Bill on Governor’s Desk for his Signature
(SACRAMENTO, CA) – Today, the Assembly passed Assembly Bill (AB) 47, the Preschool for Act (Kevin McCarty, D-Sacramento) with strong bi-partisan support 67 to 1. It now moves to the Governor for his consideration. This measure establishes a framework to provide all eligible low income 4-year olds with access to the state preschool program contingent upon funding in the Budget Act.
“We owe it to our future to prepare all of our children to succeed in school and in life,” said Assemblymember McCarty. “California has the opportunity to provide each of our low-income children access to quality preschool. We hope the Governor shares this same vision.”
“Support for early learning has grown significantly over the past several years among policymakers, parents, politicians and the public, and now is the time to put preschool for kids who need it most at the top of the priority list,” said Deborah Kong, president of Early Edge California. “With the strong, bipartisan support for AB 47, it is clear that this isn’t about politics, but is about the future of California. We urge Governor Brown to do right by California’s kids and sign AB 47 into law.”
In this year’s budget, the importance of quality early childhood was prioritized in the budget, including 9,500 new preschool slots. Unfortunately despite this increase, an estimated 35,000 four-year-olds do not have access to Transitional Kindergarten, Head Start, or State Preschool. This measure furthers last year’s commitment from the Governor and Legislature to expand the state preschool program for all low income families who do not have access to one year of state preschool or transitional kindergarten. The Governor has until October 11th to sign or veto the bill.
CONTACT: Bryan C. Singh, (916) 319-2007