The 2025-26 California Spending Plan

Proposition 98 and K-12 Education

Proposition 98 Guarantee

Proposition 98 Establishes Minimum Funding Level for Schools and Community Colleges. This funding requirement is commonly known as the minimum guarantee. The state calculates the guarantee by comparing three main formulas or “tests.” (Figure 1). Each test takes into account certain inputs, such as state General Fund revenue, per capita personal income, and K-12 student attendance. The state can fund at the minimum guarantee or any level above it. Alternatively, the state can suspend the guarantee with a two-thirds vote of each house of the Legislature. When the Legislature invokes suspension or General Fund revenues are relatively weak, the state creates an obligation known as “maintenance factor.” When revenues are relatively strong, the state makes maintenance factor payments (which become part of the guarantee moving forward). If the guarantee rises after the enactment of the budget, the state must “settle up” to the higher guarantee by appropriating additional funding attributable to that year. The state meets the guarantee through a combination of state General Fund and local property tax revenue.

Guarantee Revised Up in 2024-25. Compared with the estimate in the June 2024 budget plan, the guarantee is up $4.7 billion (4 percent) in 2024-25 (Figure 1). This increase primarily reflects higher General Fund revenues, partially offset by lower property tax estimates. The calculation of the guarantee includes a $5.5 billion maintenance factor payment in addition to the basic amount required by Test 1 (the applicable test in 2024-25). This payment reduces the remaining maintenance factor obligation to $2.8 billion.

Guarantee Revised Down in 2025-26. The budget estimates the guarantee is $114.6 billion in 2025-26, a decrease of $724 million (0.6 percent) from the 2024-25 enacted budget level. Test 1 applies in 2025-26, with the decline in the guarantee primarily reflecting lower estimates of General Fund revenue. (Due to this revenue decrease, the state makes no maintenance factor payments in 2025-26.) Growth in local property tax revenue helps offset a portion of this decline.

Adjustment for Transitional Kindergarten (TK). The June 2021 budget established a plan to make all four-year-old children eligible for TK by 2025-26. Under the plan, the state is “rebenching” (adjusting) the Proposition 98 guarantee upward for the additional students enrolling each year. For 2025-26, the calculation of the guarantee includes a $2.1 billion adjustment to cover the full cost of the expansion, an increase of $742 million over the 2024-25 adjustment (which covered the first three years of the expansion).

Adjustment for Fire-Related Property Tax Losses. Two large wildfires (the Palisades Fire and the Eaton Fire) burned portions of Los Angeles County in January 2025. The fires damaged or destroyed thousands of homes and buildings, resulting in lower assessed property values and corresponding reductions in property tax payments. In Test 1 years like 2025-26, reductions in property tax revenue generally have dollar-for-dollar effects on the guarantee. The budget mitigates the associated funding decline by approving one-time increases in the guarantee of $58 million in 2024-25 and $114 million in 2025-26. (Separate from these statewide adjustments, the budget contains several provisions to mitigate the effects on individual districts and charter schools in Los Angeles County.)

K-14 Spending Architecture

Delays $1.9 Billion Settle-Up Payment. Whereas the minimum guarantee is up nearly $4.7 billion in 2024-25, the budget appropriates slightly more than $2.7 billion in additional funding that year. The difference between these amounts creates a $1.9 billion settle-up obligation the state will have to pay with future revenues. One purpose of this delay is to mitigate the risk that the final calculation of the guarantee is below the state’s current estimate. If the guarantee were to drop, the state could reduce the future settle-up payment more easily than it could reverse funds already provided to schools. The delay also provides temporary fiscal relief for the state budget by freeing up $1.9 billion for non-Proposition 98 programs. Trailer legislation requires the Department of Finance to provide an updated estimate of the settle-up obligation and a plan for paying it as part of the Governor’s January 2026 budget proposal. It also requires the state to use the settle-up payment to fund existing programs and/or avoid payment deferrals, rather than funding new commitments.

