State Superintendent sends application for recovery funds

As part of California's application for State Fiscal Stabilization Funds, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell sent a cover letter to the U.S. Department of Education urging swift action to help California access billions in federal aid through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

           "The State Fiscal Stabilization Fund will help schools avoid layoffs, continue our efforts to improve student achievement, and close the achievement gap," said O'Connell on Apri 9. 

           "I appreciate U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan's commitment to promptly approve applications for the funds so that we may move swiftly to infuse the initial $2.6 billion for K-12 schools and prevent record-setting layoffs of educators. I am committed to working with Governor Schwarzenegger to uphold President Obama's goals of improving student achievement by ensuring access to effective teachers, enhancing our longitudinal data system, maintaining our high standards, and focusing on data-driven reforms to help struggling schools. These are all initiatives that I have set as priorities in California, and I welcome the federal government's partnership in this work."

           Of the nearly $8 billion in ARRA funds expected to come to California over the next two years, nearly $4.9 billion of these funds will come in the form of the State Fiscal Stabilization Funds. 

Through this application process, the U.S. Department of Education is expected to approve the applications within two weeks, and disburse about two-thirds of the funds to states. 

California is expected to receive $3.1 billion in the initial disbursement, of which $2.6 billion is expected to go to K-12 programs, and the rest to the University of California and California State University systems.

           For more information on education portion of ARRA, please visit http://www.cde.ca.gov/fg/aa/ar/.