Current Legislative Priorities
2019-2020 Legislative Priorities
AB 130: Higher Education Performance and Accountability Commission
Author: Assemblymember Evan Low
Status: Vetoed by Governor Newsom
Campaign Position: Support
Would establish state-level leadership positioned to confront changes in reaching our state’s 60 percent attainment goal and eliminating racial equity gaps by establishing a central, state-level higher education coordinating body responsible for planning, oversight, and coordination that are necessary to meeting future workforce demands.
AB 542: Expanding Cal Grant A & B
Author: Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel
Status: Died in Assembly Higher Education Committee
Campaign Position: Support
Would increase the number of Competitive Cal Grant A and B awards granted annually from 25,750 to 28,750 in order to meet growing gaps in unmet financial need as total costs of attendance increase.
AB 1344: Out-of-State For-Profit Online College Oversight
Author: Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan
Status: Signed by Governor Newsom
Campaign Position: Support
Would expand existing regulations on private postsecondary institutions in California to cover California students attending online colleges based outside the state. AB 1344 would ensure that out of state for-profit online colleges meet all federal regulations for private postsecondary institutions and abide by their mission to prepare students for a profitable career path
AB 1466: Establishing a Statewide Longitudinal Data System
Author: Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin
Status: A Statewide Longitudinal Data System was Adopted in the 2019-20 State Budget
Campaign Position: Support
Would set California on a path towards establishing a statewide longitudinal data system to fully understand the opportunities, roadblocks, and outcomes of its students and to truly institute data-informed decision-making in order to address growing equity gaps in educational success and ensure the strength of our economy.
AB 1617: Mandatory Financial Aid Applications for High School Students
Author: Assemblymember Eloise Gomez Reyez
Status: Held in Assembly Education Committee, 2-Year Bill
Campaign Position: Support
Would require that all California high school students complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) or the California Dream Act Application (CADAA) in order to graduate from high school, ensuring that all students have access to financial aid to pursue their college education.
SB 2: Statewide Longitudinal Student Database
Author: Senator Steve Glazer
Status: A Statewide Longitudinal Data System was Adopted in the 2019-20 State Budget
Campaign Position: Support
Would set California on a path towards establishing a statewide longitudinal data system to fully understand the opportunities, roadblocks, and outcomes of its students and to truly institute data-informed decision-making in order to address growing equity gaps in educational success and ensure the strength of our economy.
SB 3: Office of Higher Education Coordination, Accountability, and Performance
Author: Senator Ben Allen
Status: Bill Language Merged with Assembly Bill 130
Campaign Position: Support
Would establish Office of Higher Education Coordination, Accountability, and Performance for purposes of statewide postsecondary education planning, oversight, data collection and coordination.
SB 291: California Community College Financial Aid Program
Author: Senator Connie Leyva
Status: Held in Assembly Higher Education Committee, 2-Year Bill
Campaign Position: Support
Would establish the California Community College Financial Aid Program and help close the gap of unmet financial need faced by students in covering their total cost of attending college.
SB 461: Cal Grant for Summer Term Students
Author: Senator Richard Roth
Status: Included in 2019-20 State Budget
Campaign Position: Support
Would expand state financial aid opportunities to students enrolled in summer session courses at the University of California (UC) and California State University (CSU). SB 461 expands Cal Grant eligibility to include two additional summer sessions, allowing students to more affordably access summer courses that would keep them on track for timely degree completion.
SB 484: Automatic ADT Award to Qualified California Community College Students
Author: Senator Anthony Portantino
Status: Vetoed by Governor Newsom
Campaign Position: Support
Would help more students reach their college dreams by streamlining the Associate Degree for Transfer (ADT) awarding process at California Community Colleges. SB 484 would strengthen the ADT pathway by identifying and automatically awarding an ADT to students who have completed the requirements to ensure that students receive the associated benefits of an ADT.
SB 554: Advanced Scholastic and Vocational Training Program
Author: Senator Richard Roth
Status: Signed by Governor Newsom
Campaign Position: Support
Would allow over 148,000 adult school students pursuing their high school diploma or the equivalent to dual-enroll at California Community Colleges (CCC) in order to jump start their college education goals and better prepare them for a future career.
