Bill Text: CA AB2572 | 2021-2022 | Regular Session | Amended

California Assembly Bill 2572 (Prior Session Legislation)

Bill Title: Student financial aid: Adult Learners Grant Program: distance learning.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-04-19 - In committee: Set, first hearing. Hearing canceled at the request of author. [AB2572 Detail]

Download: California-2021-AB2572-Amended.html

Amended IN Assembly March 24, 2022

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2021–2022 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 2572

Introduced by Assembly Member Blanca Rubio

February 18, 2022

An act to amend Section ~~69513 of~~ 94874.9 of, and to add Article 23.2 (commencing with Section 70040) to Chapter 2 of Part 42 of Division 5 of Title 3 of, the Education Code, relating to ~~postsecondary education.~~ student financial aid.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 2572, as amended, Blanca Rubio. Student financial aid: ~~Student Aid Commission.~~ Adult Learners Grant Program: distance learning.

Existing law establishes the segments of postsecondary education in this state as the University of California, the California State University, the California Community Colleges, private postsecondary educational institutions, and independent institutions of higher education. Existing law establishes various programs that provide financial aid to students attending institutions in each of the segments. Existing law establishes the Student Aid Commission as the primary state agency for administering state-authorized student financial aid programs available to students attending all segments of postsecondary education.
Existing law establishes the California Distance Learning Policy, which sets forth the guiding goal and principles for the usage of technology in postsecondary education.
This bill would establish the Adult Learners Grant Program, to be administered by the Student Aid Commission and subject to an appropriation by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act or another statute for its purposes. The bill would require the commission to make grants available to California residents who are at least 25 years of age, enrolled solely in distance education courses, as defined, at a qualifying institution of higher education, as defined, and pursuing a postsecondary degree, certificate, or other recognized educational credential in a field with high employer need. The bill would require the commission to develop a grant application and to award grants to applicants with incomes that are less than the average individual or family monthly income, as defined. The bill would require the commission to prioritize grants based on at least one of 6 criteria, as provided. The bill would require the commission to certify the 3-year federal student loan cohort default rate to establish eligibility for private postsecondary educational institutions, as provided.
This bill would require qualifying institutions of higher education to annually report information about program grantees to the commission, as provided. To the extent that this reporting requirement imposes new requirements on community college districts, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would authorize the commission to adopt regulations to implement the program, as provided, and require the commission to submit a report to the Legislature on program outcomes, as provided.
The California Private Postsecondary Education Act of 2009 provides, among other things, for student protections and regulatory oversight of private postsecondary institutions in the state. The act is enforced by the Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education within the Department of Consumer Affairs. The act requires an independent institution of higher education that is exempt from the act to comply with all applicable state and federal laws. The act authorizes an independent institution of higher education that is exempt from the act to execute a contract with the bureau for the bureau to review and, as appropriate, act on complaints concerning the institution, as provided. The act is repealed on January 1, 2023.
This bill would apply the requirement to comply with all applicable state and federal laws and extend the authority to contract with the bureau, as described above, to an institution of higher education institution that (1) is located out-of-state and has no physical presence in California, (2) grants undergraduate degrees, graduate degrees, or both, and is either formed as a nonprofit corporation and accredited by an agency recognized by the United States Department of Education, or is a public institution of higher education, and (3) is a qualifying institution of higher education for purposes of the Adult Learners Grant Program, as provided. The changes to the act made by this bill would be implemented only if the operation of the act is extended by another measure.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
The 15-member Student Aid Commission is established as the state agency that generally administers student financial aid programs. These programs include, among others, the Cal Grant Program. Existing law requires the commission to appoint a director as the chief executive officer for the commission and authorizes the commission to employ other employees as it deems necessary to carry out its functions.
~~This bill would make nonsubstantive changes in this provision.~~

Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: NOYES Local Program: NOYES

