Existing law requires the governing board of a school district to give diligent care to the health and physical development of pupils and authorizes the governing board of a school district to employ properly certified persons for this purpose. Existing law requires a school of a school district or county office of education and a charter school to notify pupils and parents or guardians of pupils no less than twice during the school year on how to initiate access to available pupil mental health services on campus or in the community, or both, as provided.

This bill would require, on or before July 1, 2027, the State Department of Education to develop and publish guidance, resources, and technical assistance to support local educational agencies in implementing an integrated, universal Tier 1 approach to social and emotional learning, behavior health, and restorative practices for pupils in kindergarten and any of grades 1 to 12, inclusive, as provided. The bill would require, to the extent of available funding, a school district or county office of education, and authorize a charter school, to implement the guidance developed by the department, as provided. The bill would require a school district or county office of education to provide professional development to support implementation of the guidance. enter into a contract with one or more local educational agencies with capacity and established expertise, as provided, to serve as lead entities in providing support for the implementation of integrated, universal social-emotional learning, behavioral health, and restorative practices for pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive. The bill would require, on or before January 1, 2028, the lead entities, selected pursuant to a competitive process, to make available guidance, resources, and technical assistance to local educational agencies to expand the statewide implementation of integrated, universal social-emotional learning, behavioral health, and restorative practices, as provided. The bill would make the implementation of these provisions contingent upon an appropriation, as provided.

Existing law requires the governing board of a school district to give diligent care to the health and physical development of pupils and authorizes the governing board of a school district to employ properly certified persons for this purpose. Existing law requires a school of a school district or county office of education and a charter school to notify pupils and parents or guardians of pupils no less than twice during the school year on how to initiate access to available pupil mental health services on campus or in the community, or both, as provided.

This bill would require require, on or before July 1, 2027, the State Department of Education to establish a statewide Tier 1 Social and Emotional Learning, behavioral health, and restorative justice education program develop and publish guidance, resources, and technical assistance to support local educational agencies in implementing an integrated, universal Tier 1 approach to social and emotional learning, behavior health, and restorative practices for pupils in kindergarten and any of grades 1 to 12, inclusive, as provided. The bill would require a school district, county office of education, or charter school to implement the program with guidance issued by the department and supported using funds appropriated for the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative, as specified. By changing the purposes for which previously appropriated funds may be used, this bill would make an appropriation. require, to the extent of available funding, a school district or county office of education, and authorize a charter school, to implement the guidance developed by the department, as provided. The bill would require a school district or county office of education to provide professional development to support implementation of the guidance. The bill would make the implementation of these provisions contingent upon an appropriation, as provided.

Existing law requires the governing board of a school district to give diligent care to the health and physical development of pupils and authorizes the governing board of a school district to employ properly certified persons for this purpose. Existing law requires a school of a school district or county office of education and a charter school to notify pupils and parents or guardians of pupils no less than twice during the school year on how to initiate access to available pupil mental health services on campus or in the community, or both, as provided.

This bill would require the State Department of Education to establish a statewide Tier 1 Social and Emotional Learning, behavioral health, and restorative justice education program for pupils in kindergarten and any of grades 1 to 12, inclusive, as provided. The bill would require a school district, county office of education, or charter school to implement the program with guidance issued by the department and supported using funds appropriated for the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative, as specified. By changing the purposes for which previously appropriated funds may be used, this bill would make an appropriation.

By imposing additional duties on local educational agencies, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

SENATE COMMITTEE ON

Senator Sabrina Cervantes, Chair

2025 - 2026 Regular Session

AB 1851 (Gipson) - Pupil health: social-emotional, behavioral, and mental health supports

Bill Summary:

This bill requires the California Department of Education (CDE) to select one or more lead local educational agencies (LEAs) to provide support for the implementation of integrated social-emotional learning (SEL), behavioral health, and restorative practices for pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive.

Fiscal Impact:

While the bill’s provisions would be contingent upon an appropriation, it could result in one-time Proposition 98 General Fund cost pressures, likely in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, for the state provide funding for CDE to enter into a contract with one or more LEAs to implement integrated SEL, behavioral health, and restorative practices students.

The CDE estimates General Fund costs of $327,000 each year and 2.0 positions for administrative workload related to contract development, oversight, coordination, collaboration, partnership, monitoring, and technical assistance.

Background:

Existing law requires the CDE to develop model referral protocols for addressing student mental health concerns, in consultation with specified agencies and stakeholders, and authorizes these protocols to be used on a voluntary basis by schools.

Existing law requires the governing boards or bodies of LEAs, by January 31, 2026, to adopt at a regularly scheduled meeting, a policy on referral protocols for addressing student behavioral health concerns of students in grades 7 to 12.

Existing law requires the CDE to recommend best practices and identify evidence-based and evidence-informed training programs for schools to address youth behavioral health, including staff and student training, contingent upon an appropriation for this purpose.

Existing law establishes the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI) and requires the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) to develop and maintain a school-linked statewide fee schedule for outpatient mental health or substance use disorder treatment provided to a student 25 years or younger at a school site, beginning January 1, 2024. (Welfare and Institutions Code (WIC) § 5961.4)

Existing law requires the DHCS to award competitive grants for school-linked behavioral health partnership grants to eligible entities, including counties, city mental health, tribal entities, LEAs, higher education institutions, publicly funded early childhood education providers, health care service plans, community-based organizations, and behavioral health providers.

Proposed Law:

This bill requires the CDE, on or before July 1, 2027, to enter into a contract with one or more LEAs to serve as lead entities in providing support for the implementation of integrated, universal SEL, behavioral health, and restorative practices for pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive. The bill requires that the lead entities have capacity and established expertise in providing resources, technical assistance, and training to LEAs.

This bill requires the LEAs selected by the CDE through a competitive process to provide guidance, resources, and technical assistance to LEAs to expand the statewide implementation of integrated, universal SEL, behavioral health, and restorative practices to meet the needs of pupils in their school communities.

This bill requires the lead entities to ensure that guidance, resources, and technical assistance provided are equity focused and include trauma-informed and culturally responsive practices as part of a comprehensive MTSS.

This bill provides that its implementation shall be contingent upon an appropriation for its purpose in the annual Budget Act or another statute.

Related Legislation:

AB 1479 (Garcia, 2023) would have established the Pupil Social-Emotional, Behavioral, and Mental Health Program, to be administered by the CDE, to make available grants to LEAs to provide Tier 1 mental health supports to pupils and families, subject to an appropriation for this purpose. AB 1479 was vetoed with the following message:

Unfortunately, this specific proposal creates additional significant ongoing Proposition 98 General Fund cost pressures up to tens of millions of dollars that are not accounted for in the state budget plan and may be duplicative of other investments made in prior budgets. The 2021 Budget Act provided $50 million to support the Scale Up Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS) Statewide Initiative, which provides grants to support schools in implementing services or practices aligned to the MTSS framework. Additionally, the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative is a $4.7 billion investment towards ensuring that every Californian aged 0-25 has increased access to behavioral health supports.

Staff Comments:

According to the CDE, SEL reflects the critical role of positive relationships and emotional connections in the learning process and helps students develop a range of skills they need for school and life. The state has made multiple significant investments in recent years to promote SEL in schools, including the California Youth Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI) and community schools. According to the author, “AB 1851 helps ensure that California’s commitment to young people translates into real opportunities, stronger systems, and better outcomes for our students. We have made historic commitments to children’s behavioral health, but too often our systems operate in silos, leaving schools without clear guidance or alignment. At a time when chronic absenteeism remains high and students are facing unprecedented behavioral health challenges; we cannot afford fragmentation. This bill strengthens coordination and accountability around existing Social Emotional Learning and school-based behavioral health efforts so that prevention happens early, consistently, and equitably. Our students deserve systems that work together, not in isolation.”

