On May 14, Governor Newsom updated his proposed budget for next year. This update is called the May Revision. The May Revision is for the fiscal year that starts on July 1, 2026, and ends on June 30, 2027 (FY 2026-27). Details of the May Revision are on the Department of Finance’s budget website.
California continues to spend more money than the tax money it collects. There also are federal funding problems and policy changes that make balancing the State’s budget harder. The good news is that even though California has these budget problems, there are no proposed budget cuts for developmental services.
The May Revision budget includes $21.6 billion for the Department, regional centers, and services for individuals and families:
- This proposed budget is an increase of $2.9 billion over the budget for the year we are in now.
- The May Revision budget fully funds services for about 39,700 more people next year. Almost 527,000 individuals will be supported next year!
- Federal Funding: Efforts to clean and match data are paying off! We will claim almost half a billion more dollars in federal funding because of these efforts.
In addition to fully funding caseload and services, the May Revision budget includes the following proposals:
Implementation of the federal Home and Community-Based Services Access Rule: California is required to have a new grievance process by February 2027. The May Revision budget includes a position for each regional center to do this work.
Equitable and Consistent Needs Assessment: California’s intake and needs assessment process is different at each regional center. The May Revision budget proposes to make the intake and needs assessment process the same statewide. This will provide consistency and improve equity regardless of where an individual lives.
Proposed Changes to Laws: The May Revision budget includes changes to several laws. These changes would:
- Make the law easier to understand
- Cancel some reports to the Legislature that no one uses anymore
- Combine the Community Placement Program and the Community Resource Development Program into one, single program regional centers can use to develop services for Californians with IDD
- Create time limits for how long individuals can live at Canyon Springs Community Facility and Porterville Developmental Center
- Give permission to make the intake and needs assessment process the same at all regional centers
- Create a new service and payment rate for the Family Teaching Model and let people get Tailored Day Services on the same day they receive supported employment services
The May Revision budget must be approved or changed by the Legislature before it becomes law. Then the Governor must sign a final budget before July 1, 2026.
We are grateful to each and every one of you for working together with us to support Californians with intellectual and developmental disabilities. THANK YOU!