Fully Withdraws Proposition 98 Reserve Balance. The Proposition 98 Reserve is a statewide reserve account for school and community college funding. Constitutional formulas and legislative actions determine the size of the deposit or withdrawal each year. The June 2025 budget package rescinds a $1.1 billion discretionary deposit into this account in 2024-25. It makes a new mandatory $455 million deposit in 2024-25 and a mandatory withdrawal of this same amount in 2025-26. These actions together draw down the entire balance.

Implements Payment Deferrals. The budget reduces spending in 2025-26 by deferring $2.3 billion in payments to 2026-27. Of this amount, $1.9 billion pertains to schools. The state will implement the school deferral by shifting a portion of the June 2026 payment to July 2026. The law exempts school districts and charter schools that can demonstrate the delay would make them unable to meet their financial obligations. The remaining $408 million in deferrals pertains to community colleges. The state will implement the community college deferral by moving payments from May and June 2026 to July 2026. These deferrals free up funding for additional one-time and ongoing spending that would otherwise exceed the Proposition 98 guarantee in 2025-26.

Shifts Ongoing Funding From Community Colleges to Schools. The state typically divides Proposition 98 funding between schools and community colleges using an uncodified methodology known as “the split.” The methodology involves allocating about 89 percent of the available funding to schools and about 11 percent to community colleges, with certain expenditures excluded from these percentages. The budget establishes a new exclusion, beginning in 2025-26, for the costs associated with the recent expansion of TK. Compared with the previous methodology, this modification shifts $233 million in ongoing Proposition 98 funding from community colleges to schools.

Uses One-Time Savings to Cover Ongoing Program Costs. The budget funds several increases for ongoing school and community college programs, including a 2.3 percent cost-of-living adjustment (COLA). These actions increase the cost of ongoing programs beyond the ongoing Proposition 98 funding level by nearly $1.7 billion. Of this amount, $1.2 billion pertains to school programs and $462 million pertains to community college programs. To cover the gap, the budget relies upon one-time savings generated through three main actions: (1) deferring payments from 2025-26 to 2026-27, (2) withdrawing funds from the Proposition 98 Reserve, and (3) repurposing some unused Proposition 98 funds from previous fiscal years. These savings allow the state to cover the cost of these increases in 2025-26. Entering 2026-27, however, the savings expire and the state will need to cover the $1.7 billion shortfall with new ongoing funds, ongoing reductions, or additional one-time actions.

Modifies Proposition 98 Fiscal Maneuver Adopted Last Year. The June 2024 budget finalized school and community college funding at a level exceeding the guarantee by $6.2 billion in 2022-23. It financed this cost with a new type of fiscal maneuver that accrued the $6.2 billion to future fiscal years. Specifically, the state decided to recognize the cost in installments of $621 million per year over ten years, beginning in 2026-27. Conceptually, this maneuver is similar to the state taking an internal loan from its cash reserves, with the annual installments representing the repayment of this loan. September trailer legislation extends this schedule so that the state will recognize the cost in installments of $500 million per year over 13 years, beginning in 2027-28. (The final installment in 2039-40 will be $193 million.) The change has no direct effect on school and community college funding because the installments are accounting entries—not additional payments to districts—and the state is attributing them to the non-Proposition 98 side of the budget.

K-12 Education

Overall K-12 Proposition 98 Funding Increases $3.9 Billion. Compared with the June 2024 budget act, overall funding for schools is up $3.9 billion. Of this amount, $3 billion is associated with 2024-25 and $933 million is associated with 2025-26. After accounting for the one-time savings from the deferral and other adjustments, $7.7 billion is available for new spending. (See Figure 2.) The budget uses this funding to cover COLA, ongoing increases for TK and the Expanded Learning Opportunities Program (ELOP), a one-time discretionary grant, and numerous smaller grants for specific activities. In the remainder of this section, we describe the K-12 spending actions in detail. (The changes related to State Preschool are covered in our companion publication The 2025-26 California Spending Plan: Child Care and State Preschool.)

