These 8 New California Laws will Have a Big Impact on Schools and Students

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Gov. Gavin Newsom signed several bills into law last month that will impact California schools and students. 

Young children will now be assessed on their math skills. English learners will have an easier path toward reclassifying as fluent and proficient. Schools may feel more encouraged to spend billions in funds for arts education. And schools may deploy long-term emergency substitutes in classrooms for longer periods with fewer onboarding requirements.

Some changes will take effect immediately, while others won’t affect schools until next school year.

Here are eight new California laws affecting schools, colleges and students.

Math assessments

California schools will have to begin screening all kindergarten through second grade students for math skills under Senate Bill 1067.

The goal is to help children in math before they fall behind. The law is similar in some ways to previous legislation that requires schools to assess young students’ reading, and screen for the risk of potentially developing challenges, including dyslexia. 

The State Board of Education will approve guidelines and criteria for math assessments by July 31, 2027, and the state Department of Education will choose the screening tools for districts to choose from by Jan. 31, 2028. Districts will begin using the approved assessments in fall 2028.

Students who speak a language other than English at home are to be screened in their primary language “wherever feasible,” according to the law.

Schools are expected to use the results to identify students who need more support in math, and offer them extra help, such as small-group tutoring, intensive instruction, or further testing for the numeracy counterpart of dyslexia, called dyscalculia.

Reclassifying English learners

A large number of students may jump from English learner status to fluent and proficient in English status as soon as this month.

Under Assembly Bill 2555, students who achieved a proficient score on the English Language Proficiency Assessment for California (ELPAC) in 2025-26 will be eligible to be reclassified immediately without having to meet any other criteria.

The new law eliminates three additional criteria that English learners previously had to meet to be reclassified as fluent. No longer will they require teacher approval, parent approval and proof that they have “basic skills” equivalent to students who are proficient in English. Researchers found that the last criteria in particular kept many students from exiting English learner status, even after they had received proficiency, in part because of the standards required by some school districts.

The bill received widespread support from English learner advocates, education researchers and lawmakers.

Arts education

Assembly Bill 2440 attempts to make it easier for schools to use the arts funding available under Proposition 28, a law passed by voters in 2022. Prop. 28 provides about $1 billion annually for schools to increase their arts education, but many schools haven’t used the funds. Some district leaders have said that they were worried about not meeting all the requirements and having to return the money.

The new law allows the arts funding to be used for curriculum, instructional materials and professional development, and allows smaller school districts to pool their funds so that they can pay for a shared arts teacher, for example, as long as both districts increase their arts programming.

In addition, the law eliminates the requirement for annual audits of school districts regarding whether funds from Proposition 28 were used appropriately.

Age restrictions for social media

Children younger than 16 will no longer be able to create or keep social media accounts on platforms that use “addictive features,” including algorithmic feeds. Under Assembly Bill 1709, social media platforms must verify users’ age, and delete accounts of those younger than 16 or face a civil penalty if they do not comply.

The law also allows the attorney general to implement and enforce the law, and establishes an “e-Safety Advisory Commission.”

Emergency substitutes

Assembly Bill 2490 makes it easier for substitute teachers to get emergency credentials and teach in a single classroom for up to 70 days.

Previously, applicants had to show they had worked 90 days as a substitute in order to get an Emergency Career Substitute Teaching Permit. Now, college graduates are eligible for the permit as long as they have five hours of professional development, an orientation training and an assigned mentor.

The new law also requires school districts to notify parents within 10 school days if their child is assigned to a teacher who received one of these credentials through the new pathway.

Remote parent-teacher conferences

California schools will be required to allow parents to attend teacher conferences by phone or video conference if they can’t go in person, under Senate Bill 1412.

The law also prohibits such meetings from being recorded or transcribed.

Many schools already offer remote conferences, but this law requires all schools to do so.

Community college bachelor’s degrees

A pair of bills Newsom signed into law creates a new five-tiered system for approving bachelor’s degree programs at community colleges. 

Senate Bill 960 and Assembly Bill 2694, which take effect in January 2028, set a cap of up to 12 bachelor’s degrees at local community colleges depending on the percentage of their students who successfully graduate and transfer to a four-year university. Community college districts with higher graduation and transfer rates will be allowed to offer more bachelor’s degree programs. 

Community colleges will now be able to be approval for bachelor’s degree programs that aren’t already offered by a California State University campus in the same local service area.

Science research bond

The governor traveled to the Golden Gate Bridge to sign Senate Bill 895, which will put a $7.5 billion science and health research bond before voters in March 2028. The law also establishes a new office, the California Foundation for Science and Health Research, to support scientific research through grants, loans and contracts.

If passed by voters, the bond would support research at California universities and institutions in biomedical science, public health, disease prevention, climate change, wildfire prevention, agriculture and other fields. It would also give $1 billion toward infrastructure projects at the University of California and the California State University.

The law was hailed by some as helping to fill the gap from the billions in research funds frozen or cut by the Trump administration.