Bill Text: CA SB640 | 2025-2026 | Regular Session | Amended
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Public postsecondary education: admission, transfer, and enrollment.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 10)
Status: (Passed) 2025-10-06 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 421, Statutes of 2025. [SB640 Detail]
Download: California-2025-SB640-Amended.html
SEC. 3. Section 66749.85 is added to the Education Code , to read: 66749.85.
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.
Bill Title: Public postsecondary education: admission, transfer, and enrollment.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 10)
Status: (Passed) 2025-10-06 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 421, Statutes of 2025. [SB640 Detail]
Download: California-2025-SB640-Amended.html
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Amended
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Assembly
September 02, 2025 |
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Amended
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Assembly
June 19, 2025 |
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Amended
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May 23, 2025 |
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May 06, 2025 |
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Amended
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April 21, 2025 |
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE—
2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION
Senate Bill
No. 640
| Introduced by Senator Cabaldon (Principal coauthor: Senator Pérez) (Coauthors: Senators McGuire and Wahab) (Coauthors: Assembly Members Aguiar-Curry, Connolly, Ortega, Rogers, Schiavo, and Stefani) |
February 20, 2025 |
An act to amend Section 66744.1 of, and to add Sections Section 66209 and 66749.85 to, the Education Code, relating to public postsecondary education.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 640, as amended, Cabaldon.
Public postsecondary education: admission, transfer, and enrollment.
(1) Existing law establishes the California State University, under the administration of the Trustees of the California State University, as one of the segments of postsecondary education in the state.
Existing law requires the California State University to establish a model uniform set of academic standards for purposes of recognition for admission to the California State University. Under existing law, the University of California and the California State University are expected to plan that adequate spaces are available to accommodate all California resident students who are eligible and likely to apply to attend an appropriate place within the system.
This bill would establish the CSU Direct Admission Program under which a pupil graduating from a high school of a
participating local educational agency is deemed eligible for enrollment into a designated California State University campus. The bill would require, upon the implementation of transcript-informed pupil accounts, the reporting available on the CaliforniaColleges.edu platform to be used to provide the data required to determine eligibility for the program, as specified. The bill would require the California College Guidance Initiative, on behalf of the California State University, to transmit a letter of direct admission to each eligible pupil that notifies the pupil that they have been directly admitted, as specified.
(2)Existing law provides community college students with a transfer pathway, facilitated by mechanisms such as the associate degree for transfer (ADT), allowing students to apply academic credit earned at a community college toward receipt of a baccalaureate degree at a 4-year postsecondary educational institution. Existing law requires a student who earns an ADT to be deemed eligible for transfer into a California State University baccalaureate program when the student meets certain requirements.
Existing law establishes, until July 1, 2027, the Associate Degree for Transfer Intersegmental Implementation Committee for specified purposes, including to serve as the primary entity charged with the oversight of the ADT and to achieve specified objectives relating to the ADT and transfer model curricula (TMCs), as specified. Existing law requires the committee, on or
before December 31, 2023, to provide the Legislature with recommendations on certain issues impeding the scaling of the ADT and streamlining transfer across segments for students.
This bill would require the office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges to establish, in collaboration with the Academic Senate of the California Community Colleges and the California State University, an intersegmental curriculum workgroup composed of community college and California State University faculty who teach in fields of study with high opportunity for social mobility for the purpose of creating no fewer than 5 TMCs that are not related to existing ADTs, as specified.
(3)
(2) Existing law, until the 2026–27 academic year, requires the trustees to offer for first-time freshman applicants meeting certain criteria a dual admissions program, and authorizes eligible first-time freshman applicants to enter into a dual admissions agreement with the California State University that guarantees the student’s admission to a specific campus of the segment selected by the student at the time of the agreement if the student completes transfer requirements, which may include completion of an ADT associate degree for transfer (ADT) or another established course of study for transfer within 2 academic years at a California community college.
This bill would extend the above-described dual admission program until the 2035–36 academic year, and would
instead require a student to complete an ADT or another established course of study for transfer within 3 academic years at a California community college. The bill would also require the California Community Colleges to take certain actions to promote the program.
(4)
(3) By imposing new duties on community college districts, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
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.
Digest Key
Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: YESBill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Section 66209 is added to the Education Code, immediately following Section 66208, to read:66209.