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SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Senator Sasha Renée Pérez, Chair

2025 - 2026 Regular

Bill No: Hearing Date: July 1, 2026

Subject:

SUMMARY

This bill requires the California Department of Education (CDE) to select one or more lead local educational agencies (LEAs) to provide support for the implementation of integrated social-emotional learning (SEL), behavioral health, and restorative practices for pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive.

BACKGROUND

Existing law:

1) Appropriates $50 million in 2021-22 to the Orange County Department of Education (OCDE) to award grants to LEAs to fund schoolwide and districtwide implementation of services or practices aligned to the Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) framework developed under the “Scale Up MTSS Statewide” (SUMS) project. Requires the grants awarded to LEAs to support the implementation of high-quality integrated academic, behavioral, and SEL practices in an integrated MTSS at the schoolwide level. (Education Code (EC) § 41490)

2) Requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) to establish a process, in consultation with and subject to the approval of the executive director of the State Board of Education (SBE), to select an LEA or another entity, as specified, to partner with the OCDE and the Butte County Office of Education (COE) to expand the state’s capacity to support LEA’s implementation of SEL, trauma screening, trauma-informed practices, and culturally relevant, affirming, and sustaining practices. Requires the entity chosen to have demonstrated expertise in developing and delivering high quality professional learning to educators in SEL, trauma-informed practices, and culturally relevant, affirming, and sustaining practices in a manner that aligns with local MTSS. (EC § 41490)

3) Requires the CDE, by June 1, 2024, to develop evidence-based best practices for restorative justice practice implementation on a school campus and make these available on the department website for use by LEAs to implement restorative justice practices as part of efforts to improve campus culture and climate. Requires the CDE to consult with school-based restorative justice practitioners, public school educators, students, community partners, and nonprofit and public entities in developing the best practices, and to the extent feasible, take into account other programs and resources, including, but not limited to, the SUMS Initiative, the California Community Schools Partnership Program, and resources developed by the department in support of SEL. (EC § 49055)

4) Expresses the intent of the Legislature to support LEAs in conducting evidence-based activities to address chronic absenteeism and loss of attendance due to emergency events, including but not limited to:

a) Establishing a community school model;

b) Implementing activities or programs to improve attendance and reduce chronic absenteeism, including, but not limited to, early warning systems or early intervention programs;

c) Implementing restorative practices, restorative justice models, or other programs to improve retention rates, reduce suspensions and other school removals, and reduce the referral of pupils to law enforcement agencies;

d) Implementing activities that advance SEL, Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), culturally responsive practices, and trauma-informed strategies;

e) Establishing partnerships with community-based organizations or other relevant entities to support the implementation of evidence-based, nonpunitive approaches to further the goals of the program; and

f) Adding or increasing staff within an LEA whose primary purpose is to address ongoing chronic attendance problems, including, but not necessarily limited to, conducting outreach to families and children currently, or at risk of becoming, chronically truant. (EC § 46210)

5) Appropriates $1.5 billion for the Educator Effectiveness Block Grant to be distributed by the SPI to school districts, COEs, charter schools, and state special schools in the 2020-21 fiscal year for expenditure through the 2025-26 fiscal year. Authorizes these funds to be used to provide professional learning to school staff who work with students in any of the following areas, among others:

a) Strategies to implement SEL, trauma-informed practices, suicide prevention, access to mental health services, and other approaches that improve pupil well-being; and

b) Practices to create a positive school climate, including, but not limited to, restorative justice, training around implicit bias, providing positive behavioral supports, MTSS, transforming a schoolsite’s culture to one that values diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds, and preventing discrimination, harassment, bullying, and intimidation based on actual or perceived characteristics. (EC § 41480)

6) Establishes the California Community Schools Partnership Act, to provide integrated pupil supports, community partnerships, and expanded learning opportunities, which will help address the trauma and loss of learning that have resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic. Statewide investment in community schools, supported by local networks designed to coordinate services and resources, are critical to realize whole-child education. (EC § 8900 et seq.)

7) Requires the CDE to develop model referral protocols for addressing student mental health concerns, in consultation with specified agencies and stakeholders, and authorizes these protocols to be used on a voluntary basis by schools. (EC § 49428.1)

8) Requires the governing boards or bodies of LEAs, by January 31, 2026, to adopt at a regularly scheduled meeting, a policy on referral protocols for addressing student behavioral health concerns of students in grades 7 to 12. (EC § 49428.2)

9) Requires the CDE, by January 1, 2023, to recommend best practices and identify evidence-based and evidence-informed training programs for schools to address youth behavioral health, including staff and student training, contingent upon an appropriation for this purpose. (EC § 49428.15)

10) Requires LEAs to certify to the CDE by July 1, 2029, that 100% of certificated employees and 40% of classified employees who have direct contact with students in grades 7 to 12 have received youth behavioral health training at least once, as specified. (EC § 49428.2)

11) Establishes the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI) and requires the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) to develop and maintain a school-linked statewide fee schedule for outpatient mental health or substance use disorder treatment provided to a student 25 years or younger at a school site, beginning January 1, 2024. (Welfare and Institutions Code (WIC) § 5961.4)

12) Requires the DHCS to award competitive grants for school-linked behavioral health partnership grants to eligible entities, including counties, city mental health, tribal entities, LEAs, higher education institutions, publicly funded early childhood education providers, health care service plans, community-based organizations, and behavioral health providers. (WIC § 5961.2)

ANALYSIS

This bill:

1. Requires the CDE, on or before July 1, 2027, to enter into a contract with one or more LEAs to serve as lead entities in providing support for the implementation of integrated, universal SEL, behavioral health, and restorative practices for pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive. Requires that the lead entities have capacity and established expertise in providing resources, technical assistance, and training to LEAs.
2. Requires the LEAs selected by the CDE through a competitive process, as specified, to provide guidance, resources, and technical assistance to LEAs to expand the statewide implementation of integrated, universal SEL, behavioral health, and restorative practices to meet the needs of pupils in their school communities.
3. Requires the lead entities to ensure that guidance, resources, and technical assistance provided are equity focused and include trauma-informed and culturally responsive practices as part of a comprehensive MTSS.
4. Defines “local educational agency” to mean a school district, COE, or charter school.
5. States that the implementation of this bill shall be contingent upon an appropriation for its purpose in the annual Budget Act or another statute.
6. Makes a series of legislative findings and declarations related to the state’s ongoing efforts to support SEL and the uniquely position nature of school in providing early supports for children and youth.

STAFF COMMENTS

1. Need for the bill. According to the author, “AB 1851 helps ensure that California’s commitment to young people translates into real opportunities, stronger systems, and better outcomes for our students. We have made historic commitments to children’s behavioral health, but too often our systems operate in silos, leaving schools without clear guidance or alignment. At a time when chronic absenteeism remains high and students are facing unprecedented behavioral health challenges; we cannot afford fragmentation.

“This bill strengthens coordination and accountability around existing Social Emotional Learning and school-based behavioral health efforts so that prevention happens early, consistently, and equitably. Our students deserve systems that work together, not in isolation.”

1. Social-emotional learning. According to the CDE, SEL reflects the critical role of positive relationships and emotional connections in the learning process and helps students develop a range of skills they need for school and life. SEL skills include the ability to:
   1. set and achieve positive goals
   2. feel and show empathy for others
   3. establish and maintain positive relationships
   4. make responsible decisions
   5. understand and manage emotions

There is a growing body of research proving that SEL is fundamental to academic success and must be woven into the work of every teacher in every classroom and every after school and summer learning program in order to prepare all students for college and careers. 

