The Public Banking Movement in California

What You'll Learn

Participants will hear the story of the public banking movement in California and learn how organizers have worked to establish publicly owned banks at the city and county level. Trinity Tran will discuss the organizing and policy efforts that helped California adopt legislation allowing local governments to establish public banks. Key areas include: What a public bank is and how it differs from a conventional privately owned commercial bank. How California's public-banking movement developed from grassroots organizing. How campaigns such as Divest LA helped move the conversation from divesting public money from large commercial banks toward creating publicly owned financial institutions. How the California Public Banking Act (AB 857) created a legal pathway for local governments to form public banks. Challenges communities encounter when attempting to move from legislation to an operating city or regional public bank. How public banks could potentially finance priorities such as affordable housing, small businesses, infrastructure, climate projects and local economic developmen

Why This Matters

This event asks a fundamental systems question: Who controls public money—and what purposes should it serve? California's 2019 Public Banking Act enabled cities and regions to pursue public banks, creating an alternative model in which public funds could potentially be leveraged for locally determined priorities rather than relying exclusively on private financial institutions. Public Bank LA argues that such institutions could lower certain financing costs and expand financing for affordable housing, small businesses, infrastructure and community investment while increasing public oversight of financial decisions. These are proposals and goals of public-banking advocates, rather than guaranteed outcomes, which makes understanding both the model and its implementation challenges particularly important. For Mobilized, the larger significance is that finance is not an isolated system. Decisions about where money is deposited, borrowed and invested influence housing, transportation, energy, infrastructure, businesses and community resilience

What You'll Leave With

A clearer understanding of the pathway: Public money → public banking legislation → local institution → community investment Participants should leave with: A practical example of how a grassroots movement influenced state financial policy. Greater understanding of what is required to move from advocacy to legislation to implementation. Awareness of the potential roles public banks could play in financing housing, infrastructure, clean energy and local businesses. Lessons from California that may apply to public-banking initiatives elsewhere. Organizations and resources to follow if you want to become more involved.