Does Proposition 39 Require Smaller Class Sizes?

No.

In 2000, the proponents for Proposition 39 presented the initiative to the voters with the Title ”SMALLER CLASSES, SAFER SCHOOLS AND FINANCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY ACT.” “The people of the State of California find and declare as follows: We need to build new classrooms to facilitate class size reduction, so our children can learn basic skills like reading and mathematics in an environment that ensures that California’s commitment to class size reduction does not become an empty promise.” [Proposition 39 Section Two (c)]

This proposition provided for the following accountability requirements:

“A list of the specific school facilities projects to be funded and certification that the school district board, community college board, or county office of education has evaluated safety, class size reduction, and information technology needs in developing that list.” [Proposition 39, Section Four, Section 1 of Article XIII of the California Constitution adds Sec. 1, (b)(3)(B)]

This is the single “class size reduction” requirement in the California Constitution and only provides that a school board provide a certification that ‘this matter was evaluated when making the list of school facilities projects’.