Two California bills (signed into law in fall 1984) designed to improve state standards for approving and authorizing private, nonaccredited colleges and universities are examined, with attention to the background to the bills, the key changes in statute that each bill accomplished, and the current status in their implementation. Senate Bill 2151 changes the process by which most private, nonaccredited schools will be authorized to grant degrees. Formerly, an institution could grant degrees with only an accurate disclosure of its goals, programs, and resources and the showing of $50,000 in assets devoted to educational use by the institution. The new process requires that a college's entire program, faculty, academic requirements, and physical and fiscal resources meet qualitative standards. The primary change instituted by Bill 1923 is to make the approval process an institutionwide process and ensure that the college will not achieve approved status unless and until every degree program attains the quality required under this section of the law. Prior to the bill, state approval was granted on a program-by-program basis. It is expected that the implementation of this law will assure both the quality and strength of entire institutions as well as individual programs. The texts of both bills are appended. (SW)