Ed. Code, § 44400.03

(a) For 2025–26 fiscal year, the sum of three hundred million dollars ($300,000,000) is hereby appropriated from the General Fund to the Commission on Teacher Credentialing to support the base stipends provided pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) of Section 44400.02 of the Student Teacher Stipend Program established in this article. These funds shall be available for encumbrance until June 30, 2030.

(b) For the 2026–27 fiscal year, the sum of four hundred eight million dollars ($408,000,000) is hereby appropriated from the General Fund to the Commission on Teacher Credentialing to support the base stipends provided pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) of Section 44400.02 and the high-need field stipends provided pursuant to paragraph (4) of subdivision (b) of Section 44400.02. These funds shall be available for encumbrance until June 30, 2032.

(c) For the 2025–26 fiscal year, of the amount appropriated in subdivision (a), up to six million dollars ($6,000,000) shall be available for the Kern County Superintendent of Schools to do the following:

(1) (A) Conduct a multimedia campaign beginning no later than April 1, 2026, and ending no sooner than July 1, 2028, to encourage students enrolled in California-based institutions of higher education and individuals employed in related fields to pursue a career in public school employment, become a credentialed teacher, and enroll in a program of professional preparation accredited by the Commission on Teacher Credentialing.

(B) In conducting the multimedia campaign, the Kern County Superintendent of Schools shall consult with the Commission on Teacher Credentialing, the Student Aid Commission, the department, and other educator credentialing interestholders to create and disseminate outreach to local educational agencies, institutions of higher education, and educator pipeline organizations, including classified employees, expanded learning employees, career technical education programs, and labor organizations. These multimedia outreach methods and materials shall include state and federal student aid and education loan repayment options for aspiring or current educators and other investments that benefit teachers, including, but not limited to, the Student Teacher Stipend Program, including any additional stipend components authorized pursuant to this article, the Golden State Teacher Grant Program, and the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards Certification Incentive Program.

(2) (A) Develop a grants management system that could be utilized by the Commission on Teacher Credentialing to streamline the application and administration process for all teacher recruitment and retention programs that the Commission on Teacher Credentialing administers.

(B) The grant management system shall be available for public use no later than April 1, 2026, for applications for the administration of the Student Teacher Stipend Program for the 2026–27 school year.

(C) The grant management system shall be made available for public use no later than December 31, 2026, for purposes of accepting applications for any additional stipend component authorized pursuant to this article for the 2026–27 school year.

(D) The grant management system shall include program administration for the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards Certification Incentive Program beginning no later than April 1, 2027.

(E) Notwithstanding any other law, any work executed pursuant to this paragraph shall be exempt from any provision of law relating to competitive bidding, and shall be exempt from the review or approval of any division of the Department of Technology.

(3) Contract for a comprehensive independent evaluation of the state’s investments in educator recruitment and retention pursuant to this article and Section 44395, and report the evaluation to the Legislature on or before July 1, 2029, consistent with Section 9795 of the Government Code. This evaluation shall include the programs’ effectiveness in impacting prospective educator decisions to enroll in a student teaching program, increasing the number of individuals completing their student teaching program, increasing the number of individuals completing their student teaching programs in high-need credential areas, increasing the retention rates of educators after the first two years of employment, and the demographics of the participants in the programs.

(d) For purposes of making the computations required by Section 8 of Article XVI of the California Constitution, the appropriation made pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be deemed to be “General Fund revenues appropriated for school districts,” as defined in subdivision (c) of Section 41202, for the 2024–25 fiscal year, and included within the “total allocations to school districts and community college districts from General Fund proceeds of taxes appropriated pursuant to Article XIII B,” as defined in subdivision (e) of Section 41202, for the 2024–25 fiscal year.

(e) For purposes of making the computations required by Section 8 of Article XVI of the California Constitution, the appropriation made pursuant to subdivision (b) 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 year, and included within the “total allocations to school districts and community college districts from General Fund proceeds of taxes appropriated pursuant to Article XIII B,” as defined in subdivision (e) of Section 41202, for the 2025–26 fiscal year.