CFA Sponsors Bill to Finally Make CSU Board of Trustees Information Available to the Public

Last month Assemblymember Mike Fong introduced the CFA-sponsored Assembly Bill 2523, which would require the CSU and California Community Colleges to post contact information online for members of the respective governing bodies.  AB 2523 would also request the University of California (UC) do the same.  

We look forward to advocating for this bill to pass, because it would require the CSU to publish the name, email address, phone number, and mailing address of each member of the Board of Trustees for conducting official business. To be clear, the contact information would be professional, not personal.  

The CSU would also be required to post a short biography of each trustee. Lastly, the bill would further encourage each trustee to consider input provided to the board before voting on issues at open board meetings.  

Current practice varies between appointed trustees, of which there are 16, and Ex Officio trustees, of which there are five. Ex Officio trustees include the governor, lieutenant governor, speaker of the assembly, state superintendent of public instruction, and the chancellor. 

The CSU’s current practice for appointed trustees is to list names, biographies, and a general phone number, general email address, and general mailing address for an office of the Board of Trustees. A general phone number, email address, and mailing address means there is only one for all 16 appointed trustees. AB 2523 would require the CSU to post an individual phone number, email address, and mailing address for each trustee.  

For Ex Officio trustees, the CSU currently lists mailing addresses, some phone numbers, and links to websites or a biography. 

At least one CSU Board of Trustee member has told CFA members to contact him via the general Office of the Board of Trustees email address. But the board member never responded to the email.  
 
Meghan O’Donnell — AVP for Lecturers North, a Statewide Senator for the Academic Senate of the California State University, and lecturer at CSU Monterey Bay — said this bill will make it easier to reach trustees. She added that trustees are public servants in this capacity and thus should be accessible to the public.  

“As the decision makers for the largest public university system in the nation, trustees have a responsibility to receive, listen, and read input from the public,” O’Donnell said. “Comments to trustees shouldn’t only be limited to one-minute comments at board meetings.” 

This bill would bring the CSU’s policy for contact information for its governing body to be more in line with other California governing bodies. City and county websites often list official contact information for each member of a legislative body.  

Preeti Sharma, AVP for Racial and Social Justice South and professor at CSU Long Beach, said AB 2523 is long overdue and will help us hold trustees accountable.  

“I am grateful that Assemblymember Fong and CFA are advancing this bill because we need to be able to directly contact the trustees who oversee the CSU,” Sharma said. “They adopt rules and policies governing the university, so they should have public phone numbers, email addresses, and mailing addresses for the public to contact them in a direct way.” 

While this bill advances through the legislature, we have an opportunity to give public comment at the March 10 Board of Trustees meeting to hold the trustees accountable for prioritizing CSU executives over students, faculty, and staff. CFA members can register to give public comment here. The deadline is March 6.