On Thursday, Assemblywoman Megan Dahle voted to support Assembly Bill 86, to provide $6.6 billion to get students back in the classroom. As the majority of schools in northeastern California counties have been open, this measure will provide critical funding to help these schools continue their good work.
On February 17th, Assemblywoman Dahle partnered with Senator Brian Dahle to host a virtual meeting with dozens of school superintendents from throughout their districts to determine the best course to support North State schools. This meeting resulted in a letter to the Governor outlining recommendations the Dahles championed, along with 20 school superintendents who co-signed the letter.
Assemblywoman Dahle and Senator Dahle also drafted amendments to AB 86 to exempt open schools from red tape and ensure they were eligible for the $6.6 billion in funding, which were successfully incorporated in the bill. She advocated for this further in an opinion editorial recently published in CalMatters.
“Many schools in the North State have been open and doing an excellent job providing in-person instruction. Thanks to the dedication of our local school administrators and teachers, our schools have been safely and successfully providing in-person instruction. These schools should serve as a blueprint model for the rest of the state, and thanks to recent amendments to AB 86, they will now have the funding they need to mitigate learning loss and provide much-needed mental health support for our students.
“I was disappointed to see the administration neglect to include already open schools in its original plan. But thanks to our partnership with local school administrators and associations, we were able to negotiate amendments that were incorporated in the final plan that protects open schools and support our students’ needs.”
AB 86 passed the Assembly floor (72-4, three members not voting) and now goes to the Governor’s desk to await his signature.
