House of Origin Deadline: Community College Facilities Bills

Friday, May 27, was the final day for the Senate and Assembly to pass bills introduced in their own house (aka the “house of origin”). Bills will be heard over the next few weeks by policy committees in the second house, with a final push to pass bills to the Governor by August 31. Below is an update on a selection of bills affecting community college facilities.

Student Housing

AB 1602 (McCarty) – Revolving Loan Fund for Student and Workforce Housing Projects

AB 1602 creates a Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) program for UC, CSU, and CCC student and workforce housing projects. Assembly Member McCarty proposes a $5 billion investment into the fund in the 2022-23 budget. Loans would be zero-interest, and the program would be administered by the State Treasurer’s Office. CCFC does not have a formal position on the bill, but we raised concerns that the language would inhibit the use of Public-Private Partnerships (P3s). The bill was amended to allow facilities owned by a nonprofit entity, which should be permissive enough to allow the use of some P3 configurations.

Due to opposition by the State Building Trades, the bill was recently amended to include skilled and trained workforce requirements for projects funded by the RLF program, similar to the requirements that apply for community college district Design-Build projects. The skilled and trained workforce requirements would apply to projects over $25 million and all delivery methods; this could make it practically difficult to utilize a P3 structure. AB 1602 provides an alternative to the skilled and trained workforce requirements if the college or nonprofit receives fewer than two bids from prequalified prime contractors or subcontractors.

AB 1602 was passed by the Assembly and is now pending in the Senate. AB 1602 could be converted to a trailer bill in the budget process, if negotiations between the Legislature and Governor result in support for the housing RLF in the 2022 Budget Act. A trailer bill is a piece of legislation that implements the budget and goes into effect immediately upon signature. 

AB 1764 (Medina) – DSA/Field Act Exemption

Prior versions of AB 1764 exempted community college student housing projects from the Field Act, and therefore from Division of the State Architect (DSA) review, with the intent to streamline planning and expedite construction. CCFC did not have a formal position but requested and received an amendment that would allow districts to have the option of choosing DSA review or local jurisdiction review, to allow for maximum flexibility. CCFC was also concerned that there could be overlapping state and local reviews, given DSA’s jurisdiction over access compliance. AB 1764 was amended as it came out of Assembly Appropriations Committee to entirely remove the provision about Field Act exemption; the bill now focuses on collecting housing insecurity data at the higher education segments. AB 1764 was passed by the Assembly and is now pending in the Senate.

SB 886 (Wiener)

SB 886 provides a statutory CEQA exemption for student and faculty housing projects at community colleges, UC, and CSU under specified circumstances. The bill is driven by a lack of guaranteed housing for UC and CSU students, and by the rate homelessness for community college students. To qualify for the CEQA exemption, the project may not be on prime farmland, wetlands, lands in a very high fire hazard severity zone, or other on specified lands. The project also must meet other parameters, such as being certified LEED Platinum or better, being within one-half mile of a major transit stop or the campus boundary (or has 15 percent lower per capita vehicle miles traveled), and utilizing no more than one-third of the project’s square footage for non-residential purposes like dining, academic, and student support services. The project must use a skilled and trained workforce, in accordance with Section 2600 of the Public Contract Code. The bill requires the facility to be owned by the college/university, making it potentially difficult or impossible to use certain P3 configurations. Because of the narrow potential uses, CCFC does not have a formal position on the bill. SB 886 passed out of the Senate and is now pending in the Assembly.

AB 1719 (Ward) – Tax Credits for CCD Workforce Housing Projects

AB 1719 clarifies that a community college district may limit its workforce housing to employees of its own district and still be eligible for Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC). Federal IRS rules state that if a residential unit is provided by an employer and limited to its own employees, the unit is not for use by the public and is therefore not eligible for Federal LIHTC. However, a state may set policy supporting members of a specified group while allowing the project to be LIHTC-eligible. AB 1719 extends the benefits currently allowed for school districts under the Teacher Housing Act of 2016 to community colleges, specifying that CCDs can limit occupancy to their own employees and still be eligible for local and state funds or LIHTCs. CCFC has a support position this bill, which was passed by the Assembly and is now pending in the Senate.

Other Bills

AB 2232 (McCarty) – Classroom Air Quality and Ventilation Requirements

This bill was substantially amended to pass out of Assembly Appropriations Committee. Prior versions required schools and community colleges to conduct specific, comprehensive HVAC inspections once every five years, and to install CO2 monitors in all classrooms, absent funding to do so. CCFC raised concerns with the prior version regarding the lack of funding and provisions that essentially mandated contracting out of key maintenance and operations personnel. AB 2232 passed out of the Assembly and is now pending in the Senate. 

The amended version of AB 2232 now specifies:

• Schools and colleges should have HVAC systems that meet minimum ventilation requirements under Title 24, unless the system is not capable of safely and efficiently doing so. In that case, schools and colleges must ensure that the system meets minimum ventilation requirements in effect at the time the building permit for installation of the system was issued. 
• Schools and colleges should install MERV 13 filters or higher where feasible.
• The Division of the State Architect shall research, develop, and propose for adoption mandatory standards for carbon dioxide monitors in all classrooms during the 2022 Intervening Code Adoption Cycle.

Rebekah Cearley
CCFC Legislative Advocate