SB-391 • 2026

Community colleges: Chancellor of the California Community Colleges: data request fee policy.

Education Privacy

Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor: Laird
Last action: 2025-10-13
Official status: Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 753, Statutes of 2025.
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material specifies that the law prohibits fees or charges from being imposed on students and faculty members, which contradicts the original claim.

Community College Data Request Fees

This law allows the Chancellor to set fees for researchers who want access to student information, but it stops charging students and faculty members at community colleges.

What This Bill Does

The bill lets the Chancellor make rules about how much money researchers have to pay when they ask for detailed student data from California's community colleges.
If these rules are made, they must be checked by a group called the Board of Governors before being used.
These rules need to be updated regularly and put on the internet where everyone can see them easily.
The rules have to follow all state and federal laws about keeping student information private.

Who It Names or Affects

Researchers who want detailed data from community colleges

Terms To Know

Chancellor of the California Community Colleges: The top leader in charge of all community colleges in California.
Board of Governors: A group that makes decisions for the California Community College system.

Limits and Unknowns

It is not clear when this law will start to be used.
The bill does not say how much researchers might have to pay under these new rules.

Bill History

2025-10-13 California Legislative Information
Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 753, Statutes of 2025.
2025-10-13 California Legislative Information
Approved by the Governor.
2025-09-09 California Legislative Information
Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 2 p.m.
2025-09-02 California Legislative Information
Assembly amendments concurred in. (Ayes 40. Noes 0. Page 2407.) Ordered to engrossing and enrolling.
2025-08-28 California Legislative Information
In Senate. Concurrence in Assembly amendments pending.
2025-08-28 California Legislative Information
Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 72. Noes 1. Page 2767.) Ordered to the Senate.
2025-07-17 California Legislative Information
Ordered to third reading.
2025-07-17 California Legislative Information
Read third time and amended.
2025-07-03 California Legislative Information
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
2025-07-02 California Legislative Information
From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 12. Noes 0.) (July 2).
2025-06-26 California Legislative Information
Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
2025-06-25 California Legislative Information
From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 8. Noes 0.) (June 24).
2025-06-05 California Legislative Information
Referred to Com. on HIGHER ED.
2025-05-29 California Legislative Information
In Assembly. Read first time. Held at Desk.
2025-05-29 California Legislative Information
Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 38. Noes 0. Page 1326.) Ordered to the Assembly.
2025-05-27 California Legislative Information
Ordered to special consent calendar.
2025-05-23 California Legislative Information
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
2025-05-23 California Legislative Information
From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 6. Noes 0. Page 1198.) (May 23).
2025-05-16 California Legislative Information
Set for hearing May 23.
2025-04-21 California Legislative Information
April 21 hearing: Placed on APPR. suspense file.
2025-04-10 California Legislative Information
Set for hearing April 21.
2025-04-08 California Legislative Information
Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
2025-04-07 California Legislative Information
From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 7. Noes 0. Page 633.) (April 2).
2025-03-19 California Legislative Information
Set for hearing April 2.
2025-02-26 California Legislative Information
Referred to Com. on ED.
2025-02-18 California Legislative Information
From printer. May be acted upon on or after March 17.
2025-02-14 California Legislative Information
Introduced. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. To print.

Official Summary Text

SB 391, Laird.
Community colleges: Chancellor of the California Community Colleges: data request fee policy.
Existing law establishes the California Community Colleges under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges as one segment of public postsecondary education in the state. Under existing law, the board of governors appoints a chief executive officer, who is known as the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges.
This bill would authorize the chancellor to implement a data request fee policy for researchers applying for access to individually identifiable data, student data, or both. If a data request fee policy is implemented, the bill would require the policy to be reviewed and approved by the board of governors, revised periodically, made publicly available and posted in a prominent location on the chancellor’s internet website, and comply with applicable federal and state privacy laws, as
provided. The bill would prohibit fees or charges from being imposed on a state entity, except as provided, on an undergraduate or graduate student seeking data for the student’s individual studies, or on a community college faculty member seeking data for the faculty member’s individual research.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

Download Bill PDF