The 2026-27 Budget: Proposition 98 Guarantee and K-12 Spending Plan

Feb 4, 2026 - Investors are borrowing large sums to buy stocks, and households are more invested in the stock market than at any time in at least 70 years. Historically, these signs have preceded stock market downturns.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5110

The 2026-27 Budget: Child Care and State Preschool

Mar 19, 2026 - On January 8, 2026, California and the other states sued to prevent the freeze. A federal court initially granted a temporary restraining order that was followed by a preliminary injunction, ordering that funds continue to be available pending resolution of  the case.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5168

The 2026-27 Budget: Re-Envisioning State Education Governance

Mar 18, 2026 - Introduction California operates the nation ’s largest public school system, comprising 937 school districts, 1,257 charter schools, and 58 county offices of education. This year, these local agencies will educate nearly 5.8  million students, employ around 700,000 teachers and staff, and spend nearly $150  billion.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5165

Assessing a Shift to Enrollment-Based School Funding

Jan 6, 2026 - Although the state collects and publishes chronic absenteeism data for all students, the chronic absenteeism rates reported on the dashboard only include data for students in grades TK  through  8. Dashboard Assigns Performance Levels for Statewide Indicators.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5100

The 2026-27 Budget: K-12 Proposals

Feb 19, 2026 - From 2022 ‑23 through 2024 ‑25, the state appropriation remained at $4  billion annually, while the Tier 1 rate and overall Tier 1 TK ‑6 attendance increased. As a result, funding available for Tier 2 rates decreased.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5131