PROGRAMMING NOTE: We’ll be off this Wednesday in recognition of Juneteenth but will be back in your inbox on Thursday, June 20. LEG UP: California is closer than ever to becoming the first state to hit private universities with financial penalties over legacy admissions. Legislation that would ban elite institutions including Stanford and the University of Southern California from giving preference to the children of alumni and donors has cleared the state Assembly for the first time. The bill’s next stop is a Wednesday hearing in the Senate Education Committee, where Chair Josh Newman plans to vote for it. “I'd be surprised if it didn't get the support of a majority of members of the committee,” Newman told Playbook. Assemblymember Phil Ting, who authored the bill, introduced similar legislation in 2019 after the Varsity Blues scandal — that didn’t make it out of the lower house before it was watered down. But the Supreme Court’s recent gutting of affirmative action has seemingly generated more national momentum this time around for efforts to diversify elite colleges. “The fact that universities now cannot look at race as a factor in admissions really underscores the need to make sure that universities shouldn't be taking into account wealth or alumni status,” Ting told Playbook. Efforts to limit legacy admissions have recently gained steam in both major parties and at the highest levels of American politics. Virginia Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed a ban on legacy admissions at public universities in March, and President Joe Biden’s administration is waging a war on the practice with a civil rights investigation into Harvard’s application processing. Going after the privileges of the ultra-wealthy offers politicians the chance to frame themselves as champions of the working class and of underrepresented students. “Ending legacy admissions isn't just good policy — it's good politics too,” said Dan Helmer, a Democratic lawmaker in Virginia who carried his state’s proposal. Already, three states have banned legacy admissions at public universities, with Maryland’s ban also extending to private institutions (but not fining them). And the selective University of California stopped considering legacy status years ago. California is well positioned to take this latest step due its unusual financial leverage. Private universities here benefit from one of the most comprehensive state financial aid programs in the country — and Ting has proposed clawing back aid from schools that offer preference to legacy applicants. But it won’t be easy to contend with these institutions’ powerful graduates and donor networks. Ting has been tracking efforts in New York, a state that also has a large financial aid program for private universities and where lawmakers this year mulled fining those that consider applicants’ ties to alumni. The legislation didn’t make it to Gov. Kathy Hochul’s desk by the end of the state’s legislative session — a sign of the political hurdles California may reckon with. Still, the nation’s largest state passing a ban could go a long way toward clearing a path for smaller states to follow, said Connecticut state Sen. Derek Slap, whose bill to ban the practice was ultimately diluted before passing. “That would be a game changer. Big time,” said Slap. The California proposal could have sweeping consequences for some institutions. More than 13 percent of students admitted to USC, Santa Clara University and Stanford in 2022 were related to alumni, according to numbers the schools had to report under past legislation from Ting. USC and Stanford haven’t taken positions on the bill, spokespeople said. But both universities are members of an independent colleges network that opposes the legislation unless several amendments are made — including one that would cut its enforcement mechanism. “We’re uncomfortable with the state dictating admission practices in our institutions, and the potential precedent it sets,” said Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities President Kristen Soares. The proposal will need to overcome not only that resistance, but be signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom — perhaps Santa Clara’s most powerful alum. A spokesperson for his office declined to comment. IT’S TUESDAY AFTERNOON. This is California Playbook PM, a POLITICO newsletter that serves as an afternoon temperature check on California politics and a look at what our policy reporters are watching. Got tips or suggestions? Shoot an email to wventeicher@politico.com.
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