(1) Existing law establishes the Higher Education Student Housing Grant Program to provide one-time grants for the construction of student housing or for the acquisition and renovation of commercial properties into student housing for the purpose of providing affordable, low-cost housing options for students enrolled in public postsecondary education in the state. Existing law appropriates $1,434,133,000 for the 2022–23 fiscal year from the General Fund for the Higher Education Student Housing Grant Program for purposes of the one-time grants described above.
This bill, commencing with the 2023–24 fiscal year, would require specified funding previously allocated, or planned to be allocated, to the University of California, the California State University, and the California Community Colleges for those construction grants to instead be funded by revenue bonds issued by the University of California and the California State University, and local revenue bonds issued by community college districts. The bill would require any General Fund support for those grants provided to the campuses of the University of California, the California State University, and the California Community Colleges to revert to the General Fund. The bill would eliminate the 2022–23 fiscal year General Fund appropriation for the Higher Education Student Housing Grant Program.
(2) Existing law appropriates $650,000,000 from the General Fund to the office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges for transfer to the Learning Recovery Emergency Fund. Existing law requires the chancellor's office to allocate those funds to community college districts on the basis of actual reported full-time equivalent students, as provided. Existing law authorizes the funds to be expended for certain purposes related to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, including student supports, reengagement strategies, faculty grants, and professional development opportunities.
This bill would authorize the funds in the Learning Recovery Emergency Fund to be used for additional purposes, including scheduled maintenance and special repairs of facilities and efforts to increase student retention rates and enrollment by engaging former community college students who may have withdrawn due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
(3) Existing law, until June 30, 2023, authorizes the University of California to provide a scholarship as established by the university or a campus of the university, derived from nonstate funds received for that purpose, to any of its enrolled students who meet the eligibility requirements for that scholarship.
This bill would extend that authorization by 4 years.
(4) Existing federal law provides for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) , known in California as CalFresh, under which supplemental nutrition assistance benefits allocated to the state by the federal government are distributed to eligible individuals by each county.
Existing law requires each campus of the California Community Colleges, no later than July 1, 2022, to establish the position of Basic Needs Coordinator to assist students with on- and off-campus housing, food, mental health, and other basic needs services and resources, among other responsibilities, and to establish a Basic Needs Center where basic needs services, resources, and staff are made available to students, as specified. Existing law requires each community college campus to report certain information to the office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges related to basic needs services and resources. Existing law requires the chancellor's office to annually develop and submit a report to the Governor and the Legislature based on the data and information received from campuses and information on the use of funds made available to implement these provisions.
This bill would require each community college campus to report additional information to the chancellor's office, including the number of students who received CalFresh benefits in the previous year. By expanding the duties of community college districts, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
(5) The California Student Housing Revolving Loan Fund Act of 2022 provides zero-interest loans to qualifying applicants of the University of California, the California State University, and the California Community Colleges for the purpose of constructing affordable student housing and affordable faculty and staff housing. Existing law establishes the California Student Housing Revolving Loan Fund as a continuously appropriated fund in the State Treasury.
This bill would appropriate $200,000,000 from the General Fund to the California Student Housing Revolving Loan Fund. The bill would require $150,000,000 of those funds to be available for University of California and California State University applicants, and the remaining $50,000,000 of those funds to be available for community college applicants, except as provided.
(6) Existing law, the Ortiz-Pacheco-Poochigian-Vasconcellos Cal Grant Program, provides awards to certain California postsecondary students to help pay the costs of postsecondary education. Existing law sets the maximum Cal Grant A and B tuition award amount for new recipients in the 2022–23 award year at $9,358 for students attending independent institutions of higher education. Existing law authorizes community colleges to award an associate degree for transfer, and provides that the Cal Grant A and B tuition award amount for future years for students attending independent institutions of higher education depends on the number of commitments those institutions make to accept associate degrees for transfer. Beginning with the 2023–24 award year, existing law sets the maximum tuition award amount at either $9,358 or $8,056, depending upon whether the number of new unduplicated transfer students accepted by those institutions who have been given associate degree for transfer commitments in the prior award year exceeds statutory targets.
This bill would set the 2023–24 award year amount for a new recipient attending an independent institution of higher education at $9,358. Beginning with the 2024–25 award year, the bill would set the maximum tuition award amount as either $9,358 or $8,056, with the higher amount conditioned on the achievement of the target numbers for associate degree for transfer commitments that apply for the prior award year.
