ARTICLE 5.5. California Dreamer Service Incentive Grant Program [69438. - 69438.9.]

Cal. Education Code - EDC 5.5.

in effect

Cal. Education Code - EDC § 69438. Section 69438.

The California Dreamer Service Incentive Grant Program is hereby established, commencing with the 2019–20 academic year, under the administration of the Student Aid Commission. As used in this article, “program” means the California Dreamer Service Incentive Grant Program established by this section.

Cal. Education Code - EDC § 69438.3. Section 69438.3.

(a) In order to receive a grant under the program, a student shall either be a recipient of a Cal Grant B award or a recipient of a Cal Grant A award who was eligible for a Cal Grant B award, and shall perform at least 100 hours per quarter or 150 hours per semester of community or volunteer service, as appropriate. The community or volunteer service shall be performed through organizations meeting the requirements of Section 69438.7. The organizations shall report the hours of service performed by participating students to the commission in a timely manner. (b) A participating student is eligible to receive a grant under the program for a maximum of 8 semesters or 12 quarters. Once a student has met the minimum service requirement, the student is eligible for an award of up to two thousand two hundred fifty dollars ($2,250) per semester or one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500) per quarter. The amount of a grant made to an individual participating student shall be calculated as follows: (1) The student’s award amount per term shall not exceed 50 percent of the student’s annual unmet need if the student is enrolled in a semester-based system, or 33.33 percent of the student’s annual unmet need if the student is enrolled in a quarter-based system. (2) If a student is eligible to receive a grant under the program, the minimum amount awarded in a semester or quarter shall be four hundred fifty dollars ($450). (c) A grant awarded under the program shall not offset or replace any other source of grant aid, including, but not necessarily limited to, institutional aid and scholarships. (d) No more than 1,667 students who are eligible through meeting all of the requirements of Section 69438.5 shall simultaneously participate in the program. When award slots are available, grants under the program shall be awarded to eligible students on a first-come-first-served basis, with priority established in order of the date and time of the student’s submission of a completed California Dream Act application pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 69438.5. (e) (1) Commencing with the 2021–22 fiscal year, upon order of the Director of Finance, any unexpended or unencumbered funds appropriated for purposes of the program, as of June 30 of each fiscal year, shall be transferred to the University of California and the California State University to support the California DREAM Loan Program established in Article 23 (commencing with Section 70030) of Chapter 2. (2) The Department of Finance shall allocate the funds transferred pursuant to paragraph (1) to the University of California and the California State University proportionally to the share of students awarded a California DREAM Loan at each segment, using data for the most recent fiscal year in which that data is available. (3) Funds transferred to support the California DREAM Loan Program shall be used to support activities in fiscal years subsequent to the initial fiscal year for which the appropriation was provided. (4) The Department of Finance may adjust the amount transferred following the close of a fiscal year to account for changes in available resources. (f) Of the funds appropriated in the Budget Act of 2019–20 for the purposes of the program, up to one million five hundred thousand dollars ($1,500,000) shall be available on a one-time basis to the commission to support the costs to administer the program for the 2019–20 fiscal year.

Cal. Education Code - EDC § 69438.5. Section 69438.5.

A student is eligible to participate in the program if the student meets all of the following requirements: (a) The student has completed, and submitted to the commission, a California Dream Act application. (b) The student meets all of the requirements for an exemption from paying nonresident tuition pursuant to Section 68130.5 or pursuant to a similar provision adopted by the Regents of the University of California. (c) The student is a recipient of a Cal Grant B award or a recipient of a Cal Grant A award who was eligible for a Cal Grant B award. (d) The student is determined by the commission to have unmet need. (e) The student is enrolled at a campus of the University of California, the California State University, or the California Community Colleges, or at an independent institution of higher education, as defined in Section 66010, that is a qualifying institution, as defined in Section 69432.7. (f) The student agrees to perform the number of hours of community or volunteer service required, pursuant to Section 69438.3, for participation in the program.

Cal. Education Code - EDC § 69438.7. Section 69438.7.

In order for the community or volunteer service performed by a participating student to be applied to the minimum hours required for eligibility for this program, the organization and service shall meet all of the following requirements, as determined by the commission: (a) The organization shall register with the commission, and report the service hours of the participating students. (b) The organization shall be one of the following: (1) A federal, state, or local governmental entity. (2) A qualifying institution as defined in Section 69432.7. (3) An organization exempt from federal income tax pursuant to Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. (c) The community or volunteer service performed by the participating student is not advocacy of a political, social, or religious nature. (d) The community or volunteer service is related to the participating student’s field of study, or is in furtherance of community service or a community need. (e) The organization shall have been established for a minimum of two years before the first date on which a participating student begins performing service hours to qualify for this program.

Cal. Education Code - EDC § 69438.8. Section 69438.8.

(a) The commission may adopt regulations necessary to carry out the purposes of this article as emergency regulations in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code). For purposes of Section 11349.6 of the Government Code, the adoption of those regulations shall be deemed to be an emergency and necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health and safety, or general welfare. (b) Notwithstanding subdivision (e) of Section 11346.1 of the Government Code, no regulation adopted by the commission pursuant to this section shall remain in effect for more than 180 days unless the commission complies with all relevant provisions of Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code.

Cal. Education Code - EDC § 69438.9. Section 69438.9.

On or before November 1, 2022, and each year thereafter, the commission shall report to the Department of Finance, the Legislative Analyst’s Office, and the relevant policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature on the program. The report shall include, but not necessarily be limited to, all of the following information for the prior award year: (a) The number of recipients and total amount of aid provided, by segment. (b) The organizations providing service opportunities under the program. For each organization, the commission shall identify the organization type, as specified in subdivision (b) of Section 69438.7, and the number of service hours provided. (c) The amount of unexpended or unencumbered funds transferred to the University of California and the California State University to support the California DREAM Loan Program, established in Article 23 (commencing with Section 70030) of Chapter 2, pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (e) of Section 69438.3.

Source: CA Legislative Counsel Bulk DataURL: https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zipFetched: 6/27/2026