CPEC Supports Maintaining The Current One-Third Split of Bond Funds Among California's Public Higher Education Institutions

November 12, 1999

CPEC Supports Maintaining The Current
One-Third Split of Bond Funds Among
California's Public Higher Education Institutions

The California Postsecondary Education Commission (CPEC) conservatively estimates the total annual capital outlay need for community colleges to be $526 million per year for the next several years. With the passage of Proposition 1A in November 1998, community colleges will, receive approximately $186 million per year for each of the four years, and an additional $55 million during the last two years of the bond for new campuses, small campuses and off-campus centers. These funds are helpful, but fall far short of the great need.

In spite of the demonstrated need for additional funding for community college facilities, CPEC staff still continues to recommend that the one-third split of state bond funds among the three segments of higher education be maintained. In fact, community colleges have received less than a third (29.9%) of state bond funds since 1994. CPEC's position on the allocation of bond funds among the three segments is disappointing to community colleges.

CPEC staff concluded that capital outlay funds cannot be allocated strictly on the basis of enrollment, because differentiation of function in four year schools (especially the University of California) has major capital outlay implications. That is because the "more complex an institution of higher education becomes, the more responsibilities it assumes, the smaller the role played by regular classroom instruction."

CPEC's position on funding for community college facilities doesn't soften if Proposition 26 (simple majority vote for school bonds) is approved by voters on the March 2000 ballot. If the measure passes, CPEC staff will recommend the following costs structure for the three segments of public higher education:

Local community college districts would be required to match state bond funds with a 1:1 match.
Utilize a 1:2 match for state bond funds for the University of California and possibly California State University, derived primarily from private fund raising.

When the current bond measure funding is exhausted (Proposition 1A), CPEC will recommend that in 2002 a four-year $4 billion bond be placed on the ballot for higher education.

-- Arnold Bray