Statement from EdVoice CEO on CA Final Budget
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Statement from Marshall Tuck, CEO of EdVoice, on California’s Final Budget Inclusion of $200 Million for Literacy Training
SACRAMENTO, CA (June 30, 2025) – Today, EdVoice CEO Marshall Tuck issued the following statement in response to California’s final 2025-26 state budget:
“A budget is more than a financial plan, it is a reflection of collective priorities. In this budget cycle, Governor Newsom and the California Legislature made their priorities unmistakably clear: California is committed to helping every child become a skilled reader by the end of elementary school.
Despite a challenging fiscal year, the final budget includes $200 million for teacher training in evidence-based literacy practices — a key component of AB 1454 (Rivas, Rubio, Muratsuchi), which recently passed the Assembly with overwhelming bipartisan support (78-0). This funding is a game-changing investment in our state’s future, as reading instruction will improve for millions of children.
EdVoice is also encouraged by the $40 million allocated to implement universal screening for reading difficulties — a state policy our organization helped enact in 2023. This funding will support effective screening for 1.2 million K-2 students in California over the next school year, which is a critical part of identifying struggling readers and providing them with evidence-based interventions.
Reading is the foundation for all future learning. We are grateful to Governor Newsom, Pro Tem McGuire, Speaker Rivas, Assemblymember Rubio, Assemblymember Muratsuchi and the other members of the California Legislature for prioritizing reading in this budget cycle. Together, we are uplifting student academic outcomes so that all children can have futures filled with opportunity.”
About EdVoice:
EdVoice is a 501(c)4 nonprofit education advocacy organization driving California state policy change to transform our state’s public education system so it effectively prepares all children for opportunities in college, career, and life. To combat the current system’s inequities, EdVoice engages in direct advocacy with policymakers to influence the passage or defeat of key legislation, leads education and awareness campaigns to raise up our policy priority areas, and provides strategic political funding through our EdVoice for the Kids PAC to leaders prioritizing students from low-income communities.
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