California's 2026-27 Budget Is In: What $149 Billion Means for Student Support Services
Governor Gavin Newsom signed California's $351.7 billion state budget on June 29, 2026. The finalized spending plan, which covers the 2026-27 fiscal year, aims to eliminate deficits and increase state reserves.
The 2026-27 state budget provides a historic level of funding for education, featuring significant investments in student support alongside a few structural shifts that may challenge school districts.
The budget dedicates $128 billion to schools and community colleges, a portion that grew by $400 million during final negotiations. When accounting for all state and federal funding, the budget provides $149.1 billion for TK-12 education programs. The final budget agreement provides school districts and charter schools with a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) increase of 4.31%. This pushes per-pupil funding to historic highs: $27,418 per student across all funding sources and $20,427 per student under the Proposition 98 General Fund. The calculated Proposition 98 Guarantee for the year is set at $125.5 billion.
Ongoing Investments
Discretionary Block Grant: The budget features a massive $5 billion Student Support and Discretionary Block Grant. This provides roughly $937 per student in highly flexible funding that districts can use for student support, career pathways, professional development, or other education initiatives through 2032.
Special Education: The budget allocates $2.4 billion in ongoing funds to equalize special education base rates to $ 1,340 per ADA. This move addresses the long-standing inequity where different Special Education Local Plan Areas (SELPAs) received wildly varying support for the same services.
Community Schools: A $1 billion ongoing investment is paired with $485 million in one-time funding for expansion and technical assistance. Targeted at schools with an unduplicated pupil percentage (UPP) of 65% or higher , this model integrates health and social services directly into the school site. This whole-child community school model partners with county and nonprofit agencies to provide integrated health, mental health, and social services.
Expanded Learning: To secure a consistent funding rate of $1,800 per unduplicated pupil for LEAs with a UPP below 55%, the 2026-27 Budget Act designates $64 million in ongoing Proposition 98 funds. Additionally, $2.5 million in ongoing Proposition 98 funding is provided for ELOP technical assistance to help advance expanded learning opportunities through the Community Schools model.
Learning Recovery: The 2026-27 state budget allocates $757.3 million in one-time funding for the Learning Recovery Emergency Block Grant (LREBG). This allocation serves as the final payment to the grant, which has received $7.2 billion in multi-year investments through past budgets. The allowable uses of the grant and the methodology for how the funds are distributed remain unchanged.
Investments in Training: The budget includes $250 million in one-time Proposition 98 General Funds to continue educator residency programs through 2029-30 for both teachers and school counselors.
Behavioral Health Integration: The state continues to back the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI) with approximately $4.2 billion to better integrate schools, health care plans, and county health and social services to better address the behavioral health needs of children and youth.
This year’s state education budget has the potential to significantly enhance student support services. By strategically aligning these new funds with your program’s goals—whether through implementing a comprehensive school counseling program, integrated student support systems, expanding mental health initiatives, strengthening college and career pathways, or providing vital staff development—you have a unique opportunity to build a more responsive system for every learner. I encourage you to look at these allocations not just as funding, but as the tools to turn your vision for student success into reality this academic year.
Ready to maximize these new funding opportunities to support your students? Hatching Results is here to help you strategically align these resources with your district's specific goals. Whether you need support with program implementation, professional development, or data-driven planning, our team is ready to partner with you to turn these allocations into tangible student success. Contact us today to discuss how we can help you build a more responsive and effective support system this academic year.
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