Dear County and District Superintendents and Charter School Administrators:

Updated on Federal COVID Relief Funds

On March 28, 2025, the United States Department of Education (ED) sent a communication to all Chief State Schools Officers and all superintendents of local educational agencies (LEAs) changing the deadline to liquidate all remaining ESSER funds to the same day the letter was sent out, March 28, 2025. With virtually zero notice, this action effectively froze all remaining funds, the vast majority of which were already obligated and are needed to support ongoing, contracted services for students. This includes ARP-ESSER, ARP-EANS, and ARP-HCY funds.

The California Department of Education (CDE) is concerned about the disruption of services for students that this may cause at specific, impacted LEAs that were previously approved for late liquidation. We have identified LEAs that may be impacted and we have contacted these agencies.

Given these actions, the CDE is exploring options to challenge this federal revocation of access to education dollars allocated by Congress. If we believe that your agency may be impacted, we have already reached out to notify you today.

Thank you for your hard work on behalf of all students in the State of California. As we at CDE continue to focus on moving the needle for student achievement, I commend all California educators and school staff who are maintaining a local focus on the all-important task of serving our students.

If your LEA or school community is experiencing any interruption of services or impact on educational resources as a result of this or any other federal action, please reach out to EDReliefFunds@cde.ca.gov.

Sincerely,

David Schapira
Chief Deputy Superintendent of Public Instruction
Chief of Staff
California Department of Education