By CSBA Legislative Advocate Carlos Machado
Assembly Bill 1390, authored by Assemblymember José Luis Solache, Jr. (D-Lynwood), received bipartisan support from the Assembly last week. Passed on a vote of 61-2, the bill moves to the Senate for consideration.
CSBA-sponsored AB 1390 would update the compensation levels for members serving on a school district or county board of education, which are determined by the local educational agency’s average daily attendance (ADA), to reflect the impact of inflation and the increasing workload and time commitment associated with service on a governing board.
While local boards have discretion to adjust the amount paid to each member, the compensation in many districts has not changed in years and when they have reached the threshold, additional adjustments are capped on an annual basis. These thresholds in current law have not been updated in 40 years.
During his presentation of the bill on the Assembly Floor, Solache noted that “serving as a school board trustee is a demanding role that requires a great deal of time, research training, public engagement and commitment. In my districts, the level of compensation makes it difficult for individuals who are supporting themselves and their families to consider serving on the school board. AB 1390 aims to give every member of the community, regardless of their income, an opportunity to serve their local school board.”
The current monthly compensation amounts and how they would change under the bill are below:
School districts
| ADA Range | Current Threshold | AB 1390 Threshold |
| <150 | $60 | $300 |
| 151-1,000 | $120 | $600 |
| 1,001-10,000 | $240 | $1,200 |
| 10,001-25,000 | $400 | $2,000 |
| 25,001-60,000 | $750 | $3,750 |
| >60,000 | $1,500 | $7,500 |
County boards of education
| County Size (Class) | ADA | Current Threshold | AB 1390 Threshold |
| 8 | <1000 | $160 | $800 |
| 7 | 1,000-6,999 | $160 | $800 |
| 6 | 7,000-14,999 | $160 | $800 |
| 5 | 15,000-29,999 | $160 | $800 |
| 4 | 30,000-59,999 | $200 | $1,000 |
| 3 | 60,000-139,999 | $300 | $1,500 |
| 2 | 140,000-749,999 | $400 | $2,000 |
| 1 | 750,000-over | $600 | $3,000 |
The discretion to adjust compensation levels is still left to the governing board and any proposed change can only be made at a public meeting. The bill preserves the board’s authority to consider the impact of an adjustment on the district’s financial situation and only consider a change when it is prudent to do so.
The bill now moves to the Senate for consideration with its first hearing expected in the Senate Education Committee in the next few weeks.
