California lawmakers have approved moderate increases in support to public colleges after two years of  budget cuts. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is expected to sign the budget, which protects higher education even as it cuts other programs to help close a $19-billion deficit. State support will increase by 12 percent at the University of California, 11 percent at California State University, and 3 percent at the community colleges. However, the pain for colleges may not be over: The budget is built on a shaky foundation, and the state will probably be forced to consider new cuts in January, under a new governor.

Public universities in California won a major political battle on Thursday, when Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed a bill that would have made college foundations subject to the state's open-records law. Public colleges often use the private foundations to help manage fund raising and other campus operations. Proponents of the bill had argued that the foundations are effectively part of the colleges they represent and need more oversight, citing controversies over bad loans and a Sarah Palin speaking contract. Universities argued that the bill would damage fund-raising efforts because it lacked sufficient privacy protections for anonymous donors.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger of California signed a bill today that guarantees admission to the California State University system for community-college students who obtain a transfer-focused associate degree. The law aims to simplify confusing and uneven transfer requirements between the two systems. Its reliance on a statewide associate degree as the primary path for transfer is a major shift for California, which has typically relied on a network of agreements between local campuses.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger of California signed two bills on Tuesday authorizing the California State University system to offer doctoral degrees in nursing practice and physical therapy. The University of California has traditionally had the sole authority to offer doctorates under the state's Master Plan for Higher Education, and in the past it has fought efforts to allow Cal State to encroach on that territory. In a further sign that tensions over the issue have cooled, however, the University of California did not oppose either bill in the Legislature. Cal State started its first doctoral programs, in education, in 2007.

California State University announced on Monday that it would enroll up to 30,000 students next spring after threatening to close spring enrollment for a second year in a row. The 23-campus system effectively shut off spring admissions last year in response to state budget cuts, turning away tens of thousands of students and wreaking havoc on the state's main community-college transfer pipeline. But college officials are hoping that state support for California universities will increase modestly in the 2010-11 budget year, giving them extra room to admit students.

The University of California's endowment managers are skirting its proxy-voting policies by refusing to review shareholder resolutions designed to promote human rights, environmental protection, and other social issues, the Bay Citizen reported. The report, which was published in The New York Times, says documents show the 10-campus system rejected hundreds of resolutions without undertaking a proper review. Melvin L. Stanton, the university's associate chief investment officer, told the Bay Citizen that no evidence existed of "a significant correlation between proposals brought by shareholders/activist groups and additional shareholder value."

The University of California, facing an estimated $20-billion deficit in its retirement plan, released a proposal on Monday to reduce the amount it spends on employee benefits. The deficit at the 10-campus university system is a severe example of the pension crisis that threatens public colleges across the country. The proposed changes would reduce benefits for new employees starting in 2013, raise the minimum retirement age from 50 to 55, shift some health-care costs to employees, and sharply increase employer and employee contributions to the system's struggling pension plan. Mark G. Yudof, the system's president, is expected to send a revised set of recommendations to the Board of Regents in November.

The University of California has reached a tentative deal with the United Auto Workers union that represents about 6,000 of its postdoctoral scholars, union officials announced on Monday. Details of the agreement are not yet available, according to the Contra Costa Times. Unions have recently begun trying to organize postdocs and have had success in California, Connecticut, and New Jersey.

A California lawmaker has introduced a bill to prevent public universities from requesting DNA samples from their students. The bill is a response to a controversial and voluntary DNA-testing program at the University of California at Berkeley intended to teach students about the importance of genetic medicine. The bill would impose an outright ban on nonmedical requests for DNA at California State University, but it would merely request such a ban at the University of California, which has a higher degree of autonomy from state regulations.

University leaders in Oregon are seeking more control over their own tuition, borrowing, and spending, The Oregonian reported. The university system's board approved a proposal on Friday that asks the state to remove legislative restrictions on the seven universities that, officials say, generate added costs and financial uncertainty. In return, the universities would promise to meet research, enrollment, and graduation goals.