Assembly Bill 955 by Das Williams, D-Santa Barbara, passed 48-12, with 18 lawmakers not voting. The bill allows California community colleges to create self-supporting programs during summer and winter intersessions where students pay nonresident tuition of around $200 a unit, versus the state-funded courses that charge $46 per unit. A third of the revenue collected from the courses would go to providing financial assistance to students eligible for fee waivers.

Williams said his bill is not a perfect plan to address reduced student access to courses necessary to transfer to four-year universities or obtain degrees or certificates. Williams said budget cuts have made it difficult to meet the educational needs of students.

"I realized this would be a very unpopular measure in some circles," Williams said. "Stakeholders ... want the perfect solution, and I understand why they do. But, holding out for the perfect solution when people are suffering is wrong. The conclusion I came to is it would be a failing on my part ethically to take the easy path."

Assemblywoman Shirley Weber, D-San Diego, said the bill would segregate students based on their ability to pay higher fees. Weber noted that the bill would benefit her son, who is a community college student.

"I would never want him to believe that because mom has a little more money and this is a state-funded institution that I can afford to pay for him to have experiences faster than anyone else at the institution," Weber said. "For me, it's a fundamental issue of access and what the community college has stood for all these years in California."

Sacramento Democrats Richard Pan and Roger Dickinson did not vote on the bill.

PHOTO CREDIT: Assemblyman Das Williams, D-Santa Barbara, right, receives congratulations from Assemblyman Henry Perea, D-Fresno, after his measure that will allow California community colleges to offer additional classes during shorter summer and winter sessions at a higher tuition rate, was approved by the Assembly. AP Photo/ Rich Pedroncelli)

The difference translates into $400 million for the current fiscal year and $2.8 billion for the year that begins in July. The projection sets up a potential battle between Brown and fellow Democrats in the Legislature. who want to spend more than he proposes.

Both Brown and Taylor urge fiscal restraint, however, because revenue projections are largely dependent upon economic factors ranging from employment to housing prices. Both also agree that the bulk of the money will go to schools under state law.

Brown, in his new proposal, had lowered projected revenues by $1.8 billion from his January estimate.

Though tax revenue has run about $4.5 billion ahead of projections through April, Brown said much of that money is unlikely to carry over into future years.

Revenue projections are pivotal for crafting a budget deal with Democratic legislative leaders, who face heavy pressure from social service advocates to restore key safety net services slashed during California's budget crisis.

Assembly Speaker John A. Pérez, in a written statement, said that the LAO"s projections are consistent with his own expectations. He vowed to work with the Senate and Brown's office to craft a "responsible budget."

"No one should interpret these figures as an automatic green light to increase spending, but rather to pay off debt, build the reserve, and strengthen the middle class - key principles of our (Assembly budget blueprint)," Perez said of the LAO's analysis.

The gap in revenue projections between Taylor and Brown is due partly to differing views of California's near-term economic prospects and partly to the LAO accounting for sharp recent increases in stock prices.

"The administration's forecast does not take account of this trend," Taylor's report said.

Even if the $3.2 billion in additional revenues proves accurate, Taylor said that Proposition 98 assures that schools would receive all but several hundred million dollars, at most.

The LAO report added that there is no certainty in its revenue projection.

"There is a risk that our outlook will prove wrong in the near term because capital gains are volatile and stock trends are impossible to predict," the report said.

Taylor suggested a "cautious budgetary posture" that does not commit unexpected revenue to ongoing programs.

"After years of 'boom and bust' budgeting, California's leaders now have the opportunity to build a budget for future years that gives the state more choices about how to build reserves in times of healthy revenue growth, prioritize future state spending and pay off past debts," Taylor's report said.

The LAO also suggested that "this is an ideal time" for the Legislature to begin addressing its huge budgetary and retirement liabilities, including funding problems of the California State Teachers Retirement System.

The Brown Administration released a finding by the Fitch Ratings firm that applauded the governor's "disciplined approach to fiscal management."

The ratings agency called Brown's estimates a "prudent revenue forecast" and concluded that his revised budget proposal calls for "restrained spending growth."

PHOTO CREDIT: Legislative Analyst Mac Taylor, in 2011. Hector Amezcua/The Sacramento Bee.

Written by Assemblyman Tom Ammiano, D-San Francisco, Assembly Bill 4 would prevent local police from detaining people based on immigration status when they are arrested unless they have prior serious or violent felony convictions.

The bill, which Ammiano and supporters have dubbed the "Trust Act," is an expanded version of legislation proposed last year that was vetoed by Gov. Jerry Brown.

As the measure moves to the Senate, Ammiano is expected to offer amendments to win Brown's support.

The bill is designed to dictate how police deal with requests for information under the federal Secure Communities Program. Under current state law, police have the discretion to send information to federal officials, who automatically check the immigration status of people using fingerprints obtained upon arrest.

Ammiano said the Secure Communities Program is supposed to target serious offenders, but that hasn't been the case.

Ammiano said those kind of deportations erode trust in law enforcement and cause undocumented immigrants to be fearful of reporting crimes.

"This issue goes right to the heart of comprehensive immigration reform," said Ammiano.

In his veto message last year, Brown said the bill was "fatally flawed" because it did not allow local officers to detain a person accused of some serious crimes, such as child abuse, drug trafficking, selling weapons or gangs.

"The significant flaws in this bill can be fixed, and I will work with the Legislature to see that the bill is corrected forthwith," Brown said in the veto message.

Ammiano said he is working with Brown's office on the current bill's language, which still includes the examples Brown highlighted. On Thursday, the bill passed 44-21 mostly along party lines, with several Republicans expressing concerns that the proposed legislation is ill-conceived and piecemeal.

"This bill is not about restoring trust, this bill is about undermining the rule of law," said Assemblyman Tim Donnelly, R-Twin Peaks. "... If we allow the law to break down at the lowest level, eventually we will have no more rule of law. When the rule of law completely fails, we have anarchy."

The case of Juana Reyes was raised several times during discussion on the Assembly floor. Reyes, who had lived in the United States for 16 years with no criminal history, was arrested last year for refusing to stop selling tamales in front of a Sacramento Walmart store. She spent 13 days on an immigration hold in the Sacramento County jail.

Her children were placed in foster care until a misdemeanor trespassing charge was dismissed and she was referred to ICE as a deportable alien.

"We have to move this bill forward to restore community trust to local law enforcement and end the practice of tearing apart families and neighborhoods on the basis of insignificant alleged offenses," Ammiano said.

PHOTO CREDIT: Assemblyman Tom Ammiano, D-San Francisco, urged lawmakers to approve his measure that limits the state's participation in a federal law enforcement program that targets illegal immigrants, at the Capitol . Rich Pedroncelli/Associated Press