BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



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          CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS


          AB  
          2164 (O'Donnell and Cooper)


          As Amended  August 16, 2016


          Majority vote


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          Original Committee Reference:  HIGHER ED.




          SUMMARY:  Expands an existing exemption from mandatory tuition  
          and fees at the University of California (UC), the Hastings  
          College of Law, the California State University (CSU), and the  
          California Community Colleges (CCC) - for an eligible survivor  
          of a firefighter or law enforcement officer who died in the line  
          of duty - to also include the survivor of a firefighter or law  
          enforcement officer who died as a result of an industrial injury  
          or illness arising out of and in the course of active law  
          enforcement or fire suppression and prevention duties; and,  
          provides, for student survivors receiving the existing waiver,  
          an additional waiver of mandatory campus-based fees.


          The Senate amendments delete the requirement to waive  
          campus-based fees; and, make technical changes.









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          EXISTING LAW:  


          1)Provides that no mandatory systemwide fees be required by the  
            UC Regents, the Board of Directors of Hastings College of Law,  
            or CSU Trustees, from any surviving spouse or child, of a  
            deceased person, who met all of the following requirements:
             a)   He or she was a resident of this state;
             b)   He or she was employed by a public agency, or was a  
               contractor, or an employee of a contractor, performing  
               services for a public agency;


             c)   His or her principal duties consisted of active law  
               enforcement service or active fire suppression and  
               prevention; and,


             d)   He or she was killed in the performance of active law  
               enforcement or active fire suppression and prevention  
               duties, or died as a result of an accident or an injury  
               caused by external violence or physical force, incurred in  
               the performance of his or her active law enforcement or  
               active fire suppression and prevention duties (Education  
               Code Section (EC) 68120).


          2)Requires that any determination of eligibility, as specified,  
            shall be consistent with any findings of the Workers'  
            Compensation Appeals Board, using the same procedures as in  
            workers' compensation hearings, as to whether the death of the  
            person, as specified, was industrial (EC 68120.5).
          3)Provides various workers' compensation benefits for  
            firefighters, police officers, sheriffs, and their survivors  
            in case of death for injuries and illness caused by the long  
            terms exposures they face in their line of work, including,  
            but not limited to:


             a)   Cancer and leukemia that manifest during the time of  
               active employment and up to 10 years after being employed  








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               as a work-related illness (Labor Code Section(LAB) 3212.1);
             b)   Tuberculosis that manifests during the time of active  
               employment and up to six year after being employed as a  
               presumed work-related illness (LAB 3212.6); and,


             c)   Blood-born infectious diseases or specified skin  
               infections that manifest during the time of active  
               employment and up to six years after being employed as a  
               presumed work-related illness (LAB  3212.8).


          FISCAL EFFECT:  According to the Senate Appropriations  
          Committee, unknown, but potentially significant revenue loss to  
          the UC, CSU, and the CCC.  The UC indicates less than 20  
          students are receiving the current waiver.  The CSU and the CCC  
          indicate that about 36 and about 350 students received the  
          waiver in 2014-15, respectively.  The number of additional  
          students that would receive fee waivers as a result of this bill  
          is unknown.  Assuming the number of additional students is half  
          of the existing recipients, revenue loss due to systemwide fee  
          waivers would be about $123,000 at the UC; $98,000 at the CSU;  
          and $160,000 at the CCC.  


          COMMENTS:  Background.  The Alan Pattee Scholarship Act of 1970  
          (Act) was created in order to assist surviving family members of  
          firefighters and law enforcement officers who died in the line  
          of duty.  The Act waives all mandatory tuition and fees at the  
          public postsecondary institutions of learning for these  
          survivors.


          Throughout the almost 50 years of the creation of the Act,  
          California's  workers' compensation laws have been amended to  
          reflect other serious occupational hazards firefighters and law  
          enforcement officers face, besides fire debris and bullets.   
          Workers' compensation laws today provide for benefits to these  
          public safety officers who also endure the cumulative effect of  
          exposure to toxic materials.  










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          However, the Act has not been updated to reflect the workers'  
          compensation changes.


          Purpose of this measure.  According to information provided by  
          the author, tuition and fee waivers for eligible survivors have  
          been "inconsistently awarded both within a single system and  
          across the varying segments."  The author states, "Currently,  
          the Alan Pattee Scholarship Act does not recognize the long term  
          health hazards and harm that firefighters and police officers  
          face through the course of their careers, providing the fee  
          waiver to survivors only if the firefighter or police officer  
          'was killed in the performance of active law enforcement or  
          active fire suppression and prevention duties, or died as a  
          result of an accident or an injury caused by external violence  
          or physical force, incurred in the performance of his or her  
          active law enforcement or active fire suppression and prevention  
          duties.'"


          Additionally, when the Act was amended in 1999, it only spoke to  
          the eligible survivors being waived mandatory systemwide fees.   
          The author contends that in the wake of various campuses being  
          able to charge campus based student success fees, some eligible  
          survivors are being charged fees, and others are not.


          This measure amends the Act to specify eligible survivors shall  
          have all fees and tuition waived.


          Furthermore, this bill makes it clear that survivors of  
          firefighters and law enforcement officers who died from a  
          work-related illness are eligible for all elements of the Act;  
          and, conforms the Education Code regarding firefighters and law  
          enforcement officers' benefits to reflect those found in the  
          Labor and Government Codes.


          Analysis Prepared by:                                             
                          Jeanice Warden / HIGHER ED. / (916) 319-3960   
          FN:  0004227








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