AB 2324 California Assembly · 2025-2026 Regular Session

Vocational education: youth caregivers.

Summary

Existing law authorizes school districts that maintain high schools to establish work experience programs for the purpose of providing pupils with instruction in skills, attitudes, and understandings necessary for success in employment. Existing law requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to coordinate the development, on a cyclical basis, of model curriculum standards for required courses of study, including a career technical education course of study for pupils in grades 7 to 12, inclusive, as specified. This bill would, at the next revision of the California Career Technical Education Model Curriculum Standards, require the State Department of Education to consider adding content on the role of youth caregivers within the Personal Care and Services career pathway, as provided. The bill would require, by July 1, 2028, the department to provide guidance for the implementation of the Personal Care and Services career pathway, and would explicitly authorize certain types of guidance, including (1) a focus on skills specific to Personal Care and Services occupations, including, but not limited to, in-home caregiving for youth caregivers supporting household family members, and (2) eligibility for youth caregivers caring for a family member in the family member's home for credits through work experience education programs, as provided.

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2026

Committee Review

Jul 2026

Assembly Passage

May 2026

Senate Passage

Jul 2026

Signed into Law

Jul 2026

Introduced Feb 19, 2026 Signed Jul 16, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 5 comparisons

What changed between versions

04/06/26 - Amended Assembly → 04/20/26 - Amended Assembly · 7 edits · Apr 20, 2026

MODERATE

The April 20 amendment significantly expands AB 2324 by adding a new requirement for the State Department of Education to consider youth caregiver content in the Career Technical Education Model Curriculum Standards and to provide implementation guidance for the Personal Care and Services career pathway by July 1, 2028. The bill now operates on two tracks: the original CWPJAC-driven Youth Caregivers Career Pathway program and a new CDE curriculum standards track. Several program requirements were also reworded to be less prescriptive, shifting from mandatory elements to things local educational agencies 'may provide.'

REQUIREMENT

New section requires the State Department of Education to consider adding content on youth caregivers within the Personal Care and Services career pathway at the next revision of the California Career Technical Education Model Curriculum Standards, in consultation with the Standards Development Committees for the Healthcare and Human Services Career Cluster.

The training content requirement (formerly subsection D) was changed from a mandatory element of the program to something 'local educational agencies may provide in courses within the Personal Care and Services career pathway,' reducing it from a hard requirement to a permissive option for districts.

TIMELINE

New deadline requiring the State Department of Education to provide guidance for implementation of the Personal Care and Services career pathway by July 1, 2028, in consultation with Standards Development Committees and relevant departments, agencies, and nonprofit organizations.

SCOPE

The program's focus was broadened from 'in-home caregiving for youth caregivers supporting household family members' to 'skills specific to Personal Care and Services occupations, including, but not limited to, in-home caregiving,' making the career pathway the primary frame rather than in-home care.

TECHNICAL

The work-based learning strategy provision now explicitly references the work experience education district plan under Article 7 (commencing with Section 51760) of Chapter 5 of Part 28 of Division 4 of Title 2, and changes the reference from the 'Youth Caregivers Career Pathway program' to the 'Personal Care and Services career pathway.'

ELIGIBILITY

A new subsection (E) explicitly authorizes eligibility for youth caregivers caring for a family member in the family member's home for credits through work experience education pursuant to Article 7, making the credit-earning mechanism more specific by tying it to the statutory work experience education framework.

DEFINITION

The monitoring provision was reworded from 'monitoring of family member youth caregivers' risk factors' to 'need to consider youth caregivers' risk factors, factors in caring for family members,' shifting the framing from active monitoring to a consideration requirement.

04/20/26 - Amended Assembly → 07/07/26 - Enrolled · 5 edits · Jul 7, 2026

MODERATE

The enrolled version of AB 2324 removes the entire framework for creating a separate Youth Caregivers Career Pathway program through the Governor's Council for Career Education and the California Workforce Pathways Joint Advisory Committee (CWPJAC). Instead, the bill now focuses solely on requiring the State Department of Education to incorporate youth caregiver content into the existing Personal Care and Services career pathway within the CTE Model Curriculum Standards. This is a significant scope reduction from building a new program with its own advisory group and multi-agency coordination to simply adding content within an already-existing career pathway.

Scope change

The bill's scope was substantially narrowed. The amended assembly version created a new Youth Caregivers Career Pathway program with its own governance structure (Governor's Council assessment, CWPJAC advisory group, multi-agency consultation). The enrolled version eliminates all of that and instead requires only that the State Department of Education add youth caregiver content to the existing Personal Care and Services career pathway within the CTE Model Curriculum Standards.

SCOPE

Removed the requirement for the Governor's Council for Career Education to assess challenges and needs of youth caregivers by July 1, 2027, and recommend workplace learning strategies to CWPJAC for developing a Youth Caregivers Career Pathway program under the education, child development, and family services industry sector.

Removed the detailed program requirements that applied specifically to the new Youth Caregivers Career Pathway program, including consultation with individuals with lived experience in receiving services for people with disabilities and older adults, and consultation with state departments such as the State Department of Developmental Services, State Department of Social Services, California Department of Aging, Department of Rehabilitation, and others.

The remaining operative provisions now apply only to the State Department of Education's role in the existing Personal Care and Services career pathway: considering youth caregiver content at the next CTE Model Curriculum Standards revision and providing implementation guidance by July 1, 2028. The bill no longer creates a standalone program but instead embeds youth caregiver considerations within an existing career pathway.

REQUIREMENT

Removed the requirement for CWPJAC to appoint an advisory group of subject matter experts by July 1, 2028 to create and establish the Youth Caregivers Career Pathway program.

DEFINITION

The bill title changed from 'Youth Caregiver Support and Career Pathway Act' to the standard act description 'An act to add Section 12053.5 to the Education Code, relating to vocational education,' reflecting the reduced scope.

Floor votes · Senate Jul 2, 2026 · Assembly May 21, 2026

How they voted

37–0

Passed · 3 other

Total votes 40

Jul 2, 2026

D Democratic30

28 Yea 2

93% Yea

R Republican10

9 Yea 1

90% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

Jul 16, 2026

Signed into law

Approved by the Governor.

legislature

Jul 2, 2026

Lower · Passed

In Assembly. Ordered to Engrossing and Enrolling.

lower

Jul 2, 2026

Upper · Passed

Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 37. Noes 0.).

upper

Jun 29, 2026

Upper · Passed

From committee: Be ordered to second reading file pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8 and ordered to Consent Calendar.

upper

Jun 17, 2026

Upper · Passed

From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. with recommendation: To Consent Calendar. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (June 17). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

upper

Jun 3, 2026

Committee

Referred to Com. on ED.

upper

May 21, 2026

Lower · Passed

Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 68. Noes 0. Page 5230.)

lower

May 13, 2026

Lower · Passed

From committee: Do pass. To Consent Calendar. (Ayes 15. Noes 0.) (May 13).

lower

Apr 21, 2026

Committee

Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

lower

Apr 20, 2026

Lower · Passed

Read second time and amended.

lower

Apr 16, 2026

Introduced

From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. with recommendation: To Consent Calendar. (Ayes 9. Noes 0.) (April 15).

lower

Apr 7, 2026

Committee

Re-referred to Com. on ED.

lower

Apr 6, 2026

Introduced

From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on ED. Read second time and amended.

lower

Mar 9, 2026

Committee

Referred to Com. on ED.

lower

Feb 20, 2026

Lower · Passed

From printer. May be heard in committee March 22.

lower

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors