Senate Budget Sub1 — 2026-04-09

of Finance and the LAO. Good morning, Chair Perez. I'm Mark Martin, representing the CSU, and happy to provide a bit of an overview on our current enrollment situation and then dive into the turnaround plans that were submitted last month for seven campuses. These turnaround plans are part of our fiscal health monitoring program, and I'll talk a little bit about that, and then walk through some of the enrollment and cost reduction strategies that are highlighted in the plans, and then provide an update on where we're going from here. Overall, as a reminder, CSU enrollment is strong. After a major decline, CSU has experienced three consecutive years of enrollment growth and expects to reach its highest FTE enrollment level at the end of this academic year. We have exceeded enrollment expectations in the Budget Act each of the last three years and remain committed to meeting the state's compact goals with continued compact funding. However, as you know, enrollment trends are uneven. While most universities are growing, a subset primarily in Northern California to continue to to face structural declines, driven in part by regional demographic shifts and reduced community college pipelines. And you can really see the interaction with community college enrollment and CSU enrollment in this situation. The Bay Area community colleges remain challenged in enrollment as well, and that is definitely impacting CSU campuses. This imbalance throughout our system creates real impact. Some campuses are seeing strong demand that exceeds current capacity, while others are focused on rebuilding enrollment and strengthening their resource base. CSU is dealing with this issue in several ways, including reallocating some funding from campuses far below their previous enrollment levels to campuses who are above their levels and looking to expand capacity. The turnaround plans are part of this effort. Your agenda describes the budget language requiring these plans but to summarize plans were required for universities with sustained enrollment decline and the plans were required to include strategies to increase enrollment including expected outcomes results to date timelines and associated one and ongoing costs additional enrollment strategies under consideration five enrollment projections cost strategies with expected and achieved savings, implementation timelines, and further reductions under consideration. CSU took this language very seriously and developed an entire system-wide program that goes far beyond the direction provided in the budget language. We launched the fiscal health monitoring process, which is a back-and-forth discussion between the chancellor's office and campuses on enrollment, fiscal issues, issues with auxiliaries, and other pressures. This is a structured, system-wide assessment of fiscal risk and institutional performance. The chancellor's office reviewed key indicators across all 22 campuses and held individual reviews with each. All universities submitted fiscal action plans as part of this process, not just the seven. The fiscal action plans for all 22 universities are now on our website. While the plans were developed differently by each university, universities used collaborative stakeholder committees to develop many of the proposed actions. Now I'll focus on the turnaround plans. For the seven campuses, each campus has unique challenges and individualized plans to recover enrollment, but there are consistent strategies. Re-engaging stopped out and adult learners, expanding access through partnerships, guaranteed admissions, and improved information to students on financial aid, strengthening retention and student success, including proactive advising and basic needs support. For example, Dominguez Hills has successfully re-enrolled hundreds of students through targeted outreach to stopped out students. Chico State is expanding degree programs at Shasta, Yuba, and Siskiyou's community colleges. So these are bachelor's degree programs on the community college campus to reach students where they are. East Bay is providing free CSU courses to area high school students. San Francisco State is focusing on veterans, offering guaranteed admissions, knowing that the GI Bill provides the highest housing allowance in the country to veterans living in the Bay Area. All of these campuses have projected enrollments going forward with most expecting to grow and get to or move closer to their enrollment targets over the next three years. The effectiveness of these strategies will be evaluated through improvements in retention, application and yield rates, transfer volume, and enrollment in high demand programs. Clear metrics and multi-year projections will enable the Chancellor's Office to monitor measurable progress toward enrollment stabilization and recovery. Regarding fiscal issues, the universities facing significant enrollment declines face declining tuition revenue, but rising salary and benefit costs and fixed operational obligations that have produced recurring deficits that cannot be resolved through reserves or one-time funding alone. campuses have pursued aggressive cost-saving measures hiring freezes elimination of vacant positions voluntary separation programs that we are redesigning academic programs including eliminating low demand offerings this spring 218 programs across the system are suspended or discontinued we've added 40 that are in kind of healthcare and STEM, but making major changes that way, and cuts to discretionary spending, IT consolidation, energy efficiency initiatives. Beyond these specific actions taken at the campus level I want to remind the subcommittee that we are also taking major actions as a system to address our cost structures Our strategic shared initiatives program is now like the fiscal health monitoring program an ongoing program embedded into our fiscal processes and procedures. This initiative seeks to provide a venue for all universities to suggest consolidations and efficiencies and a process to enact these kind of large-scale changes. Examples already underway are the CSU Buy Procurement Program, which went live in January and allows universities to band together to buy materials and many products or search for the best deals on products. And the new network involving Sonoma, San Francisco, and East Bay campuses that are consolidating numerous administrative functions into one program that will serve all three campuses. Phase one of that program went live in January with IT, procurement, and accounts payable, all operating from a shared regional framework. Phase two will involve human resources and payroll, and that is underway. These kind of projects, along with the integration of Maritime Academy with Cal Poly Slow, will constrain cost increases and likely save campuses or the system many millions of dollars over the next several years. A few closing notes. The turnaround plans and the larger fiscal health monitoring framework are ongoing and evolving, including routine check-ins between the chancellor's office and campuses, monitoring of progress. There is a high likelihood that these plans will evolve and change along the way, depending on how different strategies are working. All of the activities I've discussed as part of these plans are in alignment with the CSU Forward Strategic Plan that the chancellor spoke about when she was here last month. That plan includes numerous specific goals that we believe will better serve more students, address state workforce needs, and meet the needs of our diverse student body. We appreciate the Governor's budget proposals for CSU and hope we can work with all of you to secure the funding that will be critical to making many of the changes I've mentioned today happen. I'm happy to take any questions. Thank you.

questions at the appropriate time good morning chair Perez member Triletta Alex Navaleskas with the Department of Finance no specific comments to add but happy to answer any questions related to the governor's budget proposals associated with the California State University thank you thank you and thank

Yeah, I'm happy to continue working with you in your office on whatever you feel would be helpful in terms of keeping track of this. This is intended to be an ongoing event. evolving process with kind of continual check-ins between the chancellor's office and campuses. One of the things that I think will be really beneficial in this process is the ability then to share best practices across the system. If one campus is doing something specifically that's really effective, that can be shared and replicated. On the stopped out students, I think you're right on there. And I think we have several campuses that are really focusing on that and having some success, bringing students back, offering a little bit of financial aid if that is a barrier or other issues, really focus support for those kind of students to get to a bachelor's degree as fast as they can. And I think we'll see how those goes. I will note, we obviously are in the kind of, for 25, 26, all but three of our campuses grew. And so actually some of the enrollment numbers in these turnaround plans, the campuses actually are at a higher number for 25-26 than the plans which were developed in the fall indicate. And so we think that some strategies are already effective or starting to work, but obviously a lot more to come. And this is now a process that is embedded in the entire system. All of the campuses, all 22, are working on these fiscal action plans and doing different strategies around enrollment and cost. And we will continue to do that. So I'm happy to kind of come back whenever you need and provide you updates. So, yeah.

