Sponsor: Assemblymember Jose Medina (D)
Summary: Current version (9/4/2015): Authorizes state agencies that provide certification, registration or licensure necessary to promote the safety and protection of the public to, on a case-by-case basis, consider for certification, registration or licensure students who were enrolled in a program of Corinthian Colleges, Inc. that provided education or training aimed towards these students receiving certifications, registration or licensure from the state agency, and who did not receive that certification, registration or licensure due to the closure of that institution.
Requires the Bureau of Private Postsecondary Education to notify the Attorney General of all unlawful Corinthian Colleges, Inc., closures within 15 days of the effective date of these provisions.
Requires the board of governors, until July 1, 2018, to waive the fee for students who were enrolled at a California campus of a Corinthian Colleges, Inc., institution, and were either unable to complete an educational program offered by the campus due to the campus’s closure on April 27, 2015, or withdrew from an educational program offered by a Corinthian Colleges campus after the earlier of either (1) 120 days before the closure or an earlier date as may determined by the Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education or (2) the date set by the United States Department of Education for closed school loan discharge eligibility, and have demonstrated financial need, as determined by the enrolling campus.
Requires the Governor to establish a single point of contact to respond to each closure of an institution that does not comply with closure and related requirements prior to closing.
Requires, upon the unlawful closure of an institution, the bureau to provide timely grant funds to local legal aid organizations to assist students of that institution with loan discharge requests and tuition recovery related claims.
Appropriates the sum of $1,300,000 from the Student Tuition Recovery Fund to the Bureau of Private Postsecondary Education for the purposes of providing grants to eligible nonprofit community service organizations to assist students affected by the closure of Corinthian Colleges, Inc.
Requires the Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education in the Department of Consumer Affairs to establish, until January 1, 2020, a single point of contact to respond to the closure of an institution that does not comply with these requirements prior to closing. Requires the single point of contact to assist the students who were enrolled at, or in an online program offered by, the institution in, among other things, obtaining refunds, loan discharges, and tuition recovery.
Establishes the Student Tuition Recovery Fund and requires the bureau to adopt regulations governing the administration and maintenance of the fund, including requirements relating to assessments on students and student claims against the fund, and establishes that the moneys in this fund are continuously appropriated to the bureau for specified purposes. Caps the amount that may be in the fund at any time at $30,000,000. Authorizes a private postsecondary institution to submit Student Tuition Recovery Fund assessments to the Bureau of Private Postsecondary Education for its students who are enrolled at the institution, prohibits the institution from advertising or marketing this as a benefit it provides for its students and establishes additional requirements related to the fund.
Deems a student who was enrolled at a California campus of a Corinthian Colleges, Inc. institution, or a California student who was enrolled in an online program offered by an out-of-state campus of a Corinthian Colleges, Inc., institution, to be eligible for recovery from the fund. Raises the cap for the fund to $50,000,000. Requires the Attorney General, or a qualified entity under contract with the Attorney General, to provide timely grant funds to eligible nonprofit community service organizations, as defined, to assist students of that institution with loan discharge and other student loan-related requests and tuition recovery-related claims, as specified. States that the aggregate amount of these grants and the reasonable administrative costs to the Attorney General’s office related to the grants would be made available from the Student Tuition Recovery Fund, making an appropriation.
Exempts from this limitation on Cal Grant awards a student who was enrolled at a California campus of Heald College, and who was unable to complete an educational program offered by the campus due to its closure.
Current version (9/4/2015): http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/15-16/bill/asm/ab_0551-0600/ab_573_bill_20150904_amended_sen_v91.pdf
Previous version (8/31/2015): http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/15-16/bill/asm/ab_0551-0600/ab_573_bill_20150831_amended_sen_v92.pdf
Previous version (8/18/2015): http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/15-16/bill/asm/ab_0551-0600/ab_573_bill_20150818_amended_sen_v93.pdf
Previous version (7/9/2015): http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/15-16/bill/asm/ab_0551-0600/ab_573_bill_20150709_amended_sen_v94.pdf
Previous version (6/2/2015): http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/15-16/bill/asm/ab_0551-0600/ab_573_bill_20150602_amended_sen_v95.pdf
Previous version (5/11/2015): http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/15-16/bill/asm/ab_0551-0600/ab_573_bill_20150511_amended_asm_v96.pdf
Previous version (5/7/2015): http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/15-16/bill/asm/ab_0551-0600/ab_573_bill_20150507_amended_asm_v97.pdf
Previous version (5/4/2015): http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/15-16/bill/asm/ab_0551-0600/ab_573_bill_20150504_amended_asm_v98.pdf
Introduced: http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/15-16/bill/asm/ab_0551-0600/ab_573_bill_20150224_introduced.pdf
Status: Introduced 2/24/2015. Referred Assembly Committee on Higher Education 3/9/2015. Hearing held, reported; re-referred to Assembly Committee on Appropriations 4/28/2015. Amended 5/4/2015. Hearing held, reported 5/6/2015. Amended, re-referred to Assembly Committee on Higher Education 5/7/2015. Amended 5/11/2015. Hearing held, reported 5/12/2015. Passed Assembly; received in Senate, referred to Senate Committee on Rules 5/14/2015. Rereferred to Senate Committee on Business, Professions and Economic Development and Senate Committee on Education 5/28/2015. Amended 6/2/2015. Hearing postponed 6/22/2015. Hearing canceled 6/29/2015. Hearing held; reported; re-referred to Senate Committee on Education 7/8/2015. Amended 7/9/2015. Hearing held, reported; re-referred to Senate Committee on Appropriations 7/15/2015. Amended 8/18/2015. Hearing held; placed in suspense file 8/24/2015. Hearing held; reported 8/27/2015. Amended 8/31/2015. Amended 9/4/2015. Passed Senate; returned to Assembly; Assembly concurred with Senate amendments 9/11/2015. Sent to Governor 9/23/2015. Vetoed by Governor Jerry Brown (D) 10/8/2015.
Outlook: This measure was vetoed by Governor Jerry Brown (D). In his veto message, the Governor stated, “I am sympathetic to the many students who were enrolled at Corinthian Colleges when the company abruptly shuttered its doors earlier this year. I signed S.B. 150, which prevents students whose loans have been discharged from being penalized a second time with a significant tax bill on the value of the loan discharge, which they can ill afford to pay. While the bill’s provisions to extend Cal Grant eligibility for Heald students are well-intentioned, I am not comfortable creating new General Fund costs outside of the budget process, particularly given the Cal Grant augmentations already included in this year’s budget.” The Legislature may override his veto with a two-thirds majority vote in each chamber.
The Assembly concurred with the Senate amendments by a 79-0 vote.
The Senate adopted this measure by a 36-0 vote.
The Assembly adopted this measure by a 74-0 vote.
The sponsor is a member of the majority party. The Democratic Party controls both chambers of the Legislature as well as the Office of the Governor.
Effective Date: Upon approval by the Governor.