Under existing law, an otherwise qualifying institution with a 3-year cohort default rate that is equal to or greater than 15.5% is ineligible for initial and renewal Cal Grant awards at the institution, as specified, with certain exceptions.
Existing law requires the commission to certify by November 1 of each year a qualifying institution's latest 3-year cohort default rate and graduation rate as most recently reported by the United States Department of Education, except for the 2022–23 and 2023–24 academic years existing law requires the commission to use the 3-year cohort default rate certified in 2020 for an otherwise qualifying institution.
This bill would require the commission to also use the 3-year cohort default rate certified in 2020 for an otherwise qualifying institution for the 2024–25 academic year.
(7) Existing law establishes the California Kids Investment and Development Savings (KIDS) Program, under the administration of the Scholarshare Investment Board, for the purpose of expanding access to higher education through savings. Existing law establishes the California Kids Investment and Development Savings Program Fund in the State Treasury to serve as the initial repository of all moneys received from state and private sources for the KIDS Program, and continuously appropriates moneys in the fund to the board for the KIDS Program. Existing law, upon appropriation by the Legislature, requires the board to establish one or more Scholarshare 529 accounts and make a seed deposit of moneys from the fund into a Scholarshare 529 account established under the KIDS Program in an amount of at least $25, as determined by the board. Specifically, those moneys are deposited in KIDS Accounts, one designated for each California resident child born on or after July 1, 2022. Existing law requires the board to provide awards from these KIDS Accounts, as specified, for each recipient child's qualified higher education expenses at an eligible institution of higher education. The Budget Act of 2019, among other things, appropriated $25,000,000 for the KIDS Program.
This bill, commencing with the 2023–24 fiscal year, would increase the amount of seed deposits in KIDS Accounts to at least $100. If a child has no account balance at the child's institution of higher education of attendance, the bill would authorize the institution to distribute funds received from the board for the child directly to the child for the purpose of paying the child's qualified higher education expenses. The bill also would require the board to use $8,000,000 of the funds appropriated in the Budget Act of 2019 for the KIDS Program to establish a statewide integrated marketing campaign for the KIDS Program, as specified. By expanding the uses of funds continuously appropriated for the KIDS Program, the bill would make an appropriation.
(8) Existing law establishes the Middle Class Scholarship Program (MCSP) under the administration of the Student Aid Commission. Existing law makes an undergraduate student eligible for a scholarship award under the MCSP if the student is enrolled at the University of California or the California State University, or enrolled in upper division coursework in a community college baccalaureate program, and meets certain eligibility requirements. Existing law generally sets the MCSP award at an amount that equals the difference between the student's cost of attendance and the sum of scholarships, grants, or fee waivers awarded to the student in excess of $7,898 in expected student contribution, and, for dependent students with a household income exceeding $100,000, a percentage of the parents' contribution, as specified. Existing law sets the maximum amount of a student's MCSP award based on a formula that considers the amount appropriated for the MCSP for the applicable award year.
This bill, for the purposes of determining a student's MCSP award amount, would include additional forms of financial aid, as specified, awarded to the student. The bill would reduce the amount of a student's MCSP award if the MCSP award, in combination with other grants or scholarships treated as estimated financial assistance or other financial assistance under federal regulations, exceeds the allowable gift aid under the federal regulations. The bill would require current and former foster youth to receive the full amount that they are eligible to receive under the MCSP, as specified.
(9) The Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges consists of 18 voting members, including 2 voting student members appointed by the Governor. Existing law requires the members of the board to receive their actual and necessary traveling expenses while on official business and $100 for each day the member attends to official business.
This bill would require the office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, from funds appropriated for this purpose in the annual Budget Act, to allocate $4,000 in financial assistance per semester, or the quarterly equivalent, to each student member of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges for each year of the student member's term.
(10) Existing law establishes the Employment Opportunity Fund, to be administered by the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges to promote equal employment opportunities in hiring and promotion at community college districts. As a condition for the receipt of moneys from the fund, existing law requires each participating community college district's equal employment opportunity program to ensure participation in, and commitment to, the program by community college district personnel. Existing law requires each participating community college district's equal employment opportunity plan to include steps that the district will take to eliminate improper discrimination or preferences in its hiring and employment practices.
This bill would require the office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, on or before January 1, 2024, to create a process to verify each participating community college district's proper implementation of strategies from methods identified by the chancellor's office to promote faculty diversity, as specified. The bill would also require the chancellor's office, on or before April 1, 2024, to update those strategies to include best practices, as provided. The bill would require participating community college districts to implement those strategies as a condition for the receipt of moneys from the fund. The bill would require the chancellor's office, on or before October 1, 2023, to implement a policy to verify that participating community college districts conduct the demographic analyses of their employment processes required by existing state regulations.
