California's Local Control Funding Formula: Next Steps toward Equity

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Bibliographic Details
Title: California's Local Control Funding Formula: Next Steps toward Equity
Language: English
Authors: Jonathan Kaplan, Learning Policy Institute
Source: Learning Policy Institute. 2025.
Availability: Learning Policy Institute. 1530 Page Mill Road Suite 200, Palo Alto, CA 94304. Tel: 650-332-9797; e-mail: info@learningpolicyinstitute.org; Web site: https://learningpolicyinstitute.org
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 29
Publication Date: 2025
Sponsoring Agency: Stuart Foundation
W.K. Kellogg Foundation
Raikes Foundation
Intended Audience: Policymakers
Document Type: Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Early Childhood Education
Elementary Education
Kindergarten
Primary Education
Elementary Secondary Education
Descriptors: Funding Formulas, Educational Finance, Kindergarten, Elementary Secondary Education, School Districts, Outcomes of Education, Equal Education, Educational Equity (Finance), Disadvantaged, Educational Policy, State Policy, Educational Change, Barriers, Stakeholders, Educational Improvement, Policy Analysis, Grants
Geographic Terms: California
Abstract: In 2013, California enacted an ambitious school funding reform--the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF). The LCFF fundamentally overhauled the state's prior K-12 education finance system, which studies found to be inequitable, irrational, and highly centralized. More than a decade after its enactment, a growing body of research indicates the LCFF has helped to improve student outcomes, especially in K-12 school districts that enroll large shares of students with greater educational needs. However, as might be expected with a policy reform as ambitious as the LCFF, research also points to challenges in its fiscal design and opportunities to strengthen it. This report intends to establish a conceptual framework that California policymakers and education stakeholders may consider for potential adjustments to build on the solid foundation the LCFF created and continue to improve outcomes for students throughout the state. [Additional funding for this report was provided by the Skyline Foundation.]
Abstractor: ERIC
Entry Date: 2025
Accession Number: ED670929
Database: ERIC
Description
Abstract:In 2013, California enacted an ambitious school funding reform--the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF). The LCFF fundamentally overhauled the state's prior K-12 education finance system, which studies found to be inequitable, irrational, and highly centralized. More than a decade after its enactment, a growing body of research indicates the LCFF has helped to improve student outcomes, especially in K-12 school districts that enroll large shares of students with greater educational needs. However, as might be expected with a policy reform as ambitious as the LCFF, research also points to challenges in its fiscal design and opportunities to strengthen it. This report intends to establish a conceptual framework that California policymakers and education stakeholders may consider for potential adjustments to build on the solid foundation the LCFF created and continue to improve outcomes for students throughout the state. [Additional funding for this report was provided by the Skyline Foundation.]