California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom has led the state to a 66% increase in per-student education spending since his presidency, but state reading scores show that this has not significantly improved literacy or student performance. Despite this, black students' reading proficiency remained flat at 32% between the year before Newsom took office and the most recent reporting year, while white students saw their reading proficiency fall from 65% to 62%. Critics argue that much of the additional funding has gone towards expanding bureaucracy, new state initiatives, and higher compensation packages rather than improving core academic performance.