The Legislature has taken several active steps this session to introduce measures that encourage active and veteran military individuals to enter California universities.

In particular the CSU Board of Trustee’s sponsored Assembly Bill 950 by Assembly Member Mary Salas which would establish a consistent policy regarding non-resident fee waivers for members of our armed forces, stationed in California, who are not residents of California and are graduate students at the CSU by providing them an additional two years at the in-state rate. Currently this measure has advanced from the Assembly with unanimous support and has now been referred to Senate’s Education and Veteran Affairs Committee.

In addition to this measure, three other measures are advancing this session to provide additional assistance or aid to this population. Assembly Member Mimi Walters has introduced AB 767 which proposes to create the Golden State GI Bill of Rights for Higher Education. This would allow California residents who have been discharged from the military and have exhausted their federal benefits to receive a fee waiver of the resident tuition indefinitely (it would not allow a second master’s degree to be received for free) at the CSU, the University of California (UC), and the California Community Colleges (CCC). This measure was placed on the Assembly’s Appropriation Committee’s Suspense File which will be dealt with this week. The committee placed this proposal on suspense due to the fiscal impact created by the waiver of all fees for these students and the cost that would need to be reimbursed to the universities to cover the lost revenue.

Senator George Runner has introduced SB 272 which proposes to provide members of the Armed Forces of the United States priority enrollment status for classes at the CSU for the first semester after leaving active duty if enrolled within two year of leaving active duty status. This measure would also allow a CSU student who is required to take an active leave because they have been called up to active military duty to also be given priority enrollment status for their first semester back as well. This measure was passed out of the Senate and is now in the Assembly awaiting referral to a policy committee.

Finally, Senator Lou Correa has introduced SB 983, which would create the California National Guard Education Assistance Program, administered by the Adjutant General of the National Guard to provide additional incentives to those who enlist in the National Guard by providing these individuals financial assistance for college. Funding for the first year of this new program of $1.7 million was placed into the Governor’s proposed budget, because of this, SB 983 was placed on the Senate’s suspense file.