On September 27, 2026, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 2555 (Patel), English Learners: Reclassification, into law, establishing significant changes to California’s process for reclassifying English learner students as English proficient. The legislation replaces the existing four-criterion reclassification process—which includes English language proficiency assessments, teacher evaluations, parental consultation, and basic skills comparisons—with a statewide standard based on student performance on the state’s English language proficiency assessment. The new requirements apply to students who demonstrate proficiency beginning with the 2025–26 school year, including students who previously met the applicable assessment threshold but were not reclassified. The legislation also establishes requirements for notifying parents, updating student instructional placements, and recording reclassification status in state data systems.

The legislation includes additional provisions addressing English learners with disabilities, including an alternative pathway beginning July 1, 2028, for eligible students with individualized education programs (IEPs) to demonstrate English proficiency through alternate coursework and performance tasks. AB 2555 also establishes requirements for communicating with parents about English learner status and progress, monitoring reclassified students for four years, and publicly reporting reclassification rates and student outcomes. Although the bill took effect immediately as an urgency statute, implementation of its provisions occurs in stages, with major changes taking effect July 1, 2027. School districts, county offices of education, and charter schools will need to account for these changes in their reclassification procedures, student records, parent communications, and monitoring practices.