2016-17 budget approved by Legislature, heads to Governor’s desk
Published: June 15, 2016
On Wednesday, June 15, the California Senate and Assembly both approved the 2016-17 budget, sending it to Gov. Jerry Brown for his approval with relatively few significant additions or amendments from the May revision. Having reached an agreement on June 9, the annual Joint Budget Conference Committee finalized its work on the 2016-17 budget. They reviewed a relatively light docket of K-12 education items.
The investment in LCFF and overall Proposition 98 guarantee remain strong. Significant funding augmentations for child care emerged from the Conference Committee, while some teacher shortage proposals were left in the cold despite a total investment package of $35 million (CSBA will be sending out additional information on the teacher shortage and a detailed update on current legislation in the coming days)
The Governor has until July 1 to sign the budget – it is anticipated that very few K-12 education items will be vetoed, if any.
Final Proposition 98 Guarantee: Adopting the Governor’s budget estimates, the final 2016-17 Proposition 98 guarantee comes in at $71.9 billion; final figures are $69.1 billion for 2015-16 and $67.2 billion for 2014-15.
LCFF: The budget invests $2.94 billion in LCFF for total 2016-17 funding of $55.8 billion, closing about half of the remaining funding gap and bringing LCFF to more than 95 percent of full implementation.
Early Ed/Child Care: While the Governor’s much-discussed $1.6 billion Early Education block grant proposal was nixed from the final budget, a significant investment of $100 million over four years was made to add nearly 9,000 new state Preschool slots by 2020, in response to a vigilant push for major increases in child care program funding. This package also increases Standard Reimbursement Rates by 10 percent across the board (effective January 1, 2017) and increases Licensed Exempt Rates and Regional Market Rates, while also expressing long-term intent to further increase the Regional Market Rate to the 85th percentile.
Also added was on-going funding of $43.7 million for Preschool rates and $7.8 million (with scheduled increases through 2020) for full-day Preschool slots.
Teacher Shortage: Pursuant to several legislative items introduced to address the teacher shortage, the budget adds a total package of $35 million.
FUNDED:
- California Center on Teaching Careers (CalTeach) (SB 915, Liu, D-La Cañada Flintridge) - $5 million in one-time Proposition 98 funds to reestablish recruitments efforts through CalTeach.
- California Classified School Employee Teacher Credentialing Program (AB 2122, McCarty, D-Sacramento) - $20 million in one-time Proposition 98 funding for grants assisting classified employees to pursue a credential.
- Postsecondary grants (AB 1756, Bonilla, D-Concord) - $5 million in one-time General Fund money for development of four-year credential programs
NOT FUNDED:
- Assumption Program of Loans for Education (APLE) (SB 62, Pavley, D-Agoura Hills)
- Teacher residence program (SB 933, Allen, D-Santa Monica)
California Collaborative for Education Excellence: $24 million in one-time Proposition 98 funding goes to the CCEE to administer training on the new LCFF evaluation rubrics and for a new pilot program for supporting Local Education Agencies.
K-12 College Readiness Block Grant (SB 1050, de León, D-Los Angeles): $200 million in one-time Proposition 98 funding is provided for block grants to help prepare low-income, foster youth and English Language Learners for college admission.
Facilities: The Governor’s proposed use of $100 million in Proposition 98 funds for immediate safety upgrades and emergency repairs was removed from the final budget.