SACRAMENTO, CA — The California Asian American & Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus (AAPILC) is proud to announce they secured $40.5 million in the 2022-2023 budget towards addressing prominent issues with the AAPI community. The newly acquired funds allocated through AB/SB 178 and AB/SB 183 build on the success from the 2021 API Equity Budget.
“It has been two years since the start of the pandemic and the AAPI community continues to face anti- Asian hate, while dealing with inequities that have been exacerbated by the pandemic,” said Senator Richard Pan (D-Sacramento), Chair of the AAPI Legislative Caucus.
The California AAPILC would also like to sincerely thank the Governor, Budget chairs, community, and partner organizations for their continued support and leadership.”
Last year, the caucus partnered with the community to pass the historic API Equity Bill which distributed money to high priority areas to combat anti-Asian hate. It was the first time the state of California has ever distributed this amount of funds to the AAPI community. Despite the challenges during the pandemic and the rise in hate crimes, these funds are a continuation of our efforts from 2021 and are a step towards creating a more equitable future for members of the AAPI community.
Following the historic $166.5 million 2021 API Equity Budget, the AAPI Legislative Caucus and the AAPI community continue to collaborate establishing a unified voice to support the needs of their community. Together, the AAPILC in partnership with its community are modeling for other state’s how equity and inclusion can be achieved.
“I am proud the AAPI Legislative Caucus has once again produced a legislative package that aggressively addresses systematic biases and elevates AAPI communities across the state.
The list below outlines the AAPILC’s 2022 Budget components focusing on a variety of education needs to proactively fight systemic racism.:
Combating Anti-Asian Hate:
Ethnic Media Grant Program: $5 million one-time for the ethnic media grant program at the California State Library. Ethnic media are important trusted messengers for communities that do not utilize English as their first language. At this critical time where AAPIs are attacked in public spaces, we need to ensure that ethnic media are available to provide information on where to receive culturally competent and in- language services if needed.
AAPI Community Equity:
Language Access Pilot Project: $5 million one-time for a pilot to purchase language access equipment so that public participation at hearings and events is not limited due to language barriers.
Amplifying AAPI Stories:
AAPI MultiMedia Textbook: $10 million one-time to University of California, Los Angeles Asian American Studies Center to create a narrative change project that brings together distinguished scholarship, open access technology, and ethnic studies pedagogy to deepen public knowledge about who we are, strengthen students’ historical empathy, and build a more inclusive and equitable society.
Asian American and Asian Diaspora Studies: $15 million one-time for the University of California, Berkeley campus Asian American and Asian Diaspora Studies program to increase faculty and enhance campus community engagement.
California State University (CSU) Asian Bilingual Teacher Education Program Dual Immersion Education: $5 million to provide financial assistance to aspiring teachers for bilingual accreditation, support the infrastructure of the CSU Asian Bilingual Teacher Education Program Consortium, and fund a pilot program to support a cohort of aspiring teachers seeking accreditation across the CSUs.
Asian Pacific American Leadership Institute (APALI): $500,000 one-time allocation to De Anza College to support the APALI. For civic leadership training programs and building a community of leaders in the government, nonprofit, education, and business sectors. APALI combines culturally-informed, innovative leadership training with a strong community-building foundation to nurture a vibrant and impactful civic leadership community.