To better connect educators with SEL, the CDE has joined the Collaborating States Initiative hosted by the Collaborative for Academic Social and Emotional Learning (CASEL), a group of states that share information, best practices, and promising tools and ideas in the interest of building strong SEL in schools across their states.

The integration of SEL to promote equity and address the needs of the whole child, and educators, is supported by many of California’s current policies, standards, funding, and decision-making mechanisms, including Local Control and Accountability Plans (LCAP).

The CDE maintains several resource pages related to SEL, including the SEL Guiding Principles and the Transformative Social Emotional Learning (T-SEL) Conditions and Competencies for Thriving.

1. California’s SEL Guiding Principles. In 2017, the CDE convened representatives from more than 20 California education organizations and systems to affirm SEL as an essential part of a well-rounded, quality education in all youth-serving settings and develop the California SEL Guiding Principles (Principles). The Principles are intended to serve as a resource to help LEAs develop LCAP goals; support the local rollout of the MTSS; set school or district leadership team priorities; inform the design of professional learning, instructional approaches, and curricula adoption; help determine assessment methodologies and tools; and build coalitions of families and community stakeholders.

The following Principles are designed to build on the implicit and explicit SEL practices already happening in many schools and to promote the intentional use of evidence and research-based practices to guide decision-making:

• 1. Adopt Whole Child Development as the Goal of Education: Take a systems approach to promoting student academic, SEL, physical well-being, and college, career, and civic life readiness. Name SEL as not a “nice to have,” but a “must have” to ensure student success in school, work, and community.
  2. Commit to Equity: All students must have opportunities to build SEL skills and receive an assets-based educational experience that is personalized, culturally relevant, and responsive, and intentionally addresses racism and implicit bias. Use practices that build on the existing strengths of students, educators, families, and communities.
  3. Build Capacity: Build the capacity of both students and adults through an intentional focus on relationship-centered learning environments and by offering research-based learning experiences that cultivate core social and emotional competencies.
  4. Partner with Families and Community: Maximize the resources of the entire school community, including expanded learning opportunities, early learning and care programs, and family and community partnerships, to advance SEL and student well-being.
  5. Learn and Improve: Adopt continuous improvement practices and use evidence to guide decision-making while aiming to enhance the quality of student SEL opportunities. Use data to inform improvement of instructional and school practices, not for accountability purposes.

The Principles are intended to be refined to meet the unique needs of each community and can be used to measure progress toward shared SEL goals.

1. Multi-Tiered Systems of Support. MTSS is a comprehensive framework that aligns academic, behavioral, SEL and mental health supports in a fully integrated system of support for the benefit of all students. CA MTSS offers the potential to create needed systematic change through intentional design and redesign of services and supports to identify and match all students’ needs quickly. The MTSS framework provides opportunities for LEAs to strengthen school, family, and community partnerships while developing the whole child in the most inclusive, equitable learning environment, thus closing the equity gaps for all students.

In 2015, Assembly Bill 104 (Committee on Budget, Chapter 13, Statutes of 2015) appropriated $10 million for developing, aligning, and improving academic and behavioral support systems. The CDE conducted a competitive grant process and awarded the funds to the OCDE for their SUMS proposal, which included the Butte COE as a rural partner. The focus of the SUMS Initiative is to develop resources for MTSS within an LEA that align the academic, behavioral, and social-emotional supports in an LEA in order to serve the whole child. It involves family and community engagement, administrative leadership, integrated education frameworks, and inclusive policy and practices.

In 2016, an additional $20 million, appropriated by SB 828 (Committee on Budget, Chapter 29, Statutes 2016), augmented the original grant award.

The Budget Act of 2018 authorized an additional $15 million, appropriated by AB 1808 (Committee on Budget, Chapter 32, Statutes of 2018) and SB 840 (Mitchell, Chapter 29, Statutes of 2018), to focus on improving the school climate statewide.

Finally, the Budget Act of 2021 appropriated an additional $50 million to the SUMS Initiative. The legislation required the OCDE to award $30 million of these funds as subgrants to LEAs. The legislation also required the CDE to conduct a process to select a partner entity to work with the OCDE and the Butte COE to support high quality professional learning for educators.

The purpose of the full $95 million awarded to date is to encourage LEAs to establish and align schoolwide, data-driven systems of academic and behavioral supports to more effectively meet the needs of California’s diverse learners in the most inclusive environment. The SUMS Initiative has allowed the OCDE and its partners to develop and disseminate statewide resources and technical assistance for this purpose. 

This bill requires the CDE to select one or more lead LEAs to provide support for the implementation of integrated SEL, behavioral health, and restorative practices for pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive. The Committee may wish to consider how this bill interacts with current investments made by the Legislature to address the social-emotional health of students.

1. Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative. Launched in July 2021, CYBHI is a multiyear, multi-billion-dollar effort focused on improving the behavioral health and well-being of children, youth, and families. The CYBHI is the core of the Master Plan for Kids’ Mental Health, the state’s $4.7 billion investment to overhaul its mental health system and enhance the pathways connecting families with the needed services. According to the CYBHI’s 2024 annual report, CYBHI investments have taken form in the following work streams in educational settings:
   1. Safe Spaces Trauma Informed Training – A free, online training designed to help individuals working with children and youth recognize and respond to signs of trauma and stress.
   2. CalHOPE Mindfulness, Resilience, and Well-being Supports – Providing no-cost mental health and wellness resources to schools across the state. The website contains resources that focus on creating trusted spaces, building resilience, and recognizing the signs of mental stress and duress in colleagues, students, and family members.
   3. Student Behavioral Health Incentive Program – Addressing behavioral health access barriers for Medi-Cal students through targeted interventions that increase access to preventive, early intervention, or other behavioral health services provided by school-affiliated behavioral health providers for TK-12 children in public schools.
   4. School-Linked Partnership and Capacity Grants - Providing COEs and LEAs, as well as institutions of higher education (IHEs), with critical resources to build infrastructure and partnerships and achieve a long-term and sustainable funding model for student behavioral health services. These one-time grants aim to increase operational readiness to engage in the CYBHI Fee Schedule program through supporting Medi-Cal enrollment, building service delivery and billing infrastructure, establishing data collection and documentation processes, and supporting collective impact efforts.
   5. CYBHI Fee Schedule Program - Increases access to school-linked behavioral health services. The program establishes a sustainable reimbursement source from Managed Care Plans, commercial health insurance, and disability insurers. Covered services include outpatient mental health or substance use disorder services for students under 26 years of age. The Fee Schedule creates a more approachable billing model for LEAs and public IHEs, easing burdens related to contracting, rate negotiation, and navigation across delivery systems, and reducing uncertainty around students’ health insurance coverage.
   6. Transforming Together - Supported by the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools, Transforming Together (T2) brings together a cross-sector Collaborative Leadership Working Group to align and integrate systems efforts for a re-imagined, youth-centered behavioral health ecosystem. Work is conducted in close partnership with CDE’s California Community Schools Partnership Program and piloted in four demonstration counties.
2. Arguments in support. In a letter of support submitted to this Committee, this bill’s sponsors, Initiate Justice, note the following:

“Importantly, this bill is grounded in the lived experience and policy insight of incarcerated students at Pleasant Valley State Prison who participated in Initiate Justice’s Inside Policy Clinic. Through that process, participants identified the absence of early emotional and behavioral support as a key factor contributing to cycles of harm and system involvement. AB 1851 reflects a rare and critical inside-out approach to policymaking by centering the voices of those most directly impacted to inform upstream, preventative solutions.

