On June 29th, Governor Gavin Newsom signed
the final 2024-2025 State Budget. The budget, agreed upon by the Governor and Legislature, includes total expenditures of $297.9 billion, with $211.5 billion allocated from the General Fund. This agreement addresses a $46.8 billion deficit for the budget year through a mix of broad-based solutions, including cuts, delays, and reapportionments. Despite ongoing fiscal challenges, the budget largely preserves investments in education, such as funding for community colleges, student support services, dual enrollment pathways, and the Cradle-to-Career Data System. Additionally, workforce development programs, such as youth apprenticeship programs that were at risk of being cut in the May Revision proposal, have been protected. However, there are still reductions in critical areas like the healthcare workforce sector and insufficient investments for programs aiding Californians with barriers to training and employment.
Even with the downturn in state revenues, this year’s budget continues to prioritize the needs of students, opportunity youth, working families, and industries to bolster the economy. There remains significant work to advance racial and economic equity for those who are still excluded from the state’s prosperity. EDGE remains dedicated to promoting education and workforce development policies and investments that create pathways to economic mobility and provide opportunities for all Californians. As we approach the next budget cycle, EDGE is ready to collaborate with the Administration, Legislature, and partners to ensure that industries, workers, returning students, opportunity youth, and underserved communities remain a priority amid economic uncertainties.
Provided below is an overview of the 2024-25 enacted budget related to education, workforce development, and social safety net issues that are aligned with EDGE’s 2024 Policy Priorities.
Education
- No funding for Cal Grant Reform. The 2022 Budget Act included provisions for the Cal Grant Reform Act (CGR), aiming to revamp California’s largest student financial aid program. The reforms propose Cal Grant 2 for community college students and Cal Grant 4 for four-year university students. The 2022 Budget Act also included a trigger anticipating certain program expenditures to be incorporated into the 2024 Budget Act, contingent on General Fund resources. Initially, the Legislature’s agreement proposed a modified CGR plan aimed at benefiting low-income students attending Community Colleges. This was intended to be the initial step towards full implementation of CGR in the future. However, in the final negotiations between the Governor and Legislature, this modification plan was rejected – no funding was allocated for Cal Grant Reform this year.
- Funding to support for financial aid offices. The budget allocated $20 million one-time Proposition 98 General Fund to support college campus financial aid offices.
- Maintains core funding for Community Colleges. The budget includes a $28 million ongoing increase to fund 0.5% enrollment growth and $100.2 million ongoing to support a 1.07% cost of living adjustment (COLA) for apportionments, matching the K-12 system’s COLA. Additionally, $13.1 million ongoing is allocated for a 1.07% COLA for selected categorical programs and the Adult Education program.
- Maintains key funding for Cradle-to-Career Data System. The budget maintains core funding for the Cradle-to-Career Data System’s (C2C) operations, including $2 million to increase capacity for the CA College Guidance Initiative (CCGI). CCGI is central to C2C’s college and career planning tools. It will provide these tools to all 6th-12th grade students in the state and use eTranscript California to transfer community college transcripts to four-year colleges – aiming to bridge gaps between K-12 and higher education, ensuring every California student has the resources for college and career success. Additionally, the budget allocates $12 million in one-time funds to expand e-Transcript California to all 116 community colleges. This will help track student record transfers more efficiently and reduce reliance on third-party transcript services. Grants will cover local costs for connectivity, setup, and integration.
- Investments in Credit for Prior Learning. The budget includes $6 million one-time funding for a Mapping Articulated Pathways for Credit for Prior Learning (CPL) Demonstration Project. This initiative aims to embed CPL policies to enhance access for working adults to high-demand, high-wage careers. Several colleges will receive grants to establish campuswide CPL practices or develop a comprehensive framework, promoting equitable access and successful outcomes. The project will use technology to automate and share CPL articulations across colleges. Grants will also support faculty professional development and technical assistance to improve cultural and academic practices.