Ongoing Spending Changes

Provides 2.3 Percent COLA for Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) and Other Programs. The budget includes $1.8 billion to provide a 2.3 percent statutory COLA for LCFF. The budget also assumes a $402 million reduction in costs from a 0.5 percent decrease in the attendance used to calculate district funding under LCFF. The COLA and attendance adjustments combined result in a net LCFF increase of $1.4 billion. In addition, the budget provides $176 million to cover a 2.3 percent COLA for several categorical programs (primarily special education).

Provides Increase for TK Expansion and Staffing Requirements. Trailer legislation included in the 2021-22 budget package gradually expanded TK eligibility beginning in 2022-23, with all four-year old children eligible for TK by 2025-26. From 2022-23 through 2024-25, TK eligibility expanded by an additional two months each year. In 2025-26, eligibility expands by an additional three months. The budget package assumes LCFF costs associated with TK will be $927 million above revised 2024-25 levels. (This assumes statewide attendance for TK students will increase by 51,000 in 2025-26.) The budget also assumes an additional $517 million in costs associated with the requirement that the adult-to-student ratio be reduced to, on average, one adult for every ten students. (In 2024-25, the requirement was 1 adult for every 12 students.)

Reduces Penalty for Exceeding TK Classroom Size Limits. The budget package modifies the penalty assessed on school districts and charter schools that do not maintain an average TK classroom size of 24 or less at each school site. Under previous law, the penalty was an amount equivalent to the LCFF grade span adjustment generated by all TK students in the school district or charter school. (The grade span adjustment is equal to 10.4 percent of the LCFF base grant.) The budget package modifies the penalty so that it is based only on the TK attendance at schools that exceeded the average class size limit of 24.

Increases ELOP Funding for Some School Districts and Charter Schools. The budget provides a $607 million ongoing increase for ELOP. Of the amount provided, $597 million is intended to cover costs associated with reducing the eligibility threshold for the higher Tier 1 rates. Specifically, school districts and charter schools where 55 percent or more of the student body is an English learner or low income (EL/LI) will receive the Tier 1 rates (compared with 75 percent EL/LI under previous law). The additional funding is intended to cover the higher costs for those shifting to Tier 1 while providing a Tier 2 rate of $1,575. The remaining $10 million is to cover an increase of the minimum ELOP grant amount from $50,000 to $100,000. School districts and charter schools that move from the Tier 2 rate to the Tier 1 rate will not be required to offer the program to all students (as is required for Tier 1 schools) and are not subject to the annual audit requirement until 2026-27.

Funds Universal Meals Cost Increases. The budget package provides an increase of $69 million in 2025-26 to fully fund the cost of implementing universal school meals. These higher state costs are associated with growth in the number of meals served.

Provides New SUN Bucks Funding for Schools. The SUN Bucks program—formerly called the Summer Electronic Benefit Transfer program—provides summertime food benefits to children in households that qualify for free or reduced-price school meals. The budget provides $21.9 million Proposition 98 General Fund and $21.9 million federal funds for schools to support the administration of SUN Bucks. (Program benefits are 100 percent federally funded, while the administrative costs are split evenly between federal and state funds per federal program requirements.) The funding for schools is intended to cover the costs associated with determining eligibility for children that need to apply and verifying eligibility of 3 percent of the approved SUN Bucks applicants, as required by federal program rules. The budget also includes associated trailer bill language that requires all schools participating in the National School Lunch Program or School Breakfast Program to conduct these activities. The California Department of Education (CDE) plans to reimburse schools based on the number of applications that are processed and verified. The budget also includes $770,000 in state operations funding (evenly split between non-Proposition 98 General Fund and federal funds) to support staff that will share student eligibility data and provide technical assistance to schools.

Other Ongoing Increases. The budget package includes several other ongoing Proposition 98 spending increases.

• K-12 High Speed Network. The budget provides an additional $3.5 million on an ongoing basis for High Speed Network operations, bringing the total Proposition 98 funding to $10.5 million.