(a) The CSU Direct Admission Program is hereby established.(b) For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:
(1) “California College Guidance Initiative” means the initiative defined in Section 10861 and further authorized pursuant to Section 60900.5.
(2) “Chancellor” means the Chancellor of the California State University.
(3) “Local educational agency” means a school district, county office of education, or charter school.
(4) “Program” means the CSU Direct Admission Program established pursuant to this section.
(5) “University participant” means a campus of the California State University that is designated pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (c) to participate in the CSU Direct Admission Program.
(c) (1) The chancellor shall designate one or more campuses of the California State University as university participants in the program.
(2) It is the intent of the Legislature that the chancellor designate each campus of the California State University with available enrollment capacity to be a university participant.
(d) (1) Upon the implementation of transcript-informed pupil accounts for pupils in grades 9 to 12, inclusive, on the CaliforniaColleges.edu platform, the reporting available on the platform shall be used to provide the data required to determine eligibility for the program.
(2) A local educational agency that complies with paragraph (3) of subdivision (g) of Section 60900 and offers transcript-informed pupil accounts for pupils in grades 9 to 12, inclusive, on the CaliforniaColleges.edu platform, as specified in paragraph (3) of subdivision (f) of Section 60900, shall participate in the program.
(3) Direct admission eligibility shall include, but not be limited to, the coursework completed by the end of grade 11. This shall include on-track completion of A–G courses
and a qualifying A–G California State University grade point average.
(4) All pupils in grade 12 who are enrolled in a participating local educational agency are hereby designated as applicants to the California State University for the purpose of making direct admissions offers.
(e) On or before the opening of the fall semester priority application filing period of each year, the California College Guidance Initiative, on behalf of the California State University, shall transmit a letter of direct admission, under the chancellor’s signature, to each pupil enrolled in a participating local educational agency who satisfies the eligibility requirements described in paragraph (3) of subdivision (d) that notifies the pupil that they have been directly admitted. The letter shall
describe the enrollment procedures the pupil needs to complete in order to successfully enroll.
(f) Upon accepting an offer of admission to one of the university participants pursuant to this section, a pupil shall complete the necessary procedures to enroll at the university participant.
SEC. 2.
Section 66744.1 of the Education Code is amended to read:66744.1.
(a) As used in this section, unless the context requires otherwise, “university” means the California State University.(b) It is the intent of the Legislature that the California State University establish a dual admissions program as a separate transfer pathway for first-time freshman applicants, and that the dual admissions program be designed to aid in achieving the following goals:
(1) Increasing access to the university for prospective underrepresented students experiencing limitations in high school curriculum offered, geographical constraints, or financial challenges.
(2) Increasing graduation rates among underrepresented students.
(3) Reducing student costs and time-to-degree completion.
(4) Improving transfer pathways between the California Community Colleges, the University of California, and the university.
(5) Increasing predictability for purposes of student and institutional planning.
(c) Commencing with the 2023–24 academic year, and each academic year through the 2035–36 academic year, the Trustees of the California State University shall offer a dual admissions program for first-time freshman applicants who meet the criteria described in paragraph (1) of subdivision (e). Under this program, first-time
freshman applicants may be offered the opportunity to enter into a dual admissions agreement with the university. The agreement shall include, but is not limited to, all of the following:
(1) (A) A guarantee that the student will be admitted to a university campus during a future academic year if the student successfully completes an associate degree for transfer or another established course of study for transfer within three academic years at a California community college.
(B) The guarantee of admission shall be for a specific university campus selected by the student at the time of the agreement. If the student’s desired major or selected university campus is impacted or oversubscribed, the agreement may specify supplementary criteria for the student to meet, such
as required attainment of a grade point average above the minimum defined in the general admission requirements. The university shall specify in the agreement any applicable supplementary criteria, including the specific grade point average that the student must attain in lower-division coursework. If the student plans to complete an associate degree for transfer, the supplementary criteria shall not alter the unit requirements applicable to the selected associate degree for transfer.
(2) For students who are eligible to have their fees waived pursuant to Article 1 (commencing with Section 76300) of Chapter 2 of Part 47 of Division 7, or under the California College Promise pursuant to Article 3 (commencing with Section 76396) of Chapter 2 of Part 47 of Division 7, a guarantee that the applicable
campus of the California Community Colleges shall waive their fees while they are participating in the dual admissions program and enrolled at that campus.
