Californians for Financial Education Campaign Applauds New Legislation Requiring Personal Finance Education for All Students

SACRAMENTO, Calif., Feb. 21, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Californians for Financial Education, the campaign to pass a 2024 ballot measure to guarantee a standalone, semester-long personal finance course to every California high school student, today applauded the introduction of Assembly Bill  2927, a measure authored by Assemblymember Kevin McCarty (AD-06).

The intent of AB 2927 is to require California public high schools to provide a stand-alone course in personal finance to all students, with completion of the course a high school graduation requirement. 

"I commend Assemblymember McCarty's commitment to personal finance education leadership and commitment on this issue, and support the intent of AB 2927," said Tim Ranzetta, the co-founder of Next Gen Personal Finance (NGPF), a California non-profit. "This legislation represents a significant investment in our state's future, empowering every high school student with the knowledge necessary for financial independence and stability." 

NGPF provides curriculum and teacher professional development at no cost to more than 96,000 educators nationwide, including more than 6,000 in California.

A recently published report, Investing in Tomorrow: Lifetime Value of Financial Education in High School, found that the lifetime benefit of California students taking a high school personal finance course is $127,000. 

Ranzetta noted that there is broad public support for establishing a personal finance education requirement in California. A 2022 poll completed by Public Policy Polling found that 85% of Californians polled think all high school students should be guaranteed a basic course in personal finance. According to polling conducted by David Binder of Binder Research, nearly 75 percent of likely voters would vote YES on this ballot measure as written. 

Californians for Financial Education's signature-gathering for its initiative remains on track for success in bringing the matter to a statewide vote. The campaign anticipates it will have collected enough signatures to qualify for the November ballot in the next few weeks. 

The campaign believes that its success in obtaining signatures for the initiative provides further evidence of the overwhelming support for guaranteeing personal finance education for California high school students. Californians for Financial Education is committed to ensuring that California students get personal finance education, whether through legislation or the initiative process. 

Contact: Roger Salazar
[email protected] / (916) 284-1255

SOURCE Californians for Financial Education