Education Code § 54451

54451.

(a) Notwithstanding any other law, the sum of one hundred million dollars ($100,000,000) is hereby appropriated from the General Fund to the State Department of Education, in consultation with the State Department of Social Services, for the California’s New Americans in Schools (CalNAS) program, which is hereby established, to provide services for newcomer pupils, English learners, and immigrant families. This funding shall be available for encumbrance until June 30, 2032.

(b) Funds allocated under this section shall be used to plan, design, and implement academic and social support services for the purpose of improving pupils’ educational outcomes and well-being. Allowable uses for funds allocated under this section include, but are not limited to, all of the following:

(1) Professional development and resources for staff designed to effectively support immigrant pupils and families.

(2) Academic supports, including, but not limited to, specialized academic and English language development instruction and programming and college and career counseling, including on the exercise of newcomer pupil rights under Sections 51225.1 and 51225.2.

(3) Social support services, including, but not limited to, family engagement, connection to community resources, extracurricular programs, transportation, and pupil leadership.

(4) Contracting with immigration legal services providers to support outreach or immigration-related legal and other support services to pupils and families pursuant to Chapter 5.6 (commencing with Section 13300) of Part 3 Division 9 of the Welfare Institutions Code.

(c) Notwithstanding any other law, the State Department of Education shall award grants on a competitive basis to local educational agencies for purposes of this section. The department, in consultation with the executive director of the state board, may further refine the allocation formula of the grants to ensure the funds are allocated to the intended targeted population. Award amounts shall be prioritized based on the following factors:

(1) The percentage of pupils, defined as socioeconomically disadvantaged in Section 42238.024, that the local educational agency serves, with local educational agencies serving the highest percentage of socioeconomically disadvantaged pupils being prioritized first.

(2) The percentage of pupils in the local educational agency who are English learners.

(d) Of the amount appropriated in subdivision (a), ten million dollars ($10,000,000) shall be available to the State Department of Education to competitively award a grant to a local educational agency, or a consortium of local educational agencies, to provide statewide technical assistance for the CalNAS program, including all of the following:

(1) Providing technical assistance to establish immigrant pupil support programs for grantees, including resources for planning and implementation, such as program models, best practices, and resources for implementing academic, social, and legal supports.

(2) Professional development opportunities for school employees in addressing the needs of newcomer pupil and immigrant family populations, including antibias education and training, specialized academic and English language development instruction, social supports, and other supports as needed.

(3) Convenings and resource sharing opportunities for grantees to share successful strategies in serving newcomer pupils and immigrant families.

(e) The technical assistance provider awarded in subdivision (d) shall submit a biannual report to the State Department of Education, the Department of Finance, the State Department of Social Services, and the appropriate legislative fiscal and policy committees by no later than January 20, 2033. This report shall include success strategies in serving newcomer pupils and immigrant families, academic outcomes of the pupils that the grantees served, and services provided using the funds.

(f) The State Department of Social Services, the State Department of Education, and local educational agencies shall ensure that any data collected or reported pursuant to this section, including any data collected by a community based organization, complies with Section 234.7, as well as any other restrictions, prohibitions, or other requirements of state or federal law regarding the confidentiality of pupil and family information.

(g) For purposes of this section, “local educational agency” means a county office of education, school district, or charter school.

(h) For purposes of making the computations required by Section 8 of Article XVI of the California Constitution, the appropriations made by subdivision (a) shall be deemed to be “General Fund revenues appropriated for school districts,” as defined in subdivision (c) of Section 41202, for the 2025–26 fiscal, and included within the “total allocations to school districts and community college districts from General Fund proceeds of taxes appropriated pursuant to Article XIIIB,” as defined in subdivision (e) of Section 41202, for the 2025–26 fiscal year.