Senate Education Committee Approves Community College Legislation

July 7, 2000

Senate Education Committee Approves
Community College Legislation

The Senate Education Committee, chaired by Senator Dede Alpert (D-Coronado), held its final policy hearing of the year on July 5, 2000. More than a dozen pieces of legislation affecting community colleges were heard by the committee-all were approved.

The policy committees of legislature have not "killed" very many bills this year; it appears that they have in many cases handed off that responsibility to the fiscal committees of the legislature, often in the second house. Quite often that hand off is pure politics-most legislators do want their bills defeated in the first or second policy committee.

As a result of the lack of resolve by the policy committees a significant number of bills are still on the legislative train moving towards their final committee (Senate Appropriations). Some of these bills are good public policy, while others need not see the light of day.

The following is a summary of bills affecting California Community Colleges that was approved in the Senate Education Committee on July 5, 2000:

SCR 83 (Polanco, D-Los Angeles), this resolution states Legislative intent to replace the current one-third bond split for the three public segments of higher education with an allocation of bond proceeds based on each segment's share of the projected undergraduate enrollment increases over the next 10 years.
AB 172 (Firebaugh, D-Los Angeles), this bill establishes the Community College International Student Exchange Program to provide expanded opportunities for students to participate in exchange programs with universities located outside of the United States. The bill also authorizes community college districts to reduce or exempt from nonresident tuition any resident and citizen of a foreign country who participates in any exchange program.
AB 1773 (Romero, D-Los Angeles), this bill prohibits the sale of college lecture notes, except as may be authorized under procedures and policies adopted by the governing boards of the various segments of higher education.
AB 1861 (Runner, R-Lancaster), this bill requests the University of California and requires the California State University to develop and maintain transfer articulation agreements with all of the California Community Colleges.
AB 1922 (Romero, D-Los Angeles), this bill requires the governing board of each community college district to annually inform the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges of the demographic make-up of its service area, the demographic make-up of its faculty, and the percentage change in these categories from the preceding year.
AB 2007 (Runner, R-Lancaster), the bill makes several changes to current law as it relates to joint-use facilities and joint degree programs between community colleges and either the California State University or a K-12 district. Antelope Valley College would be exempt from the Field Act for facilities, which are jointly used by Antelope and CSU Bakersfield. The bill also contains an appropriation of $1 million for allocation to San Mateo Community College District to implement a joint, four-year degree program that includes Canada College and San Francisco State University.
AB 2337 (Ducheny, D-San Diego), this bill provides for the annual transfer of funds from State General Fund to the State School Fund to community colleges in order to compensate colleges for estimated, but un-received, property tax and student enrollment fee revenues.
AB 2434 (Wildman, D-Los Angeles), this bill requires the community colleges to offer preferential hiring by order of seniority to part-time faculty who have served a majority of the current and preceding five academic terms. In addition, the bill authorizes local governing boards to pass annually a resolution if the district's work force diversity efforts may not be met as result of the provisions of this bill. Districts would also be required to issue March 15 notices if they did not attend to rehire a part-time faculty member.
AB 2476 (Romero, D-Los Angeles), this bill establishes a pilot program called the California Community College Deferment Act (CCDA) under which up to 500 freshmen admitted to the University of California could, instead, enroll for two years at a community college, and be guaranteed admission as a junior to the UC campus that originally admitted them as a freshman. In addition, CCDA participants would have their fees waived during their junior and senior year at UC.
AB 2496 (Washington, D-Los Angeles), this bill requires the California Community College Board of Governors to provide a book grant to students whose fees are waived because of demonstrated financial need. The State Budget contains $5 million for these purposes.
AB 2794 (Havice, D-Cerritos), this bill indefinitely re-authorizes the California Community College Economic Development Program.

Except for SCR 83, all of the above bills will next be heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee. If they receive favorable consideration in the fiscal committee the next step in the process is the Senate Floor. Pending approval by the Senate these measures could all end up on the Governor's desk for his consideration prior to August 31, 2000.

--Arnold Bray