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HB90 • 2026

FINANCIAL LITERACY PROGRAM IN SCHOOLS

An Act establishing a financial literacy education program for public schools; and providing for an effective date.

Education
Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
REPRESENTATIVE EISCHEID
Last action
2025-05-15
Official status
(H) FIN
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The effective date is July 1, 2026, but the requirement only applies to students graduating on or after January 1, 2027.

Financial Literacy Program in Alaska Public Schools

This law requires public school districts to create a financial literacy program for high school students that must be completed before receiving a diploma.

What This Bill Does

  • Requires each school district to establish a financial literacy education program for students in grades nine through twelve.
  • Mandates that the Department of Education approve and provide free teaching materials covering specific money topics.
  • Sets a requirement that instruction must equal at least half a credit hour in total time.
  • Makes completing this program necessary before a student can receive a high school diploma, with an exception for late transfers.
  • Updates the list of approved educational resources at least once every five years.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Public school districts in Alaska
  • Students who will graduate from high school on or after January 1, 2027
  • The Department of Education

Terms To Know

Open educational resource
Teaching materials that are free to use and can be changed or shared by others without cost.
Credit hour
A measure of class time; this program requires half the amount of a full course.

Limits and Unknowns

  • Students who transfer into an Alaska school district after finishing tenth grade do not need to complete the program.
  • Resources about Native corporation financial benefits are included in the list only if those materials exist.
  • The law does not specify how schools must schedule or teach these lessons, other than covering certain topics.

Bill History

  1. 2025-05-15 Min

    (H) Minutes (HFIN)

  2. 2025-05-15 Text

    (H) Heard & Held -- Please Note Time Change --

  3. 2025-05-15 Text

    (H) FINANCE at 10:00 AM ADAMS 519

  4. 2025-05-09 Min

    (H) Minutes (HFIN)

  5. 2025-05-09 Text

    (H) Heard & Held -- Please Note Time Change --

  6. 2025-05-09 Text

    (H) FINANCE at 09:00 AM ADAMS 519

  7. 2025-04-23 Min

    (H) Minutes (HEDC)

  8. 2025-04-23 Text

    (H) Moved HB 90 Out of Committee

  9. 2025-04-23 Text

    (H) EDUCATION at 08:00 AM DAVIS 106

  10. 2025-04-23 857

    (H) REFERRED TO FINANCE

  11. 2025-04-23 857

    (H) FN1: (EED)

  12. 2025-04-23 857

    (H) AM: HIMSCHOOT, STORY

  13. 2025-04-23 857

    (H) NR: ELAM

  14. 2025-04-23 857

    (H) DNP: SCHWANKE

  15. 2025-04-23 857

    (H) DP: UNDERWOOD, DIBERT, EISCHEID

  16. 2025-04-23 857

    (H) EDC RPT 3DP 1DNP 1NR 2AM

  17. 2025-04-16 Text

    (H) -- MEETING CANCELED --

  18. 2025-04-16 Text

    (H) EDUCATION at 08:00 AM DAVIS 106

  19. 2025-04-07 Min

    (H) Minutes (HEDC)

  20. 2025-04-07 Text

    (H) Heard & Held

  21. 2025-04-07 Text

    (H) EDUCATION at 08:00 AM DAVIS 106

  22. 2025-04-04 Min

    (H) Minutes (HEDC)

  23. 2025-04-04 Text

    (H) Heard & Held

  24. 2025-04-04 Text

    (H) EDUCATION at 08:00 AM DAVIS 106

  25. 2025-02-10 160

    (H) EDC, FIN

  26. 2025-02-10 160

    (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS

Official Summary Text

FINANCIAL LITERACY PROGRAM IN SCHOOLS
An Act establishing a financial literacy education program for public schools; and providing for an effective date.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
HB0090a -1- HB 90
New Text Underlined [DELETED TEXT BRACKETED]

34-LS0460\A

HOUSE BILL NO. 90

IN THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA

THIRTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE - FIRST SESSION

BY REPRESENTATIVE EISCHEID

Introduced: 2/10/25
Referred: Education, Finance

A BILL

FOR AN ACT ENTITLED

"An Act establishing a financial literacy education program for p u b l i c s c h o o l s ; a n d 1
providing for an effective date." 2
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 3
* Section 1. AS 14.30 is amended by adding a new section to read: 4
Article 17. Financial Literacy Education Program. 5
Sec. 14.30.850. Financial litera cy education program. (a) Each school 6
district shall establish a literacy education program for stude nts in grades nine through 7
12. The program must be approved by the department. The departm ent shall curate 8
and make available to s chool districts a lis t of open education al resources that are 9
approved by the department that in combination address the topi cs listed in (1) - (14) 10
of this subsection. The list sha ll include open e ducational resources that address the 11
topic listed in (15) of this subsection if those resources are available. The department 12
shall update this list at least once every five years. A school district may provide the 13
program through one or more cour ses offered by the school distr ict, but the program's 14
34-LS0460\A
HB 90 -2- HB0090a
New Text Underlined [DELETED TEXT BRACKETED]

hours of instruction must in the aggregate be equivalent to a o ne-half credit hour 1
course. A school may not issue a high school diploma to a stude nt unless the student 2
has completed a financial litera cy program under this section. The program must 3
include, to the maximum extent practicable, discussion of or instruction on 4
(1) different types of financial institutions and opening and managing 5
an account with a financial institution; 6
(2) making a budget; 7
(3) basic principles of money ma nagement, including spending, credit, 8
credit scores, and managing retail debt, credit card debt, and other types of debt; 9
(4) basic principles of completing a loan application; 10
(5) basic principles of personal insurance policies; 11
(6) basic computation of federal income taxes; 12
(7) avoiding fraud, financial deception, and predatory lending 13
practices; 14
(8) simple contracts; 15
(9) contesting an incorrect billing statement; 16
(10) computing interest rates by various mechanisms; 17
(11) types of savings and investments; 18
(12) basic principles of retirement accounts; 19
(13) receiving an inheritance and related financial implications; 20
(14) postsecondary financial aid and scholarships; and 21
(15) financial implications of being a member or a beneficiary o f a 22
Native corporation established under 43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq. (Al aska Native Claims 23
Settlement Act) or a similar entity, including payment of divid e n d s a n d i s s u a n c e o f 24
shares. 25
(b) Notwithstanding (a) of this section, a school may issue a secondary school 26
diploma to a student who has not c ompleted the program describe d in (a) of this 27
section if the student transfe rred into the school district fro m another school district, 28
state, or country after completing grade 10. 29
(c) In this section, 30
(1) "open educational resource" means learning, teaching, or r esearch 31
34-LS0460\A
HB0090a -3- HB 90
New Text Underlined [DELETED TEXT BRACKETED]

material in any format that resi des in the public domain or is under copyright and has 1
been released under an open license that permits access at no c ost as well as reuse, 2
repurpose, adaptation, and redistribution by others; 3
(2) "school district" has the meaning given in AS 14.30.350. 4
* Sec. 2. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 5
read: 6
APPLICABILITY. This Act applies to students who will graduate f rom high school 7
on or after January 1, 2027. 8
* Sec. 3. This Act takes effect July 1, 2026. 9