The California Strategic Growth Plan
K-12 Education

K-12 schools will experience net increases in student enrollment of approximately 42,000 students by 2015-16. While some schools are experiencing declining enrollments, many other high-growth areas lack the schools necessary to accommodate increased enrollment. Some large declining enrollment districts have very overcrowded sites requiring new construction to adequately house students. Most notably, in order to meet the requirements of the Williams settlement, the Los Angeles Unified School District, along with any other remaining school districts, must relieve the most critically overcrowded schools (also know as "Concept 6" schools) by 2012. Thus, the need for new schools will continue to exceed net student growth projected during this period. As our system of approximately 9,600 school sites continues to age, the need for modernization assistance to keep classrooms modern continues during this period. Finally, because our primary and secondary school system helps develop tomorrow's workforce, it is important to both ensure facilities for charter schools to stimulate innovation and for Career Technical Education to ensure all students have the opportunity to participate in the high skill technical jobs that will fuel the economy of the future. Because Career Technical Education (CTE) has languished in the public school system for many years and the demand for charter schools is growing, the SGP continues the emphasis on assisting schools in meeting these special facility needs.


TOTAL K-12 PROGRAM PROPOSES $11.6 BILLION
 The SGP proposes $11.6 billion of additional general obligation bonds to provide state bond funding for schools into 2012-13. The $11.6 billion is proposed to be split between the 2008 and 2010 elections. This total amount of funding, when combined with the $7.3 billion contained in Proposition 1D, approved by the voters in November of 2006, is estimated to provide for approximately 39,000 new classrooms to house approximately 1 million students and almost 60,000 renovated classrooms providing state-of-the-art facilities for over 1.5 million students.


2006 BOND PROVIDED $7.3 BILLION
 Proposition 1D, designed to meet modernization needs through 2010-11 and other school facility program needs through 2008-09, will provide approximately 10,300 new classrooms housing almost 260,000 students and approximately 46,700 renovated classrooms to serve 1.2 million students through the following components:

  • New Construction - $1.9 billion
  • Modernization - $3.3 billion
  • Charter Schools - $500 million
  • Career Technical Education - $500 million
  • Overcrowding relief in certain districts - $1 billion
  • Incentives to meet high performance school design standards - $100 million
  • Joint use facilities - $29 million
Of the amounts for new construction and modernization above, up to $200 million is available for the Small High School Program and up to $200 million is available for seismic safety projects. However, there has been minimal participation in the Small High School Program, with only one application approved for this program to date. Therefore, the Administration will explore options to address the impediments for district participation in this program.


CHARTER SCHOOL FACILITY PROGRAM CHANGES
 Although charter schools have been provided access to almost $900 million in bond funds beginning with Proposition 47 in 2002 and continuing through Proposition 55 and Proposition 1D in 2006, there are significant barriers in the existing Charter School Facility Program that have prevented charters from being able to use these bond funds to construct new facilities or renovate existing buildings to serve charter school facilities needs. The Administration will work to remove these barriers and provide a climate for innovation to accommodate the needs of charter schools.


2008 EDUCATION BOND MEASURE PROPOSES $6.43 BILLION FOR K-12
 The next bond measure, proposed for the 2008 election cycle, is estimated to fund construction through 2010-11 and provide approximately 18,300 new classrooms housing approximately 472,000 students and over 400 renovated classrooms providing state-of-the-art capacity for approximately 10,700 students. The bonds are proposed to be allocated as follows:

  • New Construction - $4.430 billion to assist high-growth school districts that are projected to have increases in enrollment through 2010-11. This amount is predicated on grant reductions calculated to revise the traditional 50 percent state / 50 percent local cost-sharing ratio to 40 percent state / 60 percent local. This amount assumes the state's assistance for acquisition of sites will be restricted to a participation level assuming 150 percent of current site density planning standards.
    • Chapter 691, Statutes of 2007 (AB 1014) alters the calculation methodology for determining school district eligibility for new construction funding by allowing districts to submit 10-year enrollment projections and utilize modified weighting mechanisms, birth rates, and residency data. The fiscal effect this bill may have on new construction eligibility is unclear due to uncertainty as to how many districts will utilize the new methods. However, the changes authorized by this bill could result in hundreds of millions of dollars in additional new construction eligibility, which will create pressure on current and future bond funds beyond the $11.6 billion proposed in the SGP.
  • Modernization - Last year, a total of $1.539 billion to address rehabilitation needs was proposed in the SGP for buildings that are over 20 to 25 years old, in recognition that teaching techniques, building codes, and technology have changed over time. However, due to less-than-anticipated modernization apportionments over the past year and changes in projected funding allocations, we are not proposing any additional modernization funds until the 2010 bond measure.
  • Charter School - $1 billion to provide dedicated funding for charter schools as a part of addressing the educational needs of K-12 students and housing enrollment growth. Charter schools provide an added dimension to parental choices in ensuring an appropriate environment for their child's education. These funds are predicated on a 50 percent state / 50 percent local sharing ratio because Charters do not have the ability to levy local bonds. Instead, state bond funds are used to advance the local share and are paid back with operating or other revenue over time.
  • Career Technical Education Facilities - $1 billion to provide a dedicated fund source for matching grants to provide state-of-the-art technical education facilities to ensure our comprehensive high schools can provide the cutting-edge skills essential to the high-wage technical sectors of our state economy. These funds are predicated on a 50-percent state / 50-percent local sharing ratio to provide added incentive to build these high cost classrooms.

2010 BOND MEASURE PROPOSES $5.17 BILLION FOR K-12
 The revised plan proposes a subsequent bond measure for K-12 schools in 2010 to address needs extending into 2012-13. This increment will provide for the same purposes as the 2008 bond and is predicated on continuation of the cost containment measures described previously. This level of funding is estimated to provide almost 10,400 new classrooms serving 268,000 students and almost 12,700 renovated classrooms serving about 328,000 students.

  • New Construction - $2.335 billion
  • Modernization - $835 million
  • Charter Schools - $1 billion
  • Career Technical Education Facilities - $1 billion

NEEDS BEYOND 2012-13
 Competing statewide infrastructure needs make current funding policies for K-12 school construction unsustainable within a prudent debt service ratio. While the proposed SGP provides state general obligation bond assistance for funding the needs into 2012-13, assuming specified state cost containment measures, it will be necessary for schools to plan for additional bond measures and alternative financing strategies for financially troubled districts to ensure every student is housed in an appropriate classroom. Finally, the Administration proposes to review the overall financing structure for schools, including consideration of public-private partnerships, to ensure sustainable long-term funding of school facilities.
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CHAPTER HIGHLIGHTS for The California Strategic Growth Plan Back to Top

 Strategic Growth Coordination and Sustainability
 Providing Performance Based Infrastructure (PBI)
 Flood Control and Water Supply
image of black pointing arrowK-12 Education
 Higher Education
 Transportation
 Judicial
 Housing
 Public Safety
 Other Public Service
 Accountability
 Affordability
PRINTABLE BUDGET DOCUMENTS Back to Top
Budget Summary - The California Strategic Growth Plan (pdf * - 279K) -
Provides this entire The California Strategic Growth Plan Chapter in pdf format.