Coalition, including Clean Air Allies, Urges California Legislature to Save $194 Million in CalSHAPE Funding for School HVAC Upgrades
Coalition, including Clean Air Allies, Urges California Legislature to Save $194 Million in CalSHAPE Funding for School HVAC Upgrades
Thirty-six organizations, including Clean Air Allies, have signed a coalition letter urging California legislative leaders to extend the CalSHAPE program and ensure that approximately $194 million in existing program funds reach schools.
Clean Air Allies took the lead in drafting the sign-on letter on behalf of the coalition, which spans education, environmental, health, and labor organizations, as well as school districts, from across California.
CalSHAPE, short for the California Schools Healthy Air, Plumbing and Efficiency grant program, was established by AB 841 (2020) to provide 100% grant funding to help California schools, especially those in underserved and fenceline communities. It funds HVAC work that improves energy efficiency, protects student and staff health, increases school resilience to extreme heat, wildfire smoke, and infectious diseases, and fosters high-quality local jobs.
Despite strong demand, an abrupt mid-2024 closure of applications left the program’s remaining funds unspent. Of the more than 4,500 schools that received grants for initial HVAC assessments, only 172 were able to secure follow-on funding to complete recommended repairs and upgrades.
The coalition letter urges the Legislature to extend CalSHAPE’s statutory deadlines — a January 1, 2027 sunset date, and December 1, 2026 funds reversion date — and to direct the California Energy Commission to distribute remaining funds to schools.
Clean Air Allies and fellow coalition members are urging the Legislature to extend CalSHAPE through the California budget process by July 1, 2026.