Assembly panel votes to advance bill requiring high schools to adopt computer science course plans

The Assembly Education Committee advanced AB 887 on a 6‑vote committee roll call after author Assemblymember Phil Berman urged members to restore “computer science for all.” The bill would require school districts and charter schools to adopt a plan ensuring each public high school offers at least one computer science course by the 2029–30 school year, using a phased implementation and several flexibility measures.

The bill’s author, Assemblymember Phil Berman, said California is falling behind other states in ensuring equitable access to computer science and described a multi‑year, phased approach intended to give districts time to implement the requirement. He told the committee the measure is meant to “restore California as a leader” and included outreach to stakeholders to refine flexibility options.

Supporters included high‑school computer science teachers and students who testified about classroom benefits. Sandra James, a computer science teacher at Antelope High School (Roosevelt Joint Unified), described how computer science coursework develops problem‑solving and digital‑literacy skills and benefits students across pathways. Student witness Suikriti Ratnam, a Carlmont High junior and director of policy at the National AI Youth Council, urged the committee to approve the bill, citing workforce demand statistics cited in testimony.

Opposition testimony came from the Association of California School Administrators (ACSA), which expressed “respectful opposition,” saying the bill does not sufficiently address the core constraint: a shortage of qualified computer science teachers. Diana Vu of ACSA argued the measure could impose new administrative duties and mandates on already stretched school leaders and requested an exemption for local education agencies (LEAs) that cannot project they can secure qualified staff or resources.

Representatives of the California Department of Education told the committee the state is updating course‑enrollment data but that the most current public dataset extends only through 2018–19; staff said they are working to publish updated, quality‑assured enrollment figures. Committee members and the author discussed state investments already made to grow computer science teacher capacity, including recent grants and credentialing work groups.

The committee vote forwarded AB 887 as a do‑pass to the appropriations committee (committee roll call resulted in a 6‑vote majority in favor). The author and committee members said they will continue to work with ACSA, credentialing agencies and the Department of Education on implementation details, teacher pipeline strategies, and any needed exemptions.

While the bill aims to raise course access statewide, the Department of Education cautioned that reliable, updated course enrollment and staffing data remain under production.

Outcome and next steps: AB 887 was advanced to appropriations; the author committed to further stakeholder meetings on implementation, staffing and data issues.