Yeah, there will be. It's a continuing process, I think. I'm trying to find here, but a flow chart. We have kind of a process throughout the year in which this will kind of continue to be evaluated. We are developing metrics, and, you know, these are plans with specific activities that we can measure what's effective, what isn't. and then pivot toward the things that are most effective. So it truly is a system-wide effort. The chancellor's office is able to provide technical assistance to campuses to ensure things are implemented and then, again, help support where there are things that aren't working or where there are things that are working that we can spread around the system. So I think it is embedded now into the structure of the entire system.

updates and talk with them about how they're improving their enrollment numbers? Yeah, yeah, there are both regular meetings with the chancellor's office. And then within the campuses, There are numerous committees that meet regularly that will be kind of updating these processes, gauging results, and then making changes and moving again toward the effective strategies. But it is a system-wide process. The chancellor's office has obviously started with the kind of fiscal and budget division, but the chancellor has made it very clear to campuses that she wants sort of campus-wide involvement. And so every area of campus, academic affairs, student affairs, et cetera, will be involved in kind of monitoring it. These are particularly for these seven campuses. This is the plan. This is their marching orders for the next three years trying to get back to the enrollment levels that those targets require. And so it is kind of an all hands on deck approach with continual kind of monitoring.

this point? Yeah, I appreciate the question. And I think Dominguez Hills is sort of the campus that is, I think, most aggressively working on this. And so they have a specific unit that is doing outreach and then providing support to students as they come back trying to offer some amounts of financial aid to return and trying to find for the students the most sort of flexible program that they can get through to a bachelor's degree and so they've succeeded. They've had several hundred students return to campus and over the last couple years so this is a program that sort of actually predates the the turnaround plan but it is a significant program in which they they essentially reaching out to students and offering as much support as the student needs to come back to finish their degree using technology some online but also financial support clearing We found a lot of students had some kind of hold on their enrollment due to a fine or a fee or something like that, clearing those kinds of things so that students can come back without having to worry about that kind of thing. So I think there's multiple strategies. I think the important thing is that we have kind of dedicated staff working on this, bringing them back, supporting them along the way is kind of monitoring their progress and making sure that these students who are close really get to the finish line. And we know that that bachelor's degree is really important. Having some college but no degree is not that effective in terms of data. I think bachelor's degree holders, you know, have less unemployment, more likely to have benefits, more likely to stay employed, and some college, no degree, much less so. So but I think the intention here is the key and the kind of wraparound support that we're giving these students.

Yeah, you know, I would say some campuses are more aggressively pursuing this strategy than others. But there are several that are – this is a key strategy. So, yes.

Yeah, I totally hear your comments because I think that's right. I think we have very specific AI policies around privacy and that kind of thing. And I think the campuses that are using AI for outreach are combining that with human outreach as well. I think it's sort of all of the above, not one or the other. I think the campuses that are utilizing AI I believe the intent is to allow AI to kind of help identify students do some outreach but then it frees up the staff to do more intensive outreach to solve more complicated problems if a student has an issue So I think the intent is for the AI to be a tool to help the human staff do the work.

Okay, I understand.

I think that's a tight turnaround, but I'm happy to talk with you about that. But, yeah, I think we, again, this is a kind of ongoing process, and so we will have plenty of updates to tell you about.

Yes. Thank you for presenting your findings and your report. It's quite intensive. And obviously you're concerned, as we all are, about enrollment, because without that, that's the foundation. And I think that I'm hoping that you'd put together a recruiting team, a team. If this was a company, a corporation, and you were trying to find the best engineers or the best scientists or professors or whatever it would be, you would put together a team, and that team would report to each president at each university. and going to the communities, going back to the high schools, getting ready to talk to those graduates from high school, getting ready to get to those graduates from the community colleges and constantly be in touch with. And it's amazing how here in the state, you know, we have lobbyists constantly talking to us about various things. You know, football coaches are out there recruiting. but if you know your fundamental problem is numbers you know you'll be able to do that because you can prove success you can show the future is down the road and to be able to work with those not that are already in but staying in and then those that you hope to bring in but those who are thinking about being part of the faculty being part of the staff being part of the student body and I think that's so important and of course the dollars reflect what you do and it is what it is, I'm sorry so if you increase your enrollment the more stable your financial picture will be so I'm hoping you would that into account. And Madam Chair, I also talked with the Chancellor in reference to the ROTC

look into that don't want to drive from Cal State LA all the way to UCLA to attend that class and drive all the way back and get in on that 405. So Madam Chair, I just want to put it on the table that my ability to work with the Department of Defense and the Department of the Army and so on because of my position as chair of the military and veterans committee, I have access to that. So I'm going to work with one of the chancellors and maybe start a pilot program in a few of the schools that will be able to fund the program, which will help and recruit some of the young men and women that would like to look into having their education paid for in the Cal State system by the Department of the Army. So we're going to work together on that. So I invite you to share with my office, and I can put that together.

because if that will bring in students from across the state in different categories, that might increase, but also not be costly to you. So we'll work on that. But I think what you have, you know what you have to do. You have to implement it because not every school, university is going to be rising their numbers as quickly as one other. So it depends on that recruiting team. So please, if you could implement that, bring that back to us when you bring that report. I'd like to see what that looks like.

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Good morning, Madam Chair.

Good morning, Madam Chair and fellow member. My name is Taylor Schick and I'm the Chief Fiscal Officer for the Department of Consumer Affairs. The Department is a special funded consumer protection agency comprised of 36 boards bureaus a commission committee and a program The department accomplishes its mission by licensing and regulating over 3 million licensees across more than 200 professional license types. We want to thank you for having us here today to discuss the Bureau for Private Post-Secondary Education, its fiscal situation, and the request for $10 million from the General Fund to support its operations. To provide some background, the Bureau is supported by two special funds, the Private Post-Secondary Education Administration Fund, which supports most of the Bureau's operating expenses, and the Student Tuition Recovery Fund, which supports students that were financially harmed by the private post-secondary institution in which they were enrolled. The Bureau's Administration Fund has been structurally imbalanced for many years, meaning that expenditures have been outpacing revenues, resulting in a declining fund balance. To ensure fund solvency in FY20-21-22, the Bureau took a $12 million loan and additionally secured $24 million from the General Fund to support operations through FY20-24-25. During this time, the Bureau also conducted a study with the Foundation for California Community Colleges to explore options to bring the fund into balance and consider alternative revenue structures. The study offered several recommendations for how the Bureau could balance the fund and address its revenue shortfall. However, it did not find sufficient options that would negate the need for increasing the Bureau's annual fees, which account for approximately 90% of the Bureau's revenue. This study was released to the legislature in February of 2024. Since issuing that study, the Bureau has taken steps to address its fiscal situation, including streamlining work processes and implementing recommendations from the study, such as transitioning administrative costs for processing student tuition recovery claims and the Bureau's Office of Student Assistance and Relief from the administration fund to its student tuition relief fund. Despite these efforts, the Bureau still needs to increase its annual fees to support ongoing operations, which the Bureau is pursuing through the sunset review process this year. For 2526, the Bureau is requesting $10 million from the General Fund to repay a $10 million loan taken earlier this year to support litigation against the Bureau. By utilizing the general fund to support the repayment of the loan, it will enable fee discussions to focus solely on what fee levels are required to support the Bureau's ongoing operations and restore fund solvency without being impacted by the costs resulting from that litigation. The fee levels proposed by the Bureau in their sunset report include approval of this $10 million. Without the $10 million, the increase to the Bureau's annual fees would need to be greater to account for the repayment of that loan. I'm joined today by Deborah Cochran, Bureau Chief for the Bureau of Private Postsecondary Education, who will provide a brief overview of the program. Thank you.

