# Teachers union sues over $3.9B in delayed school money

> California's biggest teachers union says the state broke its own constitution by pushing $3.9 billion in school funding down the road.
- Title: Teachers union sues over $3.9B in delayed school money
- Summary: California's biggest teachers union says the state broke its own constitution by pushing $3.9 billion in school funding down the road. The fight is over…
- Keywords: education funding, california, prop 98, teachers union, state budget, news, entertainment, Teachers, union, sues, delayed, school
- Source: California Post — https://nypost.com/2026/09/15/us-news/teachers-union-sues-california-over-3-9b-in-delayed-education-funds
- Published: 2026-09-15T19:15:57+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: education funding, california, prop 98, teachers union, state budget, news, entertainment
## Union takes the state to court
The California Teachers Association sued on Tuesday, saying Gov. Gavin Newsom and lawmakers left at least $3.9 billion for public schools and community colleges out of this year's budget.
## What Prop. 98 promises
A 1988 ballot measure wrote a minimum annual education funding level into the state constitution. The union argues deferring that money is not a delay, it is a violation.
## Two years of deferrals
Revised budgets pushed Prop. 98 payments for both 2024-25 and 2025-26. The Department of Finance called that necessary given volatile revenues and analysts' warnings of $20 billion to $30 billion yearly deficits.

> due to persistent uncertainty in revenue projections
## Districts are already cutting
Los Angeles Unified voted to cut jobs this year amid a shortfall. San Juan Unified could lose as much as $3.7 million as enrollment drops and costs rise.

> their future is in jeopardy with threats to withhold vital funds
## A gray area in the law
State law bars cutting school funding before a fiscal year closes, so overestimating Prop. 98 could force cuts elsewhere. Whether the governor can wait for final numbers is unsettled.

> Does the governor have the flexibility to wait and see what the final number is
## Sacramento points at Washington
Newsom and fellow Democrats blame Trump's cuts and tariffs for scrambling revenue forecasts. Finance says one-time money should never have been bankrolling multi-year salary contracts.

> that's not what many fiscal experts would consider to be a prudent budgeting practice
## Key takeaway

The fight is over timing, not size: the state says deferring Prop. 98 money is prudent under shaky revenue forecasts, the union says the constitution does not allow the delay.