Schwarzenegger vetoes California Dream Act

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger
Photo(s) by Luke Thomas

By Caitlin Cassady

October 14, 2007

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has vetoed bill SB 1, the California Dream Act, which would have enabled qualifying undocumented students to apply for two types of non competitive state financial aid.

Schwarzenegger said he vetoed the bill because he thought extending aid to those students would put a strain on the General Fund. In a veto message on the governor's Web site, Schwarzenegger said that at a time when students with legal status are already paying increased tuition fees, a bill like this would not be a prudent expenditure.

SB 1 would enable students to apply for the Cal Grant Entitlement and have community college fees waived. According to the office of Sen. Gilbert Cedillo, D-Los Angeles, costs of the bill averaged out to an additional .018 percent of General Fund money.

The bill won support across California, from both the state and university systems as well as the Community College League. Other supporters included the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce and the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce.

A variety of newspapers lauded the bill as being a balanced and pragmatic solution to expanding the state's college graduates without taking money away from students with legal status.

Copyright © 2007 by Bay City News, Inc. -- Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.

Permalink

####