“Too often, policy responses to violence—particularly gun and gang violence—are reactive, relying on increased punishment after harm has already occurred. However, decades of research and lived experience have shown that this approach is both costly and ineffective in producing safer communities. What we need are upstream solutions that build the skills young people need to navigate conflict, regulate emotions, and develop healthy relationships. Social-emotional learning does exactly that.

“By equipping students with tools such as emotional regulation, conflict resolution, and responsible decision-making, SEL strengthens school climate, reduces behavioral incidents, and supports long-term positive outcomes. Importantly, it provides a proactive framework for violence prevention that aligns with what we know actually improves safety: early intervention, skill-building, and supportive learning environments.”

1. Prior and related legislation.

AB 1479 (Garcia, 2023) would have established the Pupil Social-Emotional, Behavioral, and Mental Health Program, to be administered by the CDE, to make available grants to LEAs to provide Tier 1 mental health supports to pupils and families, subject to an appropriation for this purpose. AB 1479 was vetoed with the following message:

Unfortunately, this specific proposal creates additional significant ongoing Proposition 98 General Fund cost pressures up to tens of millions of dollars that are not accounted for in the state budget plan and may be duplicative of other investments made in prior budgets. The 2021 Budget Act provided $50 million to support the Scale Up Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS) Statewide Initiative, which provides grants to support schools in implementing services or practices aligned to the MTSS framework. Additionally, the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative is a $4.7 billion investment towards ensuring that every Californian aged 0-25 has increased access to behavioral health supports.

AB 2598 (Akilah Weber, Chapter 914, Statutes of 2022) requires the CDE to develop and post on its website, by June 1, 2024, evidence-based best practices for restorative justice practices for LEAs to implement to improve campus culture and climate.

AB 2124 (Cristina Garcia, 2022) would have required the SPI to develop, administer, and award the Pupil Peer Support Training Program grant competitively for LEAs serving pupils in grades 9 to 12 to establish a peer support training program. AB 2124 was vetoed with the following message:

Peer support programs are valuable, which is why the 2022 Budget Act funded a similar program. AB 178 allocated $10 million for the School-Based Peer Mental Health Demonstration Project. This grant program will provide competitive grants to high schools to develop peer-to-peer support programs. With our state facing lower-than-expected revenues over the first few months of this fiscal year, it is important to remain disciplined when it comes to spending, particularly spending that is ongoing. We must prioritize existing obligations and priorities, including education, health care, public safety and safety-net programs.

AB 552 (Quirk-Silva, 2022) would have authorized a county behavioral health agency and the governing board or governing body of a LEA to enter into an Integrated School-Based Behavioral Health Partnership Program (Partnership Program), as established by this bill, to provide prevention and early intervention, and access to behavioral health and substance use disorder services for pupils at schoolsites. AB 552 was vetoed with the following message:

While I share the author's goal of addressing the mental health needs of children and youth, the partnership programs proposed under this bill would duplicate requirements for school-based behavioral health services being developed pursuant to the Children and Youth's Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI), which take effect in 2024. Implementation of the CYBHI's statewide all-payer fee schedule will provide a solution to the issue that this bill attempts to address. Additionally, I am concerned that this bill could create significant one-time and ongoing costs in the millions of dollars for the departments that would play a role in implementing these programs.

AB 2221 (Cristina Garcia, 2020) would have required school districts to establish a peer support training program at each high school. AB 2221 was held in the Assembly Education Committee.

AB 2639 (Berman, Chapter 437, Statutes of 2018) requires the CDE to identify and make available an online training program in suicide prevention that an LEA can use to train school staff and pupils, consistent with the LEA’s policy on suicide prevention.

SUPPORT

Initiate Justice (sponsor)
Alameda County Office of Education
Back to the Start
California Association for Bilingual Education
California Association of School Counselors
California Primary Care Association Advocates
Drug Policy Alliance
GLIDE
Los Angeles County Office of Education

OPPOSITION

None received

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ASSEMBLY THIRD READING

ATR Bill Id:AB 1851

Author:(Gipson)

As Amended Ver:April 27, 2026

Majority vote

SUMMARY

Requires the California Department of Education (CDE), by July 1, 2027, to enter into a contract with one or more local educational agencies (LEAs) with the capacity and established expertise in providing resources, technical assistance, and training to LEAs, to serve as lead entities in providing support for the implementation of integrated, universal social-emotional learning (SEL), behavioral health, and restorative practices for pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12.

Major Provisions

1. Requires the CDE, by July 1, 2027, to enter into a contract with one or more LEAs with the capacity and established expertise in providing resources, technical assistance, and training to LEAs, to serve as lead entities in providing support for the implementation of integrated, universal social-emotional learning, behavioral health, and restorative practices for pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12.
2. Requires the LEAs selected by the CDE to be lead entities to make available guidance, resources, and technical assistance to LEAs to expand the statewide implementation of integrated, universal SEL, behavioral health, and restorative practices to meet the needs of pupils in their school communities.
3. Requires the lead entities to ensure that the guidance, resources, and technical assistance provided are equity focused and include trauma-informed and culturally responsive practices as part of a comprehensive multitiered system of supports (MTSS).
4. Requires the implementation of these provisions to be subject to an appropriation for this purpose.

COMMENTS

CDE's California SEL Guiding Principles. According to the CDE, SEL has become an increasingly important part of education in California. Coordinated efforts to promote and infuse high-quality, equity-focused SEL across the California education system bring us closer to the CDE vision of advancing a "whole child" approach to education, as originally articulated in the 2013 shift to the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF).

Specifically, SEL is aligned with the state education priorities described in the LCFF, particularly priorities (4) Student Achievement, (5) Student Engagement, and (6) School Climate. As a result, many districts have articulated SEL goals and strategies within their Local Control and Accountability Plans (LCAPs).

The CDE's California SEL Guiding Principles, published in 2017, are intended to inform and support strong SEL practice across the state. They are grounded in five core principles: adopt whole child development; commit to equity; build capacity; partner with families/community; and learn and improve.

The CDE notes that these principles can be a resource in a variety of ways: in the development of LCAP goals; for the roll out of the MTSS; to set school or district leadership team priorities; to inform the design of professional learning, instructional approaches, and curricula adoption; in determining assessment methodologies and tools; and in building coalitions of families and community stakeholders. The principles should be refined to meet the unique needs of each community and can be used to measure progress toward shared SEL goals.

Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS). California's MTSS focuses on aligning initiatives and resources within an educational organization to address the needs of all students. It is an integrated, comprehensive framework for LEAs that aligns academic, behavioral, and SEL in a fully integrated system of support for the benefit of all students. MTSS offers the potential to create systematic change through intentional integration of services and supports to quickly identify and meet the needs of all students.

Over $95 million has been appropriated to date to the Scaling Up MTSS Statewide (SUMS) Initiative, managed by the Orange County Department of Education (OCDE) and the Butte County Office of Education (COE), to encourage LEAs to establish and align schoolwide, data-driven systems of academic and behavioral supports to more effectively meet the needs of California's diverse learners in the most inclusive environment.

The OCDE and Butte COE partnered with the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Center for the Transformation of Schools to expand the state's MTSS framework. They developed evidence-based tools and training for educators and school systems. Their work expands restorative justice, bullying prevention and positive behavior interventions and minimizes the use of emergency interventions. Their joint effort also established a pilot program to help LEAs to promote positive school climates by improving student-teacher relationships, increasing student engagement, and promoting alternative discipline practices.

