The San Mateo County Community College District (SMCCCD) will begin its journey to lobby for permanently free college once the legislative session ends on September 12. The goal of the SMCCCD is to have the bill, SB 893, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in September 2026 before it expires on July 1, 2028.
SB 893 was originally introduced by Senator Josh Becker of the 13th CA Senate District, and co-authored by U.S. Congressman Kevin Mullen and State Assembly member Marc Berman. SB 893 was signed by Newsom in Fall 2022, making college at each SMCCCD campus free in January 2023. The bill allowed the SMCCCD to use county property taxes to pay for the students’ total education costs.
The free college program was highly beneficial to the district, with an increased enrollment of 24% throughout the county. With the end of the program near, the SMCCCD is now hoping to keep that momentum going permanently.
Aaron McVean, vice chancellor of educational services and planning, said the SMCCCD will be working with Senator Becker, Capitol Insider Nate Solov, who also lobbied for the bill, and assembly members Berman and Diane Papan to make sure it gets signed by Newsom.
McVean also said he does not expect to have any major complications in getting the bill signed, as it was highly successful originally.
“Given the success of free college in the SMCCCD, we do not anticipate there being any insurmountable barriers,” McVean said. “We have a plan and we have tremendous support from our community to continue to provide this essential access to higher education.”
McVean said he is excited to be able to work with Senator Becker for the second time, and believes that his support will be beneficial to the district once again.
“He is a tremendous supporter of our district and its colleges, and we look forward to his continued support to make free college permanent in the SMCCCD,” McVean said.
In October, the SMCCCD will meet with Senator Becker to discuss the new legislation that will be proposed in 2026 in order to make college permanently free in the SMCCCD.
