Party-line vote

California's Legislature has approved, on a party-line vote, a referendum that would scale back Proposition 209, the 1996 initiative barring state-sponsored discrimination or preferential treatment based on race, sex, or ethnicity. The measure, backed by the California Legislative Black Caucus as part of its "Road to Repair" package tied to the state's reparations task force recommendations, would exempt K-12 education from Proposition 209 entirely, including admissions to gifted and talented programs. At the university level, it would leave admissions and enrollment untouched, in line with the Supreme Court's 2023 ruling against race-conscious admissions, but would remove Proposition 209 protections from financial aid, grading, campus housing, graduation requirements, and institutional funding. Sponsors have discussed goals such as free tuition for African American students.

The measure will go before voters in November 2028. A similar 2020 attempt to fully repeal Proposition 209 failed decisively despite a large funding advantage, and a 2023-24 follow-up effort died in the state Senate. This marks the third legislative attempt in recent years to weaken the law.