- Investments in a demonstration project for workers. The budget allocates $5 million one-time funding for a Pathways for Learners of Low-Income Demonstration Project, through the Strong Workforce Program. This initiative, in partnership with United Domestic Workers (UDW), aims to develop educational pathways for working learners by identifying educational goals and relevant certificates at California community colleges. It will provide flexible modalities and support services such as childcare, transportation, laptops, and instructional materials. The project will support homecare and childcare workers, offering three cohorts of at least sixty students in vocational ESL and healthcare courses, with additional certifications identified by Summer 2024. Union representatives will help identify barriers and establish a support pipeline between the Chancellor’s Office and UDW.
- Investments to expand nursing programs. The budget earmarks $60 million over 5 years through the Strong Workforce Program to expand nursing programs to develop, educate, and maintain the next generation of registered nurses through the community college system.
- Cuts to the Learning Aligned Employment Program. The budget maintains cuts to this program by $485 million General Fund one-time, reflecting the balance of unspent funds. The Learning-Aligned Employment Program offers eligible students at public colleges and universities the opportunity to earn money to help defray their educational costs while gaining education-aligned, career-related employment.
Workforce Development
- Protects funding for High Road Training Partnerships. The budget rejected cuts of $45 million for the High Road Training Partnership in Health and Human Services program, and redirects $15 million of this funding to expand, scale, or replicate high road training partnerships programs at the Workforce Development Board. HRTP promotes worker-focused, industry-led workforce training that prioritizes equity, job quality, and sustainability.
- Protects funding for Women in Construction Unit. The budget rejected cuts to the Women in Construction Unit at the Department of Industrial Relations – maintaining the $15 million on an ongoing basis. The budget also provides 5 permanent positions to support the Women in Construction Priority Program. These positions will be funded from the existing, ongoing General Fund appropriation. The Women in Construction Unit is intended to support women and nonbinary individuals in the skilled trades sector.
- Cuts to California Jobs First (formerly known as the Community Economic Resilience Fund). The budget makes a cut of $150 million General Fund and a delay of $150 million General Fund for California Jobs First, an inter-agency partnership of the Labor and Workforce Development Agency, the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development, and the Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation (formerly the Office of Planning and Research) to support resilient, equitable, and sustainable regional economies. The Budget includes $50 million General Fund annually in 2024-25 through 2026-27 for this program.
- Cuts to the Apprenticeship Innovation Fund. The budget maintains the cut of $40 million General Fund for the Apprenticeship Innovation Fund (AIF) at the Department of Industrial Relations. The Budget maintains $95 million General Fund for this program over two years ($55 million in 2022-23 and $40 million in 2023-24). AIF was established in 2022 as a new funding source for innovative apprenticeship programs associated with the Interagency Advisory Committee on Apprenticeships (IACA). AIF’s purpose is to support sponsors of IACA apprenticeship programs in both sustaining and scaling their initiatives for apprentice training.
- Protects funding for the CA Youth Apprenticeship Program. The budget rejected the cut of $25 million, maintaining funding the funding investment for the CA Youth Apprenticeship Program. The program is a new funding source to develop and test innovative practices to increase the participation of opportunity youth in pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship programs and demonstrate the impact of apprenticeship on employment and earnings outcomes for this population.
- Protects funding for the CA Youth Leadership Corps. The budget rejected the cut of $20 million, maintaining the funding investment for the CA Youth Leadership Corps. This program aims to facilitate community change through earn-and-learn career pathway programs at 20 chosen community colleges over a four-year span.
- Cuts to the healthcare workforce sector. The budget cuts the healthcare workforce sector by $746.1 million General Fund over five years—$200.6 million in 2023-24, $299.9 million in 2024-25, $213.6 million in 2025-26, $16 million in 2026-27 and ongoing—for various workforce initiatives at the Department of Health Care Access and Information. The Budget eliminates $189.4 million Behavioral Health Services Fund planned for 2025-26. The Budget maintains $98.4 million General Fund in committed funds for Song-Brown residencies and nursing in 2023-24, $2.1 million General Fund in 2023-24 for work education training, and $8.4 million from 2024-25 through 2026-27 for the California Medicine Scholars program. Additionally, the Budget maintains $357.7 million General Fund from previous workforce investments including California Medicine Scholars, nursing, the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative, Song-Brown residencies, community health workers, addiction psychiatry fellowships, and psychiatry graduate medical education.