Good morning, Chair and Senator. Lisa King with the Legislative Analyst's Office. We have a few concerns with the proposed $10 million general fund appropriation for the Bureau. First, we don't see an immediate need for this funding, as the existing special fund loan that it took out earlier this year does allow it to fully cover its costs in the near term. More broadly, we see drawbacks to shifting these costs from special fund to general fund. Typically, regulatory agencies cover their costs through fees that are paid by the entities they oversee, and those costs do at times include litigation. We're concerned that shifting the Bureau's litigation costs over to the General Fund could set a poor precedent, potentially increasing the state's General Fund cost exposure if other regulatory agencies were to request similar assistance. We're also particularly concerned about taking this action at a time when the General Fund is facing its own structural deficit, as using General Fund for this purpose would leave less funding available for other core state programs or for building fiscal resiliency. In these concerns, we recommend rejecting the proposed $10 million general fund appropriation for the Bureau. We further recommend addressing the underlying structural deficit in the Bureau's fund so that it does not need to rely on general fund appropriations moving forward. The legislature currently has an opportunity to address that underlying structural deficit through the Bureau's current sunset review. As part of this, it could approve fee increases so that the Bureau can cover its own costs moving forward. Thank you, and happy to take questions.

Thank you for the presentation. I wanted to know what is the status of the high polluter repair or removal account, and how has the special fund loan to BPPE impacted any of the services from this fund?

Alrighty. Senator Archuleta, do you have any questions?

So I think to the first part of that, I would assume we're going to address the fiscal insolvency of the Bureau through a fee increase measure that we're pursuing this fiscal year through sunset. The idea there is to raise fees to a certain level that both support the ongoing operations of the Bureau, but would also restore a fund balance into good standing to support it into future years, at least through its next sunset of 2030-31. And if you're discussing about, you know, issues that led to the lawsuit, Debbie can add a little bit more to that about actions that the Bureau has taken to avoid the situation in the future.

Thank you so much, Senator, for the question. So just, you know, without going into too much detail about the litigation that's been referenced, what I can share is that it is an issue related to a disability discrimination case regarding a former employee. and that this case and this instance occurred before I was appointed as bureau chief, before the Department of Consumer Affairs leadership was appointed into their positions. And, you know, I think there's, you know, the attorney general's office, which represented the bureau and DCA in this, believed that the bureau and DCA had a strong case. Ultimately, a split jury disagreed, which is what resulted in the litigation costs. You know, it does not, this type of issue certainly does not align with the values of either the Bureau or DCA. And while there are some disagreements around the parameters of the case and the judgment, we've still taken steps, both at DCA and the Bureau, to make sure that we are as accommodating as possible with employees with disabilities. Again, new leadership has come in across the board that is very committed to doing the best that we can within our roles. DCA has updated its zero tolerance and non-discrimination policies and also now we're requires all managers and staff to review these policies annually. The department's Equal Opportunity Office promptly investigates complaints of disability discrimination, and managers and employees who violate the policy are held accountable. And we also remind management of their obligations to reasonably accommodate employees with disabilities and to promptly engage in the interactive reasonable accommodation process. So there have been a lot of changes internally in terms of procedures, policies, and just, frankly, culture shifts.

Thank you.

We'll go ahead and we will move on now to our next issue. Moving on to issue 3 regarding updates on the Cal Grant program. We will start with the California Student Aid Commission, then updates from our three segments, and then turn to comments from the Department of Finance and the LEO.

whoever you'd like to go next okay thank you chair Perez I'm associate vice provost Sean Brick for the University of California the University of California is committed to making a UC education affordable to Californians. The main principle driving our financial aid policy is to ensure that qualified students can attend any UC campus regardless of their economic circumstances. And we could not achieve that without the state of California's help. So on behalf of UC students, let me thank you for your support for the Cal Grant Program, Middle Class Scholarship Program, and all the other important state financial aid programs. We provided you with a handout on how UC's financial aid program works. And so figure one in that handout provides a visual summary of how UC's financial aid strategy combines federal, state, and university resources to make UC affordable. The chart has a lot of details but I hope it provides a comprehensive overview which I'll describe very briefly. So the height of the graph represents the total estimated cost of attendance which includes not just tuition and fees, but all the other expenses like housing, meals, books, and supplies. And as we move from left to right on the graph, we go from the lowest income students to sort of middle-income students. And as you would expect as we go from left to right, we're expecting more of parents to contribute and the amount of grant assistance that they receive goes down. All UC students are

Thank you Good morning My name is Allison Beer Dean for Educational Services and Support at the California Community College's Chancellor's Office. College affordability is a core goal of the Chancellor's Office Vision 2030. As part of the strategic plan, we aim to increase with equity the number of California Community College students receiving Pell grants and California College Promise grants and a CCPG by 10%. We are working on increasing financial aid awards though affordability remains a pressing challenge for our students which has been worsened by continually increasing to total cost of attendance especially at their living expenses and uncertainty of federal financial aid programs. Ensuring that our students complete the free application for federal student aid or the California Dream Act application is the most impactful way we can maximize financial aid and ensure students have resources for meeting their full cost of attendance, including tuition and fees, as well as living expenses such as food, housing, transportation, and child care. For the current financial aid cycle, we're encouraged to see that the total number of financial aid applications are increasing from recent years. The Chancellor's Office has continued to partner with the California Student Aid Commission, our colleges, and other community organizations to support financial aid outreach and application assistance, in particular through our I Can Go to College campaign and partnerships to host Cash for College workshops. While we are encouraged by the recent data, we're also concerned by impacts on some of our student populations, including students from mixed status backgrounds who do not feel safe in applying for federal financial aid out of worry of the well-being of their families and loved ones. The Chancellor's Office has been working closely with our undocumented student liaisons to provide them with information on how undocumented and mixed status students can apply for and receive financial aid. We also remain in strong support of providing a universal pathway for any student to fill out the CADA if they so choose. In addition to support undocumented students and those from mixed status families, the Chancellor's Office has allocated to all of our colleges the state funded 20 million dollars in emergency aid for CADA filers and those funds are beginning to reach students directly. Additionally, leveraging funds from the 25-26 state budget, the Chancellor's Office is in the process of awarding grants to community-based organizations that provide financial aid application to support prospective and current students. These state funds will help meet goals for increasing financial aid receipt and providing targeted support including for undocumented students, those from mixed status families and students in underserved areas such as rural communities. Aid receipt among California Community College students has continued to increase as applications have increased. During the 24-25 academic year California's 115 community college financial aid offices awarded over 4.3 billion dollars in financial aid to over 920,000 students. This was a nearly 23% increase in the total aid awarded compared to the previous academic year. The largest source of federal aid for our students is the federal Pell Grant program which accounted for over 2.2 billion dollars in awarded aid. This is followed by our other state and institutional aid programs. Our California College Promise Grant, CCPG, is the largest in terms of number of recipients with 850 50,000 students receiving a fee waiver, totaling over $748 million in support. This is the most accessible of our Chancellor's Office programs because it has the fewest eligibility requirements. Students only need to be in good academic standing and have unmet need of $1,100 to receive the fee waiver. We also have our California College Promise Program, and of its $91 million statewide budget approximately 49 million is spent on fee waivers and direct aid to students. The remaining funds support counseling, academic services, and basic needs supports. For Cal Grants B and C, the number of community colleges receiving the award has increased to 299 million for over 170,000 students. However, this continues to represent less than 10% of our overall system-wide student population. We have worked with CSAC to identify areas for easing administrative burdens to Cal Grant receipts and strongly advocated for the Cal Grant equity framework to ensure greater affordability for largely older working student population attending community colleges. In addition, we have our Student Success Completion Grant. 125,000 students received SSCG totaling $451 million in aid. Over time, SSCG eligibility has expanded, including higher award amounts for former foster youth and students with disabilities enrolled in nine or more units, as long as they meet other eligibility requirements. We've been very encouraged to see the growth of this program, though funding at the state level has remained flat at $400 million. Many colleges have recently begun to report to the chancellor's office that they are running out of funding before being able to provide the awards to all potentially eligible students, resulting in unintended consequences and resource constraints for students who did seek to enroll in higher number of units to receive the award. So increased state funding is critical to ensure ongoing fidelity of this program as more students become eligible. And I will conclude my remarks with another top priority for the Chancellor's Office, which is equitable resources for our community college financial aid offices. The current funding formula for state financial aid administration has not been updated in quite some time. When established, it accounted for only 118 colleges. Today we have 115 that offer financial aid. The unchanged formula leaves colleges with a 6% funding deficit. Additionally, the funding formula only considers CCPG fee waivers despite massive growth in all financial aid application programs including Pell Grants and our other state aid programs. Therefore, we continue to advocate for updating the Student Financial Aid administration funding formula to reflect the actual number of financial aid applications and implementing a recurring COLA for financial aid administration. These changes are critical to ensuring California community colleges can effectively support students in accessing and

