BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 2250
Page 1
Date of Hearing: March 27, 2012
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HIGHER EDUCATION
Marty Block, Chair
AB 2250 (Gaines) - As Amended: March 21, 2012
SUBJECT : Public postsecondary education: nonresident tuition:
military members.
SUMMARY : Exempts active and former members of the Armed Forces
or State Military Reserve and their spouses from paying
nonresident tuition at the California State University (CSU) and
California Community Colleges (CCC). Specifically, this bill :
1)Waives nonresident tuition at CSU and CCC for a student, or a
spouse of a student, who is an active member or former member
of the Armed Forces or State Military Reserve who has served
at least 36 months and received an honorable discharge.
2)Defines Armed Forces as the Air Force, Army, Coast Guard,
Marine Corps, National Guard, Naval Militia, Navy, and the
reserve components of each of those forces, including the
California National Guard.
3)Requests the University of California (UC) comply with these
provisions.
EXISTING LAW establishes uniform residency requirements for
purposes of ascertaining the amount of fees to be paid by
students at UC, CSU, and CCC and establishes various exceptions
to these residency requirements, including the following:
1)A member of the Armed Forces who is stationed in the state on
active duty, except a member assigned for educational
purposes. (Education Code � 68075)
2)A member of the Armed Forces who is transferred to another
state but continuously enrolled at a college in California.
(EC � 68075)
3)A student who is a dependent of a member of the Armed Forces
stationed in this state on active duty. (EC � 68074)
4)A student dependent of a member of the Armed Forces may keep
his or her resident classification until he or she has resided
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in the state for the minimum time necessary to become a
resident in the event the member of the Armed Forces upon whom
they are dependent is transferred outside of the state or
retires as an active member of the Armed Forces. (EC �
68075.5)
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown but potentially significant.
COMMENTS : This bill is double-referred to the Assembly
Veterans Affairs Committee.
Background . Current law establishes the requirements for
determining residency for purposes of paying the lower-cost
"in-state" student fees at UC, CSU, and CCC. To qualify for the
lower resident fees, students are generally required to have
resided in California for more than one year immediately
preceding the residence determination date and undertake other
specified actions such as registering to vote or registering
one's car in California.
Recent hearing on student veteran issues . On February 28, 2012,
the Assembly Higher Education and Assembly Veterans Affairs
Committees held a joint oversight hearing on the challenges
facing California student veterans. Several students and
representatives from the higher education institutions spoke for
the need for more resources for veterans services, including
more transition assistance, improving outreach and campus-based
programs, and easing the matriculation of prior military
learning. The Committee may wish to consider whether funding
fee waivers for out-of-state student veterans should be a
priority in light of the need to improve services for California
student veterans whose taxes helped support their colleges and
universities.
Need for this bill . According to the author, "This legislation
is necessary as a large amount of soldiers are coming back from
the War on Terror and we need to make higher education for them
a priority."
Other states . All states appear to require a veteran be a state
resident in order to qualify for in-state tuition/fee, and state
policies on spouses and dependents also require the veteran be a
state resident.
Conflict with current active military nonresident fee exemption .
AB 2250
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Existing law exempts active duty military and their spouses
from nonresident tuition unless the service member is here for
educational purposes. This bill sets a higher standard by
requiring the service member to have served for 36 months before
qualifying for a waiver of nonresident tuition. This bill would
also waive nonresident tuition for service members who are
stationed in California for educational purposes.
Benefits of California-resident classification for tuition and
fee purposes . UC, CSU, and CCC are publicly subsidized with the
proceeds of state taxes; the lower resident fees for students
who reside in California reflect the contribution they and their
parents have already made by paying taxes in California. The
fees charged to non-California residents are intended to cover
the cost of the subsidy that is generated by California
taxpayers. Tuition and fees for a full-time undergraduate
student in 2011-12 are:
Resident Out-of-State
UC $12,192$35,070
CSU $5,472 $10,170
CCC $36 per unit $244 per unit
What benefit does this bill provide ? This bill would primarily
apply to veterans from other states and their spouses, who would
otherwise be charged nonresident fees during their first year
while they establish residency. The Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits
fund a student's in-state tuition and fees. Thus, in theory,
this bill would provide a subsidy equaling the difference
between the resident and non-resident fees at the student's
college or university during his or her first year. After the
first year, when the student will have had the opportunity to
establish residency, the Post-9/11 GI Bill would fully cover the
student's fees. However, by removing the one-year residency
requirement, a veteran has no incentive to become a California
resident. The Committee may wish to consider whether it is
appropriate to provide this subsidy to veterans and their
spouses who do not have to demonstrate any intent to make
California their home or pay the taxes that support its public
services, including higher education.
Should spouses be provided this benefit ? As noted previously
under Existing Law, spouses and dependents of active duty
service members stationed in California receive the benefit it
residency for tuition/fee purposes because their spouses'
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military assignment in California is beyond their control.
However, upon discharge, a veteran and his or her spouse are
free to establish residency where ever they choose, including
California.
Should this benefit be need-based ? Most California financial
aid programs require demonstration of financial need. Is it
appropriate to provide a significant state subsidy to all
persons eligible for this benefit without proof of need,
especially when the state is cutting existing programs?
Revenue loss to the segments . This bill does not provide
funding to backfill for the loss of non-resident fee revenue
that would likely result from this bill. If the intent of this
bill is to provide a benefit to non-Californian members of the
military, it may be more appropriate to provide this benefit
directly, such as through a Cal Grant dedicated to these
students for the one year it takes to establish residency. This
would allow the Legislature to more easily track the costs of
the program, as well as review its merits relative to other
student financial aid programs and other state-supported
programs, and would spare the segments revenue losses in
addition to those they have sustained in recent state budgets.
Related legislation . AB 2478 (Hayashi), which is set for
hearing in this Committee on March 27, 2012, would waive
nonresident tuition for up to four years for CCC students who
served on active duty for one year immediately prior to
discharge. AB 38 (Salas, 2009), which died in the Assembly
Appropriations Committee, would have waived nonresident tuition
for one year. SB 272 (Runner), Chapter 356, Statutes of 2007,
as introduced would have waived the one-year residency
requirement for former military members. This provision was
deleted from the chaptered version. AB 2472 (Wyland) of 2006,
was substantially similar to this bill and was held in the
Assembly Appropriations Committee.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges
Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, Department of
California
AB 2250
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Opposition
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Analysis Prepared by : Sandra Fried / HIGHER ED. / (916)
319-3960