Governor’s May Revise Fully Funds Proposition 98 Guarantee, Increases Year-Over-Year K-12 and Community College Funding
While California’s structural budget deficit persists due to slower rates of economic growth, the Governor was able to fully fund education’s Proposition 98 guarantee within the May Revise. The Governor’s revised budget proposes $1.8 billion in additional funding over January’s budget for K-12 education and community colleges, which fully funds the minimum Proposition 98 Guarantee in 2008-09. Total Proposition 98 funding for K-14 education programs will increase year over year by $193 million. With this additional investment, K-12 Proposition 98 per-pupil funding in the May Revise are $8,610 in 2008-09, up from $8,509 in 2007-08.
Despite a worse deficit, the Governor’s May Revise fully funds the Proposition 98 Guarantee.
The Governor’s May Revise proposes fully funding the minimum Proposition 98 Guarantee in 2008-09 with $1.8 billion in General Fund dollars for K-12 education and community colleges.
- Proposition 98 guarantees minimum funding levels for K-12 schools and community colleges. The guarantee, which went into effect in the 1988‑89 fiscal year, determines funding levels according to a multitude of factors including the level of funding in 1986-87, General Fund revenues, per capita personal income and school attendance growth or decline.
The Governor’s May Revise increases:
- Total K-14 funding. Total year over year Proposition 98 K-14 funding will increase $193 million.
- Total per-pupil funding. Total Proposition 98 K-12 per pupil funding will increase more than $100, from $8,509 in 2007-08 to $8,610 in 2008-09.
Other Highlights:
- Funding improvements to California’s educational data system. The May Revise continues to fully fund development of the California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System (CalPADS) and California Longitudinal Teacher Integrated Data Education System (CalTIDES) systems. Total funding for these projects is $10.3 million ($2.2 million General Fund) in 2008‑09.
- Increasing funding to State Department of Education administered child care programs. The Governor’s May Revise includes a net increase in funding of $45.4 million for a total of $2.5 billion, including an increase in ongoing Proposition 98 resources of $41.9 million, for 2008‑09.
