Community colleges: nonresident tuition fees: Western Undergraduate Exchange.

(1) Existing law establishes the California Community Colleges under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges. Existing law also authorizes the establishment of community college districts, and further authorizes the operation, by these districts, of community college campuses that offer instructional services throughout the state. Existing law authorizes the board of governors to enter into an interstate attendance agreement with any statewide public agency of another state that is responsible for institutions of postsecondary education providing the first 2 years of college instruction and that is an agency of a state that is a party to the Western Interstate Compact for Higher Education, for the exchange of residents, on a one-for-one basis, for purposes of instruction. Existing law authorizes community college districts to admit nonresident students, and requires community college districts to charge a tuition fee to nonresident students, with specified exceptions, including an exception for those students who enroll in certain community colleges pursuant to a reciprocity agreement with California, as specified. This bill would authorize the board of governors to enter into the Western Undergraduate Exchange through the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education. The bill would authorize certain community college districts with 3,000 or fewer full-time equivalent students to also exempt students from states that participate in the Western Undergraduate Exchange from the mandatory fee requirement, as provided. (2) Existing law requires certain nonresident students, including those who enroll in certain community colleges pursuant to a reciprocity agreement with California, who are reported as resident full-time equivalent students for state apportionment purposes, and who are exempt from paying the tuition fee charged to nonresident students, to pay a per-unit fee that is 3 times the amount of the fee established for residents. This bill would decrease the per-unit fee for those students to 112 times the amount of the fee established for residents and would include students from states that participate in the Western Undergraduate Exchange within that provision. (3) This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 76140 of the Education Code proposed by AB 1232 to be operative only if this bill and AB 1232 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.