Good morning, Chair. Solis Galena with the Department of Finance. For Cal Grant, the Governor's budget proposes funding the grant for the 25-26 academic year at $2.898 billion. This is an increase of $107 million from the 2025 Budget Act. For the 2026-27 academic year, the Governor's budget proposes funding the grant at $3.235 billion. This is an increase of $444 million from the 2025 Budget Act. These increases stem from growth in resident undergraduate student enrollment, increases in tuition at the UC and CSU systems, and the requirement for all high school students to apply for the free application for federal student aid, or FAFSA. That concludes my remarks. I'm happy to take questions at the appropriate time.

Thank you for the presentation. A couple of things. One, appreciate that we have our different systems here to talk about just the impact of the Cal Grant for the students that they're serving, as well as the California Student Aid Commission. You know, I recognize that every single year as we have this discussion about the Cal Grant and its impact on students, and I've been a part of these discussions for a long time, that we have still not been able to make any movement on increasing the Cal Grant. This has happened year over year, and yet costs have continued to grow up dramatically for students, whether it's housing costs, transportation costs, food costs. And so the award doesn't go as far. In addition to that, the number of awards that we give out has not dramatically increased either. right? We've been very hesitant to do that and obviously because of cost and I recognize that kind of commitment is an ongoing cost that we'd have to estimate. I'd love to know if we were to give a Cal Grant to every student that was eligible, how many more Cal Grants would that be?

And I am very familiar with the Cal Grant Equity Framework. I was working at the Campaign for College Opportunity, and it was one of my assignments when I had the opportunity to work on it with both Assemblymember Medina and Senator Leva back in 2022. So I recognize that was passed. The money was never appropriated for it. And it still needs to go into implementation, in my opinion. But I guess what I'm more interested in hearing, you know, I've come into this role as a chair for the budget subcommittee. I have wanted us to focus more on the outcomes of the funding that we're administering. But I think when we talk about cost, when we talk about what we aren't funding, that we need to think about it in terms of the metrics of the students that we're not serving that are actually eligible for the Cal Grant, right? And I know, at least back then, back in 2022, from the numbers that we had, I think only one in every eight students that was eligible for a Cal Grant was receiving one. And I anticipate that that number has probably gone up in the last four years, you know, since I was looking deeply at this issue. And so I'm wondering, do you have numbers in terms of the students that are eligible that we are rejecting to receive a Cal Grant every single year?

these barriers within the program in itself as designed right now yeah I I would love to see some of those numbers and I mean I can tell you based off the data we were looking at back then that those are primarily black and brown students that were turning away. It's a lot of adult learners, right? That would be eligible for that. With the merit component and requirements, I remember there being a major issue around people having access to transcripts that were returning back to go to college or university that weren't able to get that information, so they wouldn't even be able to compete or be eligible. You know, and rules that exist that I think are well intended, but that don't actually make sense in the application of those rules. So I think it's really important for us to talk about some of those numbers, because it's not just about us choosing to not put more dollars towards Cal Grant. We are actively turning students away from going to college or university. We are actively rejecting aid to students who would otherwise be eligible. And I think it important for us to look at the kind of human impact that we having when we make those decisions You absolutely correct Our current one of our Cal grant programs that we have right now is our transfer entitlement program which

And so that's why it's imperative as we're seeking to increase the age from 28 to 30, even maybe beyond 30, because we certainly know that there are adult learners beyond the age of 30. And so we feel that that is a good pathway for students to come back into higher ed is through the community college and then transferring to a four year institution. So there are these barriers within our Cal Grant program that does provide limitations for certain groups of students. I would love to know as well, I think it was maybe two years ago now, I was gonna say last year, but I think it was two years ago. There were a number of issues that were happening with the FAFSA application that created disruption for students to be able to receive financial aid. I knew because at that time I had a number of high school students that were working on my campaign and then all of a sudden a number of them were having issues completing their FAFSA apps. And then I was on the phone with you all trying to troubleshoot this in real time. And so have there continued to be lingering issues from that disruption that occurred in previous years? how has that impacted just student aid distribution?

And I'd love to know, in terms of the trends and the applications that you've received so far this year, are things looking as expected? Are we seeing more or less? You know, I ran a bill last year and it was in partnership with ULSB 323 to make it easier for students to utilize the CADA as an application tool. And particularly because there were concerns about FAFSA and data sharing. Unfortunately, I think that we have probably even more data sharing concerns than we did before that has seeped into almost every aspect of our life. But at that time, there was real concern about financial aid applications and the FAFSA, the fact that the federal government owns that data. Have you seen an increase in CADA applications and in students applying that? I know I've talked with staff and, you know, they've also talked about, you know, CSAC doing the work to set up that application process. You all are able to begin adjusting some things on your end to kind of widen the ability to accept CADA applications as well. So do you see that that's necessary? Is that something that you all are working on?

And that's helpful, I think, for you all to continue to have that communication with families as they have these questions come up, I think is really critical because it is a personal decision. And, you know, I think folks are trying to weigh their options as, you know, they're continue to be targeted attacks by the federal government But as I mentioned before I now feel like this data issue has become so wide that I think people thoughts on it have maybe shifted a little bit as well, which is concerning in a different way. I'd love to hear just from the segments just about your goals for student affordability. Are there plans to improve or increase financial aid for students in the next several years. You know, I know that there is always a discussion about trying to get to this point, right, ideally of getting to free tuition, right, or getting to very low-cost tuition. I know when we were working on the Cal Grant Equity Framework, there was actually a way that we were going to get there, particularly for students that had families that had a zero EFC so that we would layer A to make it so that almost the full cost would be covered. So what are your thoughts around that and what are some of your plans around that?

preference. I'm Allison Bure for the California Community College Chancellor's Office. We also look at total cost of attendance when considering our students' affordability challenges and needing to increase access to aid. So one of our core strategies has been supporting students complete their financial aid applications, ensuring that students can complete the FAFSA so that they receive their federal Pell Grant is a major opportunity for our students to better meet their cost of attendance. Beyond that, we've worked with the Department of Finance and the legislature to ensure that our existing state-funded programs are hopefully funded with fidelity.

Thank you.

