Assessing a Shift to Enrollment-Based School Funding

Jan 6, 2026 - The Constitution sets forth three main tests (formulas) for calculating the Proposition  98 guarantee. Test   1 —the most commonly used test over the past 15 years —is based on a share of General Fund revenue and is unaffected by attendance.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5100

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

Feb 4, 2026 - For any given year, the relationship between revenues and the guarantee depends on which Proposition  98 test is operative and whether another test could become operative with different inputs. In 2025 ‑26 and 2026 ‑27, Test 1 is likely to remain operative even if revenues or other inputs vary significantly from the Governor ’s budget estimates.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5110

The 2025‑26 Budget: Fiscal Outlook for Schools and Community Colleges

Nov 20, 2024 - Whereas Test 2 and Test  3 build upon the amount of funding provided the previous year, Test 1 links school funding to a minimum share of General Fund revenue. The  Constitution sets forth rules for comparing the tests, with one of the tests becoming operative and used for calculating the guarantee that year.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4940

The 2026-27 Budget: K-12 Proposals

Feb 19, 2026 - Several formal evaluations of community schools nationally tend to find positive results for student and school outcomes, such as higher attendance and graduation rates, narrower academic achievement gaps as measured by standardized tests, and decreases in instances of disciplinary incidents.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5131

The 2025-26 California Spending Plan: Proposition 98 and K-12 Education

Nov 10, 2025 - 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.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5087

Increasing Transparency of County Office of Education Spending

Mar 14, 2024 - Should the Legislature choose to adopt pre ‑ and post ‑tests as a state ‑required performance measure, we recommend the state approve a specific set of tests and require that schools select their tests from the approved list.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4883

The 2022-23 Budget: K-12 Early Literacy Proposals

Feb 15, 2022 - Research Suggests Literacy Coaches Could Improve Student Reading … Various studies suggest that literacy coaches can improve student reading test scores if experienced coaches are placed in the lowest performing schools.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4539

The 2025-26 Budget: Educator Workforce

Mar 7, 2025 - Various studies suggest that math and literacy coaches can improve student test scores if experienced coaches are placed in the lowest ‑performing schools. For example, a 2010  study from the RAND Corporation found that literacy coaches placed in Florida middle schools improved student reading test scores for some students, with the greatest impacts being among the lowest ‑performing schools where coaching was implemented for a number of years.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5012

Early Budget Actions to Support In-Person K-12 Instruction and Address Learning Loss

Apr 23, 2021 - The report must include certain information, such as the identity of the individual who tested posi tive, the date of the positive test, and the school sites that may be affected. The local public health department may disclose this information under certain circumstances, such as to the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) for case investigation purposes.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4417

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

Nov 16, 2022 - For any given year, the relationship between the guarantee and General Fund revenue generally depends on which Proposition  98 test is operative and whether another test could become operative with higher or lower revenue.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4648