BILL ANALYSIS �
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Alan Lowenthal, Chair
2011-2012 Regular Session
BILL NO: AB 1663
AUTHOR: Dickinson
AMENDED: April 11, 2012
FISCAL COMM: Yes HEARING DATE: June 13, 2012
URGENCY: No CONSULTANT:Daniel Alvarez
SUBJECT : Pupil instruction: California State Summer School
for Mathematics
and Science.
SUMMARY
This bill continues the request to the Regents of the
University of California (UC) to set a tuition fee for the
California State Summer School for Mathematics and Science
program that corresponds to actual program costs, however
the measure allows fees up to but not exceeding $2,810 per
session in the year 2012, and establishes this amount as
the base for future 5% annual fee increases.
BACKGROUND
Current law:
1) Establishes the California State Summer School for
Mathematics and Science program (also known as COSMOS)
to provide an intensive academic experience for pupils
who wish to learn advanced mathematics and science and
prepare to pursue careers in those areas.
2) Requests the Regents of the UC to operate the program
and to set a tuition fee within a range that
corresponds to actual program costs, up to but not
exceeding $1,000 in the year 2000, and to increase
this fee by an amount of up to 5% each year
thereafter. In addition, the UC is permitted to
charge an application fee of up to twenty dollars
($20).
3) Specifies that pupils who have demonstrated academic
excellence in mathematics and science and who meet
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specified criteria shall be eligible for admission.
4) Expresses the intent of the Legislature that at least
50% but not more than 75% of the actual costs of the
California State Summer School for Mathematics and
Science program would be financed by state funds and
the balance of the operating costs would be financed
with fees and private support. (Education Code �
8660-8669.1)
ANALYSIS
This bill continues the request to the Regents of the
University of California (UC) to set a tuition fee for the
California State Summer School for Mathematics and Science
program that corresponds to actual program costs, however
the measure allows fees up to but not exceeding $2,810 per
session in the year 2012, and establishes this amount as
the base for future 5% annual fee increases.
STAFF COMMENTS
1) Need for the bill . The author states, "This bill
represents a clarifying technical fix to the Education
Code to reflect the tuition that COSMOS is charging
California residents for 2012 ($2,810) - and would
request that the UC Regents continue to raise annual
tuition for California residents by no more than 5%
annually. Current Education Code language is outdated
because it references the year 2000, with a tuition
level of $1,000, as the base for future tuition
increases. Legislation in 2005 raised the tuition
level beyond the 2000 base amount but was rendered
inoperative two years later, creating a need to update
the Education Code."
The University of California, the sponsor of this
bill, contends that the fact that the 2005 statute
sunset and became inoperative and not extended was an
inadvertent oversight on the part of the UC and this
bill seeks to correct it. According to the UC,
establishing the fees at the current levels will
ensure that the program continues to serve and admit
students at a level consistent with the number of
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pupils the program has served over the years.
2) A little bit of history . In 1998, Chapter 805 (AB
2536, Poochigian) enacted the California State Summer
School for Mathematics and Science, at that time it
was envisioned the program would be administered by
the State Board of Education; this statute made no
reference to a tuition or fee level.
In 1999, the statute was modified by Chapter 78 (AB
1115, Strom-Martin) a budget trailer bill to request
the University of California operate the program. AB
1115 provided that the UC Regents may set a tuition
fee within a range that corresponds to actual program
costs, up to but not exceeding $1,000 per session in
the year 2000, and may increase this fee by an amount
up to 5% each year thereafter. From the year 2000 to
2005 the program fees were increased by 5% each year.
Chapter 676, Statutes of 2005 (SB 755, Poochigian)
increased the tuition level to a maximum of $2,200 for
the year 2006 to align tuition with the actual cost of
operating the program at that time. By its own terms,
SB 755 was in effect for two years and became
inoperative and repealed on January 1, 2008. The
shorten period of time, prior to the inoperative date
was for the purpose of providing a reasonable
transition period to continue the program and for the
UC to pursue changes via a policy measure, rather than
a budget trailer bill or end of session sleight of
hand.
As previously noted, UC did not pursue a legislative
policy remedy, however, the tuition fees were not
restored to the 2005 level, but rather continued to
increase by 5% every year, thus resulting in a tuition
fee of $2,810 for the year 2012. In addition, UC is
now charging a $30 application fee.
3) Program background and evaluation results . The
California State Summer School for Mathematics and
Science (also known as, COSMOS) is an intensive
four-week summer residential program for pupils with a
goal of engaging highly talented and motivated pupils
in an intensive program of study, experimentation, and
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activities to further their interest in the science,
technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM)
fields. Pupils completing grades 8-12 have the
opportunity to work with faculty, researchers, and
scientists while exploring advanced STEM topics beyond
those usually offered in California high schools. The
program exists at four UC campuses: Davis, Irvine, San
Diego, and Santa Cruz.
According to the UC report on COSMOS from 2006-2010,
demographic information of student participants shows
gender participation in the program is equally split
between male and female. Ethnicity of participants,
from the same time frame, shows that Asian students
made up 48.1% of participants followed by 24.2% White,
17.5% Chicano/Latino, 2.3% African American, and 0.3%
American Indian pupils.
Reports on COSMOS contain evidence supporting the
assertion that COSMOS is realizing the short-term
goals the Legislature intended by providing
outstanding students opportunities to explore STEM
disciplines. There is some evidence that supports the
notion that student participation in COSMOS is having
the desired mid- to long-term effects of encouraging
participants to pursue STEM disciplines as
undergraduates and graduate students, and in their
careers. From calendar years 2006-2010, approximately
3,154 students participated in COSMOS. Using
available National Student Clearinghouse data UC
tracked 2,355 COSMOS graduates (75% of COSMOS
graduates) enrolled in colleges and universities. Of
the 2,355 COSMOS graduates, 2,080 enrolled at
four-year colleges (1,297 at UC campuses) and 250
enrolled at community colleges. Of the students who
enrolled at a UC campus, 1,114 students have declared
a STEM major.
4) Constitutional autonomy and statutory interaction .
Current statutes provide guidelines for tuition fees,
eligibility criteria, and other program elements,
relative to the operation of COSMOS. Nevertheless
these statues request, and do not require, the UC
Regents to operate the program as outlined in the
statutes. The UC's constitutional autonomy places
limitations on legislative control over the UC. The
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California Constitution (Section 9 of Article IX)
establishes UC as a public trust and confers the full
powers of the operation and governance upon the UC
Regents. The Constitution establishes that the UC is
subject to legislative control only to the degree
necessary to ensure the security of its funds and
compliance with the terms of its endowments. However,
it can be argued that the UC's failure to restore the
fees to the 2005 levels was inconsistent with
legislative intent.
Given the arduous legislative history and UC missteps
in complying with state laws of what can be described
as a successful program, staff recommends amendments
that:
(1) Provides for a sunset in five years of Education
Code � 8669 that "establishes" a base fee of $2,810
for this program; and
(2) Amends EC � 8664 to permit an applicant fee not
to exceed thirty dollars ($30), another overlooked
statute that UC is technically not in compliance with.
5) Previous legislation : Senate Bill 755 (Poochigian),
Chapter 676, Statutes of 2005 changes some
requirements of the STAR program and increased the
tuition cap of the COSMOS program to $2,200 for the
years 2006 and 2007, and repealed these provisions on
January 1, 2008.
SUPPORT
American Federation of State, County and Municipal
Employees
University of California
OPPOSITION
None on file.