AB/SB 130 Clarifies Details from the State Education Budget

From the CA School Boards Association Blog “Funding and Finance”

On Monday, July 5, the Legislature introduced this year’s education omnibus budget trailer bill (Assembly Bill/Senate Bill 130), containing greater detail on what California’s schools can expect from the 2021–22 Budget Act. Budget trailer bills address remaining points of disagreement and topics needing further clarification from the annual budget act. This year’s budget trailer bill is especially significant since it addresses a number of important and unresolved issues from the state budget and determines how to allocate the remainder of 2021–22 funds stemming from higher-than-expected state revenues and an infusion of federal monies.The bills will be up for a vote on July 8.

“We appreciate that the budget trailer bill contains much needed clarification on the state budget that was adopted at the end of June and that it addresses many areas of need in K-12 education. At the same time, the heavy reliance on one-time funding to create new programs and expand old ones — especially the use of short-term funds for long-term staffing and programmatic purposes — presents major sustainability concerns,” said CSBA President Dr. Susan Heredia. “This legislation expands transitional kindergarten and after-school programs while dramatically increasing the scope of independent study with new requirements and expectations, making it more challenging for schools to provide virtual learning opportunities for students in the coming school year. We hope the state will address these issues and come up with a long-term funding solution so local educational agencies can properly plan and maintain new programs and services without having to borrow from or deplete existing ones.”

Click HERE to read the full summary from CSBA about each of the new programs.

TRiGroup’s Advice:

The new programs include Universal TK for all 4-year-olds, new requirements for Independent Study, Expanded Learning Opportunities Grant, A-G Completion Improvement Grant Program, Ethnic Studies, Career Technical Education, Teacher Recruitment, and more. Each program on its own represents a significant change in most K-12 organizations.

We advise school leaders to conduct a careful, in-depth analysis of each program AND to step back and take account of the entire system in your school community. Ask yourself, how will the system as a whole absorb so much change? Which teams and departments will need the most support? Who can I count on for advice? To learn more about Systems Thinking from the Waters Foundation, you can explore their free resources at waterscenterst.org.