CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2017–2018 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill No. 990

Introduced by Assembly Member Rodriguez

February 16, 2017

An act to add Section 66014.2 to the Education Code, relating to public postsecondary education.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 990, as introduced, Rodriguez. Public postsecondary education: California State University: University of California: estimates of off-campus housing costs.
Existing law establishes the California State University, under the administration of the Trustees of the California State University, and the University of California, under the administration of the Regents of the University of California, as 2 of the segments of public postsecondary education in this state. The California State University comprises 23 institutions of higher education, and the University of California comprises 10 institutions of higher education, and these institutions are located throughout the state.
This bill would express legislative findings and declarations relating to the reporting of estimates of off-campus housing costs to students. The bill would require each campus of the California State University, and request each campus of the University of California, to post on its Internet Web site timely information about the current market cost of a one-bedroom apartment in the areas surrounding that campus where its students commonly reside. The bill would require or request the campuses, in reporting information pursuant to this bill, to exercise due diligence and consult bona fide and reliable sources of information about local housing market costs, as specified.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

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


SECTION 1.

 (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(1) There is no uniformity or clarity in the reporting of the costs of off-campus housing by campuses of the California State University (CSU) and the University of California (UC).
(2) Some campuses report an estimated housing budget for a calendar year, others for an academic year, and still others do not specify.
(3) There is no clear indication of how the cost estimates were conceived, and no information about what type of off-campus housing is being discussed.
(4) Campuses located in the same geographic areas report varying housing costs. For example, UCLA reports estimated housing costs of $10,653 for an academic year, while CSU Los Angeles reports housing costs of $13,434. UC Irvine estimates $9,803, while nearby CSU Fullerton estimates $13,882.
(5) Housing cost estimates often do not seem to reflect current market costs: for example, UC Berkeley estimates $7,546 in living costs for a year, which appears to be below market value for that area, and the CSU system lists housing costs in San Luis Obispo ($12,009) as being less than costs in Bakersfield ($13,780).
(6) There is a vital need for accurate information in this regard because estimated housing costs are an important part of the calculation of a student’s need for financial aid.
(b) Therefore, it is the intent of the Legislature, in enacting this act, to ensure that each campus of the California State University, and to request that each campus of the University of California, provides the timely and accurate estimates of housing costs that its students need to plan for their educational futures.

SEC. 2.

 Section 66014.2 is added to the Education Code, to read:

66014.2.
 Each campus of the California State University shall, and each campus of the University of California is requested to, post on its Internet Web site timely information about the current market cost of a one-bedroom apartment in the areas surrounding that campus where its students commonly reside. In reporting this information, the campus shall exercise due diligence, and shall consult bona fide and reliable sources of information about local housing market costs, including, but not necessarily limited to, information received from students of that campus, local newspapers and bulletin boards, and Internet Web sites on which notices regarding local rental vacancies are posted. The information posted pursuant to this section shall be posted in the same location on the campus Internet Web site where the housing cost estimates for off-campus students are posted.