Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposed 2022-23 budget provides a total of $12.7 billion in Proposition 98 funding and property taxes for community colleges, an increase of $560 million, or 4.6 percent, compared to 2021-22. This increase would drastically improve affordability and enrollment, making the community college system more equitable for students to finish college. Specific spending proposals include:

• Apportionments — The budget includes an increase of $409.4 million in Prop. 98 funding for a 5.33 percent cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for apportionments and $24.9 million ongoing Prop. 98 funding for 0.5 percent enrollment growth.
• Student Centered Funding Formula (SCFF) — The SCFF’s hold harmless provision, which ensures community colleges receive the greater of the formula’s core funding computation or their 2017-18 funding level annually adjusted by a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA), is currently set to expire after 2024-25. To prevent fiscal declines between 2024-25 and 2025-26, the budget proposes to create a funding floor for districts that allows all districts to transition to the core formula over time. The proposal allows funding rates to continue to increase by the statutory COLA, but removes its application to the hold harmless provision commencing with 2025-26 and permanently extends the revised hold harmless provision. The administration also supports the recommendation made by the Student Centered Funding Formula Oversight Committee to integrate an unduplicated first-generation student metric within the SCFF’s supplemental allocation once a reliable and stable data source is available.
• Deferred Maintenance — The governor’s budget provides $387.6 million one-time Prop. 98 funding to support deferred maintenance and energy efficiency projects at community colleges, of which $108.7 million is from 2022-23, $182.1 million is from 2021-22, and $96.8 million is from 2020-21.
• Part-Time Faculty Health Insurance — The governor’s budget includes an increase of $200 million ongoing Prop. 98 funding to augment the Part-Time Faculty Health Insurance Program to expand health care coverage provided to part-time faculty by community college districts.
• Student Enrollment and Retention — The 2021-22 budget included $120 million one-time Prop. 98 funding for community colleges to address student enrollment and retention, due to the enrollment declines during the pandemic. The proposed 2022-23 budget includes an additional $150 million one-time Prop. 98 funding to continue to support community college efforts and focused strategies to increase student retention rates and enrollment.
• Health Care Vocational Education — The budget proposes an increase of $130 million one-time Prop. 98 funding, of which $30 million is for 2022-23, $50 million is for 2023-24, and $50 million is for 2024-25, to support health care-focused vocational pathways for English learners across all levels of English proficiency, through the Adult Education Program.
• California Community Colleges (CCC) Technology Modernization and Sensitive Data Protection — The budget includes an increase of $100 million Prop. 98 funding, of which $75 million is one-time and $25 million is ongoing, to address modernization of CCC technology infrastructure, including sensitive data protection efforts at the community colleges.
• Emergency Financial Assistance Grants — The budget provides an increase of $20 million one-time Prop. 98 funding to support emergency student financial assistance grants to eligible undocumented students.
• Pathways Grant Program for High-Skilled Careers — The governor’s budget provides an increase of $20 million one-time Prop. 98 funding for a grant program that incentivizes public-private partnerships that prepare students in grades 9-14 for the high-skill fields of education and early education; science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM); and health care.
• CCC Teacher Credentialing Partnership Program — The budget includes an increase of $5 million one-time Prop. 98 funding to support the CCC Teacher Credentialing Partnership Program.
• African American Male Education Network and Development (A2MEND) Student Charters —The governor’s budget provides an increase of $1.1 million ongoing Prop. 98 funding to support the expansion of A2MEND student charters to additional community college districts.
• Support for Umoja Program Study — The budget includes an increase of $179,000 one-time Prop. 98 funding to support a study of the Umoja program practices, which promote student success for African American students.
• CCC Facilities — The governor’s budget provides $373 million one-time Prop. 51 bond funding for the construction phase of 17 projects anticipated to complete design by spring 2023, and the working drawings phase of one project. This allocation represents the next installment of the $2 billion available to community colleges under Prop. 51.

“The proposed budget is a clear indicator that community college investment continues to be a top priority for our state. We are proud of our continued partnership with Gov. Newsom in ensuring fair and equitable access to a community college education.”

–CCA President Eric Kaljumägi

Additionally, the budget includes several investments to align with the California Community Colleges multiyear roadmap, including:

• $100 million ongoing Prop. 98 funding for students newly eligible for the Student Success Completion Grant due to expanded Cal Grant B and Cal Grant C eligibility for community college students.
• $105 million one-time Prop. 98 funding to support the systemwide implementation of a common course numbering system.
• $65 million one-time Prop. 98 funding for community colleges to implement the transfer reform provisions required by Chapter 566, Statutes of 2021 (AB 928).
• $25 million one-time Prop. 98 funding to assist community colleges with the procurement and implementation of software that maps intersegmental curricular pathways to help students choose their pathway, facilitate streamlined transfer between segments, and reduce excess units taken on the path to degree or program completion.
• $10 million ongoing Prop. 98 funding to support the sustainable implementation of Equal Employment Opportunity program best practices to diversify community college faculty, staff and administrators.
• $10 million ongoing Prop. 98 funding to augment resources provided to community college financial aid offices.
• $10 million ongoing Prop. 98 funding to expand the availability of foster youth support services offered by the NextUp program from 20 districts to 30 districts.