Thank You Chair Perez. Tay Kang, Deputy Director at the California Student Aid Commission. The middle-class scholarship program supports low to middle-income undergraduate and teaching credential students, meaning the cost of attendance at the University of California, the Cal State University, and the California Community College Bachelor degree programs It is designed to serve students who may not qualify for traditional need aid yet continue to face substantial financial aid barriers to higher ed Middle scholarship awards may be combined with other forms of financial aid including the Federal Pell Grant, the Cal Grant, and institutional aid, and may be applied towards the total cost of attendance. I know we just had a discussion about total cost of attendance, and so that covers that, including tuition, instructional materials, transportation and basic living expenses award amounts under the MCS program are determined based on each student's total cost of attendance and the level of other financial aid assistance received final award levels are contingent upon the number of eligible students statewide and the level of funding appropriated in the annual budget act in 22 23 the state implemented significant programmatic reforms to better align the middle class scholarship program with the actual costs incurred by students shifting the focus from tuition assistance alone to the broader total cost of attendance so the middle class scholarship was was changed in 22 23 we usually typically call it MCS 2.0 this change enables students to apply awards towards non-tuition expenses including housing and food. The 2025 budget that further advanced these improvements by streamlining program administration and enhancing coordination between the Student Aid Commission and post-secondary institutions, resulting in improved data exchange and more timely and predictable award determinations. The administration's current proposal to reduce MCS funding by more than 50% would substantially diminish the program's effectiveness. Under this proposal, award coverage would decline from 35% to 17.5%, thereby increasing financial uncertainty for students and their families and potentially affecting enrollment decisions due to reduced affordability. The Middle Class Scholarship Program remains a critical component of the state's efforts to maintain college affordability for California's working and middle class families. Recent reforms have strengthened the program's efficiency and responsiveness to student needs. A significant reduction in funding would undermine this progress by increasing financial volatility and impacting college affordability. So CSAC respectfully urges the committee to preserve stable and adequate funding for the MCS program to ensure that students are able to plan effectively, enroll, and persist through completion. Thank you.

Sean Brick at the University of California. We also, like my CSU colleague, appreciate the efforts by the legislature and the governor to expand and simplify the state's financial aid programs, especially the middle-class scholarship expansion and some of the simplification that's taken place. The middle-class scholarship program lowers that self-help, as we call it at the University of California, for many UC students, bringing us closer to that goal of a debt-free education. The program provides scholarships to about half of our families with incomes under $60,000. So as observed in Figure 1 in our handout, the awards are smaller for those low-income students given that they are receiving many other dollars from the need-based aid programs. True to its moniker, though, the Middle Class Scholarship Program does support middle-class families with larger awards. Again, we appreciate the legislature for hearing the concerns of our aid administrators and our students and taking action to implement those changes as Dr. Gromo mentioned the change in the treatment of institutional non-need based scholarships was particularly helpful and similarly reduced our need to revise awards by about for about 15% of our recipients. Additionally with earlier setting of the phase-in factor our campuses are able to include the middle-class scholarship up front and financial aid offers for prospective students. And so this year we did our campuses are using a 17.5% phase-in which was included in the governor's budget in our financial aid offers. The data exchange required between the campuses and the Commission continues to be a challenge because all of the different factors that go into calculating a student's MCS award are volatile. Their costs may change, their enrollment may change, and other financial circumstances may change. Those are all fluid elements. Like the CSU we are also concerned about the proposed reduction in the MCS program in the governor budget At present our average MCS award is approximately per recipient and so the proposed million cut to the program would lead on average to a reduction of about per UC recipient and that represents 3 to 4 of the average cost of attendance depending on whether the student is living on campus or off campus middle class scholarship program is very important part of our our strategy to reduce student debt and since that the program addresses the total cost of attendance the program really would need to increase every year just to keep pace with inflation since it's addressing those costs that increase for students with inflation again thank you to the subcommittee and our partners at the Student Aid Commission. While I mentioned some of the ongoing challenges with MCS, it has been truly beneficial to our students. And the revisions, just to put some numbers on it, the revisions from 22-23 meant that MCS grew from a program providing about $32 million to 11,000 UC students, to a program that provides over $300 million to nearly a hundred thousand UC students. So thank you again for your commitment to our students. Hugo Solis Galena with the Department of

Natalie Gonzalez with the Legislative Analyst's Office. We recommend the legislature consider adopting the Governor's proposal to reduce middle-class scholarship award coverage. Even both our office and the administration are projecting notable out-year budget deficits, the legislature will have to consider cost-containing solutions, and this is the only proposed higher education budget solution. We recommend considering this solution as it may be one of the less disruptive choices the legislature faces when deciding how to limit out-year spending since the middle-class scholarship program is less targeted to lower-income students and has significant overlap with the Cal Grant program. Specifically, when the middle class scholarship program was created in 2013, it was intended to provide partial tuition coverage to higher income students at UC and CSU who generally did not qualify for a Cal Grant award. Unlike the Cal Grant program, these students did not have to demonstrate financial need in order to receive the award. During this time, the program served about 50,000 students and cost around $100 million annually. In 22 as noted the program was revamped from covering partial tuition to covering a percentage of students remaining cost of attendance Under this revamped program students who received a Cal Grant could now also receive a middle class scholarship award as they could use that award for non costs Today the program serves about 350,000 students with household incomes up to $234,000. Of these students, about half of them are Cal Grant recipients, so many students are receiving both a Cal Grant and a middle class scholarship award. Though the impact of the award reduction will be felt differently among students, some students may have to work a few additional hours or take out larger loans in order to compensate for their smaller middle-class scholarship awards. The impact on the Cal Grant recipients could be smaller given that these students tend to have smaller middle-class scholarship award amounts and this proposal would not impact their Cal Grant coverage. The governor's budget also maintains the new budgetary approach of funding the middle-class scholarship awards one year in arrears. Under this approach, the state is providing middle-class scholarship awards to students in one year, but paying for those awards a year later. To do this, the state is using a general fund cash loan to cover the payments to students. students. Once one-time funding becomes available, we recommend that the legislature give high priority to retiring this debt and returning to paying for middle-class scholarship in the year in which costs are generated. We recommend that the state stop paying for the program one year in arrears because doing this can place the state in a difficult financial situation if its cash position weakens and it no longer is able to borrow internally to pay the cash loan. Thank you and happy to take any questions.

We, I think we would, as I mentioned, would expect that the average award would be cut in half for each of the recipients. And I think for at least some of those students, then that would probably mean that we would see an increase in student loan borrowing. We don't have, you know, we are actively trying to understand all of the factors that have gone into the outcomes that we presented about the reduction in student loan borrowing and at least one of those factors has to be the middle-class scholarship. So it's very hard to predict exactly how much additional borrowing would take place but we certainly know that students like anyone else are rational consumers and if they don't have to borrow they won't and so a decrease in the middle-class scholarship I would anticipate would would result in an increase in borrowing.

No. From a CSU perspective, the current award this year is $3,224, so we would, as an average, so we would expect that average to go down to about $1,612. As we've talked about, students that are in that middle income, that maybe their income levels are outside of Cal Grant, this is the only grant that they receive. So it's really MCS and borrowing. So either they're going to, especially for new students, they may just forego altogether because they don't. We have a large population of students that are loan borrowing adverse. So having that grant funding is what helps them balance, not they pay for the rest out of their family's pocket or out of their own pocket because they don't want to borrow student loans. So it could be the meaning between going to school and looking at it from an affordability perspective and skipping altogether.

