SACRAMENTO–In keeping with his commitment to protect education, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed and announced the submission of the state’s application for the final 10 percent of education funding available under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act’s (Recovery Act) State Fiscal Stabilization Fund (SFSF) – for up to $490 million in federal funding for California’s schools and universities. In addition, the Governor’s action today fulfills a requirement for California’s Race to the Top application.
“California was the first state in the nation to be federally approved for this Recovery Act funding and I will continue to fight for every federal dollar to help protect our schools from the effects of the national economic downturn,” said Governor Schwarzenegger.
To make California eligible for the final 10 percent of its SFSF allocation, Governor Schwarzenegger called a special legislative session and signed legislation to expand the statewide data system to include the elements required by the Obama Administration for the second phase of SFSF – also critical for California’s Race to the Top application.
California was the first state in the nation to be federally approved for SFSF funds. SFSF is a one-time allocation of $53.6 billion made available to states under the Recovery Act intended to assist in stabilizing state and local government budgets in order to minimize and avoid reductions in education and other essential public services.
The state received over $3.1 billion in the spring of 2009, as well as an additional grant of $1.3 billion in the fall of 2009. These funding awards make up 90 percent of the total amount available under SFSF for both K-12 and higher education.