California Makes Personal Finance a High School Graduation Requirement
California adopted a formal personal finance curriculum in March 2026, following a 2024 law signed by Governor Newsom. High schools must offer the standalone one-semester course starting in the 2027-28 school year, and it becomes a graduation requirement for the class of 2030-31.
California high school students will soon be required to pass a personal finance course to graduate, following a law signed by Governor Gavin Newsom in 2024 and a curriculum adopted by the State Board of Education in March 2026.
Assembly Bill 2927, authored by Assemblymember Kevin McCarty, requires all California public high schools, including charter schools, to offer a standalone one-semester personal finance course starting in the 2027-28 school year. The course becomes a mandatory graduation requirement for the class of 2030-31.
The curriculum covers budgeting, banking, managing credit and debt, understanding student loans, investing, retirement planning, and consumer protection, including how to identify scams and fraud. It also includes information on state programs like CalKIDS, which provides college and career savings accounts for eligible children.
The course must be taught as a standalone subject and cannot be combined with other classes. Teachers holding credentials in social science, business, mathematics, or home economics are eligible to teach it. The Commission on Teacher Credentialing may also create supplementary authorizations for teachers in other subject areas.
Students who complete the personal finance course may be exempted from the existing one-semester economics requirement.
Governor Newsom also signed an executive order in March 2026 aimed at expanding women's access to capital, financial education, and investment opportunities. The order mobilizes private and philanthropic capital to support women entrepreneurs across the state.
