SB 343 California Senate · 2025-2026 Regular Session

Career technical education: high school graduation requirements: apprenticeship and preapprenticeship programs.

Summary

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. The coursework requirements include, among others, the completion of one course in visual or performing arts, foreign language, or career technical education. Existing law establishes the Division of Apprenticeship Standards within the Department of Industrial Relations and requires the division, among other things, to evaluate apprenticeship and preapprenticeship programs to ensure that the program evaluated is complying with its standard, as specified. This bill would authorize school districts, county offices of education, and charter schools to deem a pupil who successfully completes coursework provided in an apprenticeship or preapprenticeship program to have fulfilled, in order to receive a diploma of graduation from high school, the one course in visual or performing arts, foreign language, or career technical education requirement if the apprenticeship or preapprenticeship program meets specified requirements, including, among others, that it is approved by the division or registered with the United States Department of Labor.

Issues: ✓ Education

Bill status failed 1 of 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2025

Committee Review

Floor Vote

Governor

Introduced Feb 12, 2025 Last action Feb 2, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

01/05/26 - Amended Senate → SB343 · 2 edits

MINOR

The bill was reformatted from a legislative print version to a clean web-based text version. The two statutory sections were reordered so that the apprenticeship graduation credit provision (Section 51225.45) now appears before the teacher credential waiver provision (Section 44260.15). The fiscal committee designation was changed from 'no' to 'yes,' meaning the bill now requires fiscal committee review before passage.

FISCAL

The fiscal committee designation changed from 'no' to 'yes,' indicating the bill now requires review by the Senate Finance Committee, which typically signals that the bill has potential state or local fiscal impact.

TECHNICAL

The two new sections were reordered: Section 51225.45 (apprenticeship programs counting toward high school graduation) now appears as the first section, followed by Section 44260.15 (waiver of CTE teaching credential requirements). The statutory language of both sections is unchanged.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

Jan 5, 2026

Upper · Passed

From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on ED.

upper

Feb 19, 2025

Committee

Referred to Com. on ED.

upper

Feb 12, 2025

Introduced

Introduced. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. To print.

upper

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors