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General Policies

Fee Establishment and Policies

The total support cost per full-time equivalent student (FTES) includes the expenditures for current operations, including payments made to students in the form of financial aid, and all fully reimbursed programs contained in state appropriations. The average support cost is determined by dividing the total cost by the number of FTES. The total CSU 2014/15 budget amounts were $2,399,439,000 from state General Fund (GF) appropriations (not including GF debt service) and before adding $71.1 million CalPERS retirement adjustment, $1,592,256,000 from tuition fee revenue and after tuition fee discounts (forgone revenue), and $453,018,000 from other fee revenues for a total of $4,444,713,000. The 2014/15 resident FTES target is 346,050 and the nonresident FTES based on past-year actual is 15,568 for a total of 361,618 FTES. The GF appropriation is applicable to resident students only whereas fee revenues are collected from resident and nonresident students. FTES is determined by dividing the total academic student load (e.g. 15 units per semester) (the figure used here to define a full-time student’s academic load).

The 2014/15 average support cost per FTES based on GF appropriation and net tuition fee revenue only is $11,324 and when including all sources as indicated below is $13,396, which includes all fee revenue (e.g. tuition fees, application fees, and other campus mandatory fees) and debt service in the CSU Operating Fund. Of this amount, the average net tuition and other fee revenue per FTES is $5,643.

2014/2015 Amount Avg Cost per
FTE Student
%
State Appropriation (GF)* 2,330,500,000 6,934 51.8%
General Fund Debt Service ** 296,316,000 819 6.1%
Net Tuition Fee Revenue*** 1,592,256,000 4,390 32.8%
Other Fee Revenues *** 453,018,000 1,253 9.3%
Total Support Cost 4,741,029,000 13,396 100%

* Represents state GF appropriation in the Budget Act of 2014/15; GF is divisible by resident students only (346,050 FTES) and does not include General Fund Debt Service.

** A major change in the CSU budget appropriation beginning in 2014/15 is the fold in of state General Obligation bond debt service expense ($197.2M) into the CSU main appropriation and movement of CSU lease revenue bonds debt service from a separately identified appropriations item to the CSU main appropriation item ($99.1M).

*** Represents CSU Operating Fund, Tuition Fee and other fees revenue amounts (net of tuition fee discounts) submitted in campus August 2014/15 final budgets. Revenues are divisible by resident and nonresident students (361,618 FTES).

The average CSU 2014/15 academic year, resident, undergraduate student basic tuition fee and other mandatory fees required to apply to, enroll in, or attend the university is $6,759 ($5,472 tuition fee plus $1,287 average campus-based fees). However, the costs paid by individual students will vary depending on campus, program, and whether a student is part-time, full-time, resident, or nonresident.

Procedure for the Establishment or Abolishment of Campus-Based Fees

The law governing the California State University provides that specific campus fees defined as mandatory, such as a student body association fee and a student body center fee, may be established. A student body association fee must be established upon a favorable vote of two-thirds of the students voting in an election held for this purpose (Education Code, Section 89300). The campus President may adjust the student body association fee only after the fee adjustment has been approved by a majority of students voting in a referendum established for that purpose. The required fee shall be subject to referendum at any time upon the presentation of a petition to the campus President containing the signatures of 10 percent of the regularly enrolled students at the University. Student body association fees support a variety of cultural and recreational programs, childcare centers, and special student support programs. A student body center fee may be established only after a fee referendum is held which approves by a two-thirds favorable vote the establishment of the fee (Education Code, Section 89304). Once bonds are issued, authority to set and adjust student body center fees is governed by provisions of the State University Revenue Bond Act of 1947, including, but not limited to, Education Code sections 90012, 90027, and 90068.

A student body center fee may be established only after a fee referendum is held which approves by a two-thirds favorable vote the establishment of the fee (Education Code, Section 89304). The student body fee was established at CSULB by student referendum in April 7, 2000. The campus President may adjust the student body association fee only after the fee adjustment has been approved by a majority of students voting in a referendum established for that purpose (Education Code, Section 89300). The required fee shall be subject to referendum at any time upon the presentation of a petition to the campus President containing the signatures of 10 percent of the regularly enrolled students at the University. Once bonds are issued, authority to set and adjust student body center fees is governed by provisions of the State University Revenue Bond Act of 1947, including, but not limited to, Education Code, sections 90012, 90027, and 90068. Student body association fees support a variety of cultural and recreational programs, childcare centers, and special student support programs.

The process to establish and adjust other campus-based mandatory fees requires consideration by the campus fee advisory committee and a student referendum as established by Executive Order 1054, Section III. The campus President may use alternate consultation mechanisms if he/she determines that a referendum is not the best mechanism to achieve appropriate and meaningful consultation. Results of the referendum and the fee committee review are advisory to the campus President. The President may adjust campus-based mandatory fees, but must request the Chancellor establish a new mandatory fee. The President shall provide to the fee advisory committee a report of all campus-based mandatory fees. The campus shall report annually to the Chancellor a complete inventory of all campus-based mandatory fees.

For more information or questions, please contact the Budget Office in the CSU Chancellor's Office at (562) 951-4560.


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