CSBA’s 2026 budget advocacy strategy: Protect core funding, strengthen local control and drive overall student success As the 2026 State Budget cycle begins, CSBA is advancing a comprehensive advocacy strategy that defends public education’s fiscal foundation while urging Sacramento to do more — at the […]
In a testament to the value of persistent advocacy, the U.S. House of Representatives passed S 356, the Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization Act on Dec. 9, restoring a financial lifeline to many rural schools in California and across the nation.
The California Department of Education released the latest edition of the California School Dashboard on Nov. 13, touting a “continued increase in academic achievement and graduation rates” and a “reduction in chronic absenteeism.” While some growth was evident, a look at the underlying data reveals a more complicated picture of student performance — one that demands greater scrutiny of the status quo, increased investment in public schools, and a commitment to reducing achievement gaps by accelerating achievement, particularly for the state’s most vulnerable students.
An Oct. 9 webinar hosted by CSBA featured initial analysis of results from the 2025 California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) and CSBA issuing a challenge to the state to create a state-level plan focused on what state agencies and policymakers will do differently to better support local educational agencies in closing the achievement gap.
With time to spare, Gov. Gavin Newsom issued the final outcomes on Oct. 13 for all legislation that reached his desk at the end of the first year of the two-year 2025–26 legislative session. Notably, four CSBA-sponsored measures reached the Governor’s desk, with three signed into law.
Late on Aug. 29 the Legislature’s respective Appropriations Committees dispensed with their suspense files. Included among the many legislative measures considered by the Assembly and Senate Appropriations Committees were several CSBA-sponsored bills.
“The July 1 announcement by the federal government that it would freeze billions of education dollars previously approved by Congress and due to go out to schools that same day, is an outright travesty,” said CSBA CEO & Executive Director Vernon M. Billy. “It ignores […]
By Genoveva Islas On May 22, after an all-night session, the U.S. House of Representatives passed, by 215 to 214 votes, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” outlining a spending plan for the U.S. At this writing, the U.S. Senate is now voting on their […]
By Chris Reefe, CSBA Legislative Director On May 23, the Assembly and Senate Appropriations Committees took up their suspense files, collectively announcing the outcomes of nearly 1,100 legislative measures. Held nine days after the release of the Gov. Gavin Newsom’s May Budget Revise, where it […]
On May 14, Gov. Gavin Newsom released his proposed May Revise to the 2025–26 State Budget. Despite higher than estimated state revenues over the past several months, the May Revise offered a somber view of the state budget in light of significant developments at the federal level.
