Education Publications

The 2023-24 Budget: Fiscal Outlook for Schools and Community Colleges

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November 16, 2022 - Each year, the state calculates a “minimum guarantee” for school and community college funding based upon a set of formulas established by Proposition 98 (1988). Based upon recent signs of weakness in the economy, we estimate the guarantee in 2023‑24 is $2.2 billion (2 percent) below the 2022‑23 enacted budget level. Despite this drop, $7.6 billion would be available to provide increases for school and community college programs. In 2023‑24, the available funding could cover a cost‑of‑living adjustment (COLA) of up to 8.38 percent, which is slightly below our estimate of the statutory rate (8.73 percent). Over the next several years, growth in the guarantee and required reserve withdrawals would be just enough to cover the statutory COLA. Given this relatively precarious balance, we outline a few ways the Legislature could create a larger cushion to protect against revenue declines in the future.

Recent Funding to Address Teacher Shortages

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November 16, 2022 - Assembly Budget Subcommittee No. 2 on Education Finance

The 2022-23 California Spending Plan: Child Care and Preschool

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October 27, 2022 - This post summarizes the state’s 2022-23 spending package for child care and preschool. It is part of our Spending Plan series, which contains posts focused on each major sector of the state budget.

The 2022-23 California Spending Plan: Proposition 98

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October 24, 2022 - This post summarizes overall Proposition 98 funding and K-12 education spending in the 2022-23 budget package. It is part of our Spending Plan series, which contains posts focused on each major sector of the state budget.

The 2022-23 California Spending Plan: Higher Education

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October 4, 2022 - This post summarizes the state’s 2022-23 spending package for higher education. It is part of our Spending Plan series. In this post, we provide a short overview of the state’s higher education spending package, then cover spending for the California Community Colleges (CCC), California State University (CSU), University of California (UC), student financial aid, student housing, and California State Library.

The 2022-23 Budget: California Spending Plan Series

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September 29, 2022 - Each year, our office publishes California Spending Plan, a series of publications that summarize the annual state budget. The Overview of the California Spending Plan is presented here along with short online posts that focus on major areas and features of the 2022-23 budget package. As more of these posts become available, we will add them below.

Initiative Statute: Provides Additional Funding for Arts and Music Education in Public Schools

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June 1, 2022 - Presented to: Assembly Committee on Education and Senate Education Committee

The 2022-23 Budget: Overview of May Revision K-12 Education Proposals

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May 18, 2022 - This handout analyzes the overall structure of the Governor's May Revision plan for school funding, including an assessment of the major augmentations and the underlying estimates of the Proposition 98 minimum guarantee.

Higher Education May Revision Proposals

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May 18, 2022 - Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Subcommittee No. 1 on Education

Higher Education May Revision Proposals

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May 17, 2022 - Presented to: Assembly Budget Subcommittee No. 2 on Education Finance

The 2022-23 Budget: Initial Comments on the Governor's May Revision

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May 16, 2022 - On May 13, 2022, Governor Newsom presented a revised state budget proposal to the Legislature. (This annual proposed revised budget is called the “May Revision.”) In this brief, we provide a summary of the Governor's revised budget, focusing on the overall condition and structure of the state General Fund—the budget's main operating account. In the coming days, we will analyze the plan in more detail and provide additional comments in hearing testimony and online. The information presented in this brief is based on our best understanding of the administration's proposals as of 11:00 AM, May 14, 2022. In many areas of the budget, this understanding will continue to evolve as we receive more information. We only plan to update this brief for very significant changes (that is, those greater than $500 million).

Update (5/20/22): Updated to reflect information about state appropriations limit (SAL) excluded spending and other budget proposals.

The 2022-23 Budget: Update on K-12 Student Attendance

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May 11, 2022 - In early March, the California Department of Education published the first report of 2021-22 attendance data. In this post, we provide background on the calculation of school attendance, describe findings from the updated data, and discuss a few key issues to provide greater context for the findings.

The 2022-23 Budget: Office of Planning and Research Higher Education Proposals

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May 10, 2022 - The Office of Planning and Research (OPR) is tasked by state law to support statewide planning and research activities. Among its many activities, the office has overseen certain higher education initiatives. This post analyzes three higher education OPR proposals in the Governor’s January budget for 2022‑23 related to the California Education Learning Laboratory, the Golden State Awards, and Carnegie Science.

The 2022-23 Budget: Hastings College of the Law

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May 10, 2022 - The Governor’s January budget proposes a $2 million (12 percent) General Fund base increase for the Hastings College of the Law (Hastings) in 2022‑23. After accounting for other revenue increases (primarily from student tuition revenue), Hastings’ total ongoing core budget would increase by $5 million (6.7 percent). Generally, we think the Governor’s proposal is a good starting point for budget deliberations. This is because Hastings’ corresponding expenditure plan primarily focuses on basic workload adjustments. That said, we emphasize that this proposal is a starting point. The Legislature likely will want to weigh this proposal against its other 2022‑23 budget priorities. Moreover, we note that Hastings could face higher‑than‑expected costs in 2022‑23 as part of its recent initiative to change its name.

The 2022-23 Budget: Student Housing

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April 8, 2022 - This brief analyzes the Governor’s proposed first-round awards for the Higher Education Student Housing Grant Program.