Fight over college fee cap

Corri Alexander and Heather Young are two American River College students hoping California voters invest in community colleges. Proposition 92, they say, is critical to keeping campuses like theirs vibrant.

Union leaders like David Sanchez, meanwhile, are hoping voters hold off once they see the fine print.

California voters will be asked to weigh in on Proposition 92 when they head to the polls Feb. 5. The measure would cap student fees at $15 per unit, grant the community college system more autonomy and secure dedicated funding each year from the state's general fund.

While supporters say Proposition 92 would provide more stable funding for the state's network of 109 community colleges, opponents are concerned that it could take money from other education needs as the state faces a $14.5 billion deficit.

"It's not the time to be going after this initiative," said Sanchez, president of the California Teachers Association, the largest teachers union in the state. "If something like this were to pass at this time, I'd be very concerned about what other programs would suffer."

The ballot measure proposes to change Proposition 98, the 1988 ballot measure that guaranteed minimum funding for K-14 education. Supporters say community colleges have been receiving less than their fair share of funding over the years, particularly in deficit years.

"There's universal agreement that community colleges are underfunded," said Scott Lay, head of the Community Colleges League of California. "We're confident we're going to win Feb. 5. We've forced people to acknowledge we're not doing what we should for these colleges."

If approved, Proposition 92 would lower student fees from $20 per unit to $15 beginning this fall, which would translate to a loss of $70 million a year for the state.

For full-time students, the measure would mean shelling out $150 less for classes, as a student taking a full load during the school year would see fees drop from $600 to $450.

"Cheaper is better," said the 18-year-old Young, who just transferred from Yuba College to American River College last week.

Young, who will have to take a two-hour bus ride from Marysville to get to classes in Sacramento, said she had no choice but to transfer because Yuba doesn't offer courses in her fashion merchandising major.

Alexander, a 21-year-old chemistry major, said she plans to vote yes on Proposition 92 because she's watched her lab classes grow more crowded. She said she couldn't get into Physics 431, one of her required courses this semester.

"I'm on the wait list," she said while scoping out classrooms. "I was sixth, but I just found out I got moved to fourth."

Sanchez, of the teachers union, said the CTA would rather lobby for legislative change. The union has been a major donor to the No on Prop. 92 campaign, which has raised about $2.2 million.

"There's no assurances that the new money wouldn't be wasted on bureaucracy and administrative overhead," Sanchez said.

Proposition 92 already has created an unusual fracture in the education community. While CTA has opposed the measure, the California Federation of Teachers, which has more community college faculty members, has been a major proponent of the Yes on Prop. 92 campaign. The campaign has raised roughly $4.5 million.

Last week, supporters aired a TV ad showing an emergency medical technician at work. Lowering community college fees without raising taxes, it said, would offer "a chance for every Californian to go to college."

An independent analysis found the initiative would require the state to spend an average of $300 million more per year – but only through 2010.

After that, Proposition 92 might go away. That's because declining K-12 enrollment is changing the state's complex education funding formula in 2010.

"Starting in 2010-11, and continuing for the near future, we do not expect that the new formulas established by Proposition 92 would be in effect," according to the Legislative Analyst's Office, the Legislature's nonpartisan budget expert.

It's unclear how voters feel about the measure. No public opinion polls have been known to be released.

Jean Ross of the California Budget Project suggested voters should first decide whether they want to lock in an additional part of the budget.

Ross suggested voters pay close attention to the funding formula.

Proposition 92 would calculate community college funding using the state's young adult population, either 17- to 21-year-olds or 22- to 25-year-olds depending on which segment grows faster. The growth factor increases even more when the unemployment rate exceeds 5 percent.

Ross said the formula assumes more people will go to community colleges when the economy slips. However, she said, "In the past, rising high unemployment hasn't corresponded to increasing community college enrollment."

Proposition 92 would increase the number of members on the board of governors from 17 to 19, and allow the board to set compensation levels for executive officers. The measure would also amend the state constitution to recognize the community college system. Currently, the system is part of the state's public school system.

"There's a policy question as to whether you want the board of governors to be people who are intimately familiar with the system," Ross said. "Or do you want what's done in the business world, where you appoint outside people with different perspectives?"

Tak Auyeung, a computer information science faculty member at American River College, said he likes the sound of Proposition 92 but needs time to study the initiative.

"Part of it has to do with how they're going to spend the money," Auyeung said. "Would it be top heavy?"

Editor's Note: This article was changed from The Bee's print version to correct information contained in the Legislative Analyst's Office report on the measure..

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• Call Judy Lin, Bee Capitol Bureau, (916) 321-1115.