Article by John Fensterwald, EdSource

A new lawsuit challenging California’s School Facilities Program as unconstitutional is putting pressure on Governor Newsom to act and drawing comparisons to a similar legal settlement under Governor Schwarzenegger two decades ago. EdSource drew on CC+S research to document just how skewed the existing system has become.

The Center for Cities + Schools found that from 1998 to 2023, districts with the most taxable property per student received, on average, more than 2.5 times the state building aid as districts with the least property wealth. Only 15% of California school districts are currently meeting annual facility capital renewal spending standards — a figure that underscores the scale of deferred investment the lawsuit seeks to address.