• California College Guidance Initiative (CCGI). The budget provides an additional $3 million for CCGI, bringing total Proposition 98 funding to $23.7 million. The increase is intended to cover baseline operations that were covered with unspent prior-year funding in 2024-25.

• Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) Mandate. The budget provides a $2.1 million ongoing increase to the K-12 mandates block grant to account for costs associated with the FAFSA mandate. Chapter 144 of 2021 (AB 132, Committee on Budget) requires schools to confirm that each 12^th grade student has completed a financial aid application (unless the student ops out) and direct students to services necessary to assist them in completing the financial aid application. The additional funding is provided through an increase to the per-student rate for high school students.

• Regional English Learner Lead Agencies. The budget includes $2 million ongoing to support 11 county offices of education (COEs) that currently serve as regional English learner lead agencies. This replaces $2 million in federal Title III funding currently provided for this purpose. The budget package also includes trailer legislation requiring CDE to select a new set of COEs to serve as regional English learner lead agencies beginning in 2026-27. The CDE is to select five to seven COEs to serve as lead agencies by July 1, 2026.

• Homeless Education Technical Assistance Centers (HETACs). The budget package includes $1.5 million ongoing Proposition 98 funding to support the HETACs. The HETACs were originally established in 2021 with $4.5 million in one-time federal relief funds to be spent over three years. The 2024-25 budget package included $2.5 million in one-time federal carryover funding to continue the HETACs an additional year. Three COEs were selected to serve as HETACs—Contra Costa, Los Angeles, and San Diego.

• Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team (FCMAT). The budget provides two augmentations: (1) an ongoing increase of $600,000 to support salary increases for FCMAT employees and (2) a one-time allocation of $1 million to support workload related to the January 2025 fires in Los Angeles. The budget also backs out $438,000 in one-time funds provided in the June 2024 budget to support FCMAT’s leadership transition and long-term planning.

One-Time Spending

Funds New Discretionary Block Grant. The budget provides $1.7 billion for a new one-time grant known as the Student Support and Professional Development Discretionary Block Grant. School districts, charter schools, and COEs—collectively known as local education agencies (LEAs)—can use these funds for any local purpose, but trailer legislation encourages them to prioritize teacher training and professional development, teacher recruitment and retention, career pathways for high school students, and dual enrollment programs. The state will distribute funds on an equal per-pupil basis (about $312 per student). LEAs must spend their funds before June 30, 2029 and submit an expenditure report by September 30, 2029. Trailer legislation also counts these funds toward any mandate reimbursement claims a district previously submitted.

Provides Funding for Learning Recovery Emergency Block Grant (LREBG). The June 2022 budget approved $7.9 billion for the LREBG to support learning recovery efforts in schools and the social and emotional well-being of students and staff. The June 2023 budget reduced this amount by $1.1 billion but adopted intent language to make up the reduction in the future. The June 2025 budget provides $379 million for the LREBG. This payment represents the first year of a three-year plan to restore the grant. LEAs will receive funding based primarily on the number of EL/LI students they enroll, consistent with the original allocation formula. Before spending these funds, LEAs must conduct a needs assessment, solicit community feedback, and explain how research or other evidence supports their local plans.

Establishes Student Teacher Stipend Program. As Figure 3 shows, the budget package includes $453 million in one-time funding ($400 million Proposition 98 General Fund) for teacher recruitment and retention programs. The largest of these proposals provides $300 million for the Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC) to establish the Student Teacher Stipend Program. Up to $100 million will be allocated annually to provide $10,000 for teacher candidates who complete 500 hours of student teaching. (Intern teachers are not eligible for the stipend.) If funding is not sufficient to provide stipends to all eligible candidates, CTC will prioritize applications on a first-come, first-served basis. CTC must annually report to the Governor and Legislature on the state of the program, including the demographics of participants and types of credentials participants receive. The first report is due by January 1, 2027. Of the total amount, $5 million will be provided to the Kern County Superintendent of Schools to (1) conduct a multimedia campaign through July 2028 to encourage individuals to pursue a career in teaching, (2) develop a grants management system for CTC to use to streamline the administration and application of the teacher programs it administers, and (3) contract for an independent evaluation of the state’s efforts to improve educator recruitment and retention. The results of this evaluation will be reported to the Legislature by July 1, 2029.

