AB 1818 – Oppose

AB 1818 by Assemblymember Jackson opens college parking lots for homeless students to sleep in. While we acknowledge the author's well-meaning intentions, we are concerned that this bill masks the deeper issue of insufficient housing and financial aid for California’s community college students.

Concerns with AB 1818

• Unfortunately, AB 1818 ignores comprehensive policy suggestions from the Real College California Basic Needs Report conducted by the League’s Affordability, Food & Housing Access Taskforce and offers a short-term remedy without addressing the root issue.
• We believe resources would be better utilized towards advancing and expanding student housing initiatives and financial aid services, such as implementation of Cal Grant reform and the expansion of housing grants.
• There is currently no law prohibiting community college districts from opening parking lots to homeless students. As locally controlled institutions, we believe this should remain a local decision.
• According to the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office, implementing this measure would result in ongoing costs of $600,000 per campus.
• Unfortunately, AB 1818 does not fix the real housing and affordability challenges our students face.

Letter of Opposition – Senate Education Committee

• The coalition opposition letter is available here.
• The bill will be heard by the Senate Education Committee on Wednesday, June 19th, at 9AM.