20250AB__215897AMD INTRODUCED 2026-02-18 AMENDED_ASSEMBLY 2026-04-13 AMENDED_SENATE 2026-06-22 2025 AB AMD Introduced by Assembly Members Hoover and Lowenthal (Coauthors: Assembly Members Ransom, Garcia, Nguyen, Sanchez, and Zbur) (Coauthor: Senator Arreguí

n) LEAD_AUTHOR ASSEMBLY Hoover LEAD_AUTHOR ASSEMBLY Lowenthal COAUTHOR ASSEMBLY Ransom COAUTHOR ASSEMBLY Garcia COAUTHOR ASSEMBLY Nguyen COAUTHOR ASSEMBLY Sanchez COAUTHOR ASSEMBLY Zbur COAUTHOR SENATE Arreguín

An act to add

Article 9.5 (commencing with

Section 51805) to

Chapter of Part of Division of Title of the Education Code, relating to pupil instruction. pupil instruction Pupil instruction: outdoor learning. Existing law establishes a system of public elementary and secondary education in this state. Under this system, local educational agencies throughout the state provide instruction to pupils in kindergarten and grades to 12, inclusive, and existing law establishes courses of study for those pupils.

This bill would encourage school districts, county offices of education, and charter schools to integrate outdoor learning into standards-aligned instruction across all grades and subject areas, as provided. Existing law establishes the State Department of Education under the administration of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, and assigns the department numerous duties relating to the governance and funding of local educational agencies. This bill would require the department, on or before July 1, 2028, to curate and maintain on its internet website resources for educators on outdoor learning.

The bill would also encourage the department, in carrying out these provisions, to consult with county offices of education, classroom educators, tribal partners, mental and physical health professionals and researchers, environmental literacy experts, and community organizations with experience in outdoor learning. The bill would authorize the department to provide resources to address the particular needs of each local educational agency.

The bill would authorize the department to accept voluntary contributions to be deposited into the Outdoor Learning and Environmental Literacy Account, which the bill would create in the State Treasury, to fund, upon appropriation by the Legislature, the costs of these provisions. This bill would establish the Statewide Outdoor Learning Pilot Program for a period of years following an appropriation of funds for this purpose to, among other things, investigate the effectiveness of outdoor learning in improving pupil outcomes, and gather statewide evidence to inform future legislative and budgetary decisions.

The bill would require the Superintendent to, as part of this pilot program, award grants to six pilot sites with representation from northern, southern, and central California. The bill would require the Superintendent, by December of the final year of the pilot program, to publish a final report summarizing, among other things, the outcomes of the pilot program. The bill would make the pilot program subject to an appropriation by the Legislature.</xhtml:p>"?> MAJORITY NO YES NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1. This act shall be known, and may be cited, as the Outdoor Learning and Environmental Literacy Act of 2026.

SEC.

Article 9.5 (commencing with

Section 51805) is added to

Chapter of Part of Division of Title of the Education Code , to read: 9.5. Outdoor Learning 51805. (

a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:

(1) Senate Bill of the 2017–18 Regular Session established environmental literacy as a statewide priority. It affirmed that all pupils should have equitable access to learning experiences that prepare them to understand and address environmental challenges.

(2) Outdoor learning, the regular, structured instructional activities that take place in outdoor environments, strengthens environmental literacy and overall academic achievement, improves pupil engagement, improves mental and physical health, deepens connections to local communities and ecosystems, and prepares pupils for science, technology, engineering, mathematics (STEM), and natural resource-related careers.

(3) Pupils who are unduplicated, as defined in

Section 42238.02, live in low-income communities, or live in communities disproportionately burdened by pollution or other environmental harms often have the least access to safe, developmentally appropriate outdoor learning environments, and these are the same pupils who can benefit most from these experiences. (

b) It is the intent of the Legislature to extend the environmental literacy foundation established by Senate Bill of the 2017–18 Regular Session by clarifying that outdoor learning is an effective instructional method and by providing statewide resources and support to ensure equitable access for all pupils, beginning with those with the greatest need. 51805.2. For purposes of this article, the following

definitions apply: (a) “Environmental literacy” means the understanding of, and ability to, apply the environmental principles and concepts developed pursuant to

Section of the Public Resources Code. (b) “Local educational agency” means a school district, county office of education, or charter school. (c) “Outdoor learning” means instructional activities occurring in outdoor settings, including, but not limited to, schoolyards, gardens, campuses, green spaces, community spaces, local parks, public lands, residential outdoor schools, outdoor environmental education facilities, coastal and watershed areas, and other natural or built outdoor environments. (d)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>“Pilot program” or “program” means the Statewide Outdoor Learning Pilot Program established pursuant to