Funds Teacher Residency Grant Program. The budget provides $70 million to support the expansion of teacher residency programs. This round of funds is available to for CTC to allocate until June 30, 2030. Additionally, the budget extends the deadline for allocating residency grant funds appropriated in the 2022-23 budget package from June 30, 2026 to June 30, 2027.

Adds Funding for the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards Certification Incentive Program. The budget provides $30 million for the National Board Program. Similar to the funding provided for the program in 2021-22, the budget sets aside $3 million of the total to cover the fees of first-time applicants to the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards program and uses the remaining funds to award up to $25,000 to teachers who become certified by the program. All funds must be spent by June 30, 2034. Additionally, trailer legislation requires the administration of the program and remaining unspent funds to be transferred from CDE to CTC on July 1, 2027.

Expands the Literacy Coaches and Reading Specialists Grant Program. The budget provides $215 million for the program. (The state previously provided a total of $473 million one-time funding for this program in 2022-23 and 2023-24.) Of the total funding, $200 million will be used to extend eligibility to elementary schools that have not previously received program funding and have a student body that is at least 94 percent EL/LI. (The previous round of grants restricted funding to schools with EL/LI of at least 95 percent.) The grant size is based on a school’s TK-3 enrollment, with a minimum grant of $450,000. The remaining $15 million will be awarded to a COE to provide training to literacy coaches throughout the state. LEAs receiving these grants must submit interim and final reports on the use of funds by June 30, 2027 and June 30, 2029, respectively. These reports must describe how funds were used to employ coaches and improve school literacy programs, how expenditures impact student literacy, and how the LEA plans to continue to support literacy coaches past the award period.

Funds Literacy Instruction Professional Development. The budget provides $200 million to support professional development on effective literacy instruction. Funds will be allocated to LEAs based on the number of full-time equivalent certificated teachers in grades TK-5. Trailer legislation requires the State Board of Education (SBE) to approve a list of professional development programs for English language arts (ELA) and English language development (ELD) training by September 30, 2026. These programs must align with CTC’s current teaching performance expectations, the new ELA/ELD framework, and current guidelines for dyslexia. The programs also must include evidence-based ways of teaching foundational reading skills (including phonics). LEAs may spend these funds through the 2029-30 fiscal year. Funding must be prioritized to train teachers in TK through grade 5 that have not passed the literacy performance assessment or have not received similar training in a preservice program. The training must be provided using one or more of the approved programs, or using a program that meets the same criteria used to develop the approved list of programs. LEAs may use excess funds to provide the professional development to all other teachers. LEAs must report to CDE the number of teachers who received professional development using these funds and which professional development programs were used by September 1, 2029. CDE in turn will submit a report to the Legislature and Governor by February 1, 2030.

Funds Additional Support for Universal Meals Implementation. The budget includes $155 million one-time funding for grants intended to support school nutrition programs. Of this amount, $145 million is to be used for (1) kitchen upgrades, such as cooking equipment and refrigeration, to increase capacity for freshly prepared onsite meals; (2) staffing and training costs related to implementing universal school meals; or (3) procuring California-grown food. The remaining $10 million is provided for grants to support retention and recruitment of food services workers. Funds will be distributed competitively and will be available until June 30, 2028. The budget also includes $5 million for a study of ultra-processed foods and restricted foods being offered in school meals in California. CDE is to provide three reports to the Legislature on the findings of the study—by June 1, 2029, January 1, 2031, and January 1, 2033.

Provides One-Time Augmentation to Career Technical Education Incentive Grant (CTEIG). The budget provides $150 million one-time Proposition 98 funding for CTEIG, in addition to the $300 million in ongoing funding provided for the program. CDE must award funding by June 30, 2027.

