Bill Text: CA AB296 | 2025-2026 | Regular Session | Amended

California Assembly Bill 296

Bill Title: Career technical education: sale of equipment: registry.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 1)

Status: (Failed) 2026-02-02 - From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56. [AB296 Detail]

Download: California-2025-AB296-Amended.html

Amended IN Assembly January 05, 2026

Amended IN Assembly March 25, 2025

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 296

Introduced by Assembly Member Davies

January 23, 2025

~~An act to amend Section 3074.2 of the Labor Code, relating to apprenticeships.~~ An act to add and repeal Article 8 (commencing with Section 52470) of Chapter 9 of Part 28 of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Education Code, relating to career technical education.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 296, as amended, Davies. ~~Apprenticeship fairs.~~ Career technical education: sale of equipment: registry.

Existing law provides funding for career technical education programs, including through, among others, the California Career Technical Education Incentive Grant Program, the Strong Workforce Program, and a K–12 component of the Strong Workforce Program, with the purpose of creating, maintaining, supporting, encouraging, strengthening, and expanding the delivery of career technical education programs in the state, as provided.
This bill would require the State Department of Education to develop and maintain a registry of career technical education equipment that is listed for sale and to make the registry accessible to school districts, county offices of education, and charter schools via an internet website. The bill would authorize a local educational agency that intends to offer for sale any career technical education equipment to list the equipment in the registry established by the department. The bill would require the equipment listed in the registry to be offered for sale to other local educational agencies and maintained in the registry for a period of no less than 3 months unless the equipment is purchased by a local educational agency. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2032.
Existing law provides for the establishment of apprenticeship programs in various trades, to be approved by the Chief of the Division of Apprenticeship Standards within the Department of Industrial Relations in any trade in the state or in a city or trade area whenever the apprentice training needs justify the establishment. Existing law requires a school district or school to notify each apprenticeship program in the same county as the school district or school of a career or college fair it is planning to hold, as specified. Existing law provides that the Legislature encourages school districts and schools to host apprenticeship fair events, as provided.
This bill would authorize a school district or school to notify an apprenticeship program in a county that borders the county in which the school district or school operates if no apprenticeship program operates in the same county as the school district or school. The bill would also delete the above-specified provision regarding the Legislature’s encouragement to school districts and schools and would, instead, require a school district or school to host at least one apprenticeship fair event during each school year, as specified. By creating new requirements of schools and school districts, this bill would establish a state-mandated local program.
Existing law requires a pupil to complete designated coursework while in grades 9 to 12, inclusive, in order to receive a diploma of graduation from high school. Existing law authorizes a governing board of a school district to adopt other prescribed coursework requirements.
This bill would require, if the governing board of a school district requires the completion of community service hours as a requirement for graduation from high school, a school district to provide a pupil with one hour of credit towards the required community service hours for attendance at a college fair, career fair, or apprenticeship fair.
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.

Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: ~~YES~~NO

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

Article 8 (commencing with Section 52470) is added to Chapter 9 of Part 28 of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Education Code, to read:

Article 8. Equipment Registry
52470.
(a) The department shall develop and maintain a registry of career technical education equipment that is listed for sale pursuant to subdivision (b) and shall make the registry accessible to local educational agencies via an internet website.
(b) (1) A local educational agency that intends to offer for sale any career technical education equipment, including, but not limited to, power tools, table saws, simulators, medical equipment, drafting equipment, or auto diagnostic tools and vehicles, may list the equipment in the registry established by the department pursuant to subdivision (a). Only an employee of a local educational agency may list equipment for sale on the registry.
(2) Equipment listed pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be offered for sale to other local educational agencies and maintained in the registry for a period of no less than three months unless the equipment is purchased by a local educational agency.
(c) For purposes of this section, “local educational agency” means a school district, county office of education, or charter school.
52470.9.
This article shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2032, and as of that date is repealed.

SECTION 1.Section 3074.2 of the Labor Code is amended to read:
3074.2.
~~(a)For the purposes of this section:~~
(1)“Career fair” means an event where multiple private businesses, government agencies, university representatives, or career technical school representatives are invited by a school or school district to present career options or career technical education options for students.
~~(2)“College fair” means an event where multiple college or university representatives are invited by a school or school district to present college options to students.~~
~~(3)“School” means public schools, including, but not limited to, charter schools and alternative schools.~~
(b)(1)A school district or school that is planning to hold a college or career fair shall notify each apprenticeship program in the same county as the school district or school of the college or career fair. If no apprenticeship program operates in the same county, the school district or school may notify an apprenticeship program in any county that shares a geographic border with the county where the school district or school is located. In determining the county location of an apprenticeship program, the school district or school shall rely on the database of approved apprenticeship programs published by the Division of Apprenticeship Standards on its internet website.
~~(2)The notification shall include both of the following:~~
~~(A)The planned date and time of the college fair or career fair.~~
~~(B)The planned location of the college fair or career fair.~~
(3)Notice shall be delivered before the planned date of the college or career fair either by first-class mail or by electronic mail pursuant to the contact information contained in the database of approved apprenticeship programs published by the Division of Apprenticeship Standards on its internet website.
(c)(1)At least once during each school year, a school district or school shall host an apprenticeship fair event, in the style of college and career fair events, that is focused on local apprenticeship programs and career technical education opportunities.
(2)The school district or school shall notify each apprenticeship program in the county of the school district or school about the apprenticeship fair using the requirements set forth in subdivision (b).
(d)If the governing board of a school district requires the completion of community service hours as a requirement for graduation, the school district shall allow a student who attends a college fair, career fair, or apprenticeship fair the equivalent of one hour towards the community service hourly requirements per year.
SEC. 2.
If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.