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.
(a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(1) California has a growing workforce crisis that has continued to worsen during the pandemic. According to California Competes, the state needs two million more degrees and certificates to meet today’s workforce needs, promote economic mobility for its residents, and remain competitive.
(2) Meanwhile, the state ranks last in the nation with 57 percent of adults in need of higher education, including more than 5.7 million Californians with some college, but no degree. For some Californians, this has become even more of a struggle during the pandemic, as there is a need for more scheduling flexibility and financial support.
(3) According to California Competes, every region of the state has a high percentage of adults between 25 and 54 years of age who do not have postsecondary education and training, including the following regional breakdowns:
(A) In northern California, 63 percent of adults do not have a higher education degree.
(B) In the Sacramento region, 52 percent of adults do not have a higher education degree.
(C) In the bay area, 36 percent of adults do not have a higher education degree.
(D) In the central valley, 68 percent of adults do not have a higher education degree.
(E) In the central coast, 53 percent of adults do not have a higher education degree.
(F) In the County of Los Angeles, 51 percent of adults do not have a higher education degree.
(G) In the Inland Empire, 65 percent of adults do not have a higher education degree.
(H) In the County of Orange, 43 percent of adults do not have a higher education degree.
(I) In the County of San Diego, 47 percent of adults do not have a higher education degree.
(4) Over five million California adults over 25 years of age intend to enroll in higher education within the next two years, but there are significant barriers for these adults to overcome in order to enroll and complete a college degree or credential.
(5) Adults with some college education but no degree cite a lack of flexibility and difficulty balancing school and work as the most common reasons for stopping their education. Increased financial support and flexibility of course schedules are key to empowering California adults to return or enroll in a higher education program. If these barriers were to be addressed, 50 percent of these adult learners expressed strong interest in returning or enrolling in higher education.
(6) Women have dropped out of the labor force in record numbers since the beginning of the pandemic in spring 2020. The primary reason cited is the lack of childcare. There is a need to support women by creating and encouraging more flexible opportunities to earn a higher education degree and reenter the workforce.
(7) Many of California’s underserved adults have stated they are interested in pursuing higher education because it will “lead to a better job and higher income” if there were available financial aid and a flexible course schedule in order to balance studies, work, and family, including:
(A) More than 80 percent of California single parents.
(B) Over 75 percent of California’s first-generation immigrants.
(C) More than 70 percent of California’s rural adults.
(8) California is experiencing workforce shortages across multiple industries. One such industry is health care, where there is a growing worker crisis where over 11 million Californians live in an area with a shortage of health care professionals, and nearly one-third of state hospitals report critical staffing shortages. The state is estimated to need 500,000 new healthcare workers by 2024.
(b) (1) It is the intent of the Legislature to address California’s workforce crisis, particularly in health care and education, by establishing dedicated financial support for adult students to access flexible, high-quality higher education programs.
(2) The California Adult Learners Grant Program will help more adults access high-quality, affordable, flexible higher educational programs that will expand their economic opportunity and help strengthen the state’s workforce.

SEC. 2.

Article 23.2 (commencing with Section 70040) is added to Chapter 2 of Part 42 of Division 5 of Title 3 of the Education Code, to read:

