Amended in Senate June 2, 2014

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 119

Introduced by Assembly Member Muratsuchi

March 6, 2014

Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 119—Relative to the California Community Colleges.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

ACR 119, as amended, Muratsuchi. Community colleges: career technical education.

This measure would encourage the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, in consultation with affected stakeholders, to develop options to address the long-term funding needs of career technical education and other workforce and training programs at the campuses of the California Community Colleges, and to submit those options to the Legislature before June 1, 2015, so it may address these funding concerns during its 2015-16 Regular Session.

Fiscal committee: yes.

WHEREAS, The California Community Colleges begin delete is end delete begin insert comprises end insert
the nation’s largest system of higher education with 112 colleges
that serve more than 2.3 million students each academic year; and

WHEREAS, The begin delete California Community Colleges end delete begin insert community
colleges end insert play an important role in boosting our state’s begin delete economy, end delete
begin insert economy end insert and begin delete provide end delete begin insert providing end insert students with the education,
training, and skills necessary to keep our state and nation globally
competitive; and

WHEREAS, The begin delete California Community Colleges end delete begin insert community
colleges end insert offer a broad array of begin delete careeroriented end delete begin insert career end insert begin insert -oriented end insert
courses, certificates, and associate degrees through career technical
education (CTE) begin delete or end delete begin insert and end insert other workforce and training programs;
and

WHEREAS, Recent high school graduates, under­employed and
unemployed adults, incumbent workers searching for career
advancement, veterans, and college graduates seeking retraining
can all benefit from CTE and other workforce and training
programs; and

WHEREAS, A college degree or industry-recognized certificate
is the principal pathway to personal economic security; and

WHEREAS, After several years of budget cuts during the
recession, California community college, CTE, and other workforce
and training course offerings have been reduced; and

WHEREAS, California has seen cutbacks of more than $500
million in programs that prepare individuals for employment; and

WHEREAS, CTE and other workforce begin insert and training end insert programs
are often expensive due to the need for smaller class sizes and
specialized equipment and facilities; and

WHEREAS, Prioritizing existing CTE and other workforce and
training resources in major regional industry sectors may help
close the skills gap in our state’s labor force; and

WHEREAS, CTE and workforce begin insert and training end insert programs in the
California Community Colleges begin delete have lacked end delete begin insert lack end insert adequate
long-term funding to meet the needs of today’s growing economy;
and

WHEREAS, Any change to funding for CTE and other
workforce and training programs at the California Community
Colleges requires the enactment of legislation; now, therefore begin insert , end insert be
it

Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, the Senate
thereof concurring, That the Legislature encourages the Chancellor
of the California Community Colleges, in consultation with
affected stakeholders, including, but not limited to, experts in the
field of CTE, business and industry representatives, begin delete and end delete faculty,
begin insert and organized labor representatives end insert to develop at least three
options to address the long-term funding needs of CTE and other
workforce and training programs at the campuses of the California
Community Colleges, in a manner that adequately funds the
programs that regions deem valuable to their economies, and to
submit those options to the Legislature before June 1, 2015; and
be it further

Resolved, That it is the intent of the Legislature during the
2015-16 Regular Session to address the long-term funding needs
of CTE and other workforce and training programs at the campuses
of the California Community Colleges; and be it further

Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies
of this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.