CalHOPE Student Support. CalHOPE, led by the Sacramento COE, is a unique cross-sector partnership between healthcare and education, which aims to enhance statewide leaders' capacity to support the implementation of equity-centered SEL in schools. Led by the Sacramento County Office of Education, CalHOPE leverages partnerships and leaders from 58 COEs to develop sustainable and supportive SEL delivery systems for California's educators and students. CalHOPE operationalizes and expands previous priorities like the California SEL Guiding Principles and Transformative SEL Competencies and Conditions Indicators.

According to the Author

The author states, "AB 1851 helps ensure that California's commitment to young people translates into real opportunities, stronger systems, and better outcomes for our students. We have made historic commitments to children's behavioral health, but too often our systems operate in silos, leaving schools without clear guidance or alignment. At a time when chronic absenteeism remains high and students are facing unprecedented behavioral health challenges; we cannot afford fragmentation."

"This bill strengthens coordination and accountability around existing Social Emotional Learning and school-based behavioral health efforts so that prevention happens early, consistently, and equitably. Our students deserve systems that work together, not in isolation."

Arguments in Support

The Ella Baker Center for Human Rights writes, "Across California, educators, community organizations, and policymakers are increasingly recognizing that students' social, emotional, and behavioral well-being are foundational to academic success and long-term life outcomes. Schools are seeing rising levels of student anxiety, chronic absenteeism, and behavioral health needs. At the same time, the state has made historic investments in youth behavioral health infrastructure through the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI) and related programs. AB 1851 helps ensure these investments are implemented effectively by improving coordination and clarity around existing SEL efforts across California's education and behavioral health systems."

"AB 1851 is rooted in the understanding that prevention must begin early and that students thrive when schools are equipped with the tools and coordination necessary to support their social and emotional development. By strengthening coordination between existing state initiatives and educational systems, this bill helps ensure that California's investments in youth well-being are implemented in a effective manner. We believe AB 1851 represents a thoughtful step toward strengthening the systems that support California's students and educators."

Arguments in Opposition

Moms for Liberty Placer County writes, "Our organization supports parents, transparency, and the fundamental principle that schools exist to educate, not to replace the role of families in shaping a child's emotional, behavioral, or moral development. AB-1851 crosses that line. By embedding mental‑health and behavioral‑health instruction into the school day, AB‑1851 effectively shifts authority away from parents and places it in the hands of the state. Families seeking real mental‑health support for their children will now face fewer resources because those funds are being diverted into curriculum development and classroom instruction. Moms for Liberty supports strong academics, safe schools, and parental authority. AB‑1851 undermines all three. It expands the role of government into children's emotional development, reduces local control, and diverts mental health funding away from students who truly need clinical support."

FISCAL COMMENTS

According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, "One-time Proposition 98 General Fund cost pressures of an unknown amount but likely in the low hundreds of thousands of dollars for the Legislature to appropriate funds for CDE to enter into a contract with one or more LEAs selected as lead entities to produce and proliferate guidance, resources, and technical assistance as required by this bill."

VOTES

ASM EDUCATION: 8-0-1

YES: Patel, Hoover, Alvarez, Bonta, Garcia, Lowenthal, Pellerin, Zbur

ABS, ABST OR NV: Castillo

ASM APPROPRIATIONS: 13-0-2

YES: Wicks, Hoover, Aguiar-Curry, Calderon, Caloza, Dixon, Fong, Mark González, Krell, Pacheco, Pellerin, Sharp-Collins, Solache

ABS, ABST OR NV: Ta, Tangipa

UPDATED

VERSION: April 27, 2026

CONSULTANT: Debbie Look / ED. / (916) 319-2087 FN: 0002682

Date of Hearing: May 6, 2026

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS

Buffy Wicks, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 1851

Author:(Gipson) – As Amended Ver:April 27, 2026

Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: No Reimbursable: No

SUMMARY:

This bill requires the California Department of Education (CDE), by July 1, 2027, subject to an appropriation, to enter into a contract with one or more local educational agencies (LEAs) with capacity and established expertise providing technical assistance to LEAs to serve as lead entities for implementation of integrated, universal social-emotional learning (SEL), behavioral health, and restorative practices for K-12 education students. Selected lead entities must, by January 1, 2028, make resources and technical assistance available to LEAs and ensure that support provided is equity-focused, including trauma-informed and culturally responsive practices.

FISCAL EFFECT:

One-time Proposition 98 General Fund cost pressures of an unknown amount but likely in the low hundreds of thousands of dollars for the Legislature to appropriate funds for CDE to enter into a contract with one or more LEAs selected as lead entities to produce and proliferate guidance, resources, and technical assistance as required by this bill.

COMMENTS:

1. Purpose. According to the author:

This bill strengthens coordination and accountability around existing Social Emotional Learning and school-based behavioral health efforts so that prevention happens early, consistently, and equitably. Our students deserve systems that work together, not in isolation.

1. Background. Social-Emotional Learning. CDE participates in the Collaborating States Initiative on SEL (CASEL), which promotes information sharing among member states to support the proliferation of best practices and ideas helping build strong SEL in schools. CASEL emphasizes the five competencies of self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making. According to CDE, the principles undergirding a SEL approach can support implementation of LCAP goals, multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS), establishment of LEA leadership priorities, curriculum adoption, and community engagement.

Existing Whole-Child Initiatives. The state has made multiple significant investments in recent years to promote SEL in public schools including, but not limited to, the California Youth Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI), MTSS, California Integrated Supports Project (CA-ISP), and community schools.

AB 133, (Committee on Budget), Chapter 143, Statutes of 2021, created the CYBHI to be administered by the California Health and Human Services Agency and appropriated $4.6 billion across several fiscal years to promote behavioral health supports and services. The Legislature also appropriated a total of $4 billion in one-time funds across several fiscal years to establish community schools and the 2026 Governor’s Budget proposes $1 billion in ongoing support for this program both for existing community schools funding recipients and for new participants. CA-ISP, established in 2021, included a one-time $50 million appropriation for Placer County Office of Education, selected through a competitive application process, to partner with Orange County Department of Education to expand the state’s capacity to support LEAs in implementing an integrated approach to SEL. To date, the Legislature has appropriated almost $100 million total across multiple fiscal years to support MTSS, which attempts to address the needs of students through a framework aligning academic, behavioral, and SEL in a fully integrated system benefiting all students.

Analysis Prepared by: Aaron Heredia / APPR. / (916) 319-2081

Date of Hearing: April 22, 2026

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Darshana R. Patel, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 1851 (

Author:Gipson) – As Amended Ver:April 6, 2026

SUBJECT: Pupil health: social-emotional, behavioral, and mental health supports

SUMMARY: Requires the California Department of Education (CDE) to develop and disseminate guidance, resources, and technical assistance to support local educational agencies (LEAs) in implementing an integrated, universal Tier 1 approaches to social and emotional learning (SEL), behavioral health, and restorative practices for pupils in kindergarten through grade 12; requires school districts and county offices of education (COEs) and authorizes charter schools to implement the guidance established beginning in 2027-28; and requires school districts and COEs to provide professional development to at least 60% of certificated and classified staff to support implementation. Specifically, this bill:

