UNDERSTANDING CALIFORNIA’S NEW EDUCATION FUNDING FORMULA

In 2013, California adopted the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF). LCFF decides how much money each school district gets. It also mandates that district officials solicit input from school employers, parents, and community groups. As a result, school districts across California are actively gathering information from and giving information to various stakeholder groups. However, many parents are still scratching their heads on how the new funding code affects their children, school, and community. 

 

Under the fairly new system, districts must develop and adopt a three-year Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) articulating how they will support all students to achieve academically, with specific focus on English Learners, Socio-economically Disadvantaged Youth and Foster Youth.

The law is in response to years of disinvestment in California’s public school system. California is ranked one of the lowest states in per pupil spending, 48th in teacher to student ratio, and at or near the bottom for funding of other adult staff such as custodians and office personnel. This translates into larger class sizes, fewer teacher aides, outdated facilities, inadequate technology, and few or no music, art, library, physical education or counseling programs.

According to former Redwood City Superintendent Jan Christensen. “Some of the inequity faced by  students stems from our state’s arcane school-funding system,” she said. “In California, some school districts are funded by the state, and others are funded by local property tax. Districts with the highest property values and the lowest number of students end up with many more dollars per student per year. Voters in these higher-funded communities also tend to approve ballot initiatives that bring further resources to local schools.”

These funding discrepancies impact every realm of education, from English language acquisition and STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) proficiency to college and career readiness.

It’s important to note that LCFF changes how money is distributed, but does very little to change the actual amount of money that is going toward schools. Even with its implementation, California’s education funding will fall far short of other states and the chasm of educational inequity will continue to expand.

LCFF is a step in the right direction, but it cannot be the last. We must address the bigger issue of restoring justice to California’s education finances, including the devastating effects of Proposition 13. 

For more information on California’s new education formula, including whom it benefits and what does it mean for students, go to California’s PTA website, http://www.capta.org and search LCFF, or check out what the California Department Education has to say, https://www.cde.ca.gov/fg/aa/lc/lcfffaq.asp#FC

Contact Margaret Lavin at elementarydays@gmail.com.