BILL ANALYSIS �
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Kevin de Le�n, Chair
SB 850 (Block) - Community Colleges: Baccalaureate Degree Pilot
Program
Amended: May 1, 2014 Policy Vote: Education 8-0
Urgency: No Mandate: No
Hearing Date: May 23, 2014 Consultant: Jacqueline
Wong-Hernandez
SUSPENSE FILE.
Bill Summary: SB 850 authorizes the Board of Governors (BOG) of
the California community colleges (CCC), in consultation with
the California State University (CSU) and the University of
California (UC), to establish a statewide baccalaureate degree
pilot program at not more than 15 community college districts
(CCDs), as specified.
Fiscal Impact:
Statewide administration: Significant one-time costs,
likely in the low hundreds of thousands of dollars, to
develop guidelines and create a baccalaureate degree pilot
program, and to select up to 15 CCDs to participate. Ongoing
administrative costs of approximately $350,000 for a 15 CCD
pilot program. Actual costs will depend on the number of
participating CCDs, as well as the the level of guidance and
oversight needed to ensure the program's success.
Local implementation: Significant local costs and
potentially significant revenue for CCDs that elect to
participate, depending on the program structure and the type
of degree offered (relative to the expense of providing
upper division courses). To the extent that students who
participate in the program would otherwise have attended a
CSU campus, the state cost for the student's enrollment
would likely be similar; to the extent that this promoted
enrollment for students who would otherwise not take
additional college coursework, there will be additional
state costs for increased enrollment.
Evaluation: Minor costs to the Legislative Analyst's Office
and the Department of Finance to conduct a statewide
evaluation of the program, as specified.
Background: Existing law differentiates the missions and
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functions of public and independent institutions of higher
education. The mission and function of the California Community
Colleges (CCC) is the offering of academic and vocational
instruction at the lower division level and the CCC are
authorized to grant the associate in arts and the associate in
science degree. The CCCs are also required to offer remedial
instruction, English as a Second Language instruction, adult
noncredit instruction, and support services which help students
succeed at the postsecondary level. (Education Code � 66010.4)
Proposed Law: This bill authorizes the BOG of the CCC, in
consultation with the CSU and the UC, to establish a statewide
baccalaureate degree pilot program at not more than 15 CCDs
selected by the CCC Chancellor's office, as specified.
The pilot program would authorize each participating district to
offer one type of baccalaureate degree at one campus within the
district, as specified. The bill would require a district
baccalaureate degree pilot program to commence by the beginning
of the 2017-18 academic year, and would require a student
participating in a baccalaureate degree pilot program to
complete his or degree by the end of the 2022-23 academic year.
The bill would require participating community college districts
to meet specified requirements, including, but not limited to,
offering baccalaureate degrees not offered by the CSU or the UC,
and in subject areas with unmet workforce needs, as specified.
Related Legislation: AB 661 (Block) 2011 would have authorized
the Grossmont-Cuyamaca and San Mateo CCDs to offer one
baccalaureate degree pilot program per campus. AB 661 was moved
to the inactive file on the Assembly Floor.
AB 2400 (Block) 2010 would have authorized the San Diego,
Grossmont-Cuyamaca and San Mateo CCDs to establish baccalaureate
degree pilot programs. No vote was taken and AB 2400 was held in
the Assembly Higher Education Committee.
Staff Comments: The pilot program outlined in this bill is
permissive for both the BOG and CCDs. This bill authorizes the
BOG to consult with CSU and UC to authorize a baccalaureate
pilot program, as described in this bill.
The CCCCO anticipates having significant one-time costs of
approximately $350,000 for a 15-CCD pilot, if it pursues the
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pilot program. The CCCCO would be responsible for actually
creating the program, outreach to CCDS, selecting up to 15 CCDs
to participate, and approving their degree programs. Several
aspects of program administration and oversight could be quite
technical and involved, including the determination (and
enforcement) of student fee limits and differentiation between
upper and lower division courses. Centralized costs are
difficult to determine, because they partially depend on the
number of participating CCDs and the types of baccalaureate
degrees the respective CCDs offer. They also depend on the level
of guidance and oversight ultimately needed to ensure the
program's success and accountability.
The baccalaureate pilot program is optional for CCDs. They would
have to craft an administrative plan for their local programs to
be reviewed by the CCCO and BOG, and creating the new program is
likely to require extensive work. Any costs they incurred would
be at their local option. The bill provides that the Legislature
would have to approve fees, up to the CSU "marginal cost" cap
which is also functionally controlled by the Legislature. The
degree to which the fees would cover the cost of the program is
unclear.