Section 51805.8.</xhtml:p>"?> 51805.4. (

a) Outdoor learning is hereby recognized as an effective and developmentally appropriate instructional method that improves mental and physical health, environmental literacy, climate resilience, student engagement, attention and concentration, and whole-child development. (

b) Local educational agencies are encouraged to integrate outdoor learning into standards-aligned instruction across all grades and subject areas, including, but not limited to, science, history-social science, mathematics, English language arts, health, physical education, and visual and performing arts. (

c) Nothing in this

section shall be construed to mandate a specific curriculum. 51805.6. (

a) On or before July 1, 2028, the department shall curate and maintain on its internet website resources for educators on outdoor learning. (

b) The resources curated and maintained pursuant to subdivision (

a) shall include, at a minimum, all of the following:

(1) Best practices for delivering standards-aligned instruction in outdoor settings.

(2) Safety and risk management considerations.

(3) Strategies to ensure equitable access for unduplicated pupils, as defined in subdivision (

b) of

Section 42238.02, pupils with disabilities, and pupils from historically underserved communities.

(4) Models and approaches for enhancing outdoor learning environments on schoolsites and on offsite field trips.

(5) Strategies for partnering with community-based organizations, park agencies, tribes, and outdoor education providers. (

c) In carrying out this section, the department is encouraged to consult with county offices of education, classroom educators, tribal partners, mental and physical health professionals and researchers, environmental literacy experts, and community organizations with experience in outdoor learning, and the department may collaborate with nonprofit organizations, community-based organizations, and other entities with demonstrated expertise in environmental literacy and outdoor learning to support the curation, maintenance, and dissemination of the resources curated and maintained pursuant to subdivision (a). (d)

(1) The department may provide resources to address the particular needs of each local educational agency, including professional development for teachers, transportation, contract fees for community-based organizations and residential outdoor schools, equipment, instructional materials, and outdoor classroom furniture.

(2) Resources provided pursuant to paragraph (1) shall align with the resources curated and maintained pursuant to subdivision (a). (

e) The department may accept voluntary contributions, in cash or in-kind, to pay for the costs of implementation of this section.

These private donations shall be deposited into the Outdoor Learning and Environmental Literacy Account, which is hereby created in the State Treasury, in which moneys in the fund shall be available to the department, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for purposes of implementing this section. <caml:Num>51805.8.</caml:Num><caml:LawSectionVersion id="id_091A79B5-A1A5-4015-8242-2E44D2EDA6B0"><caml:Content><xhtml:p>(a)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>The Statewide Outdoor Learning Pilot Program is hereby established for a period of three years following an appropriation of funds made for this purpose.

The pilot program shall serve all of the following purposes:</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(1)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>Investigate the effectiveness of outdoor learning in improving pupil outcomes, including attendance, engagement, academic achievement, environmental literacy, mental and physical health, and preparation for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and natural resources-related careers.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(2)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>Gather statewide evidence to inform future legislative and budgetary decisions.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(3)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>Support partnerships between local educational agencies and community-based outdoor learning providers.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(4)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>Prioritize implementation among unduplicated pupils, as defined in subdivision (

b) of

Section 42238.02, and in communities historically underserved or disproportionately burdened by environmental harms.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(b)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>As part of this pilot program, the Superintendent shall award grants to six pilot sites, with representation from northern, southern, and central California.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(1)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>To the extent practicable, the six pilot sites shall include diversity in community type, grade span, and program model.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(2)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>Each pilot site selected for a grant shall include both of the following:</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(A)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>A local educational agency.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(B)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>One or more community-based outdoor learning providers.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(c)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>The Superintendent shall select a single statewide evaluator to assess the impact of the pilot program.

The Superintendent may authorize site-specific evaluators if they adopt a common evaluation framework that makes cross-site analysis possible.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(d)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>The Superintendent may develop a

summary of the pilot program to publish publicly to the department’s internet website. The

summary may include, but is not limited to, information regarding the pilot program sites, program design, outcomes of the pilot program, potential improvements for future outdoor learning programs, and recommendations for broad statewide implementation of successful approaches.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(e)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>Funds appropriated for purposes of the pilot program may be used by the Superintendent for program implementation, evaluation, communications with grantees, communication with other stakeholders, coordination of the pilot program, pilot site visits, and statewide learning community activities.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(f)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>(1)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>By December of the final year of the pilot program, the Superintendent shall publish a final report summarizing the outcomes of the pilot program, lessons learned from the pilot program, and recommendations for statewide expansion of outdoor learning to the department’s internet website.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(2)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>The report developed pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be submitted to the Legislature in compliance with

Section of the Government Code.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(g)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>This

section shall be operative only upon appropriation by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act or in another statute for this purpose.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(h)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>This

section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2032, and as of that date is repealed.</xhtml:p></caml:Content></caml:LawSectionVersion></caml:LawSection>"?>