The Governor budget proposes funding for the continuation of 29 projects that were approved in the last budget the 25 budget which total 748 million once they come to the state through all phases of the project The governor's budget this year proposes roughly 400 million, just under 400 million in additional state resources to support 10 new projects that would move forward over time. Again, following the state public works board processes to bring those projects to fruition. Of the $400 million that the state would fund, there's roughly another $350 million that would be provided locally to support those projects through to completion. We remain in strong support of the plan as we think this meets the facilities needs of our system. Clearly, our facilities needs well exceed available bond resources and would just continue to support anything that can be done to address our facilities needs. Thank you.

Oh, Alexandra Waldman with the Department of Finance. Is that better? In 2024, voters approved Proposition 2, a state general obligation bond, which provided $1.5 billion for the state's community college facilities. The Budget Act of 2025 included funding for the design phases of 29 new projects, with budget-year state costs of $54.7 million and total state project costs of $763.7 million. The 29 new projects in 2025 included 5 fire life safety projects, 16 modernization projects, and 8 growth projects. The 2026 Governor's Budget includes $709 million for the construction phases of those 29 projects approved in the 2025 Budget Act. The 2026 Governor's Budget also includes proposals for 10 new projects with a budget year state cost of $27.8 million and a total state project cost of $399.4 million. The 10 new projects proposed for 2026 include seven modernization projects and three growth projects. In total, all the projects funded in 2025 and proposed in 2026 represent just over $1.25 billion of the Proposition 2 authority and would leave $249.3 million remaining for future projects. Thank you. Happy to take any questions.

any questions. Thank you. I'd love to hear what processes do you have in place to address cost over ones that may occur during project timelines. I think that there may have been one of these projects proposed in my district that actually ran into some issues. I think they've since resolved them. I want to say forgetting which district it was off the top of my head but there was some sort of issue with with the builder that they were working with. So how do you address and prevent some of those issues and make sure that there's not cost overruns?

