This bill establishes the “Arts and Music in Schools—Funding Guarantee and Accountability Act,” an initiative measure approved by the voters as Proposition 28 at the November 8, 2022, statewide general election, and provides a minimum source of annual funding to K–12 public schools, including public charter schools, to supplement arts education programs for pupils attending those schools, as specified. It requires the continuous appropriation for these purposes, without regard to fiscal years, from the General Fund to the State Department of Education, of an amount equal to 1% of the total state and local revenues received by local educational agencies in the preceding fiscal year that are included in the calculation of the minimum funding guarantee established by the California Constitution, as provided. Funds are allocated to local educational agencies based on the sum of an amount equal to the product of 70 percent of the funding described above times the school’s enrollment in the prior fiscal year, divided by the total statewide enrollment in the prior fiscal year of local educational agencies and a calculation of 30% of the total funds appropriated for the above-described purposes multiplied by the school’s enrollment of economically disadvantaged pupils in the prior fiscal year, divided by the total statewide enrollment of economically disadvantaged pupils in the prior fiscal year of local educational agencies. Under existing law, the enrollment of economically disadvantaged pupils at a school serving preschool pupils equals the preschool’s enrollment times the same percentage of pupils that are economically disadvantaged at the closest elementary school site within the preschool’s local educational agency, if applicable. Existing law authorizes funds allocated to school sites to be available for use for up to 3 fiscal years after which the funds revert to the department, as provided. Proposition 28 authorizes the Legislature to amend its provisions by a 2/3 vote of each house if the amendment furthers its purposes.
This bill revises the definition of a preschool pupil to a pupil enrolled in the California state preschool program or a pupil three years of age through five years of age enrolled in a preschool program for pupils with exceptional needs in a local educational agency. The bill deems the enrollment of economically disadvantaged preschool pupils to instead equal the enrollment of preschool pupils in the prior fiscal year times the same percentage of pupils that are economically disadvantaged at the elementary school site with the highest percentage of economically disadvantaged pupils in the prior year within the preschool’s local educational agency. If there is no elementary school within the preschool’s local educational agency, the enrollment of economically disadvantaged preschool pupils would instead be deemed to equal the enrollment of preschool pupils in the prior fiscal year times the same percentage of pupils that are economically disadvantaged at the elementary school site with the highest percentage of economically disadvantaged pupils in the prior year within the preschool’s county. The bill also requires unexpended funds to revert to the department, including in the event of a closure of a charter school, as provided. The bill would require local educational agencies to report to the department, by October 1, the amount of unexpended funds following the conclusion of the 3-year-expenditure period, and would authorize the department to withhold the release of a local educational agency’s allocation if the local educational agency has not submitted the expenditure report until the report is submitted.
This bill, commencing with the 2023–24 fiscal year, and for each fiscal year thereafter, appropriates $148,000 from the General Fund to the department for the maintenance and support of the Local Control and Accountability Plan Electronic Template System and a specified database and reporting interface.
Funds appropriated by this bill apply towards the minimum funding requirements for school districts and community college districts imposed by Section 8 of Article XVI of the California Constitution.
This bill declares that it is to take effect immediately as a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.
(SB 115 amends Education Code Sections 8820, 8821, and 14041.)