Establishes the Mathematics Professional Learning Partnership. The budget provides $30 million to establish the Mathematics Professional Learning Partnership. The partnership, administered by Kern County Superintendent of Schools, will support the training of educators for the implementation of the new mathematics curriculum framework. The partnership will support the training of math coaches in collaboration with the California Mathematics Project—a math professional development network associated with the University of California (UC) and California State University systems as well as some private universities—and the Rural Math Collaborative, a professional development network of rural COEs led by Lake and Butte. The Kern County Superintendent of Schools shall submit an expenditure plan on behalf of the partnership to the Department of Finance for approval by January 31, 2026.

Provides Additional Support for Literacy Screening Requirements. The budget provides $50 million to support the implementation of new literacy screening requirements. Of the amount provided, $40 million is to cover any costs associated with the first year of implementing the requirement that students in grades K-2 be screened for reading difficulties. The funds may be used for a variety of activities, including, but not limited to, purchasing screening instruments, administering the screening to students, and training school employees to administer the screenings. (The 2024-25 budget included $25 million on a one-time basis for the training of school employees to administer screenings.) The remaining $10 million is for the UC, San Francisco Dyslexia Center to continue to expand the capacity of the Multitudes reading difficulties screening tool. Multitudes is one of four approved screening tools that may be used for literacy screenings, and this screener is currently available to schools free of charge. The Dyslexia Center shall submit an annual summary report beginning February 1, 2027, and by February 1 of each subsequent year until the funds are exhausted.

Establishes Literacy and Math Networks. The budget provides $15 million for the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence to convene statewide literacy and math networks through the 2029-30 fiscal year. Of the total funds, $7.5 million is for the Statewide Literacy Network, and $7.5 million is for the Statewide Mathematics Network. Up to $450,000 may be used to cover costs of administering these networks. The networks are to consult with CDE and convene existing state and federally funded entities supporting literacy and math professional development. These networks shall:

• Support implementation of initiatives and ensure best practices are integrated into the statewide system of support.

• Consult with experts to create clearinghouses for evidence-based literacy and math resources for use by LEAs.

• Study and disseminate information about high performing LEAs and best practices.

Provides Funds for the Special Olympics. The budget provides $30 million to Riverside COE to support the Special Olympics of Northern and Southern California. These funds will support general operations and the Unified Champion Schools Program, the Healthy Athletes Program, and the Community Sports Program. The funding is intended to provide the Special Olympics with $10 million in funding annually from 2025-26 through 2027-28.

Provides Bridge Funding Related to California Youth Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI). The budget provides $20 million for the Sacramento COE to award competitive grants to LEAs participating in the first three fee schedule cohorts of the CYBHI school-linked statewide fee schedule. This schedule was developed by the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) as part of the CYBHI to standardize reimbursement rates for behavioral health services provided to children and youth across different insurance providers, with the goal of increasing access to behavioral health services. In 2024, DHCS provided one-time funding for cohorts of LEAs to build the capacity and infrastructure necessary to implement the fee schedule. The additional $20 million is intended to provide additional funding for some LEAs to continue to make progress toward full implementation of the fee schedule. The Sacramento COE is to report on how funds were allocated and used by May 1, 2026.

Funds Secondary School Redesign Pilot. The budget provides $15 million for the California Collaborative on Educational Excellence to administer a pilot program for redesigning middle and high schools. Participating schools and LEAs must develop and implement programs to redesign middle and high schools to better serve the needs of all pupils, including personalizing the learning environment, integrating experiential education and new uses of technology, and supporting deeper learning. Schools and LEAs must commit to participating in the program for two years. Funding is available through June 30, 2029, with an evaluation of the pilot program due to the Legislature by September 1, 2029.

