Sacramento, Calif. – On September 22, 2024, The Climate Resilient Schools Act by Majority Leader Gonzalez (D-Long Beach) was vetoed by Governor Newsom for the second consecutive year after successfully passing the Legislature with a strong majority vote. The legislation would have created a roadmap for California school districts to access federal funding to upgrade school facilities amidst a changing climate and increasingly severe weather.

Specifically, the bill would have directed the California Energy Commission to coordinate with other state agencies to create a comprehensive master plan to align funding for school facilities with California’s climate goals, including reducing greenhouse emissions, climate adaptation, and extreme heat mitigation.

Without the master plan established by the Climate Resilient Schools Act, Californians will lose out on the transformative benefits that only a unified approach can deliver. The state will be less prepared to efficiently modernize 1,000 school districts, 10,000 facilities, and 125,000 acres of school grounds. This planning is essential for creating greener, more sustainable schools that can significantly reduce our carbon footprint, and bolster efforts to combat climate change.

The urgency for such a master plan is evident as climate impacts intensify daily. Record-breaking heat waves, wildfires, and heavy storms are becoming more frequent, causing school closures and disrupting education. These disruptions hinder student learning and teacher instruction, while also threatening the physical and mental health of over five million students and more than three hundred thousand teachers across the state.  

This is what Majority Leader Gonzalez and some of the environmental justice, education, and community groups supporting the bill had to say regarding the Governor’s veto:

“With the increasing frequency of climate emergencies, we need to be well-prepared to protect the safety of students, teachers, and communities when they are most at risk,” said Majority Leader Gonzalez. “We need a comprehensive plan to address climate-related health and safety threats to California students, and can no longer rely on a disjointed and piecemeal approach to fortifying our thousands of school facilities. I’m incredibly disappointed that the Climate Resilient Schools Act was vetoed for the second year in a row. The longer we wait, the harder and more expensive it will be to make the changes we need to see real impact.”

“Today in California, tens of thousands of California students swelter in hot classrooms without air conditioning or are stuck at home with schools closed for yet another ‘smoke day’. And our most vulnerable students and historically marginalized students are on the campuses least prepared to keep them safe and learning amidst extreme weather,” said Jonathan Klein, California parent and CEO of UndauntedK12. “We are deeply disappointed that SB 1182, The Climate Resilient Schools Act, which passed overwhelmingly in the legislature two years in a row, was vetoed once again. California has a responsibility to develop coherent, forward-looking plans and action to protect student health and learning from the daily, visceral, and increasing impacts of climate change. Now is the time for leadership, and we hope to see state agencies, legislative budget committees, and the Governor’s office fill the void and need for action created by this veto.”

“When it’s too hot to teach, it’s too hot to learn. Our members need climate resilient schools just as much as our students, but our aging school buildings were not built to handle the ravages of climate change,” said Jeffery Freitas, President of the California Federation of Teachers, A Union of Educators and Classified Professionals. “SB 1182 (Gonzalez) sought to create a plan to help our schools better withstand extreme heat, wildfire-affected air, increased demands on HVAC systems, and other harms of climate change that are happening now and worsening every day. This bill would have positioned California’s education infrastructure to function well under future climate challenges and allowed both students and workers to thrive. We are very disappointed that the Governor chose to further delay action on this urgent issue.”

“Today marks an enormous missed opportunity for California – an opportunity to create new climate jobs, bring our school infrastructure into the 21st century, and save the public millions of dollars. Through this veto Newsom has left federal funding on the table instead of using it to invest in our people and our schools,” remarks Julia Sebastian, Climate Policy Director at Jobs with Justice San Francisco. “But this isn’t the end. Although the clock is ticking on California’s window to leverage federal funding, California Labor for Climate Jobs will continue to fight to bring those dollars home and ensure good jobs, safe working conditions, and healthy learning environments for educators, school workers, and our children.”

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Majority Leader Gonzalez represents the 33rd Senate District, which encompasses the City of Long Beach and portions of South Los Angeles and Southeast Los Angeles, including the cities of Bell, Bell Gardens, Cudahy, Huntington Park, Lakewood, Lynwood, Maywood, Paramount, Signal Hill, and South Gate. In the Senate, she advocates for working families and champions various priorities, such as fighting for a clean environment, digital equity, LGBTQ+ and women's rights, and the economic prosperity of small businesses. Her landmark legislative achievements include bills enacted to end neighborhood oil drilling, provide broadband for all, and expand paid sick leave. Majority Leader Gonzalez also serves as Vice Chair of the California Latino Legislative Caucus. She lives in Long Beach with her family. To learn more about Majority Leader Gonzalez, visit her website at www.sen.ca.gov/gonzalez.

UndauntedK12 is a nonprofit organization with a mission to support America's K-12 public schools to make an equitable transition to zero carbon emissions while preparing youth to build a sustainable future in a rapidly changing climate.

The California Federation of Teachers (CFT) is a union of educators and classified professionals affiliated with the 1.7 million member American Federation of Teachers, and through it with the AFL-CIO, representing more than 12.5 million working people. CFT is also a member of the California Labor for Climate Jobs coalition. Website of CFT: https://www.cft.org/

Jobs with Justice San Francisco is a multiracial coalition based in San Francisco, a city of staggering income and racial inequality as well as significant opportunity for innovative progressive leadership. Our SF-based advocacy has won workers rights victories that set precedents statewide and nationally. Website of Jobs with Justice San Francisco: https://www.jwjsf.org/