July 15, 2011 - The California Senate on Thursday passed the first of two "DREAM Act" bills, with one Republican joining all 25 Democrats in voting for the measure. The bill (AB 130) would allow undocumented immingrants who qualify for in-state tuition to apply for privately-funded scholarships. AB 130 had previously passed the Assembly on May 5 on a party line vote (51-22).
Senate Vote on Passage
- Interest groups supporting the bill (State & local government employee unions, Teachers unions, etc.) gave over nine times as much on average to senators voting 'YES' ($65,971) as they gave to those voting 'NO' ($7,089), from Jan. 1, 2007 to Dec. 31, 2010.
- Interest groups opposing the bill (Republican-based groups (but not official party committees) and generic conservative ones and Christian coalition/religious right) gave over 25 times as much on average to senators voting 'NO' ($9,246) as they gave to those voting 'YES' ($377), from Jan. 1, 2007 to Dec. 31, 2010
Assembly Vote on Passage
- Interest groups supporting the bill gave 23 times as much on average to Assemblymembers voting 'YES' ($48,407) as they gave to Assemblymembers voting 'NO' ($2,147), from Jan. 1, 2009 to Dec. 31, 2010.
The bill now heads to the desk of Jerry Brown, who is expected to sign it. A related bill, AB 131, which would extend eligibility for publicly-funded financial aid, passed the Assembly on June 1. Supporting interest groups gave 18 times as much on average to Assemblymembers voting 'YES' ($49,064) as they gave to those voting 'NO' ($2,755). AB 131 has been placed on the Senate Appropriations Committee suspense file.
Methodology: A MapLight analysis of campaign contributions to legislators in office on day of vote, from interest groups invested in the vote according to MapLight, January 1, 2009 – December 31, 2010 for Assemblymembers and January 1, 2007 – December 31, 2010 for senators. Campaign contributions data source: FollowTheMoney.org