that the longer it takes to bring the project forward can drive some of those cost increases. So certainly we work with districts to try and minimize the likelihood that that occurs, but it does occur from time to time. Secondarily, from a capital outlay perspective, You know, the ultimate limitation is the amount of available state bond resources. So the more that a project costs or the more that it draws down from a state bond, the fewer otherwise available statewide projects that we can get to. So from our perspective, we're constantly pushing districts to maximize the value, value engineer wherever possible. That is always an option. And do all that they can to be as efficient and effective with the resources that are available so that we can maximize the number of projects that can be fulfilled statewide. Alexandra Wildman with the Department of Finance. I'll just add that once there's an appropriation in the budget, the state amount is fixed. So there's an established expectation that districts find local sources to fund the remainder. So understanding that the timeline piece is really huge, because as you said, like the more a project gets delayed, the higher those costs go up. I think we're seeing that in a whole number of things that we're investing in here at the state. So how do you address that timeline to make sure that you all are cutting down on that as much as possible? and but I at the same time recognize there's been real issues with like construction costs and getting materials Yeah, so certainly from our perspective We try to work with the Department of Finance and the State Public Works Board ultimately to move our projects forward as expeditiously as possible We are subject to that traditional process with the state though for working drawings and planning, construction phases, closeout phases. So we try to move that as fast as possible. There are projects, though, that can sit for a number of years because there aren't enough available state resources on our lists, and those inevitably will lead to increased cost. On the value engineering side, I bring that up because what we are trying to do to try and help districts on the front end is say be as efficient as you can, design it with the materials that are available, do what you can to move as expeditiously as possible. And on occasion, there will be districts that we can push to enter into contract with contingencies, saying it's contingent on certain things occurring. not all builders or responsive contractors or sorry, responsive bidders are willing to enter into those types of arrangements, but sometimes they will be. Did you want to comment? I had nothing additional to add. Thank you. I think that's it in terms of my questions on this item. Yeah. Thank you. Having heard all discussion items and since there are no further questions, we are now going to move on to public comment. If there's anyone in room 2100 who wants to provide public comment on items that were on today's agenda, then please line up. And we ask that you limit your testimony to one minute. And I will have on a timer. I'll try to make sure that timer is loud enough for you all to hear it as well. And we will begin. Thank you. should be responsible for collecting these program outcome datas to confirm eligibility for workforce Pell Grants in a streamlined process. Any educational programs that are eligible for workforce Pell Grants should focus on proven models that protect students and advance their education or training. In order to also enhance the affordability for students and fully leverage new federal dollars for both students and public institutions, modify the Cal Grant C program to align work with Workforce Pell. Thank you, and we look forward to continuing to work with the legislature and governor to implement Workforce Pell in a way that maximizes benefits for California students. Good morning, Chair Perez and committee staff. My name is Kabria Payton, and I'm here on behalf of EdTrust West. College affordability remains one of the most significant barriers to earning a degree. We urge the legislature to consider additional investments to maximize state and federal financial aid opportunities for low-income students who need financial support to enroll in college. We are grateful for the legislature's more than 50 years of support for the Cal Grant program. However, while Cal Grant awards for tuition at UC and CSU have kept pace with rising costs, support for non-tuition expenses has fallen dramatically behind. Today, the maximum Cal Grant BD Access Award is just $1,648, less than one-fifth of its original value. Even when combined with the maximum Pell Grant, students still face significant gaps, covering less than one-third of average non-tuition costs, contributing to widespread basic needs and security across our college campuses. We respectfully urge the legislature to invest in regional and college access. Infrastructure funds $10 million for ongoing support for student financial aid administration and increase Cal Grant B access. Thank you. Andrea Terry Good afternoon, Chair Perez. My name is Andrea Terry. I'm an associate professor at Sacramento State, a double alum of the CSU, and I'm a member of the California Faculty Association. At Sacramento State, we're having serious issues with our budget. We're facing critical staff storages that mean that we can't hire student assistants for research and other high-impact experiences that employers want. Our full-time faculty are decreasing. Our temporary faculty members are increasing, making our workforce more and more precarious. At the same time, class sizes are going up. We know that this isn't great for education. Along those lines, I urge you to support Assemblymember Fong's budget requests for full compact funding for the current year and the 26-27 budget year. Funding increases should be directed towards instruction and direct student support, not administrator salaries. Further, I ask that you tie executive compensation to meeting enrollment targets. Thank you. Good afternoon, Madam Chair. Mario Guerrero, a Government Affairs Director with California Faculty Association as well as faculty at Sacramento State. I won't repeat what my colleague just mentioned, but I will add just one piece. We know that the CSU is currently engaged in funding reallocation between campuses that have higher enrollments and campuses that are not meeting enrollment targets. We're really concerned with any kind of effort to further engage in that as it hurts those campuses that aren't meeting enrollment targets with their ability to rebound and really bring students back to campuses. And it hurts the students that in those campuses that will feel less resources, less faculty. We also believe that executive compensation should be tied to a number of indicators, one of them being enrollment. If executives are going to be paid these high salaries, they should be responsible for ensuring that we meet enrollment targets. Thank you very much for your time. Good afternoon. Jesse Hernandez-Reyes on behalf of the Campaign for College Opportunity. We're grateful for the legislature's ongoing support of the Cal Grant Program, which has helped California students cover the cost of college. for more than 50 years. As California students continue to struggle meeting their total cost of attendance, a majority of which encompasses rising non-tuition college costs, we urge the legislature to consider how Cal Grant awards can be strengthened to better meet student needs. Most Cal Grant recipients in California are Cal Grant B recipients and use this award to meet their non-tuition college costs. To better help Cal Grant awards support California students, we urge the legislature to strengthen need-based financial aid by ensuring that the minimum Cal Grant B Access Award better addresses rising non-tuition costs faced by our state's lowest income students. This will help students better meet their college affordability costs and in turn allow California to produce more college graduates, strengthening the state's workforce, economy, and democracy. Thank you. Good afternoon, Jessica Sacco on behalf of Children Now. Relative to Cal Grants, we would support additional funding for Cal Grants to ensure equitable access to higher education Specifically as co of SB 1006 we ask that the state set a new statutory minimum for Cal Grant B access Related to the Student Aid Commission we urge the committee to include $100 million for the Golden State Teacher Grant Program. Our teacher shortage is not over, and this successful program must be continued in order for the state to continue to recruit a diverse talent pool to the teaching profession. Thank you. Good afternoon, Sara Abu-Abibsa on behalf of the Institute for College Access and Success. We respectfully urge the inclusion of trailer bill language to address critical college affordability and consumer protection issues. First, with the July 1st rollout date for workforce Pell fast approaching, we recommend trailer bill language that establishes an implementation process which ensures federal compliance in addition to critical consumer protection guardrails for students and taxpayers that prioritize high-quality programs, affordability, and strong economic outcomes. Second, we are grateful that the legislature has funded the Cal Grant program to help California students pay for college. However, support for non-tuition costs has failed to keep pace with rising costs. The maximum Cal Grant B Access award that helps students pay for non-tuition essentials has stagnated, covering only about 5% of most students' non-tuition costs, and had it kept pace with inflation, it would be closer to $9,000 today. We urge trailer bill language that indexes this award and supplemental awards available to student parents and foster youth to the annual inflation rate in alignment with SB 1006 and as a first step to a phase in approach to Cal Grant reform, as you noted today, share. Finally, in a time of federal deregulation, we respectfully urge you to prioritize the Bureau's fiscal solvency through fee modifications and support their efforts to prevent over-increasing fees to meet costs by securing a one-time $10 million allocation from the General Fund. We look forward to continue working with you in the Legislature to ensure these items are included trail rail. Thank you. Good morning, good afternoon Chair and Members. My name is Amada Madrigal. I am a first-generation student, a former foster youth, and a student parent of three at UC Berkeley. As an undergraduate student parent, I proudly serve on the advisory committee for the California Alliance for Student Parent Success. I return to college after 10 years of professional experience to gain the pay equity I deserve. But survival math is holding me back. Non-tuition costs for student parents exceed $37,000 annually. Every hour I spend readjusting my cost of attendance and applying for additional grants and scholarships I may not get to cover rent is an hour stolen from my studies, discussions in class, and my children. Survival mode is the enemy of education. We know that parents in school create future learning opportunities for their children. I experienced this firsthand when my sixth grade son's teacher thought he used AI because his writing had become so sophisticated. He told her, no, my mom helped me. By indexing the Cal Grant B, California protects this multi-generational cycle of success, ensuring that my children are prepared to be the state's future workforce. I urge you to include trailer bill language to index Cal Grant B access awards to inflation as proposed in SB 1006. Thank you. Hello, my name is Joanna, and I am a current student at UC Berkeley. I'm a 35-years-old, non-traditional student who is also a 4.0 at Berkeley. Last year, I found myself in $16,000 worth of arrears in tuition and housing that left me not being able to enroll in this semester. I hope that you use this as an opportunity to see that real students who are having to choose between housing and securities trying to get an education while also being a parent who is already stretched to its limit is having to show their competency while also trying to obtain their education just to try to better themselves and the future of their children. And all we ask is for support in trying to remove the barriers that are holding us financially from being able to obtain our education. Thank you. Good afternoon. Manuel Bonrostro, Director of Policy at California's Together. As an organization focused on ensuring the success of English learners, we're also part of the California Educator Diversity Action Network. and we're here to ask for $100 million to be added to the budget for the Golden State Teacher Grant Program. This is a critical investment that continues to support our teachers, especially your teachers in our high-need areas. And as an organization focused on multilingual learners, this is a critical investment that also supports many bilingual authorized teachers across California, especially and also teachers in other high-need areas. Thank you. Good afternoon, Chair and all present. My name is Saray Rogers and I'm completing my postgraduate degree at Cal State Dominguez Hills. As a Golden State Teacher Grant recipient, I'm standing here because this program made it possible for me to stay in the classroom and complete my credential. Without it, the cost of transportation and housing would have made it extremely difficult to stay on this path. It could have easily pushed me out. And I'm not alone. Across California, we are asking future educators to take on tens of thousands of dollars in costs just to serve in the communities that need us most. The grant removes that barrier. It protects the teacher-to-community pipeline for our schools. If we want equity, if we want stability, and if we want