Brown signs bill allowing all in-state students to serve on college boards and commissions

On Monday, Assemblymember Jose Medina (D-Riverside) announced that Gov. Jerry Brown had signed Medina’s public education governance bill, AB1887, into law on Friday, Aug. 24. Under the new bill, all students eligible for in-state tuition are allowed to serve on college boards and committees regardless of age or citizenship status. Specifically, the law applies to undocumented students who are eligible for in-state tuition under California Education Code 68130.

Excited to announce that #AB1887 was signed by @JerryBrownGov! AB 1887 ensures all students that qualify for in-state tuition can participate on college boards and commissions, regardless of age or immigration status. pic.twitter.com/40RQDMTuvv

— Jose Medina (@AsmJoseMedina) August 27, 2018

Associated Student, Inc., ASI, President Noel Mora said it was a welcome change to allow more students to serve on their schools’ elected bodies as it can give a more complete picture of the students being represented and will give all manner of students access to representation and professional experience by serving on the boards.

“The student who was the voting student trustee last year was a DACA student, Jorge Reyes [Salinas],” Mora said. “He would have been the last undocumented and DACA student to be able to serve on the CSU board of trustees as a student.”

Medina’s bill was signed into law during a period of time where the state legislature is trying to pass as many bills as possible before the legislature’s two-year session ends on Friday in preparation for the 2018 midterm elections.

Top student loan official resigns over Trump administration undercutting the law

Seth Frotman, the top national official charged with overseeing student loans throughout the country, resigned on Monday citing in his resignation letter the federal government’s undercutting enforcement of law.

Frotman served as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s student loan ombudsman since 2016 and oversaw lawsuits against for-profit colleges and an ongoing lawsuit against student loan lender Navient. That lawsuit has been slow moving as the Department of Education, under Trump appointee Betsy Devos, has refused to assist the bureau’s lawsuit.

Frotman’s resignation letter leaves uncertainty on whether the the Trump administration will protect students from predatory lenders and schools.

Seattle-based judge blocks online distribution of 3D printed gun blueprints

On Monday, U.S. District Judge Robert Lasnik extended a temporary restraining order against an agreement between the Trump administration and Austin, Texas-based Defense Distributed. The agreement would have allowed Defense Distributed to distribute plans online for 3D printed firearms that would be effectively untraceable and are illegal to possess under U.S. law.

Lasnik sided with a group led by the state of Washington that includes California, 18 other states and Washington, D.C., in extending the restraining order until the end of the case.

The case comes as the U.S. has been experiencing a string of mass shootings in schools and public venues with the latest happening the day before the ruling at an esports tournament in Jacksonville, Florida.

Sacramento State Chief of Police Mark Iwasa said that while Sac State Police had not been following the exact case, the 3D printed guns would be banned from campus as any other gun would be. This is due to a bill, SB707, that Governor Brown signed in 2015 banning the possession of firearms on all California school campuses even if the carrier had a concealed carry permit.

“We’re not really concerned on how that gun is manufactured,” Iwasa said. “Just whether it exists and is on campus.”

Iwasa said that the campus was addressing security concerns from advancement in technologies and was in the process of finalizing a policy to regulate drones in order to prevent the delivery of dangerous payloads and prevent the spying-on of students.

Election Reminder

A quick reminder that the midterm elections are coming up this year, Tuesday, Nov. 6, with a deadline to register by Monday, Oct. 22.

If you miss that deadline, conditional voter registration will be available up to election day.  However, any votes cast in this manner will not be counted until the voter’s registration is approved.

In Sacramento County, ballots will begin to be mailed out to voters starting Monday, Oct. 8, and can be cast via mail or at the Voter Registration and Elections Office on Oct. 8. Completed ballots can also be left at ballot drop boxes throughout Sacramento County starting on Tuesday, Oct. 9. Lastly at ballots can be cast at vote centers, with some opening Saturday, Oct. 27, and more opening Friday, Nov. 2. These options will be available until 8:00 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 6, and ballots cast by mail must be postmarked no later than election day.

Those eligible to vote in California can register to do so on the state’s secretary of state website.

Capital Report is a weekly series released every Wednesday on StateHornet.com to keep you up to date with politics.