AB1969 - California Community Schools Partnership Program: Promise Neighborhoods.

Amended IN Senate August 28, 2026 Amended IN Senate August 21, 2026 Amended IN Senate June 10, 2026 Amended IN Assembly March 26, 2026 CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION Assembly Bill No. 1969 Introduced by Assembly Member Bonta Members Bonta, Alvarez, and Jackson (Principal coauthor: Senator Ashby) (Coauthors: Assembly Members Ahrens, Bryan, Connolly, Haney, Ortega, and Ransom) (Coauthors: Senators Arreguín and Pérez) February 13, 2026 An act to amend Section 8903 of the Education Code, relating to community schools, and making an appropriation therefor. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 1969, as amended, Bonta. California Community Schools Partnership Program: Promise Neighborhoods. The Budget Act of 2026 appropriates, for the 2026–27 fiscal year, $1,000,000,000 from the General Fund to the State Department of Education to administer the California Community Schools Partnership Program to distribute funding to local educational agencies, as defined, in accordance with a specified formula, to support a network of their eligible schoolsites to implement new, and provide ongoing support for existing, community schools, as provided. Existing law authorizes a local educational agency who receives funds under these provisions to retain up to 10% of the total funds awarded for its eligible schoolsites each fiscal year to be used for specified activities, including, among other things, administering community schools established at eligible schoolsites. This bill, to be known as the It Takes a Village Act of 2026, would (1) require any retained funds described above to be used consistent with a specified community schools framework, as provided, and (2) authorize a local educational agency that retains those funds to also use those funds to serve as a network lead for multiple schoolsites located in a Promise Neighborhood, as provided. By expanding the purposes for which previously appropriated moneys may be expended, the bill would make an appropriation. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 8903 of the Education Code proposed by AB 133 or SB 133 to be operative only if this bill and either AB 133 or SB 133 are enacted and this bill is enacted last. Digest Key Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: YES Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NO Bill Text The people of the State of California do enact as follows: SECTION 1. This act shall be known, and may be cited, as the It Takes a Village Act of 2026. SEC. 2. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following: (a) Children and families thrive when communities coordinate the resources and supports they need from birth through adulthood. In California’s diverse society where the persistently high cost of living, including housing, transportation, and food, threatens family stability, the Legislature intends to ensure that children and families, particularly those in economically disadvantaged communities, have equitable access to high-quality education, health care, stable and affordable housing, and other supports that promote well-being, advance economic mobility, and interrupt cycles of intergenerational poverty. (b) California has made historic investments in supporting the development of communities through integrated, whole-child, and place-based strategies intended to improve long-term outcomes for children and families. These investments include community schools, universal prekindergarten, CalAIM community supports, the Expanded Learning Opportunities Program (ELO-P), the California Kids Investment and Development Savings Program (CalKIDS), the California State Plan for Career Technical Education, behavioral health initiatives, and other statewide efforts designed to strengthen educational success, economic mobility, and family stability. While these investments represent significant progress, many of these initiatives continue to operate in fragmented systems that make it difficult for children and families to access coordinated support. (c) A proven solution to this problem is to invest in community schools and place-based initiatives that: are equity focused; are data driven and have the capacity to identify the highest needs within the most economically disadvantaged neighborhoods or regions; have the resources and trusted relationships within the communities to align, coordinate, leverage, and enhance services provided by state and local government, community-based organizations, nonprofits, businesses, and other entities active in the local community toward equitable outcomes; and identify systems’ needs, work with partners to address systemic needs, and measure systemic improvements. (d) Neighborhood-based partnerships, regional place-based partnerships, and community schools that align and coordinate services and systems have demonstrated significant positive outcomes and strong returns on investment in the communities they serve. (e) Neighborhood-focused partnerships, such as federal Promise Neighborhoods, have driven substantial improvements in health care access, kindergarten readiness, literacy and mathematics achievement, high school graduation, college and career readiness, child welfare and juvenile justice outcomes, and overall family stability. A recent independent analysis by RTI International found a $3.97 societal return for every $1.00 invested in these programs. Similarly, regional partnerships have contributed to narrowing achievement gaps and enhancing a broad spectrum of outcomes, from preterm birth rates and early childcare quality to early grade reading, middle grade mathematics, high school graduation, and postsecondary completion. Together, these neighborhood and regional strategies illustrate the power of coordinated, place-based approaches to generate meaningful, lasting benefits for children, families, and communities. (f) This collaborative approach ensures that a continuum of services reach children in communities where they are needed the most. This is especially important in communities experiencing high levels of homelessness. Neighborhood and regional partnerships can coordinate efforts among government agencies and other local organizations to ensure that those experiencing homelessness, or are at risk of becoming homeless, have full access to all programs and services to which they are entitled. (g) It is the intent of the Legislature that the vital contributions provided by these community-based and regional networks be brought to scale so that all children and families have the opportunities and continuum of services needed to break the cycle of poverty. SEC. 3. Section 8903 of the Education Code is amended to read: 8903. (a) (1) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following: (A) The California Community Schools Partnership Act, established as part of the Budget Act of 2021, is a key initiative of California’s historic whole-child transformation of public schools built on the state board-adopted California Community Schools Framework. This model of education incorporates state investments in universal free school meals, universal transitional kindergarten, before and after school learning, career and college readiness, and investments in teacher training, coaching, recruitment, and retention, resulting in a cohesive program of instructional quality and removing barriers to learning, and collaborative leadership. (B) Implementation of the community schools model results in better home-school connections, academic