CA AB2437

Establishes a competitive grant program administered by the State Department of Education to provide funding for network infrastructure construction enabling local educational agencies to administer computer-based assessments required by federal or state law.

Defines eligible uses of grant funds including networking hardware (routers, switches, wireless access points, cabling), networking software (monitoring, security applications), and network services (broadband, cable, satellite, wireless).

Prioritizes funding for local educational agencies with no or little existing network connectivity.

Requires the department to develop implementation guidelines including maximum grant amounts, a sliding scale matching funds requirement, and application procedures.

Appropriates $500,000,000 from the General Fund to the department for the 2014-15 fiscal year, with administrative costs capped at a percentage to be determined.