Brown

Appellants ask that the state pay for driver training for public high school students. They claim moneys from the Drivers Training Penalty Assessment Fund (DTPAF) should be used for this purpose. (Pen. Code, § 1464; Ed. Code, § 41304.) After the trial court denied their petition for a writ of mandamus and preliminary injunction, appellants filed this appeal.

On appeal, they argue (1) fees charged by a high school district for driver training violate the free school guarantee of the California Constitution (Cal. Const., art. IX, § 5); (2) the refusal to use DTPAF funds to pay for driver training constitutes an illegal expenditure of funds; (3) the state breached its contractual obligation to reimburse school districts for driver training expenses; (4) the DTPAF constitutes a trust fond; and (5) the state violated the equal protection clause. (Cal. Const, art. I, § 7.) For reasons we shall explain, we hold that the fees charged by the high school district for driver training violate the free school guarantee. We also hold that DTPAF funds may be used to pay for driver training only if there is an appropriation in the annual Budget Act. (Ed. Code, § 41305.)

Facts and…