A Beverly Hills Unified family doubled up in a relative's apartment — sharing a bedroom with cousins because they can't afford rent on their own — is exactly who California's new $116 million grant program is designed to reach, if their district applies.
Governor Newsom signed the 2026-27 state budget on Sunday, June 29, which includes $116 million over three years for a competitive grant program to help school districts identify and support students experiencing homelessness. Authorized through AB 126, the funding marks the first time California has dedicated state money specifically for this purpose, according to LAist.
The grant is competitive, and districts must apply. BHUSD has not publicly indicated whether it plans to pursue the funding. The California Department of Education has not yet posted application guidelines or a deadline.
Still, the program is worth watching for a district under budget pressure. BHUSD's board voted unanimously in March 2025 to eliminate 10 administrative and executive positions. Districts that win grant funding can hire specialized staff trained to find housing-unstable students and connect them with transportation, food assistance, clothing, and school supplies.
Why identification is the bottleneck
Nearly 300,000 California students were identified as experiencing homelessness in 2024-25, according to state data. Margaret Olmos, senior director at the National Center for Youth Law, said the real number is higher because finding these students is the core challenge.
"There is a great need, but the hard part with this population is you have to find them and identify them, and we have never funded that," Olmos said.
Under the federal McKinney-Vento Act, "homeless" includes families sharing housing due to economic hardship, not just those living on the street. Many families don't realize they qualify for services, and some are reluctant to disclose their situation. A 2022 state law requires schools to administer an annual housing questionnaire, and federal law mandates each district designate a homeless liaison. But without dedicated outreach staff, a teacher noticing slipping grades or increased absences may never connect those signs to housing instability.
Federal funding has stayed flat
California received just $14 million in federal McKinney-Vento funding during the 2025-26 school year, split among only 151 of the state's more than 900 districts. Nationally, federal funding for student homelessness has held at about $129 million annually for at least three years.
The new state grant echoes the federal American Rescue Plan's one-time $98.76 million allocation to California starting in 2021, which allowed districts to hire liaisons and expand after-school programs. When that funding expired in 2024, many programs ended.
Barbara Duffield, executive director of SchoolHouse Connection, said the $116 million will help demonstrate to policymakers that dedicated identification funding needs to become permanent because there is no indication homelessness will decline significantly in the next few years.
What comes next
The California Department of Education has not announced when the AB 126 application window will open. Families seeking information about McKinney-Vento services at BHUSD can contact the district's homeless liaison through the central office at (310) 551-5100.
