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AB-796 Public postsecondary education: admission of pupils who have earned associate of arts degrees while attending high school.(2019-2020)

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Date Published: 05/01/2019 09:00 PM
AB796:v98#DOCUMENT

Amended  IN  Assembly  May 01, 2019

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2019–2020 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 796

Introduced by Assembly Member Holden

February 20, 2019

An act to amend Section 28130 of, and to add Section 28130.5 to, the Financial Code, relating to student loans. An act to amend Section 66202 of the Education Code, relating to public postsecondary education.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 796, as amended, Holden. Student loan servicers: loan forgiveness information. Public postsecondary education: admission of pupils who have earned associate of arts degrees while attending high school.
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. A provision of the Donahoe Higher Education Act expresses the intent of the Legislature that specified categories of applicants be prioritized in a specified order for the purpose of enrollment planning and admission priority practice at the undergraduate resident student level for the California State University and the University of California. Provisions of the Donahoe Higher Education Act apply to the University of California only to the extent that the regents act, by resolution, to make them applicable.
This bill would add the category of California residents who have earned associate of arts degrees while attending high school immediately above other California residents entering at the freshman and sophomore levels and immediately below qualified transfer students in the order of those prioritized categories.

The Student Loan Servicing Act provides for the licensure, regulation, and oversight of student loan servicers by the Department of Business Oversight, which is headed by the Commissioner of Business Oversight. The act prohibits a person from engaging in the business of servicing a student loan in this state without a license, subject to specific exclusions. The act imposes civil and criminal penalties for violations of its provisions.

Under the act, a licensee is required to provide information on its internet website or links to information regarding repayment and loan forgiveness options that may be available to borrowers and to also provide this information or these links to borrowers via written correspondence or email at least once a year.

This bill would require a licensee, via written correspondence or email once a year, to also provide free of charge a description of the terms and conditions under which a borrower may obtain full or partial forgiveness or discharge of principal and interest, defer repayment of principal or interest, or be granted forbearance on a federal loan, including various information about the types of loans that can be forgiven or discharged and the impact of consolidation. By expanding the scope of a crime, the 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 no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

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

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


SECTION 1.

 Section 66202 of the Education Code is amended to read:

66202.
 (a) It is the intent of the Legislature that the following categories be followed, insofar as practicable in the following numerical order, for the purpose of enrollment planning and admission priority practice at the undergraduate resident student level for the California State University and the University of California:
(1) Continuing undergraduate students in good standing.
(2) California Community College transfer students who have successfully concluded a course of study in an approved transfer agreement program.
(3) (A) Other California Community College students who have met all of the requirements for transfer.

As

(B) As stated in legislative findings, the transfer function plays a key role in meeting the state’s goals of educational equity. Therefore, the Board of Regents of the University of California and the Board of Trustees of the California State University shall declare as policy for this paragraph and paragraph (2) of this subdivision that students who are eligible to transfer and who are from historically underrepresented groups or economically disadvantaged families shall be given preference, to the fullest extent possible under state and federal law, statutes, and regulations, in transfer admissions decisions, and shall design policies in conformity with state and federal statutes and regulations intended to facilitate their success in achieving transfer.
(4) Other qualified transfer students.
(5) California residents who have earned associate of arts degrees while attending high school.

(5)

(6) California residents entering at the freshman or sophomore levels.
(b) It is further the intent of the Legislature that that, within each of the preceding enrollment categories, the following groups of applicants receive priority consideration in admissions practice in the following order:
(1) Residents of California residents who are recently released veterans of the armed forces Armed Forces of the United States.
(2) Transfers from California public community colleges.
(3) Applicants who have been previously enrolled at the campus to which they are applying, provided they left this institution in good standing.
(4) Applicants who have a degree or credential objective that is not generally offered at other public institutions of higher learning within California.
(5) Applicants for whom the distance involved in attending another institution would create financial or other hardships.
(c) It is further the intent of the Legislature that those veterans referred to in paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) who were enrolled in good standing at a campus of the University of California or at one of the California State Universities prior to military service receive priority over other veterans recently released from military service.

SECTION 1.Section 28130 of the Financial Code is amended to read:
28130.

A licensee shall do all of the following:

(a)Develop policies and procedures reasonably intended to promote compliance with this division.

(b)File with the commissioner any report required by the commissioner.

(c)Comply with the provisions of this division and any regulation or order of the commissioner.

(d)Submit to periodic examination by the commissioner as required by this division and any regulation or order of the commissioner.

(e)Advise the commissioner of filing a petition for bankruptcy within five days of the filing.

(f)Provide, free of charge on its internet website, information or links to information regarding repayment and loan forgiveness options that may be available to borrowers and provide this information or these links to borrowers via written correspondence or email at least once per calendar year, including providing the information required by Section 28130.5.

(g)(1)Respond to a qualified written request by acknowledging receipt of the request within 10 business days and within 30 business days, provide information relating to the request and, if applicable, the action the licensee will take to correct the account or an explanation for the licensee’s position that the borrower’s account is correct.

(2)The 30-day period described in paragraph (1) may be extended for not more than 15 days if, before the end of the 30-day period, the licensee notifies the borrower of the extension and the reasons for the delay in responding.

(3)After receipt of a qualified written request related to a dispute on a borrower’s payment on a student loan, a licensee shall not, for 60 days, furnish adverse information to any consumer reporting agency regarding any payment that is the subject of the qualified written request.

(h)(1)Except as provided in federal law or required by a student loan agreement, a licensee shall inquire of a borrower how to apply an overpayment to a student loan. A borrower’s direction on how to apply an overpayment to a student loan shall stay in effect for any future overpayments during the term of a student loan until the borrower provides different directions.

(2)For purposes of this subdivision, “overpayment” means a payment on a student loan in excess of the monthly amount due from a borrower on a student loan, also commonly referred to as a prepayment.

SEC. 2.Section 28130.5 is added to the Financial Code, to read:
28130.5.

In addition to the information required pursuant to Section 28130, a licensee, via written correspondence or email at least once per calendar year, shall provide free to charge a detailed description of the terms and conditions under which a borrower may obtain full or partial forgiveness or discharge of principal and interest, defer repayment of principal or interest, or be granted forbearance on a federal Title IV loan, including foregiveness benefits or discharge benefits available to a Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) borrower who consolidates their loan into the federal Direct Loan program. The description shall include all of the following:

(a)The difference between forgiveness, cancellation, and discharge.

(b)The different forgiveness, cancellation, and discharge programs available and how to qualify for them.

(c)The types of loans that can be forgiven or discharged.

(d)The impact of consolidation, enrollment status, and new loans on forgiveness.

(e)The forms required under federal law, including employment certification forms.

SEC. 3.

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.