1. Requires the CDE, by July 1, 2027, to develop and publish guidance, resources, and technical assistance to support LEAs in implementing an integrated, universal Tier 1 approach to SEL, behavioral health, and restorative practices for pupils in kindergarten and any of grades 1 to 12 as part of a comprehensive Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS).
2. Requires the guidance to be developed in consultation with experts in the field, including California’s statewide community of practice, with emphasized collaboration from the statewide SEL network of all 58 counties as represented by their COEs and CalHOPE.
3. Requires the guidance developed by the CDE to fit within existing school systems, including, but not limited to, MTSS and Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), and to promote safe, inclusive, and supportive learning environments.
4. Requires the guidance developed by the CDE to include strategies to support meaningful engagement of students, families, educators, and community partners in fostering a positive school climate, strengthening relationships, and promoting a culture of belonging.
5. Requires the guidance developed by the CDE pursuant to (1) to be aligned with all of the following:
6. The CDE’s “California SEL Guiding Principles;”
7. Evidence-based, trauma-informed practices;
8. The CDE’s “Transformative SEL Competencies and Conditions for Thriving;”
9. Existing statewide frameworks, including MTSS and PBIS;
10. Instructional Continuity Plans developed pursuant to Section 43428.2 and related statewide efforts established under Senate Bill 153 (Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review), Chapter 38, Statutes of 2021; and
11. Culturally responsive practices that support pupil identity, agency, and belonging.
12. Requires that Tier 1 supports prioritize universal prevention, early intervention, and the reduction of exclusionary discipline, and which may include, but are not limited to, all of the following:
13. SEL instruction integrated across grade levels K-12;
14. Coping and stress-management skills;
15. Positive behavior and relationship development, including relationship-centered practices that promote connection, trust, and belonging;
16. Restorative justice practices;
17. Early identification and referral pathways;
18. Developmentally appropriate supports that emphasize early intervention for younger students; and
19. Culturally responsive and trauma-informed practices.
20. Requires school districts and COEs, and authorizes charter schools, to implement the guidance established in (1), subject to available funding, and requires coherence across all 58 counties and alignment with existing frameworks, rather than the adoption of discrete or stand-alone programs.
21. Encourages school districts, COEs, and charter schools to begin implementation in the 2027-28 school year, and requires full implementation to be phased in over a period of no less than three years, subject to local capacity and available funding.
22. Requires school districts and COEs, subject to the availability of funding, to provide professional development to at least 60% of certificated and classified staff to support implementation, including but not limited to, all of the following:
    1. SEL integration;
    2. Trauma-informed practices;
    3. Child and adolescent development;
    4. Relationship-centered and restorative approaches; and
    5. Culturally responsive practices.
23. Encourages LEAs to assess school climate, conditions for student and educator well-being, and the effectiveness of Tier 1 supports using existing or locally developed tools, including but not limited to, the California Healthy Kids Survey or other validated measures, to inform continuous improvement.
24. Requires the CDE to identify, monitor, and support existing SEL implementation sites and learning hubs to collect and analyze data, evaluate outcomes, and guide continuous improvement and statewide scaling.
25. Requires the CDE to establish metrics and processes to assess, at a minimum, measurable shifts in school climate and conditions for thriving, the extent to which practices are integrated into school culture and systems, and improvements in adult development capacity, student life skills, and the development of proactive skills, behaviors, and attitudes.
26. Requires the implementation of these provisions to be contingent upon an appropriation in the annual Budget Act or another statute, including but not limited to funding made available through the Behavioral Health Services Act or other ongoing funding sources.

EXISTING LAW:

1. Appropriates $50 million in 2021-22 to the Orange County Department of Education (OCDE) to award grants to LEAs to fund schoolwide and districtwide implementation of services or practices aligned to the MTSS framework developed under the “Scale Up MTSS Statewide” (SUMS) project. Requires the grants awarded to LEAs to support the support the implementation of high-quality integrated academic, behavioral, and SEL practices in an integrated MTSS at the schoolwide level. (Education Code (EC) 41490)
2. Requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) to establish a process, in consultation with and subject to the approval of the executive director of the State Board of Education (SBE), to select an LEA or another entity, as specified, to partner with the OCDE and the Butte COE to expand the state’s capacity to support LEA’s implementation of social-emotional learning, trauma screening, trauma-informed practices, and culturally relevant, affirming, and sustaining practices. Requires the entity chosen to have demonstrated expertise in developing and delivering high quality professional learning to educators in SEL, trauma-informed practices, and culturally relevant, affirming, and sustaining practices in a manner that aligns with local MTSS. (EC 41490)
3. Requires the CDE, by June 1, 2024, to develop evidence-based best practices for restorative justice practice implementation on a school campus and make these available on the department website for use by LEAs to implement restorative justice practices as part of efforts to improve campus culture and climate. Requires the CDE to consult with school-based restorative justice practitioners, public school educators, students, community partners, and nonprofit and public entities in developing the best practices, and to the extent feasible take into account other programs and resources, including, but not limited to, the Scaling Up MTSS Statewide (SUMS) Initiative, the California Community Schools Partnership Program, and resources developed by the department in support of SEL. (EC 49055)
4. Expresses the intent of the Legislature to support LEAs in conducting evidence-based activities to address chronic absenteeism and loss of attendance due to emergency events, including but not limited to:
5. Establishing a community school model;
6. Implementing activities or programs to improve attendance and reduce chronic absenteeism, including, but not limited to, early warning systems or early intervention programs;
7. Implementing restorative practices, restorative justice models, or other programs to improve retention rates, reduce suspensions and other school removals, and reduce the referral of pupils to law enforcement agencies;
8. Implementing activities that advance SEL, PBIS, culturally responsive practices, and trauma-informed strategies;
9. Establishing partnerships with community-based organizations or other relevant entities to support the implementation of evidence-based, nonpunitive approaches to further the goals of the program; and
10. Adding or increasing staff within an LEA whose primary purpose is to address ongoing chronic attendance problems, including, but not necessarily limited to, conducting outreach to families and children currently, or at risk of becoming, chronically truant. (EC 46210)
11. Appropriates $1.5 billion for the Educator Effectiveness Block Grant to be distributed by the SPI to school districts, COEs, charter schools, and state special schools in the 2020-21 fiscal year for expenditure through the 2025-26 fiscal year. Authorizes these funds to be used to provide professional learning to school staff who work with students in any of the following areas, among others:
12. Strategies to implement SEL, trauma-informed practices, suicide prevention, access to mental health services, and other approaches that improve pupil well-being; and
13. Practices to create a positive school climate, including, but not limited to, restorative justice, training around implicit bias, providing positive behavioral supports, MTSS, transforming a schoolsite’s culture to one that values diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds, and preventing discrimination, harassment, bullying, and intimidation based on actual or perceived characteristics. (EC 41480)
14. Establishes the California Community Schools Partnership Act, to provide integrated pupil supports, community partnerships, and expanded learning opportunities will help address the trauma and loss of learning that have resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic. Statewide investment in community schools, supported by local networks designed to coordinate services and resources, are critical to realize whole-child education. (EC 8900 et seq.)
15. Requires the CDE to develop model referral protocols for addressing student mental health concerns, in consultation with specified agencies and stakeholders, and authorizes these protocols to be used on a voluntary basis by schools. (EC 49428.1)
16. Requires the governing boards or bodies of LEAs, by January 31, 2026, to adopt at a regularly scheduled meeting, a policy on referral protocols for addressing student behavioral health concerns of students in grades 7 to 12. (EC 49428.2)
17. Requires the CDE, by January 1, 2023, to recommend best practices and identify evidence-based and evidence-informed training programs for schools to address youth behavioral health, including staff and student training, contingent upon an appropriation for this purpose. (EC 49428.15)
18. Requires LEAs to certify to the CDE by July 1, 2029, that 100% of certificated employees and 40% of classified employees who have direct contact with students in grades 7 to 12 have received youth behavioral health training at least once, as specified. (EC 49428.2)
19. Establishes the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI) and requires the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) to develop and maintain a school-linked statewide fee schedule for outpatient mental health or substance use disorder treatment provided to a student 25 years or younger at a school site, beginning January 1, 2024. (Welfare and Institutions Code (WIC) 5961.4)
20. Requires the DHCS to award competitive grants for school-linked behavioral health partnership grants to eligible entities, including counties, city mental health, tribal entities, LEAs, higher education institutions, publicly funded early childhood education providers, health care service plans, community-based organizations, and behavioral health providers. (WIC 5961.2)
21. Establishes, through the passage of Proposition 1 at the March 5, 2024 election, the Behavioral Health Services Fund in the State Treasury to provide mental health and substance use disorder treatment services, including to fund the programs, services, and related activities of the No Place Like Home Program. Funds are distributed to counties with the requirement that 20% be used for prevention and early intervention, 5% for innovative programs, and the balance for services to persons with severe mental illnesses, for the children’s system of care, and for the adult and older adult system of care. (WIC 5890)

FISCAL EFFECT: This bill has been keyed a possible state mandated local program by the Office of Legislative Counsel.