(3) A guarantee that the student shall have access to library, counseling, and other services from the applicable university campus or the university campus nearest to the student’s primary residence, and the applicable California Community College to ensure that the student is informed of the appropriate course requirements to qualify for transfer to the university, and is also informed of the various financial aid options. California Community Colleges are requested to indicate on the student’s education plan developed pursuant to Section 78212 that the student is participating in the dual admissions program.
(d) To the extent feasible, the university is requested to provide each student who is offered the opportunity to enter into a dual admissions agreement with a provisional financial aid letter indicating the financial aid package the student may receive upon transfer to the university. The letter shall include federal, state, and institutional-based financial aid for which the student may qualify. If providing this information, the university shall clearly indicate that the financial aid package is subject to change based on updated financial information provided on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) or the California Dream Act application, as applicable, and potential changes in rules governing the provision of federal, state, and institutional-based financial aid.
(e) (1) In evaluating applications for dual admissions, the
university shall only consider applicants who meet all of the following criteria:
(A) The applicant is a first-time freshman applicant who will meet the university’s admissions eligibility criteria only upon completion of transfer requirements at a California community college.
(B) The applicant provides supporting information regarding the applicant’s inability to meet freshman admissions eligibility criteria due to limitations in the high school curriculum offered or personal or financial hardship. For purposes of this subparagraph, supporting information may include, but is not limited to, a letter from a counselor or administrator at the applicant’s high school.
(C) The applicant plans to complete
either of the following:
(i) An associate degree for transfer at a California community college.
(ii) Another established course of study for transfer at a California community college.
(2) The university shall prioritize offers of dual admissions agreements for students who plan to complete an associate degree for transfer at a California community college.
(f) The California Community Colleges shall take the following actions to promote the program:
(1) Share information about the program at new student orientation.
(2) Provide information about the program through an annual email to the new students for each incoming fall term.
(3) Post information about the program in an easily identifiable and accessible format on the campus website.
(4) Post information about the program in counseling offices and transfer centers.
(g) (1) On or before April 1, 2026, the university shall submit a progress report to the Department of Finance and the Legislature pursuant to Section 9795 of the Government Code. The report shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following information for each participating university campus:
(A) The number and names of
community colleges that partner with the university campus on a dual admission program.
(B) A description of the support services the community college and university campus partners each are providing to dual admission students.
(C) The number of students who applied, were admitted, filed a statement of intent to register, and enrolled at each university campus pursuant to a dual admission program, disaggregated by freshman eligibility, community college of attendance, and the race, ethnicity, gender, and, as applicable, federal Pell Grant and AB 540 status of these students.
(D) For Fall 2023, 2024, and 2025, the breakdown of all transfer applicants, admits, students who submitted an intent to register, and
students who enrolled by community college, race and ethnicity, gender, and Pell Grant or AB 540 status. The universities can satisfy this requirement through any existing public reporting, where applicable.
(2) The report to be submitted to the Legislature pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
(h) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2037, and as of that date is repealed.
(a)As used in this section, the following definitions apply:
(1)“ADT” means an associate degree for transfer in a field of study with high opportunity for social mobility.
(2)“TMC” means transfer model curricula created for a field of study with high opportunity for social mobility pursuant to this section.
(b)The office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges shall establish, in collaboration with the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges and the California State University, an intersegmental curriculum workgroup. The workgroup shall be composed of California Community College and
California State University faculty who teach courses in fields of study with high opportunity for social mobility. The purpose of the workgroup is to create no fewer than five TMCs that are not related to existing ADTs, in collaboration with the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges.
(c)Once a TMC is finalized, the workgroup shall submit it to the chancellor’s office. The chancellor’s office shall make the TMC available to community college districts.
(d)If an ADT is created by a community college district based on a TMC finalized and made available pursuant to subdivision (c), each California State University campus shall determine if there is a baccalaureate degree in a similar major to the TMC. This determination of similarity shall ensure that students who earn the ADT that is created under the parameters of that TMC are guaranteed admission in that similar
major at one of the California State University campuses offering that major and shall be required to complete no more than 60 units after transfer to earn the baccalaureate degree that is deemed similar to the major of the ADT if the student stays on that ADT pathway.
