for
state-administered financial aid to all AB 540
students.
AB 131 is currently awaiting committee assignment in
the Senate Rules
Committee.
Staff notes that both AB 130 and AB 131 propose
amendments to the same section of existing law. Should
this Committee advance two bills on the same policy
question? If so, should the bills be double joined to
ensure that no unintended chaptering out of provisions
occurs?
4) How many students ? Recent data from the UC, CSU and
CCC indicate that overall, AB 540 students make up
less than one percent of enrollment at all three
systems. More specifically:
AB 130
Page 4
At the UC, AB 540 students were less than
three-tenths of a percent of 220,000 students in
2007-08. More than 68 percent of the 1,941
students were U.S. citizens or "documented"
immigrants.
At the CSU, 3,633 AB 540 students were less
than one percent of the 440,000 students enrolled
in the current school year.
In the California Community Colleges, 34,057
students of the 2.89 million students enrolled in
the 2008-09 school year were granted AB 540
waivers, again, less than one percent.
The CSU and the CCC do not identify the immigration
status of AB 540 students, but believe that
undocumented students make up a larger proportion of
these students than they do at the UC.
1) Prior legislation . Since 2003, the Legislature has
considered several bills which have attempted to
ensure that AB 540 students were able to receive
financial assistance to attend college. The most
recent efforts included
SB 1460 (Cedillo, 2010) and AB 1432 (Fuentes, 2010)
which were substantively similar to each other in that
they proposed the expansion of the existing exemption
from nonresident tuition established by AB 540 to
include students who graduated from technical schools
and adult schools and proposed expansion of
eligibility for financial aid benefits to all students
exempt from paying nonresident tuition under AB 540.
Both bills were ultimately vetoed by Governor
Schwarzenegger whose veto message read, in pertinent
part:
I have always wholeheartedly supported the policy
of making higher education opportunities as
affordable as possible for all California's
students. Our state's university and community
college systems are amongst the finest in the
country and should be made accessible to those
seeking a better life through higher education.
Unfortunately, given the precarious fiscal
AB 130
Page 5
situation that the state faces, it would not be
practical to adopt a new policy that could limit
the financial aid available to students that are
in California legally, in order to provide that
benefit to those students who are not.
Other similar Dream Act measures include:
SB 160 (Cedillo, 2009)
AB 2083 (Nunez, 2008)
SB 160 (Cedillo, 2007)
SB 1 (Cedillo, 2007)
SB 1301 (Cedillo, 2008)
SB 160 (Cedillo, 2005)
SUPPORT
AltaMed Health Services Corporation
American Civil Liberties Union
American Federation of State, County and Municipal
Employees (AFSCME)
California Community College Chancellor's Office
California Federation of Teachers
California School Employees Association, AFL-CIO
California State Student Association
City of San Pablo City Council
Community College League of California
Korean Resource Center of Los Angeles
Los Angeles Community College District
Mayor Antonio R. Villaraigosa
National Association of Social Workers - California Chapter
National Korean American Service & Education Consortium
Peralta Community College District
Rio Hondo Community College District
San Jose-Evergreen Community College District
University of California
University of California Student Association
Western Association for College Admissions Counselors
OPPOSITION
AB 130
Page 6
Californians for Population Stabilization