Governor Vetoes Bills of Interest to Community Colleges
With gubernatorial action now completed on bills that passed the Legislature this year, we can report that Governor Schwarzenegger signed 772 bills and vetoed 415 bills.
The following are among the bills of interest to community colleges that were vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger. Although all of the vetoed bills described below were authored by Democrats, the reality is that few Republican bills made it through the legislative process to reach the Governor’s desk.
AB 1112 (Torrico, D-Newark) would have added the acquisition and construction of residential rental property to be used to house teachers and employees of the school district or community college district to the purposes for which a district is authorized to issue bonds.
The Governor’s veto message stated:
School districts should not add residential property management to their list of responsibilities. This broadened authority would detract from their primary responsibility of educating students. The issue of affordable housing is best addressed by the local government agencies tasked with that responsibility.
AB 1754 (Hayashi, D-Hayward) would have required the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges to distribute a preexisting model grade-changing policy updated in 2008 to each community college district, and encouraged the districts to establish grade-changing policies and procedures that reflect the standards contained in the model policy.
The Governor’s veto message stated:
Nothing under current law prohibits the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges to distribute a pre-existing model grade changing policy to each community college district, even without legislative mandate. Therefore, this bill is unnecessary.
AB 1821 (Brownley, D-Santa Monica) would have eliminated, restructured and reorganized various higher education reporting requirements.
The Governor’s veto message stated:
While the intent to streamline reporting requirements for the higher education segments is a laudable goal, I understand this bill contains a drafting error. Furthermore, as currently drafted, this bill would likely result in significant state reimbursable mandated costs on the Community Colleges. I would be willing to sign a bill in the next session that addresses these concerns and directing my Department of Finance to work with the appropriate Legislative staff to this end.
AB 1997 (Hayashi, D-Hayward) would have established a vision care program for specified local members, school members, and university members, and their dependents.
The Governor’s veto message stated:
The historic delay in passing the 2008-2009 State Budget has forced me to prioritize the bills sent to my desk at the end of the year's legislative session. Given the delay, I am only signing bills that are the highest priority for California. This bill does not meet that standard and I cannot sign it at this time. We understand that the same language was used in vetoing more than 100 bills.
AB 2167 (De Leon, D-Los Angeles) this bill would have prohibited a statement or document that was false or unsubstantiated from being placed in the personnel records of a classified employee of a community college district, and given a classified employee the right to challenge via the district’s grievance process, and have removed, a statement or document that was false or unsubstantiated.
The Governor’s veto message stated:
Current law already provides adequate protection for school employees to review the contents and provide rebuttal to documents in their personnel file. Enacting this bill could result in hindering the reasonable process of school management personnel to fairly evaluate and discipline employees.
AB 2550 (Furutani, D- Gardena) would have created a five-year pilot program that would allow a California community college district to award contracts for goods and services greater than $50,000, other than construction services, to the bidder offering the best value instead of to the lowest responsible bidder.
The Governor’s veto message stated:
I support the notion that best value contracting is a reasonable alternative for construction projects which allows projects to be awarded based on a combination of best price and qualifications because construction projects represent a large, long term investment of resources. However, I am concerned that this legislation may allow subjective methods to govern the bidding process for procurement of supplies and materials with a relatively short life cycle, which could be more open to manipulation and abuse in the bid selection process.
SB 191 Padilla (D-Pacoima) would have required specified state agencies or school districts that choose to use the Kindergarten-University Public Education Facilities Bond Act of 2006 or any subsequent education facilities bond act as a source of funds for a public works project to pay a fee—not to exceed one-quarter of 1% of the contracted price of the public works project using such funds—levied by the Director of Industrial Relations to cover administrative expenses for the enforcement of prevailing wage and apprenticeship requirements on projects using those funds.
The Governor’s veto message stated:
The bill represents a favorable step in the right direction. However, the bill, which was amended late in the session, would not exact the meaningful change needed to address the broader problems with oversight of California's prevailing wage laws. I am requesting that the Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) work with the stakeholders on a comprehensive reform of DIR’s enforcement of public works laws this fall and return with an improved legislative proposal next year.