Provides $10 Million to Select a Multilingual Screener for TK Students. The budget package provides $10 million one-time Proposition 98 funding for the Superintendent of Public Instruction, with the approval of SBE, to provide a list of developmentally appropriate English proficiency screening instruments to identify multilingual learners in TK. A multilingual learner is defined as a TK student who has a primary language other than English and is not deemed as English proficient based on the approved screening instrument. The funding can be used by CDE to contract with an external entity that would provide the screener and necessary training to schools free of charge, as well as to conduct field tests. CDE would be required to make the screener and training available to districts at no cost by March 1, 2026. Districts must begin administering the screening to all TK students whose primary language is a language other than English beginning in 2027-28. Districts must also report to CDE the number of multilingual learners identified using the screener. The results from the screener cannot be used to classify students as ELs or for any high-stakes purposes (such as for identifying a student as an individual with exceptional needs.)

Provides Funding Intended to Mitigate Funding Loss of Not Identifying English Learners in TK. Trailer legislation requires the state to adjust each LEA’s EL/LI count in TK for purposes of calculating LCFF supplemental and concentration grant funding in 2025-26 and 2026-27. This adjustment is intended to mitigate losses in funding from a recent change in state law that eliminated the English language proficiency assessment for TK students. Trailer legislation specifies that EL counts in TK will be calculated by applying a factor to TK enrollment equal to the share of ELs enrolled in kindergarten who are not eligible for free or reduced-price meals and not a foster youth. The budget assumes that the cost of providing this adjustment in 2025-26 will be $7.5 million.

Various Other One-Time Spending Increases. The budget also includes several other one-time increases for schools.

• One-Time Funding for Districts Affected by Los Angeles Fires. The budget provides $9.7 million to offset the reductions in property tax revenue experienced by basic aid districts affected by the Eaton and Palisades fires. These fires caused significant property damage in two basic aid districts—Beverly Hills Unified and Santa Monica-Malibu Unified. Non-basic aid districts that experienced property tax losses will receive backfills automatically through the LCFF.

• Individual Education Program (IEP) Template. The budget provides $1 million to the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence for the digitization of the standardized IEP template by June 30, 2026. The digitized template must have specific functionality, including the ability to manage special education data and track service delivery. The template must also be interactive and assessible to the public. The budget also includes up to $1 million to translate the digitized IEP into the ten most commonly spoken languages in California other than English

• Study of Instructional Framework Process. The budget provides $1 million for a COE to contract with one or more research or nonprofit organizations to study the processes other states use to develop curriculum guidance and to make recommendations for improving and streamlining California’s processes. The contracted entities shall explore current California regulations and policies regarding curriculum guidance, the processes for adopting or changing curriculum standards and frameworks in California and other states, how curriculum guidance is evaluated in other states, and what additional guidance and support is provided to educators on content standards in other states. The contractors also must obtain input from SBE, the Instructional Quality Commission, CDE, school employees from California and other states, and publishers and content developers. The contracted entities must submit a report to the Legislature by January 1, 2027.

• California Association of Student Councils. The budget provides $500,000 for the California Association of Student Councils to support targeted outreach efforts to recruit participants in programs that reflect a broader geographic and socioeconomic representation of California’s public school students. Funds may be spent through June 30, 2028. As a condition of receiving these funds, the association must provide annual reports to CDE by July 1 in 2026, 2027, and 2028.

• ELA/ELD Guidance. The budget provides $250,000 for the Marin COE to partner with one or more organizations to develop guidance for the follow-up adoption of ELA/ELD instructional materials. This guidance will inform the Instructional Quality Commission and SBE on the degree to which new materials conform to the new ELA/ELD framework, incorporate media literacy, and include foundational skills and language development.

Non-Proposition 98 Spending

Reduces Funding for School Facility Program. The budget reverts $177.5 million in non-Proposition 98 General Fund for the School Facility Program. These funds were originally provided as part of the 2023-24 budget package.

Includes Additional One-Time Funding for Golden State Teacher Grants. The budget includes $50 million in new one-time non-Proposition 98 General Fund support for this program in 2025-26. The $50 million is in addition to the $500 million one-time General Fund appropriation provided in the 2021-22 Budget Act for this program, of which $18 million remains unspent. Along with the additional funding, trailer legislation extends the program by one year, through June 30, 2026. This new funding is to provide one-time grants of up to $10,000 to students in teacher preparation programs who commit to working at a priority school (a school where at least 55 percent of students are EL/LI). Under existing law, the California Student Aid Commission must report on the effectiveness of the program every two years, beginning December 31, 2025.