- Protects funding for the Small Business Technical Assistance Expansion Program (TAEP). The budget protects the Small Business Technical Assistance Expansion Program by rejecting the May Revision proposal to cut the program by $13 million in 2024-25 and 2025-26. TAEP is a program that prioritizes support for underserved small businesses, including those owned by women, people of color, veterans, and those situated in low-income, rural, or disaster-affected areas.
- No new funding for Breaking Barriers to Employment Initiative. The Breaking Barriers to Employment program provides individuals from underserved communities with supplemental, supportive, and wraparound services they need to successfully enter, participate in, and complete workforce and education programs to obtain meaningful and family-sustaining jobs. Although the program has received one-time funding in the past, reliable ongoing funding is needed to sustain the program. Due to the deficit, no new funding was allocated for the program this year.
- Delays funding for the Goods Movement Workforce Training Facility. The budget delays $40 million General Fund for a Goods Movement Workforce Training Facility in Southern California. The Budget includes $20 million General Fund for this purpose in both 2025-26 and 2026-27. The training facility will serve as a centralized hub designed to attract, recruit, and retain workers in the goods movement industry. This first of its kind, cutting-edge facility, will cater to both current and future employees.
- Cuts to the Emergency Medical Technician Training Program. The budget cuts $10 million General Fund for the Emergency Medical Technician training program at the Employment Development Department. The Budget maintains $30 million General Fund for this program over two years. The EMT program is designed to train and equip individuals with the skills to identify, evaluate, and handle medical emergencies in prehospital settings, as well as to oversee ambulance personnel.
Social Safety Net
- Maintains commitment to Health4All. The budget maintains funding to expand Medi-Cal eligibility to undocumented immigrants ages 26-49. The 2022 Budget Act approved Medi-Cal coverage regardless of immigration status, with $835.6 million ($626.1 million General Fund) in 2023-24 and $2.6 billion ($2.1 billion General Fund) at full implementation and annually thereafter until it reached full implementation January 2024.
- Delays access to food resources for undocumented immigrants. The budget implements a two-year delay to the CA Food Assistance Program expansion – automation to begin in 2026-27 with benefits beginning in 2027-28. CFAP would provide food assistance to undocumented immigrants 55+. In addition to the delay, the budget continues to exclude undocumented immigrants 54 and under to access the program.
- No funding for undocumented immigrants to receive unemployment insurance benefits. Over the last several years, there have been legislative efforts to provide unemployment insurance benefits to excluded immigrant workers in California who contribute to our state’s economy and cannot access these benefits due to immigration status. Due to budget constraints, no funding was provided for this effort.
- Restores commitment to child care expansion. Specifically, restores the expansion of over 200,000 new subsidized childcare slots that were approved under the 2021 Budget Act (by 2028). Also, the budget fully funds all 11,000 awarded expansion slots from existing child care appropriations.
- Cuts to the CalWORKs Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Services. The budget rejected the cut of $126 million General Fund for the CalWORKs Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services Program (MH/SA), and instead modifies the action to reduce funding by up to $30 million in 2023-24, up to $37 million in 2024-25, and up to $26 million in 2025-26. This limited term cut is intended to more closely align funds to actual utilization in the program and avoid adverse impacts for parents and families served. This program is an outpatient program that provides both a comprehensive and integrated array of mental health services, case management services, medication support services, and crisis intervention services to adults who experience mental health barriers to employment.
- Student housing efforts. The 2023 Budget Act shifted Affordable Student Housing grants’ funding from the General Fund to local lease revenue bonds. This applied retroactively to existing and future community college projects. Community college housing projects were to be funded by local revenue bonds or a state pool. The enacted budget establishes a statewide lease revenue bond program to support the construction of 13 community college affordable student housing facilities.
For questions, please contact Anna Alvarado, EDGE Policy Director, at aalvarado@caedge.org.
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