supports, nutrition, after school and summer school enrichment and care, trauma-informed behavioral and physical health services, and access to social services. (C) The California Community Schools Framework specifies the pillars of a successful community schools model that results in transformational outcomes: integrated pupil supports, family and community engagement, collaborative leadership and practices for educators and administrators, and extended learning time and opportunities. Successful community school models in California implement this framework with fidelity. It is the intent of the Legislature that the California Community Schools Framework be periodically revised to incorporate updated research and identified needs for statewide school and system improvement. (D) Research indicates that schools that received grants pursuant to the California Community Schools Partnership Act show significant reductions in chronic absenteeism and suspensions, and improvements in test scores and academic achievement, with the largest gains for historically underserved pupils. (E) Expansion of the community schools model will increase these positive outcomes, especially for schools that have large concentrations of pupils from low-income families, English language learners, and youth in foster care. (b) (1) (A) For the 2026–27 fiscal year, the Legislature shall initially appropriate the sum of one billion dollars ($1,000,000,000) from the General Fund to the department to administer the California Community Schools Partnership Program in the manner and for the purposes set forth in this chapter. (B) This amount may be adjusted each year through Item 6100-115-0001 of the annual Budget Act to provide sufficient funding, pursuant to the formula described in subdivision (c), to all eligible schoolsites that participate in the program. (2) Funds received pursuant to this section shall be used in accordance with the California Community Schools Framework, as adopted by the state board. These funds shall be used to implement community schools supported by local networks and to implement shared decisionmaking practices with education interestholders and shall not be used for punitive disciplinary practices or the engagement of campus law enforcement. (3) Funds distributed pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (c) shall supplement, not supplant, funding used for services and supports at eligible schoolsites through the local control funding formula pursuant to Section 2574, 2575, or 42238.02, the Expanded Learning Opportunities Program pursuant to Section 46120, or the Literacy Coaches and Reading Specialists Grant Program established pursuant to Sections 53008.5, 53008.7, 53009, and 53009.1. (c) Funds appropriated pursuant to subdivision (b) shall be distributed each fiscal year as follows: (1) (A) (i) To local educational agencies to support a network of their eligible schoolsites to implement new, and provide ongoing support for existing, community schools consistent with subparagraphs (B) and (C). (ii) The allocation calculated pursuant to subparagraph (B) shall be used as to support either a planning period of up to two years pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (e) or the implementation phase described in paragraph (2) of subdivision (e). Schoolsites that are ready to implement shall submit to the department a community school plan and evidence of ongoing progress as part of the annual formative evaluation requirements specified by the department pursuant to subdivision (m) of Section 8902. (B) (i) Commencing with the 2026–27 fiscal year, for each local educational agency with an eligible schoolsite, the department shall make one of the following computations for each eligible schoolsite based on the following as adjusted pursuant to subparagraph (C): Pupils Enrolled at the Eligible Schoolsite Amount to be Computed per Eligible Schoolsite 10–24 $75,000 25–150 $115,000 151–400 $190,000 401–1,000 $230,000 1,001–2,000 $305,000 2,000+ $400,000 (ii) Commencing with the 2027–28 fiscal year, the amounts to be computed per eligible schoolsite identified in clause (i) shall be adjusted each fiscal year by the percentage change applied pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (d) of Section 42238.02 for that fiscal year. (iii) A local educational agency with eligible schoolsites that notifies the department of the intent to receive an allocation, pursuant to subparagraph (E), under this section shall receive annual payments in accordance with this subparagraph, as adjusted pursuant to subparagraph (C), notwithstanding subsequent changes in pupil data submitted through the California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System. The annual payments shall remain the same amount and may be adjusted when eligibility is redetermined during the certification process. (iv) Notwithstanding clause (iii), the department may establish procedures to determine mid-year adjustments to eligibility in cases of an eligible schoolsite restructuring. (C) An eligible schoolsite that receives an implementation grant pursuant to Section 8902 shall, for the term of its implementation grant, have the allocation listed in subparagraph (B) reduced consistent with the following: (i) If the total amount of a schoolsite’s implementation grant, divided by five, is greater than or equal to the amount listed in subparagraph (B) for the number of pupils enrolled, the schoolsite shall instead receive no funding under this paragraph for that fiscal year. (ii) If the total amount of a schoolsite’s implementation grant, divided by five, is less than the amount listed in subparagraph (B) for the number of pupils enrolled, the schoolsite shall instead receive the difference between the total implementation grant amount, divided by five, and the amount specified in subparagraph (B) for the number of pupils enrolled for that fiscal year. (D) (i) Funds received under this paragraph shall be used for activities consistent with the purposes identified in subdivisions (g) and (h) of Section 8902. (ii) A schoolsite that, at the time of the receipt of funds, has not conducted the planning needed to develop the schoolsite implementation plan required pursuant to subparagraph (C) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (e), shall use the initial funding to develop an implementation plan that demonstrates alignment with the California Community Schools Framework. (E) (i) On or before November 1, 2026, a local educational agency with an eligible schoolsite shall notify the department of its intent to receive for each eligible schoolsite an allocation under this paragraph as part of the 2026–27 fiscal year cohort, in a manner to be determined by the department. The notification shall include an initial attestation to the department of the local educational agency’s commitment to implementing the community schools model in accordance with the Community School framework and state law. The notification shall also include assurances declaring the local educational agency collected signed commitment letters from education interestholders, including, but not limited to, the superintendent of the school district, schoolsite principals, and representatives of teachers, noncertificated staff, pupils, and parents. (ii) A local educational agency with an eligible schoolsite that is not currently receiving funding pursuant to Section 8902 may submit the required notification of its intent to receive an allocation during an annual June 1 opt-in period. El [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]