COMMENTS:

Need for the bill. The author states, “AB 1851 helps ensure that California’s commitment to young people translates into real opportunities, stronger systems, and better outcomes for our students. We have made historic commitments to children’s behavioral health, but too often our systems operate in silos, leaving schools without clear guidance or alignment. At a time when chronic absenteeism remains high and students are facing unprecedented behavioral health challenges; we cannot afford fragmentation.

This bill strengthens coordination and accountability around existing Social Emotional Learning and school-based behavioral health efforts so that prevention happens early, consistently, and equitably. Our students deserve systems that work together, not in isolation.”

This bill requires the CDE to develop and publish guidance resources and technical assistance to support LEAs in implementing an integrated, universal Tier 1 approach to SEL, behavioral health, and restorative practices for students in K-12 as part of a comprehensive MTSS and requires school districts and COEs, but not charter schools, to implement this guidance to the extent of available funding. The bill requires that this implementation emphasize coherence across all 58 counties and alignment with existing frameworks, rather than the adoption of discrete or standalone programs.

What is social-emotional learning (SEL)? According to the CDE, SEL reflects the critical role of positive relationships and emotional connections in the learning process and helps students develop a range of skills they need for school and life. SEL skills include the ability to:

• Set and achieve positive goals;
• Feel and show empathy for others;
• Establish and maintain positive relationships;
• Make responsible decisions; and
• Understand and manage emotions.

There is a growing body of research proving that SEL is fundamental to academic success, and must be woven into the work of every teacher in every classroom and every after school and summer learning program to prepare all students for college and careers.

In recognition of the importance of SEL, the CDE has joined the Collaborating States Initiative on SEL (CASEL), a group of states that share information, best practices, and promising tools and ideas in the interest of building strong SEL in schools across their states. CASEL emphasizes five competencies in its approach: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making. Standards show developmentally sensitive ways of explaining those concepts to students from pre-k to high school graduation and how those lessons can blend with traditional curricular instruction.

CDE’s California SEL Guiding Principles.

According to the CDE, SEL has become an increasingly important part of education in California. Coordinated efforts to promote and infuse high-quality, equity-focused SEL across the California education system bring us closer to the CDE vision of advancing a “whole child” approach to education, as originally articulated in the 2013 shift to the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF).

Specifically, SEL is aligned with the state education priorities described in the LCFF, particularly priorities (4) Student Achievement, (5) Student Engagement, and (6) School Climate. As a result, many districts have articulated SEL goals and strategies within their Local Control and Accountability Plans (LCAPs).

The CDE’s California SEL Guiding Principles, published in 2017, are intended to inform and support strong SEL practice across the state. They are grounded in five core principles: 

• Adopt Whole Child Development;
• Commit to Equity;
• Build Capacity;
• Partner with Families/Community, and
• Learn and Improve.

The CDE notes that these principles can be a resource in a variety of ways: in the development of LCAP goals; for roll out of the MTSS; to set school or district leadership team priorities; to inform the design of professional learning, instructional approaches, and curricula adoption; in determining assessment methodologies and tools; and, in the building of coalitions of families and community stakeholders. The principles should be refined to meet the unique needs of each community and can be used to measure progress toward shared SEL goals.

Multiple current state initiatives are aimed at whole child support. This bill proposes to create new guidance focused on the social and emotional needs of students. In recent years, California has made large scale investments in initiatives to address the needs of the whole child, including social and emotional well-being:

1. Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS). California’s MTSS focuses on aligning initiatives and resources within an educational organization to address the needs of all students. It is an integrated, comprehensive framework for LEAs that aligns academic, behavioral, and SEL in a fully integrated system of support for the benefit of all students. MTSS offers the potential to create systematic change through intentional integration of services and supports to quickly identify and meet the needs of all students.

Over $95 million has been appropriated to date to the Scaling Up MTSS Statewide (SUMS) Initiative, managed by the Orange County Department of Education (OCDE) and the Butte COE, to encourage LEAs to establish and align schoolwide, data-driven systems of academic and behavioral supports to more effectively meet the needs of California’s diverse learners in the most inclusive environment.

The OCDE and Butte COE partnered with the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Center for the Transformation of Schools to expand the state's MTSS framework. They developed evidence-based tools and training for educators and school systems. Their work expands restorative justice, bullying prevention and positive behavior interventions and minimizes the use of emergency interventions. Their joint effort also established a pilot program to help LEAs to promote positive school climates by improving student-teacher relationships, increasing student engagement, and promoting alternative discipline practices.

1. California Integrated Supports Project (CA-ISP). AB 130 (Committee on Budget) Chapter 44, Statutes of 2021, appropriated $50 million to the OCDE to partner with an LEA to expand the state’s capacity to support LEAs in implementing an integrated approach to SEL, trauma-informed practices, and culturally relevant, affirming, and sustaining practices. Through a competitive process, the Placer COE was selected as the partner LEA and the CA-ISP was established.
2. CalHOPE Student Support. CalHOPE, led by the Sacramento COE, is a unique cross-sector partnership between healthcare and education, which aims to enhance statewide leaders' capacity to support the implementation of equity-centered SEL in schools. Led by the Sacramento County Office of Education, CalHOPE leverages partnerships and leaders from 58 COEs to develop sustainable and supportive SEL delivery systems for California's educators and students. CalHOPE operationalizes and expands previous priorities like the California SEL Guiding Principles and Transformative SEL Competencies and Conditions Indicators. CalHOPE convenes a regular statewide SEL community of practice (CoP), where county leaders network, share ideas, and collaborate on SEL implementation practices to actualize the vision of building sustainable SEL systems to support thriving for adults and young people across CA schools.
3. Community schools. The state has also invested over $4 Billion in the establishment and expansion of community schools. A community school is a public school that serves prekindergarten through grade twelve and has community partnerships that support improved academic outcomes, whole-child engagement, and family development. Community school partnership strategies include integrated support services, extended learning time, and collaborative leadership and practices for educators and administrators. Community schools can increase equitable student learning outcomes by addressing the conditions for teaching and learning. Community schools support the needs of the whole child by strengthening family and community foundations with approaches that sustain mental and behavioral health through healing-centered practices, social–emotional learning, and restorative justice.
4. Positive behavior interventions and support (PBIS). Schoolwide strategies employed by school districts to improve school climate and reduce exclusionary discipline include PBIS, which is a schoolwide approach to discipline that is intended to create safe, predictable, and positive school environments. When PBIS is implemented with fidelity, schools see fewer students with serious behavior problems and an overall improvement in school climate. Implementation of PBIS follows a multi-tiered response to intervention model.
5. Restorative practices. The use of restorative practices in schools offers a respectful and equitable approach to discipline, as well as a proactive strategy to create a connected, inclusive school culture. Inspired by indigenous values, restorative justice is a philosophy and a theory of justice that emphasizes bringing together everyone affected by wrongdoing to address needs and responsibilities and to heal the harm to relationships as much as possible. The term “restorative practices” is used by a number of practitioners to describe how the concepts of restorative justice are utilized to create change in school systems. These practices are an alternative to zero-tolerance policies that mandate suspension or expulsion of students from school for a wide variety of misbehaviors that are not necessarily violent or dangerous. (Fix School Discipline, 2022)

AB 2598 (Akilah Weber), Chapter 914, Statutes of 2022 requires the CDE, by June 1, 2024, to develop evidence-based practices for restorative justice practice implementation on a school campus as part of efforts to improve campus culture and climate. The legislation encourages the CDE to take into account resources and best practices that have been identified or developed as part of the Scaling Up MTSS initiative, the California Community Schools Partnership Program, and resources developed by the CDE in support of SEL.

