SB-510 • 2026

Pupil instruction: treatment of African Americans.

Education

Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor: Richardson
Last action: 2025-08-28
Official status: Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 100, Statutes of 2025.
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not specify exact details on how much information needs to be included or when the curriculum will be updated beyond January 1, 2026.

Teaching About African American History

This law requires schools to consider including information about the historical, social, economic, and political contributions of African Americans during specific periods in California's history when updating their curriculum.

What This Bill Does

Requires the Instructional Quality Commission to consider adding content on the historical, social, economic, and political contributions of African Americans during the Spanish colonization period, the Gold Rush Era, and the Antebellum period in California when revising or creating new instructional materials for schools.

Who It Names or Affects

Students who will learn about African American history during these specific periods in their social studies classes.
Teachers who need to teach the updated curriculum.
School districts that must follow the revised curriculum framework and adopt new teaching materials.

Terms To Know

Instructional Quality Commission: A group responsible for recommending educational guidelines and frameworks to help schools improve their teaching methods.
Curriculum Framework: Guidelines that outline what topics should be taught in each grade level across California’s public schools.

Limits and Unknowns

The law does not specify when the curriculum must be updated, only that it needs to happen on or after January 1, 2026.
It is unclear how much detail will be included in the new content about African American history.

Bill History

2025-08-28 California Legislative Information
Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 100, Statutes of 2025.
2025-08-28 California Legislative Information
Approved by the Governor.
2025-08-27 California Legislative Information
Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 11 a.m.
2025-08-21 California Legislative Information
In Senate. Ordered to engrossing and enrolling.
2025-08-21 California Legislative Information
Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 77. Noes 0. Page 2706.) Ordered to the Senate.
2025-07-17 California Legislative Information
Read second time. Ordered to consent calendar.
2025-07-16 California Legislative Information
From committee: Do pass. Ordered to consent calendar. (Ayes 13. Noes 0.) (July 16).
2025-07-03 California Legislative Information
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. with recommendation: To consent calendar. (Ayes 9. Noes 0.) (July 2). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
2025-06-05 California Legislative Information
Referred to Com. on ED.
2025-05-28 California Legislative Information
In Assembly. Read first time. Held at Desk.
2025-05-27 California Legislative Information
Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 39. Noes 0. Page 1249.) Ordered to the Assembly.
2025-05-13 California Legislative Information
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
2025-05-12 California Legislative Information
From committee: Be ordered to second reading pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8.
2025-05-02 California Legislative Information
Set for hearing May 12.
2025-04-30 California Legislative Information
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 7. Noes 0. Page 961.) (April 30). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
2025-04-21 California Legislative Information
From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on ED.
2025-04-17 California Legislative Information
Set for hearing April 30.
2025-04-10 California Legislative Information
April 23 hearing postponed by committee.
2025-04-04 California Legislative Information
Set for hearing April 23.
2025-04-02 California Legislative Information
Re-referred to Com. on ED.
2025-03-24 California Legislative Information
From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on RLS.
2025-02-26 California Legislative Information
Referred to Com. on RLS.
2025-02-20 California Legislative Information
From printer. May be acted upon on or after March 22.
2025-02-19 California Legislative Information
Introduced. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. To print.

Official Summary Text

SB 510, Richardson.
Pupil instruction: treatment of African Americans.
Existing law establishes the Instructional Quality
Commission and requires the commission to, among other things, recommend curriculum frameworks to the State Board of Education. Existing law requires the commission, when the history-social science curriculum framework is next revised, on or after January 1, 2025, to consider providing for inclusion, in that curriculum framework, related evaluation criteria, and accompanying instructional materials, of instruction on the treatment and perspectives of Native Americans during the Spanish colonization of California and the Gold Rush Era.
This bill would require the
commission, when the state board next revises the history-social science curriculum framework or adopts new instructional materials, on or after January 1, 2026, to consider including content on the historical, social, economic, and political contributions of African Americans during the Spanish colonization of California, the Gold Rush Era, and Antebellum, as provided.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

Download Bill PDF