Previously Sponsored and Supported
2018 Legislation
AB 1037: Service-Incentive Grants for Undocumented Students
Author: Assemblymember Limon
Status: Held in Senate Appropriations Committee – Suspense File
Campaign Position: Support
Provides undocumented students with an opportunity to both develop their resume and skillsets, while also helping offset their ineligibility for any federal financial aid by establishing the Cal Grant B Service Incentive Grant, which would offer $1,000 per quarter or $1,500 per semester to participants that complete 300 eligible volunteer or community service hours while meeting academic requirements.
AB 1805: Placement Policies Transparency Act
Author: Assemblymember Irwin
Status: Chaptered
Campaign Position: Support
Provides students with easily understandable information about community college placement policies and their rights to transfer-level courses pursuant to AB 705 (Irwin, 2017). Also requires colleges to report the percentage of students placed into transfer-level courses, disaggregated by race and ethnicity.
AB 1895: Income-Based Repayment for DREAM Loans
Author: Assemblymember Calderon
Status: Chaptered
Campaign Position: Support
Helps address the financial needs of undocumented students by allowing DREAM Loan recipients to repay their loans based on actual income and providing students the security of loan deferment if they are unable to secure work in the United States.
AB 1935: Supervised Tutoring Apportionment
Author: Assemblymember Irwin
Status: Held in Senate Appropriations Committee – Suspense File
Campaign Position: Support
Supports new approaches to placement and remediation (as required by AB 705, 2017) and Guided Pathways implementation at California Community Colleges by increasing access to supervised tutoring services for students taking transfer-level courses.
AB 2248: Supporting On-Time Student Completion
Author: Assemblymember McCarty
Status: Chaptered
Campaign Position: Support
Supports more informed decision-making by students by ensuring all Cal Grant recipients understand the unit load necessary to graduate in four years.
AB 2477: Coordinated Campus Support for Undocumented Students
Author: Assemblymember Rubio
Status: Vetoed by Governor
Campaign Position: Support
Requires California public high schools, colleges, and universities to designate a Dreamer Resource Liaison to help undocumented and AB 540 students access supports and resources available to help them pursue education.
AB 3101: California Community College Student Data Privacy
Author: Assemblymember Carrillo
Status: Chaptered
Campaign Position: Support
Reduces barriers for students on their pathway to college by revising the online student application to community colleges (CCCApply) and limiting questions to information mandated by federal and state law or determined by the Chancellor’s Office as necessary to collect.
AB 3153: Student Financial Aid: Cal Grants: Summer Term Students
Author: Assemblymember Levine
Status: Held in Senate Appropriations Committee – Suspense File
Campaign Position: Support
Expands the total period of eligibility for a student to receive Cal Grant A or B awards to two summer term sessions of up to nine units each summer in order to increase likelihood of timely completion of a baccalaureate degree program.
SB 539: College Access Tax Credit
Author: Senators De León and Portantino
Status: Vetoed by Governor
Campaign Position: Support
Garners additional resources to support the Cal Grant Part B Access Award and help low-income students cover increasing non-tuition costs to attend college by increasing the amount provided to taxpayers under the College Access Tax Credit Fund from 50 to 70 percent of their contributions to the College Access Tax Credit Fund.
SB 1471: Cal Grant Program: Competitive Cal Grant A and B awards
Author: Senator Hernandez
Status: Held in Senate Appropriations Committee – Suspense File
Campaign Position: Support
Increases the number of competitive Cal Grant awards that may be granted in an academic year from 25,750 to 30,000 in order to provide financial assistance to a greater number of underserved students.
SR 84: Relative to California Dream Act of 2011
Author: Senator de León
Status: Chaptered
Campaign Position: Support
Encourages California residents eligible for in-state tuition and financial aid under the California Dream Act of 2011 to fill out the California Dream Act Application and continue the process of applying for college, to realize their full potential and continue to make significant contributions to our state and nation.
