CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Joint Resolution
No. 19

Introduced by Senator Becker

August 13, 2026

Relative to federal grants.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


SJR 19, as introduced, Becker. Federal grantmaking.
This measure would express the California Legislature’s formal opposition to a rule proposed by the United States Office of Management and Budget that would give political appointees the power to review and override federal grant decisions.
Fiscal Committee: NO  
WHEREAS, California is home to 351 degree-granting public and private higher education institutions, enrolling approximately 3,000,000 students collectively; and
WHEREAS, California’s public system of higher education, consisting of the University of California, the California State University, and the California Community Colleges, is the finest public system of higher education in the world; and
WHEREAS, California has leading private universities, including Stanford University, the University of Southern California, and the California Institute of Technology, with massive innovative research programs; and
WHEREAS, Forty-nine Nobel laureates teach at universities in California; and
WHEREAS, Total public funding for higher education in California is approximately $45,000,000,000; and
WHEREAS, Private universities in California include leading small liberal arts schools and religious schools; and
WHEREAS, Basic research at universities in California has led to astounding discoveries and tremendous economic growth, including research at Stanford University that led to an incubator of technology, now known as Silicon Valley, a region that includes businesses that now collectively employ 1,700,000 workers; and
WHEREAS, The top five companies in the Standard and Poor’s 500 are technology companies with a combined market value of approximately $17,000,000,000,000; and
WHEREAS, A new, prosperous, knowledge-based, and research-driven industry was born from basic research; and
WHEREAS, California’s community colleges are collectively the largest provider of workforce training and higher education in the United States, enrolling over 2,000,000 students; and
WHEREAS, Higher education institutions in California host more than 150,000 international students, the most by any state; and
WHEREAS, A competitive innovation economy needs the best global talent, and diversity of background and experience enriches the learning experience by revealing new horizons, different outlooks, and a range of unanticipated ideas; and
WHEREAS, To advance the Administration’s priorities, the United States Office of Management and Budget (OMB) recently proposed a rule that would give political appointees the power to review and override federal grant decisions; and
WHEREAS, The University of California system, for example, receives approximately $17,000,000,000 each year in federal grant funding; and
WHEREAS, The OMB’s proposed rule would give the Administration enormous leverage over what is taught, who teaches, who is taught, and what research is conducted at public and private higher education institutions in California; and
WHEREAS, Federal regulations that would condition federal grants for higher education institutions or impose related financial penalties based on nonacademic criteria instead of scientific and academic merit is inconsistent with academic freedom, progress, innovation, and equal justice; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate and the Assembly of the State of California, jointly, That the California Legislature opposes the OMB’s proposed rule that would give political appointees the power to review and override federal grant decisions; and be it further
Resolved, That the California Legislature recognizes the enormous contributions to peace, security, and public welfare by those who study at, teach at, administer, and otherwise support public and private higher education institutions in California; and be it further
Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this resolution to the President and Vice President of the United States, to the Speaker and Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives, to the Majority and Minority Leaders of the United States Senate, to each Senator and Representative from California in the Congress of the United States, to the Governor, and to the author for appropriate distribution.