BILL NUMBER: AB 2047ENROLLED BILL TEXT PASSED THE SENATE AUGUST 23, 2010 PASSED THE ASSEMBLY JUNE 3, 2010 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 28, 2010 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Hernandez FEBRUARY 17, 2010 An act to amend Section 66205 of the Education Code, relating to public postsecondary education. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 2047, Hernandez. Public postsecondary education: admissions policies. Existing law, the Donahoe Higher Education Act, sets forth, among other things, the missions and functions of California's public and independent segments of higher education, and their respective institutions of higher education. Existing law establishes the University of California, under the administration of the Regents of the University of California, and the California State University, under the administration of the Trustees of the California State University, as 2 of the public segments of postsecondary education. 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 these provisions applicable. A provision of the act expresses legislative intent with respect to the determination of standards and criteria for admission to the University of California and the California State University. This bill would authorize the University of California and the California State University to consider geographic origin and household income, along with other relevant factors, in undergraduate and graduate admissions. The bill would also authorize the University of California and the California State University to consider race, gender, ethnicity, and national origin, along with other relevant factors, in undergraduate and graduate admissions, to the maximum extent permitted by the 14th Amendment of the United States Constitution and relevant case law. The bill would require the trustees, and request the regents, to report, in writing, to the Legislature and the Governor by November 1, 2012, on the implementation of the bill. The bill would require these reports to include information relative to the number of students admitted, disaggregated by race, gender, ethnicity, national origin, geographic origin, and household income, and compared to the prior 2 years of admissions. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 66205 of the Education Code is amended to read: 66205. (a) In determining the standards and criteria for undergraduate and graduate admissions to the University of California and the California State University, it is the intent of the Legislature that the governing boards do all of the following: (1) Develop processes which strive to be fair and are easily understandable. (2) Consider the use of criteria and procedures that allow students to enroll who are otherwise fully eligible and admissible but who have course deficiencies due to circumstances beyond their control, and, when appropriate, provide that the admission requires the student to make up the deficiency. (3) Consult broadly with California's diverse ethnic and cultural communities. (b) It is the intent of the Legislature that the University of California and the California State University, pursuant to Section 66201.5, seek to enroll a student body that meets high academic standards and reflects the cultural, racial, geographic, economic, and social diversity of California. (c) (1) Pursuant to subdivision (b), the University of California and the California State University may consider geographic origin and household income, along with other relevant factors, in undergraduate and graduate admissions. (2) Pursuant to subdivision (b), the University of California and the California State University may consider race, gender, ethnicity, and national origin, along with other relevant factors, in undergraduate and graduate admissions, to the maximum extent permitted by the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution, including, but not limited to, any use to obtain an educational benefit through the recruitment of a multifactored, diverse student body as permitted by the decision of the United States Supreme Court in Grutter v. Bollinger (2003) 539 U.S. 306, in which the court upheld a university's "narrowly tailored use of race in admissions decisions to further a compelling interest in obtaining the educational benefits that flow from a diverse student body." (3) (A) The Trustees of the California State University shall, and the Regents of the University of California are requested to, report, in writing, to the Legislature and the Governor by November 1, 2012, on the implementation of this subdivision. These reports shall include information relative to the number of students admitted, disaggregated by race, gender, ethnicity, national origin, geographic origin, and household income, and compared to the prior two years of admissions. (B) A report to be submitted pursuant to subparagraph (A) shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code. (d) It is the intent of the Legislature that the California State University and the University of California use existing data-gathering methodologies to the greatest extent possible in preparing the report required by paragraph (2) of subdivision (c).