results, then we have to invest in the people doing the work. I respectfully urge the state senators to restore and keep the full funding going forward. Thank you. Good afternoon. My name is Evan Gabbard, and I'm an educator from San Rafael City Schools. And like Saray before, I'm also a recipient of the Golden State Teacher Grant. Teachers are asked to take on thousands of dollars in debt and work for free during student teaching. It's a huge barrier to access. The Golden State Teacher Grant lowered this barrier for me and a lot of my cohort members, and it allows me to impact the community that I grew up in. So I'm here to urge you to provide $100 million for the Golden State Teacher Grant. Thank you. Good afternoon. Oh, sorry. Good afternoon. My name is Brayden Shower, and I am a teaching resident in first grade in San Rafael City Schools, and I am also a Golden State Teacher Grant recipient. The Golden State Teacher Grant was influential in my decision to become a teacher because it allowed me to get my teaching credential without needing to take out loans. Additionally, my mom received the Golden State Teacher Grant in 2021 and is currently serving in a high-need school. We are urging for $100 million to continue the Golden State Teacher Grant program because it not only makes teaching an accessible profession, but it supplies high-need schools with effective, qualified teachers. Good afternoon Chair Perez My name is Karen Escalante I an associate professor at California State University San Bernardino in the College of Education I here on behalf of the California Council on Teacher Education We represent almost every teacher preparation program in the state of California including the CSUs, the UCs, and the privates. When we invest in teachers, children, our most precious resource, do better academically, emotionally, and mentally. As my UC colleague mentioned earlier, teachers are not considered professionals. As such, we are not eligible for loans. So we are asking for $100 million to continue the Golden State Teacher Grant. Thank you. Good afternoon, Chair Perez. My name is Stephen Elmasan, the Director of Policy and Partnerships at EdVoice. on behalf of a coalition representing nearly 70 organizations, including Ed Trust West, Public Advocates, and many organizations here today. We urge you to continue the Golden State Teacher Grant Program with a $100 million investment, which is operated and administered by the California Student Aid Commission. Research shows that teachers are the most important school-based factor in student success, but the kids who need qualified teachers the most have the least access. More than 22,000 GSTD recipients have committed to teaching in high-need schools, including over 50 schools in Senate District 25 and many other Senate districts that need more qualified teachers. Over 90% also plan to stay beyond their service requirement, helping build the stability that schools need. Now is not the time to end the program with proven results. GSTG needs $100 million to maintain its impact. If general fund dollars are not an option, we urge you to continue the program through Proposition 98. Thank you so much for your consideration. Hi, good afternoon, Chair Perez. I'm Vincent Rosso with the University of California Student Association. And on behalf of the 230,000 students that we represent, just want to flag that, you know, I've had the privilege to meet with hundreds of students, staff, and practitioners across the state. And there's no question that the total cost of attendance has become the center of the conversation on college affordability. So really, really appreciate your leadership, your remarks on today's panels. And this is why UCSA supports our coalition's effort to index the Cal Grant to inflation, including for students with dependent children and foster youth. And so that way their financial aid dollars do not continue to lose value, especially for the nearly 15,000 UC students who are on a Cal Grant B, who live in some of the highest cost areas in the state. I definitely think we shouldn't lose sight of the long-term vision for Cal Grant equity framework. But as we are dealing with troubling budget times, UC students are also urging the legislature to fund emergency dollars to financial aid, to basic need centers and housing case management, as well as our disability service programs, as well as expanded support for our underground scholars so that system impacted students have educational opportunity. Also, as an MCS recipient, I know you mentioned in your remarks, but I actually got moved from Cal Grant to MCS in my second year. And so as we're considering ways to really try to reshuffle where those priorities are, really just want to flag how instrumental MCS was for me being here, being able to graduate, and so just thank you so much. Good afternoon, Chair Perez. My name is Alex Karam, and I'm here with the Alder Graduate School of Education, and I'm here to urge the California legislature to provide $100 million of new funding to Golden State Teacher Grant Program. At a time when fully credentialed teachers entering the profession is declining across the country, that's not the trend in California. The number of credentialed teachers has increased for the second year in a row, and this is after a major drop during COVID and that's when GSTG was first implemented. It's because of investments the state has made in attracting and supporting teacher candidates, most notably GSTG, that we have been able to reverse that huge drop in credentialed teachers. Please continue to invest in programs that we know work, especially those like GSTG. They benefit the teacher candidates but also the students in the schools in which they serve. Hello and good afternoon Chair Perez and staff. My name is Valentino Rodriguez and I am a student at Sac State. As a first-generation college student, college access was not easy for me. When it came to college selection, my biggest biggest challenge was financial aid. I am pleased with my experience at Sac State, but one major choice that led me to that decision was financial aid. Sac State gave me the best financial aid, and it was a logical decision for me because I will be able to leave Sac State debt-free. But, if I had better living assistance and financial aid, I would have attended University of California, Berkeley, where I gained acceptance, but if I went, I would have been thousands of dollars in debt. My point being is that there are so many hidden costs and non-tuition expenses that I was not aware of heading into college and that my high school did not prepare me for. I urge you to support SB 1006 by Senator Pedia and the budget request because Cal Grant B Access Award recipients need aid that reflects the high ongoing non-tuition costs that are a barrier to student success. Thank you. Good morning, Chair Perez. My name is Jamari, a student activist at Sac State and a young Latino activist here in Sacramento. As a former homeless student pursuing higher education, it's extremely important that the aid that I and other students like me get reflects the real cost of different things such as housing, groceries, books, and so much more. Although I deeply appreciate the legislature and Governor's ongoing support of Cal Grant and college student success, more work needs to be done to in order to continue to improve the conditions in which students find themselves and do to not receiving financial aid which reflects real costs. For these reasons and more, I urge you to support SB1006 and budget requests that would increase the current Calgary Access Award and index it to CPI. When students' basic needs are met students can thrive academically and have an enjoyable college experience without having to worry about external issues Thank you Good afternoon, Chair Perez. My name is Melly Igachuku. On behalf of the Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities, we'd like to note that students receiving the Expanded Community College Entitlement Grant are currently unable to use their remaining eligibility at private nonprofit institutions. As a result, these students lose over $9,000 in Cal Grant support when they choose to transfer to our institutions. That affects about 500 students each year. We hope that the state will support our proposed two-year pilot expansion to better assist community college students seeking to continue their educations at our institutions. We also uplift the Golden State Teacher Grant program and encourage new funding for this initiative. Thank you. Hi, I'm Osen Ujian, a policy intern at Uaspire and requesting a rejection of the cuts on the middle class scholarship as thousands of students will be missing an opportunity to come and speak here. I second, I support the CSAC request for $24 million one time over the next three years to scale with inflation. And lastly, I ask for an additional $10 million in ongoing Prop 98 funding for community colleges to build more capacity for supporting students. Sons and daughters across the world are looking to join the college opportunities and cannot come here to defend their voice. And it's up to you to determine the future of thousands. And to end off, we would like to state to engage and address through the budget process how we can implement workforce Pell in California, including establishing guidelines for what types of programs could qualify and how to prioritize funds for our students without need. Good afternoon. Tanisha Herring on behalf of the NAACP California White State Conference. On behalf of the state conference's 57 branches and 23 youth units, we strongly urge the state to continue funding for the Golden State Teacher Program at million Teachers are the single most important factor in student success yet too many students especially black students and those in high schools are taught by unqualified teachers The GSTG program has already helped over 22 qualified educators serve where they're needed the most, and 91% of those participants plan to stay beyond their commitment. This program works, and it addresses racial and geographic inequities, and it's essential to ensure every California student has a fully credentialed teacher in the classroom. We ask that you secure its future today. Thank you. Good afternoon, Chair Perez. Thank you so much for your time today. My name is Karina Paredes with Public Advocates, which is a civil rights law firm and advocacy org dedicated to dismantling systems of poverty and racial injustice. As co-sponsors of SB 1006 with TICAS and Children renowned at TrustWest by Senator Padilla, I urge you to support this bill and budget requests that would increase the current Cal Grant B Access Award and index it to the Consumer Price Index. We deeply appreciate the legislature and governor's ongoing support of Cal Grant and college student success. Today's analysis highlighted a modest increase to Cal Grant, but that is intended to cover the planned tuition increases only. Cal Grant B does not have a guaranteed automatic increase, which means that its value continues to decrease as the cost of living continues to increase. As basic needs and security persists, especially for our most vulnerable students, this is a smart and powerful investment that will benefit 300,000 students at all public and private higher ed institutions, and many more for years to come. We also urge the California legislature to provide a $100 million in new funding for the Golden State Teacher Grant Teacher Program as a strategic evidence-based way to directly address our state's persistent teacher shortage and strengthen academic outcomes for kids. Thank you so much for your consideration. Good afternoon, I'm Tara George, a UC Davis student and an intern for UASPIRE, speaking against the proposed cut to the middle class scholarship. I personally benefit from the scholarship and it has created a noticeable impact in my life, allowing me to attend a UC and be here today. This half a billion dollar cut is staggering and I am certain it will lead to a decrease in college enrollment and graduation rates in the coming years due to the new financial burden There is no acceptable reason to put hundreds of thousands of students and their families under incredible strain It is absolutely necessary to maintain the current budget In addition, I would like the states to engage and address through the budget processes on how we can implement Workforce Pell in California, including establishing guidelines for what type of programs could qualify and how to prioritize funds for our students with most need. Thank you. Good afternoon, Madam Chair Perez, Senator Perez. I am Steve Cianes, and I am speaking on behalf of UnidosUS, formerly known as the National Council for La Raza. And we're here to support the Golden State Teacher Grant and its funding, the continuing funding of $100 million. It's a vital tool for empowering Latino educators, ensuring that our classrooms across the state reflect the diversity of California and its students. While over 55% of California's K-12 students are Latino, only about 22% of the state's teachers share that same heritage. So for those reasons, we ask you to support the continuing funding of the GSTG grant. Thank you. Thank you for those comments. Seeing as we have no other members of the public wishing to speak, I'd like to thank all the individuals who participated in public testimony today. today. If you are not able to testify today, please submit your comments or suggestions in writing to the Budget and Fiscal Review Committee or visit our website. Your comments and suggestions are important to us and we want to include your testimony in the official hearing records. Thank you all and we appreciate your participation. We've concluded the agenda for today's hearing. The Senate Budget Subcommittee No. 1 on Education is adjourned. Thank you.