AB 2440: Arts and Music in Schools—Funding Guarantee and Accountability Act: allowable uses: pooled funding: certifications.

Official summary

Legislative Counsel’s Digest (official, as of the latest version). Written by nonpartisan legislative staff; reproduced verbatim.

Existing law, the Arts and Music in Schools—Funding Guarantee and Accountability Act, an initiative measure approved by the voters as Proposition 28 at the November 8, 2022, statewide general election, provides a minimum source of annual funding to K–12 public schools, including public charter schools, to supplement arts education programs for pupils attending those schools, as specified. The act defines “arts education program” for these purposes to include, but not be limited to, instruction and training, supplies, materials, and arts educational partnership programs, for instruction in specified topics. The act requires the continuous appropriation for these purposes, without regard to fiscal years, from the General Fund to the State Department of Education, of an amount equal to 1% of the total state and local revenues received by local educational agencies in the preceding fiscal year that are included in the calculation of the minimum funding guarantee established by the California Constitution, as provided.

The act requires funds appropriated pursuant to Proposition 28 to be allocated by the department to each local educational agency, and requires local educational agencies to allocate those funds to each schoolsite, pursuant to specified calculations. The act requires the principal or program director of each schoolsite or preschool to develop an expenditure plan for allocated funds.

This bill would change the definition of “arts education program” to additionally include curriculum, instructional materials, and professional development, and would require all arts education programs to be consistent with the California Arts Standards for Public Schools, the California Arts Education Framework, or the California Preschool/Transitional Kindergarten Learning Foundations, as applicable. The bill would authorize local educational agencies to pool allocated funds and require, as a condition of this pooling, local educational agencies to ensure, among other things, (1) that expenditures for each schoolsite are in proportion to the allocation for each schoolsite and (2) compliance with the expenditure plan adopted by the principal or program director.

The act requires, as a condition of receiving Proposition 28 funds, a local educational agency to, among other things, annually certify that the funds will be used to supplement arts education programs and not supplant existing funding for those programs, and that funds expended in the prior fiscal year were used to supplement arts education programs.

This bill would require this certification to include specified calculations that compare existing funds available for arts education programs, as provided, with current year expenditures for arts education programs. The bill would require, in determining the existing funds available for arts education programs, a local educational agency to (1) subtract from the prior year total expenditures for arts programs expenditures from Proposition 28 funds and from resources that are no longer available in the current year, as provided, and (2) subsequently add newly available resources that are spent on arts education programs, excluding current year Proposition 28 funds. The bill would deem a local educational agency for which current year expenditures for arts education programs equal or exceed the calculations of existing funds available for arts education programs to be in compliance with the requirement to supplement arts education programs.

The act also requires, as a condition of receiving Proposition 28 funds, a local educational agency to submit an annual governing board or body-approved report in a manner determined by the Superintendent of Public Instruction detailing program expenditures and to certify (1) that all funds will be used to provide arts education programs, and that funds expended in the prior fiscal year were, in fact, used for those purposes and (2), for local educational agencies with an enrollment of 500 or more pupils, that at least 80% of Proposition 28 funds will be used to employ certificated or classified employees to provide arts education program instruction, as provided, and authorizes the department, for good cause shown, to provide a waiver to these requirements.

Sponsors

Sponsors by party (alphabetical): Democratic 2

“Support” is shown only as formal sponsorship recorded by the legislature. Roll-call votes are available on the official bill page.

Recent official actions

1. September 27, 2026Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 606, Statutes of 2026.
2. September 27, 2026Approved by the Governor.
3. September 15, 2026Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 3 p.m.
4. August 31, 2026Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 79. Noes 0. Page 7008.).
5. August 31, 2026In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending.
6. August 31, 2026Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 39. Noes 0.).
7. August 30, 2026Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
8. August 28, 2026Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading.
9. August 24, 2026Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
10. August 21, 2026Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading.
11. August 17, 2026Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
12. August 13, 2026Read second time and amended. Ordered returned to second reading.