Postsecondary education: nonresident tuition: exemption: federal GI Bill.

Plain English Breakdown

The official source does not provide specific details on reimbursement amounts or additional potential costs beyond those directly mandated by the bill.

Postsecondary Education: Nonresident Tuition Exemption

This law changes how California colleges and universities handle nonresident tuition for certain military veterans using federal GI Bill benefits, adding the Montgomery GI Bill-Selected Reserve program to those eligible.

What This Bill Does

• Adds the Montgomery GI Bill-Selected Reserve program to the list of programs that qualify for a nonresident tuition exemption in California's public colleges and universities.
• Specifies that eligibility requirements are based on federal law as it was written on January 5, 2026.
• Imposes new duties on community college districts to determine if students are eligible for this exemption from paying nonresident tuition or fees.

Who It Names or Affects

• Students enrolled in California Community Colleges and California State University who qualify under the federal GI Bill programs, including those from the Montgomery GI Bill-Selected Reserve program.
• Community college districts that must determine if students are eligible for nonresident tuition exemptions.

Terms To Know

Montgomery GI Bill-Selected Reserve

A federal program providing education benefits to members of the Selected Reserves who meet certain requirements.

Nonresident Tuition

Higher tuition fees charged by public colleges and universities in California for students not considered residents of the state.

Limits and Unknowns

• The bill does not specify how much reimbursement will be provided to local agencies.
• It is unclear if there are any additional costs beyond determining eligibility that community college districts might incur.

Official Summary Text

AB 2794, as introduced, Committee on Higher Education.
Postsecondary education: nonresident tuition: exemption: federal GI Bill.
Existing law establishes uniform residency requirements for purposes of ascertaining the amount of tuition and fees to be paid by students of public postsecondary educational institutions. Existing law requires a student classified as a nonresident to pay nonresident tuition, in addition to other fees required by the institution, except as provided. Existing law exempts a student enrolled at a campus of the California Community Colleges or the California State University from paying nonresident tuition or any other fee that exclusively applies to nonresident students if the student resides in California, meets the definition of “covered individual” under federal law, and is eligible for education benefits under 4 specified federal GI Bill programs, as the federal law read on January 5, 2022.
This bill would add, for purposes of that exemption,
the Montgomery GI Bill-Selected Reserve program to the list of federal GI Bill programs and specify that federal law as it read on January 5, 2026, applies. To the extent that the bill would impose new duties on community college districts to determine eligibility for an exemption from paying nonresident tuition or fees, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Current Bill Text

Download Bill PDF