(11) Existing law requires the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges to adopt regulations regarding full-time faculty.
This bill would require each community college district to annually report to the office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges on its progress in increasing the percentage of instruction by full-time faculty and in increasing faculty diversity. The bill would require the chancellor's office to synthesize this information into an annual systemwide report to be posted on a public internet website. The bill would require the chancellor's office to establish and implement a policy to verify that community college districts are using full-time faculty funding appropriated in a specific budget item of the annual Budget Act for the designated purposes and in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. The bill would require the Legislature to be informed of any community college district that fails to comply with these provisions and each failing community college district would be subject to notice at a meeting of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges. The bill would only apply to community college districts as a condition of receiving funds for the purpose of hiring new full-time faculty appropriated in a specific budget item in the annual Budget Act.
(12) Existing law establishes the Strong Workforce Program, which, among other things, provides funding to career technical education regional consortia made up of community college districts and local educational agencies, as specified. Existing law requires a percentage of the funds apportioned for community colleges under the Strong Workforce Program to be apportioned directly to community college districts in the consortia to fund regionally prioritized projects and programs that meet the needs of local and regional economies, as specified.
This bill would authorize a community college district to also use those funds apportioned directly to community college districts for additional specified purposes, including for student grants to cover fees for third-party certification and licensing.
(13) Under existing law, the campuses of the California Community Colleges administer the Community Colleges Student Success Completion Grant program, which requires, for a student to qualify to receive a grant award, that the student receive a Cal Grant B or C award, make satisfactory academic progress, and be a California resident or exempt from paying nonresident tuition. Existing law awards $1,298 per semester, or the quarterly equivalent, for eligible students who enroll in 12, 13, or 14 units per semester, or the quarterly equivalent number of units, and awards $4,000 per semester, or the quarterly equivalent, for eligible students who enroll in 15 units per semester, or the quarterly equivalent number of units.
This bill would increase the Community Colleges Student Success Completion Grant program award amount to $5,250 per semester, or the quarterly equivalent, for eligible students who are current or former foster youth enrolled in 12 or more units per semester, or the quarterly equivalent number of units. To the extent the bill would impose new duties on community college districts, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
(14) The Budget Act of 2021 made appropriations for the support of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges for the 2021–22 fiscal year, including $2,347,663,000 for apportionments.
This bill would amend the Budget Act of 2021 by reducing the appropriation made to the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges for apportionments by $2,140,000.
(15) The Budget Act of 2022 made appropriations for local assistance to the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges for the 2022–23 fiscal year, including $5,798,825,000 for apportionments.
This bill would amend the Budget Act of 2022 by increasing the appropriation made to the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges for apportionments by $55,357,000. The bill would require, on or before June 30, 2024, community colleges receiving funds for this purpose to report to the office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges data, information, and conclusions related to increasing student retention rates and enrollment due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The bill would require, on or before September 30, 2024, the chancellor's office to report to the Legislature and the Department of Finance based on the data, information, and conclusions received from those community colleges. The bill would authorize those community colleges to use the funds received to increase student retention rates and enrollment due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic for additional purposes.
(16) Existing law appropriates $840,655,000 in the 2022–23 fiscal year from the General Fund to the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges for allocation to community college districts for certain purposes, including scheduled maintenance and special repairs of facilities, at community colleges.
This bill would reduce that appropriation by $500,013,000, would add support for childcare facility repair and maintenance, purposes related to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and purposes related to discharge of unpaid student fees as purposes for which that money could be allocated, and would appropriate $5,732,000 in the 2023–24 fiscal year to the Board of Governors for allocation to community college districts for those same purposes.
(17) Existing law establishes the Student Aid Commission as the primary state agency for the administration of state-authorized student financial aid programs available to students attending all segments of postsecondary education.
If the federal Free Application for Federal Student Aid is not available on or before October 1, 2023, this bill, for the purposes of the 2024–25 award year only, would extend the March 2, 2024, application deadlines for financial aid programs administered by the commission by one month.
(18) This bill would appropriate $2,500,000 from the General Fund to the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges for allocation to East Los Angeles College for the creation of a Small Business Entrepreneurship and Innovation Center.
(19) This bill would appropriate $500,000 from the General Fund to the Board of Gover