1. Multi-payer school-linked statewide fee schedule designed to support mental health services in schools. The California Youth Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI), a $4.6 billion investment, is one of the components of the transformation of California's mental health system to meet the mental health needs of children and youth. As part of the CYBHI, the DHCS, in collaboration with the Department of Managed Health Care (DMHC), developed and maintains a multi-payer, school-linked statewide fee schedule for outpatient mental health or substance use disorder services provided to a student 25 years of age or younger at or near a school site.

As of March 2026, approximately 700 LEAs and public institutes of higher education (IHEs) have enrolled in the CYBHI fee schedule program, representing over 3.6 million students.

1. Youth behavioral health training and support. Current law requires LEAs, by July 1, 2029, to certify to the CDE that 100% of its certificated employees and 40% of its classified employees, who have direct contact with students in any of grades 7 to 12, have received youth behavioral health training at least one-time.

The Committee may wish to consider whether there is a need to require the CDE to develop and publish guidance, resources and technical assistance to support LEAs in implementing an integrated universal Tier 1 approach to SEL, behavioral health, and restorative practices, given the investments and progress that has been made to date in these areas.

The Committee may also wish to consider whether it is appropriate to mandate the development and adoption of a particular standardized guidance for all schools in California given the vast differences in the conditions of schools and students in schools and communities across the state.

Potential funding sources. This bill specifies that the implementation of these provisions is contingent upon an appropriation in the Annual Budget Act or another ongoing funding source, including the Behavioral Health Services Act, established by Proposition 1 at the March 5, 2024 election. The Behavioral Health Services Fund was established in the State Treasury to provide mental health and substance use disorder treatment services. Funds are distributed to counties with the requirement that 20% be used for prevention and early intervention, 5% for innovative programs, and the balance for services to persons with severe mental illnesses, for the children’s system of care, and for the adult and older adult system of care.

Recommended Committee Amendments. Staff recommend that the bill be amended as follows:

1. Remove Sections 2 and 3 of the bill.
2. Add, subject to the availability of funding for this purpose, require the CDE to contract with one or more LEAs demonstrating best practices in the technical assistance and training provided to LEAs for the implementation of integrated universal SEL, behavioral health, and restorative justice practices for pupils in kindergarten through 12^th grade, to expand their efforts statewide in a manner adaptable to the differing needs of school communities.

Arguments in support. The Ella Baker Center for Human Rights writes, “Across California, educators, community organizations, and policymakers are increasingly recognizing that

students’ social, emotional, and behavioral well-being are foundational to academic success and long-term life outcomes. Schools are seeing rising levels of student anxiety, chronic absenteeism, and behavioral health needs. At the same time, the state has made historic investments in youth behavioral health infrastructure through CYBHI and related programs. AB 1851 helps ensure these investments are implemented effectively by improving coordination and clarity around existing SEL efforts across California’s education and behavioral health systems.

AB 1851 is rooted in the understanding that prevention must begin early and that students thrive when schools are equipped with the tools and coordination necessary to support their social and emotional development. By strengthening coordination between existing state initiatives and educational systems, this bill helps ensure that California’s investments in youth well-being are implemented in a effective manner. We believe AB 1851 represents a thoughtful step toward strengthening the systems that support California’s students and educators.”

Arguments in opposition. Moms for Liberty Placer County writes, “Our organization supports parents, transparency, and the fundamental principle that schools exist to educate, not to replace the role of families in shaping a child’s emotional, behavioral, or moral development. AB-1851 crosses that line. By embedding mental‑health and behavioral‑health instruction into the school day, AB‑1851 effectively shifts authority away from parents and places it in the hands of the state. Families seeking real mental‑health support for their children will now face fewer resources because those funds are being diverted into curriculum development and classroom instruction. Moms for Liberty supports strong academics, safe schools, and parental authority. AB‑1851 undermines all three. It expands the role of government into children’s emotional development, reduces local control, and diverts mental health funding away from students who truly need clinical support.”

Related legislation. AB 1919 (Weber) of the 2023-24 Session would have required school districts to document any alternative means of correction used prior to the suspension of a student and, upon appropriation, an LEA, beginning July 1, 2026, to adopt at least one of the best practices for restorative justice practice implementation as identified by the CDE. This bill was vetoed by the Governor, who stated:

I respect the author's commitment to expanding restorative justice practices in our schools. Providing students with alternative conflict resolution methods is an important strategy for improving the academic achievement and school environment for all students. Unfortunately, while contingent upon budget appropriation, this bill adds tens of millions in ongoing cost pressures to future budgets.

In partnership with the Legislature this year, my Administration has enacted a balanced budget that avoids deep program cuts to vital services and protected investments in education, health care, climate, public safety, housing, and social service programs that millions of Californians rely on. It is important to remain disciplined when considering bills with significant fiscal implications that are not included in the budget, such as this measure.

AB 1479 (Garcia) of the 2023-24 Session would have established the Pupil Social-Emotional, Behavioral, and Mental Health Program, to be administered by the CDE, to make available grants to LEAs to provide Tier 1 mental health supports to pupils and families, subject to an appropriation for this purpose. This bill was vetoed by the Governor, who stated:

Unfortunately, this specific proposal creates additional significant ongoing Proposition 98 General Fund cost pressures up to tens of millions of dollars that are not accounted for in the state budget plan and may be duplicative of other investments made in prior budgets. The 2021 Budget Act provided $50 million to support the Scale Up Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS) Statewide Initiative, which provides grants to support schools in implementing services or practices aligned to the MTSS framework. Additionally, the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative is a $4.7 billion investment towards ensuring that every Californian aged 0-25 has increased access to behavioral health supports.

AB 2598 (Weber), Chapter 914, Statutes of 2022, requires the CDE to develop and post on its website by June 1, 2024, evidence-based best practices for restorative justice practices for LEAs to implement to improve campus culture and climate.

AB 1165 (McCarty), Chapter 22, Statutes of 2023, encourages LEAs to refer both the victim and perpetrator of an incident of racist bullying, harassment, or intimidation to a restorative justice program that suits the needs of both the victim and the perpetrator.

AB 2489 (McCarty) of the 2015-16 Session would have required the CDE to develop a standard model to implement restorative justice practices on a school campus and make the standard model available for use by any school district that chose to implement restorative justice practices as part of its campus culture. This bill was held in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

SB 1396 (Hancock) of the 2013-14 Session would have apportioned funds, contingent upon available funding, to a designated COE to establish a multi-tiered intervention and support program that includes, but is not limited to, the Schoolwide PBIS program and restorative practices. This bill was held in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:

Support

Opposition

Moms for Liberty Placer County

Our Duty

SFV Alliance

Analysis Prepared by: Debbie Look / ED. / (916) 319-2087