
Still, California’s public schools have endured nearly 40 years of decline after being among the best nationally in the 1970s. Since then, property taxes funding public schools have dwindled under Proposition 13, the number of students in classrooms has grown, the rise of charter schools has further drained funds and resources, and there is a growing teacher shortage as costs of living and housing escalate. Meanwhile, districts across the state experienced costly teacher strikes and labor unrest this spring.
These are among the educational challenges facing Gov. Gavin Newsom in his first term; challenges he acknowledged in his State of the State speech in February, stating, “We are still 41st in the nation in per-pupil funding. Something needs to change.”
To help spark that change, Gov. Newsom has proposed funding a wide range of educational initiatives spelled out in his 2019–20 budget proposal. Broadly, his agenda centers on increasing funding and programs for early childhood education and special education; making more money available for school construction and modernization; developing a unified data system to better track student progress; and providing pension cost relief for local educational agencies.
- $350,000 in one-time Proposition 98 funds to create a single data system to track school success
- $1.5 billion in Proposition 51 bond funding (approved by voters in 2016) for school construction and modernization projects
- $20.2 million in Proposition 98 funds for county offices of education to strengthen systems of support for school districts
- $40 million for a second year of free community college tuition for Californians
- $125 million in non-Proposition 98 General Fund money to expand the State Preschool Program
- $2 billion in increased money to the Local Control Funding Formula (supports a 3.46 percent cost-of-living adjustment)
- $3 billion in one-time non-Proposition 98 General Fund money to CalSTRS to reduce pension costs for K-12 schools and community colleges
- $8 billion for early childhood education and childcare
- $80.7 billion in funding for the Proposition 98 guarantee
Even so, education leaders and policy experts say that Gov. Newsom’s commitment to California schools and students represents positive momentum after decades of neglect.
“Gov. Newsom is being really thoughtful in his approach and priorities and pushing for long-term quality over quantity in his initiatives,” said Xilonin Cruz-Gonzalez, CSBA President-elect and a board member with Azusa Unified School District.
Added Tom Armelino, executive director for the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence, which supports county offices in aiding struggling districts and schools, “It’s an incredible budget for a first-term governor, and he shows the right amount of support of schools and college and a real grasp of education issues from differentiated systems of support to special education costs to pensions to early childhood education.”
“From a county board perspective,” said Dana Dean, president of the California County Boards of Education and a trustee with the Solano County Board of Education, “the overall increases in funding, for example to the base grant and supplemental grant, as well as $3 billion dollars to offset retirement liabilities, are essential to moving forward on the long road toward Full and Fair Funding of education in our great state.”
“As a former superintendent, I have seen the power of early childhood education and students arriving at kindergarten prepared,” Armelino said. “The gap is significant and there is no better place to spend our resources.”
To make this happen, the Governor has proposed $1.8 billion for early childhood education and childcare. The budget includes $125 million in non-Proposition 98 General Fund money to expand the State Preschool Program by increasing access to subsidized full-day slots for low-income 4-year-olds. There would also be $750 million in one-time non-Proposition 98 General Fund money to help schools construct or expand classrooms for full-day kindergarten.
Money would also be allocated for special education, starting with the early ages. There would be $167 million in one-time investments for special education and care for children up to the age of 5. Overall, the Governor proposes spending $576 million in Proposition 98 funds to support services for students with disabilities. With the help of a one-time $186 million, funds would be targeted to expanding services at LEAs with high percentages of both students with disabilities and low-income, foster youth and English learner students.
If the Governor’s proposal is realized, the amount of Proposition 51 money for new facilities and modernization would increase by $906 million over the amount released in the prior budget act. CSBA continues to advocate for the release of the full complement of voter-approved Proposition 51 bond money to fund projects on the Office of Public School Construction workload list — many of which have been awaiting funding for several years.
While any effort to help reduce pension costs for schools and districts is appreciated, CSBA Legislative Advocate Cheryl Ide stressed that the amount would not be a cure-all. “Similar to a credit card, rather than paying down the minimum, the amount paid would go toward paying down the principal,” she explained. “But pension obligations are still going to be an ongoing issue for districts.”
Other issues are also yet to be addressed by the Governor. In one example, California faces a severe teaching shortage as the under-resourced schools and high costs of living and housing drive many to find jobs out of state. Also in short supply are critical support staff such as librarians, school counselors and nurses. Azusa USD trustee Cruz-Gonzalez said her district near Los Angeles has one nurse for 18 school sites and the teacher shortage is especially critical. This is especially true in hard-to-staff areas such as bilingual learning.
Charter schools, too, have become a contentious flashpoint. In a victory for legislation that has been supported by CSBA in previous legislative sessions, Senate Bill 126 (Leyva, D-Chino and O’Donnell, D-Long Beach) sped through the Legislature in February and was signed by the Governor in early March. The bill, which requires charter school adherence to transparency and accountability measures (Brown Act, Public Records Act, Political Reform Act and Government Code 1090) that have long applied to traditional public schools, was followed by a package of legislation introduced in the Assembly related to charter schools, most of which remain a work in progress as the legislative session continues into the summer.
For many school leaders and trustees, SB 126 was one more sign that the Governor’s education agenda is heading in the right direction.
Said San Diego County Office of Education board member Rick Shea, whose COE is composed of 42 school districts and nearly 500,000 students, “the funding allocated for the new initiatives is a great starting point and will immediately assist in supporting our mission.”
Added Cruz-Gonzalez, “We understand not everything is going to be in the budget, but his proposals provide a realistic starting point to better provide a better education for all students — and provide funds to pay for them.”