SB 325 (Scott, D-Pasadena) would have repealed the existing higher education accountability program, and requires the state to establish a new accountability framework for achieving prescribed educational and economic goals.
The Governor’s veto message stated:
This bill falls short in providing any framework for incentives or consequences that would modify behavior to meet any policy objectives. I believe our public education systems should be held accountable for achieving results, including our higher education segments, and would consider a measure in the future that provides adequate mechanisms that will effectuate tangible gains in student outcomes and operational efficiencies.
SB 360 (Negrete McLeod, D-Monclair) would have transferred, from redevelopment agencies to county auditors, responsibility for making and reporting pass-through payments of property tax increment revenues.
The Governor’s veto message referred to the Budget delay and said that this bill isn’t of the highest priority. We found the message odd in the context of the significant errors in reporting redevelopment payments that in some cases required additional General Fund monies to go to K-14 schools.
SB 413 (Scott, D-Pasadena) would have required open course provisions in statute or regulations to be waived for a community college district that provides classes for inmates, including inmates of state correctional facilities. The bill would have further required the attendance hours generated by credit instruction to be funded at the credit rate.
The Governor’s veto message stated:
The bill as drafted appears to create inappropriate fiscal incentives for community colleges, state prisons, local correctional agencies, and other contracting entities that may lead to supplanting current funding provided through the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
SB 1301 (Cedillo, D-Los Angeles) would have required the Trustees of the California State University and the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, and requested the Regents of the University of California, to establish procedures and forms that would have enabled persons who are exempt from paying nonresident tuition pursuant to AB 540, or who meet equivalent requirements adopted by the regents, to be eligible to receive institutional financial aid awards; institutional financial aid would not have included a Board of Governors fee waiver.
The Governor’s veto message stated:
I share the author’s goal of making affordable education available to all California students, but given the precarious fiscal condition the state faces at this time, it would not be prudent to place additional demands on our limited financial aid resources as specified in this bill. For this reason, I am unable to sign this bill.
SB 1322 (Lowenthal, D-Long Beach) would have required that a public employee or applicant seeking public employment be permitted to decline to take and subscribe to the normally required oath of office based on religious beliefs that conflict with his or her ability to take and subscribe to the oath without mental reservation, provided that he or she is otherwise willing and able to uphold the United States Constitution and the constitution and laws of this state and to complete the duties of employment. The bill would also have deleted provisions authorizing a permanent or classified school employee, or a classified community college employee to be suspended or dismissed from employment if he or she is a knowing member of the Communist Party. The bill would also have deleted current law provisions requiring a public employee to answer, under oath, specified questions, including, but not limited to, knowing membership in an organization advocating the forceful or violent overthrow of the government of the United States or of any state.
The Governor’s veto message stated:
Many Californians have fled communist regimes, immigrated to the United States and sought freedom in our nation because of the human rights abuses perpetuated in other parts of the world. It is important particularly for those people that California maintains the protections of current law. Therefore, I see no compelling reason to change the law that maintains our responsibility to ensure that public resources are not used for purposes of overthrowing the U.S. or state government, or for communist activities.
SB 1355 (Corbett, D- San Leandro) would have required postsecondary education institutions to disclose specified information regarding the terms of private loans and federal loans in specified financial aid materials. This bill would have applied these requirements to the University of California only to the extent the Regents adopted a resolution to do so.
The Governor vetoed the bill, citing the comprehensive reforms in recently enacted federal law, H.R. 4137.
SB 1585 (Padilla, D- Pacoima) would have required the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges to establish a five-year Improve Transfer Success Pilot Program; the program was intended to increase the number of transfer-declared students who begin in basic skills courses that are one or twp levels below transferable coursework and successfully progress to transferable coursework leading to their successful transfer to a four-year university.
The Governor’s veto message stated:
Given the efforts to resolve the current budget deficit, it is not advisable to create new programs when existing resources are already being directed to meet the objective.
—Deborah Harmon