Article 23.2. Adult Learners Grant Program
70040.
This article shall be known, and may be cited, as the Adult Learners Grant Program Act.
70040.5.
For purposes of this article, the following definitions apply:
(a) “California resident” means a person who would not be required to pay nonresident tuition under Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 68000) of Part 41.
(b) “Commission” means the Student Aid Commission.
(c) “Distance education” means education that uses digital technology to deliver instruction to students who are separated from the instructor or instructors and to support regular and substantive interaction between the students and the instructor or instructors, either synchronously or asynchronously. “Distance education” may also include applied skills and clinical-based training conducted in person when required for graduate licensure by a state professional licensing agency.
(d) “Grant” means an Adult Learners Grant awarded pursuant to this article.
(e) “Program” means the Adult Learners Grant Program established by this article.
(f) “Qualifying institution of higher education” means either of the following:
(1) A California public postsecondary educational institution.
(2) A private postsecondary educational institution, originally chartered and currently operating as a nonprofit entity that meets all of the following criteria:
(A) The institution is regionally accredited by an agency recognized by the United States Department of Education.
(B) The institution participates in the federal Pell Grant program (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1070a) and in at least two of the following federal student aid programs:
(i) Federal Work-Study Program (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1087–51).
(ii) Federal Stafford Loan Program.
(iii) Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant Program (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1070b).
(C) The institution has a federal student loan cohort default rate below 10 percent.
(D) The institution is approved to operate by the Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education, is exempt from the California Private Postsecondary Education Act of 2009 pursuant to subdivision (i) of Section 94874, or, if the institution has no physical presence in California, the institution contracts with the bureau to respond to California resident student complaints pursuant to Section 94874.9.
70041.
(a) The Adult Learners Grant Program is hereby established. The commission shall administer the program from any funds appropriated to the commission in the annual Budget Act or another statute for purposes of this article. The commission shall make grants available to California residents who are all of the following:
(1) At least 25 years of age in the calendar year of the application.
(2) Enrolled solely in distance education courses at a qualifying institution of higher education.
(3) Pursuing a postsecondary degree, certificate, or other recognized educational credential in a field where there is high employer need.
(b) The grant award amount shall be determined in the annual Budget Act, but shall not exceed the cost of attendance as defined in Section 304.21 of Title 34 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
(c) The commission shall award grants to applicants with incomes that are less than the average monthly family or individual income in the calendar years 2020 and 2021 needed to meet the average living wage in the applicant’s county or metropolitan statistical area of residence, as computed by the living wage calculation developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Prioritization of available grants shall include at least one of the following:
(1) Students who meet the federal Pell Grant program eligibility criteria, whether or not the student has exhausted their federal Pell Grant program award amount.
(2) Students who are single parents.
(3) Students who are former foster youth.
(4) Students located outside of a metropolitan statistical area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau and the Office of Management and Budget.
(5) Students who are the first generation of their family to attend a postsecondary educational institution.
(6) Students pursuing postsecondary education that aligns with employer needs.
(d) In awarding grants to students pursuant to this article, the commission shall develop an application for prospective students to apply for a grant. In developing the application, the commission shall consider if the application process can be integrated within the application process for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid and the California Dream Act application.
(e) Grants awarded by the commission under this article shall be used to support the costs to access a distance education program offered by a qualifying institution of higher education.
(f) The commission may use up to ____ percent of the amount appropriated for purposes of this article to support its direct costs of administering the program.
(g) The Legislature finds and declares, within the meaning of subsection (d) of Section 1621 of Title 8 of the United States Code, that undocumented persons shall be eligible to receive grants under this article.
(h) The commission shall certify by November 1 of each year the latest official three-year cohort default rate, as most recently reported by the United States Department of Education, to determine if a private postsecondary educational institution meets the criteria described in subparagraph (C) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (f) of Section 70040.5.
(1) An otherwise qualifying private postsecondary educational institution that becomes ineligible under this subdivision for grant awards shall regain its eligibility for the academic year for which it satisfies the requirements established in subparagraph (C) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (f) of Section 70040.5, as applicable.
(2) If the United States Department of Education corrects or revises a private postsecondary educational institution’s three-year cohort default rate that originally failed to satisfy the requirements established in subparagraph (C) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (f) of Section 70040.5, as applicable, and the correction or revision results in the private postsecondary educational institution’s three-year cohort default rate satisfying those requirements, that private postsecondary educational institution shall immediately regain its eligibility for the academic year to which the corrected or revised three-year cohort default rate would have been applied.
(3) An otherwise qualifying private postsecondary educational institution for which no three-year cohort default rate has been reported by the United States Department of Education shall be provisionally eligible to participate in the program until a three-year cohort default rate has been reported for the institution by the United States Department of Education.
(i) Qualifying institutions of higher education participating in the program shall annually report to the commission all of the following information about program grantees:
(1) Demographic information of grantees who began an academic program during the reporting year.
(2) The programs in which grantees commenced training in the reporting year.
(3) The number of grantees who completed an academic program within 150 percent of the published program length in the reporting year.
(4) The number of grantees who began the program and were expected to complete the program in the reporting year.
(5) A program completion rate based on the number of grantees who completed the program divided by the number of grantees who began the program and were expected to complete the program within 150 percent of the published program length during the reporting year.
(6) A graduate employment rate for grantees who completed their program in the reporting year based on those that were available for employment and secured employment, or promotion, in their field of study, divided by the total number of graduates available for employment.
(7) Any available wage data from grantees who completed their academic program in the reporting year.
(j) The commission may adopt regulations it deems necessary for the implementation of this program. If the commission adopts regulations pursuant to this subdivision, these regulations shall be adopted by December 31, ____.
(k) On or before December 31, ____, the commission shall submit a report to the Legislature on the outcomes of the program. The report shall include all of the following information:
(1) The age, gender, income, county of residence, and educational programs grantees are enrolled in.
(2) Program outcomes, including graduation rates, graduates employed in their field of study, average salary increase two years after graduation, and job placements.

SEC. 3.

Section 94874.9 of the Education Code is amended to read:

94874.9.

(a) An independent institution of higher education, as defined in Section 66010, that is exempt from this chapter pursuant to subdivision (i) of Section 94874 shall comply with all applicable state and federal laws, including laws relating to fraud, abuse, and false advertising.

(b) An institution described in subdivision (a) may execute a contract with the bureau for the bureau to review and, as appropriate, act on complaints concerning the institution, in accordance with Section 600.9 of Title 34 of the Code of Federal Regulations.