Supports New and Ongoing Workload at CDE. The budget provides CDE with an additional $12 million ($9 million non-Proposition 98 General Fund, $3 million federal funds) to accommodate new workload. Notable augmentations include $2 million for legal costs and $1.7 million to enhance cybersecurity. A list of all new K-12 workload for the department is listed on our EdBudget website. The budget also assumes a $15.6 million reduction in non-Proposition 98 General Fund as a result of control sections included in the 2024-25 budget package aimed at reducing state operations expenditures through efficiencies. Of this amount, $9.7 million is due to Control Section 4.05 (government efficiencies) and $5.9 million is due Control Section 4.12 (vacancies).

Expands CTC Workload. The budget provides $3 million from the Teacher Credentials Fund for 18 positions to support a variety of activities, including teacher certification workload, information technology support, and administrative support. The budget also provides $250,000 non-Proposition 98 General Fund on a one-time basis to support the administration of educator recruitment and retention programs.

Continues the STEM Teacher Recruitment Grant Program. The budget provides $3 million one-time non-Proposition 98 General Fund to continue this grant program for three additional years. The funds are provided to the Office of Public School Construction, which must allocate the funds to EnCorps Inc. Up to $150,000 may be used by the Office of Public School Construction to cover costs of administering this program. The state provided $3 million in one-time funding for this purpose in 2021-22.

Provides Funding for Save the Children. The budget provides $5 million one-time funding for the Save the Children organization to operate after school education and safety programs in rural school districts. The state provided non-Proposition 98 General Fund in 2023-24 ($3 million) and 2024-25 ($5 million) for this purpose.

Funds Two Career Technical Education Projects. The budget provides $750,000 in non-Proposition 98 General Fund for two specific career technical education projects: $500,000 to the Career Technical Education Foundation of Sonoma County to support the North Bay Construction Corps Mendocino Willits Cohort and $250,000 to the Ukiah Unified School District to support the outdoor modernization project at the Grace Hudson Language Academy.

Other Actions

Includes Hold Harmless Provision for Charter Schools Affected by Los Angeles Fires. For 2025-26, trailer legislation allows nine charter schools affected by the Eaton and Palisades fires to receive their LCFF allotments based on the amount they received in 2024-25, if the school would have otherwise experienced a year-to-year decrease in funding. As a condition of receiving this higher level of funding, the schools must operate a minimum of 175 days during the school year.

Eliminates Intent to Restore Zero-Emission School Bus Funding. The June 2023 budget reduced funding for the Zero-Emission School Bus and Infrastructure Program but expressed the Legislature’s intent to provide additional funding in the future, including a $500 million appropriation in 2025-26. The June 2025 budget repeals this language and provides no new funding. The state, however, will continue to fund a few non-Proposition 98 grants supporting the purchase of zero-emission school buses.

Requires Reporting on Teacher Shortages. Under current practice, CDE and CTC collaborate to publish information on the number of teacher misassignments and vacancies. This information is available at the school level, district level, and statewide. Trailer legislation requires the state to also begin publishing information on teacher shortages. An instance of a teacher shortage is defined as a course or class assignment that is not permanently filled as of census day (typically the first week in October), not filled by a fully credentialed teacher, or not filled by a teacher who is appropriately assigned. A teacher is deemed to be appropriately assigned if the teacher holds a credential, permit, or waiver issued by the commission that contains an authorization to legally teach in the setting, in the subject area, and the pupil population associated with the assignment.

Repeals Funding for Research on Models of Instruction. The budget repeals $4 million in one-time Proposition 98 funding included in the 2024-25 budget package to research best practices for using hybrid and remote models of instruction. The funding was to be provided to a COE to report on the research, as well as to provide guidance, support, and resources to school districts to support their instructional continuity programs.