According to the California Department of Education’s Office of Financial Accountability and Information Services, and pursuant to Public Contract Code section 20111, subdivision (a), the bid threshold for K-12 school districts’ purchases of equipment, materials, supplies and services (except construction services) will be adjusted to $119,100, effective January 1, 2026.
On October 10, 2025, Governor Newsom approved two laws intended to facilitate workforce housing development on land owned by local educational agencies (LEAs).
Effective January 1, 2026, Assembly Bill (AB) 640 and Senate Bill (SB) 827 will require school boards, city councils, county boards of supervisors, and special district governing boards, as well as elected and certain administrative officers of cities, counties, and special districts, to receive mandatory training on budgetary and financial legal matters specific to each type of agency.
Effective October 1, 2025, Assembly Bill (AB) 503 permanently restored the ability of school districts to include a proportionate share of the costs of facility maintenance and repairs in the fees charged to users of nonclassroom facilities and grounds.
On October 11, 2025, the Governor signed an additional bill, SB 158, that made further changes to CEQA, including cleaning up parts of the provisions added by AB 130 and SB 131, and appropriating $2,106,000 from the General Fund to the Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation to support implementation of SB 131.
AB 361 Authorizes “Best Value” Procurement for School District Construction Projects Over $1 Million
Assembly Bill (AB) 361 allows school districts to use a “best value” procurement method for construction projects exceeding $1 million.
On June 30, 2025, Governor Newsom signed Assembly Bill (AB) 130, one of the “budget trailer bills” implementing the State’s 2025-26 budget, into law.
On June 27, 2025, Assembly Bill (AB) 121 went into effect, amending Government Code section 66007. The same statute was amended earlier this year by Senate Bill (SB) 937, requiring collection of developer fees at the final inspection stage of development (i.e., at the time a certificate occupancy is issued) for certain residential development projects.
As part of Assembly Bill (AB) 130, a sweeping budget trailer bill signed by Governor Gavin Newsom on June 30, 2025, two exemptions were removed from the Surplus Land Act that school districts had frequently relied on when disposing of their property.