(c) An out-of-state institution of higher education without a physical presence in the state that is exempt from registering with the bureau pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 94801.5, and that is a qualifying institution of higher education, as defined in Section 70040.5, and participating in the Adult Learners Grant Program described in Article 23.2 (commencing with Section 70040) of Chapter 2 of Part 42 of Division 5, shall comply with all applicable state and federal laws, including laws relating to fraud, abuse, and false advertising.
(d) An institution described in subdivision (c) may execute a contract with the bureau for the bureau to review and, as appropriate, act on complaints from California residents concerning the institution, in accordance with Section 600.9 of Title 34 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
~~(c)~~

(e) The execution of a contract by the bureau with an institution pursuant to subdivision (b) shall constitute establishment by the state of that institution to offer programs beyond secondary education, including programs leading to a degree or certificate, in accordance with Section 600.9 of Title 34 of the Code of Federal Regulations.

~~(d)~~

(f) The bureau shall use a standard form contract for purposes of this section.

~~(e)~~

(g) A contract executed pursuant to this section shall, at a minimum, do all of the following:

(1) Require an institution to do all of the following:

(A) Cooperate with the bureau to resolve complaints received pursuant to this section.

(B) Provide the following disclosure notice in all written and Internet-based documentation in which the institution’s complaint process is described, including the student catalog, student handbook, and the institution’s ~~Internet Web site:~~ internet website:

“An individual may contact the Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education for review of a complaint. The bureau may be contacted at (address), Sacramento, CA (ZIP Code), ~~(Internet Web site~~ (internet website address), (telephone and fax numbers).”

(D) Pay one thousand seventy-six dollars ($1,076) each year for costs incurred by the bureau to perform activities pursuant to the contract, unless another amount is determined by the bureau.

(2) (A) Authorize the bureau, for any complaint it receives, including any complaints related to the institution’s policies or procedures, or both, as determined by the bureau, to refer the complaint to the institution, an accrediting agency, or another appropriate entity for resolution.

(B) The bureau shall notify the complainant and the institution of a referral.

(C) This paragraph shall not be construed to relieve the bureau of its responsibility to ensure that a complaint it has referred for purposes of resolution is resolved by the receiving entity.

~~(f)~~

(h) The bureau may terminate a contract executed pursuant to this section if an institution is no longer an independent institution of higher education as defined in Section ~~66010~~ 66010, is no longer exempt from registration as an out-of-state institution, or fails to comply with the provisions of the contract.

~~(g)~~

(i) All moneys collected by the bureau that relate to a contract executed pursuant to this section, including payments collected in accordance with subparagraph (D) of paragraph (1) of subdivision ~~(e),~~ (g), shall be deposited in the Private Postsecondary Education Administration Fund.

~~(h)~~

(j) The bureau shall maintain, on its ~~Internet Web site,~~ internet website, both of the following:

(1) The provisions of the standard form contract used for purposes of this section.

(2) A list of institutions with which the bureau has executed a contract pursuant to this section.

~~(i)~~

(k) On or before February 1, 2017, and each year thereafter, the bureau shall report to the Director of Finance and, in conformity with Section 9795 of the Government Code, to the Legislature regarding implementation of this section. The report shall include all of the following information:

(1) A list of institutions with which the bureau has executed a contract pursuant to this section.

(2) The total number of complaints received by the bureau relating to institutions listed in paragraph (1).

(3) The general nature of those complaints.

(4) The total number of those complaints referred to another entity, disaggregated by the entity to which each complaint was referred.

(5) The total number of complaints resolved, disaggregated by the entity that resolved each complaint.

(6) The total number of complaints pending, disaggregated by the entity to which each complaint was referred.

~~(j)~~

(l) Notwithstanding any other law, the Department of General Services, at the request of the bureau, may exempt contracts executed pursuant to this section from any laws, rules, resolutions, or procedures that are otherwise applicable to public contracts that the Department of General Services administers.

SEC. 4.
If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.

SECTION 1.Section 69513 of the Education Code is amended to read:
69513.
(a)The commission shall appoint a director, who shall be the chief executive officer for the commission and who shall serve at the pleasure of the commission. The Legislature hereby requests the commission to designate that executive officer as the person holding the position confidential to it within the meaning of subdivision (e) of Section 4 of Article VII of the Constitution.
~~(b)The commission may employ other employees as it deems necessary to carry out its functions under this chapter.~~