SSBC Data Collection Instructions

Background

The purpose of submitting this information is to provide the California Department of Education (CDE) with supplemental information to determine whether individual students are eligible to receive SUN Bucks for a specified summer. The Supplemental SUN Bucks Collection (SSBC) data are provided in conjunction with data from the California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System (CALPADS) and provided to the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) to provide SUN Bucks benefits to eligible students. Information and resources regarding SUN Bucks can be found on the SUN Bucks web page as well as in Flash #321.

Before Submitting

First, make sure you have access to the Education Data Collection System (EDCS) by selecting the Access to EDCS link.

Second, review the following sections of Flash #321, dated February 18, 2026.

• When is the 2026 SUN Bucks Eligibility Period?
• Submitting Data to EDCS
• What dates will data be pulled from CALPADS and EDCS for SUN Bucks?

Third, read these instructions and view the samples below to better collect, format, and import students' SSBC data into the EDCS for the reporting year.

Step 1: Data Collection

Local Educational Agencies (LEAs) may want to work with their point-of-sale or student information systems to collect and maintain this data. LEAs will submit data for a specific SUN Bucks administration year. For example, for the 2026 SUN Bucks administration, LEAs will submit students who meet one of the following conditions during the eligibility period of July 1, 2025 to August 31, 2026 (inclusive):

1. Universal Benefits Application (UBA): Have submitted a UBA that has been approved by the LEA; or
2. National School Lunch Program (NSLP): Have submitted an NSLP application that has been approved by the LEA; or
3. Local Direct Certification: Have been directly certified by a local direct certification process conducted between the LEA and their county welfare department; or
4. Extended Benefits: Have benefits extended by the LEA based on another member within the student’s household being directly certified to receive CalFresh or CalWORKS through CALPADS or a local direct certification process.

Specifically, LEAs will submit the following data to EDCS as part of the SSBC collection:

Step 2: Create Verification Pools

For the 2026 SUN Bucks program, LEAs must create one verification pool and verify three percent of all approved Universal Benefits Applications (UBAs) submitted during the applicable period.

UBAs Included in the Verification Pool

• UBAs submitted between September 3, 2025 and April 1, 2026 must be included in the 2026 verification pool. LEAs must verify three percent of these approved UBAs.

UBAs Not Included in the Verification Pool

• UBAs submitted between July 1, 2025 and September 2, 2025 were part of the 2025 SUN Bucks rolling verification process and must not be included.
• UBAs submitted from April 2, 2026 through June 30, 2026 are subject to verification for cause only and are not included in the three percent verification pool.
• UBAs submitted from July 1, 2026 through August 31, 2026 will be included in the 2027 SUN Bucks verification pool.

Step 3: Create Import File

Once you have gathered your individual student SSBC information, you will need to format a text file to import to EDCS. The file may be a comma delimited, or caret delimited file with a .CSV or .TXT extension.

Follow the next steps to create a comma-separated values (CSV) file that will be ready for import to the system.

Important: Review the instructions for creating CSV files to avoid formatting issues (such as long numbers converting to scientific notation): For detailed instructions on creating a CSV file with Excel, select Create CSV File link.

1. Open a workbook in a spreadsheet editing program (such as Excel) or download the SSBC Sample CSV Data File.
2. In the order listed below, format your header row (first row of the worksheet) with each attribute as the column header. The first three fields – CDS Code, SSID, and Local student ID – are required. For the date fields, only one date needs to be populated per record for the import to be accepted.
   • cds_code: This is the 14-digit unique county, district, school code where the student is enrolled. Make sure a code that starts with 0 retains the 0 in the file. To search County, District and School information, select the CDE School Directory link.
   • ssid: This is the 10-digit unique CALPADS Statewide Student Identifier for the student.
   • local_student_id: This is the student's local student identifier assigned by the LEA.
   • uba_received_date: This is the date when the Universal Benefits Application (UBA) was received, formatted CCYYMMDD. For example, 20260415.
   • nslp_received_date: This is the date when the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) application was received, formatted CCYYMMDD. For example, 20260415.
   • local_direct_certified_date: This is the date the student was directly certified through a local matching process conducted between the LEA and their county welfare department. Formatted CCYYMMDD. For example, 20260415.
   • benefits_extended_date: This is the date when a student was extended benefits based on another member of the student’s household being directly certified either through CALPADS or a local direct certification process. Formatted CCYYMMDD. For example, 20260415.
   There is no limit to the number of schools or students that can be imported.
3. Review your file to ensure all data are valid and accurate. The EDCS will validate that the file is formatted correctly, that there are no duplicate records, SSIDs, or local IDs, and that all codes are valid. EDCS does not verify student enrollment; however, when merged with CALPADS data, records for students not enrolled in a school participating in a federal meals program during the eligibility period will be excluded from data sent to CDSS.
   EDCS will also validate that the dates submitted for the UBA application, NSLP application, local direct certification, and benefit extension are within the eligibility period. The eligibility period is announced every year and is generally July 1 through the end of August of the following calendar year. For 2026 SUN Bucks the eligibility period is July 1, 2025 – August 31, 2026.
4. Once the file has been prepared and reviewed, save the file on your local computer with a .CSV or .TXT extension. It is important to carefully review your file at this step. For NSLP applications and UBAs, ensure the file includes eligible students whose applications have been approved.
5. Navigate to the SSBC Data Submission system to import your file.

Step 4: SSBC Data Submission Steps

1. Access EDCS:
   Select the EDCS Login link to open the Education Data Collection System web page. If you do not yet have access to EDCS, refer to the Access to EDCS page for instructions on requesting access.
2. Log In:
   Log in using your CALPADS LEA Administrator email and password (This is the contact email provided on the LEA Administrator application, and it is not your CALPADS username). If you are not the CALPADS LEA Administrator, but have been granted access to EDCS, log in with your assigned email and password.
   If you do not yet have a password or need to reset it, select the “Reset Password” link on the login page and follow the prompts. The password reset option is available only when the EDCS system is open.
3. Open the SSBC Dashboard:
   Select the SSBC program to access the Dashboard page. Use the drop-down menu to select your LEA.
4. Initiate Data Import:
   After selecting your LEA, select the "Import SSBC Data" button to be redirected to the SSBC Import page.
5. Certify Data Accuracy:
   Before selecting the file to import, LEAs must check the certification box confirming that the data being submitted is accurate and complete to the best of their knowledge. This certification is required to proceed with the import.
6. Select Your File:
   Follow the instructions on the SSBC Import page. When ready, select the "Choose File" button. In the Windows "Open" dialog box, locate and select your file. After closing the dialog box, the selected file name will appear. Note: This file no longer must include all records previously submitted. Each file may include only new records for students not previously submitted.
7. Import the File:
   Select the "Import SSBC Data for 2025-2026" button to begin the upload.
8. Review Import Results:
   If the file is valid, a message stating “Import was successful” will appear.
   If the file contains errors, the system will display messages indicating the row number and error description. You must correct all errors before re-importing.
9. Confirm Submission:
   Return to the SSBC Dashboard. The newly submitted file will appear under “Files Submitted” along with any previously submitted files.
10. Important Reminder:
    The SSBC collection allows LEAs to upload and submit student data files as many times as they would like, throughout the collection cycle. All submitted files are accumulated and processed collectively as a single submission.
    

IMPORTANT NOTE: Because eligibility periods overlap across SUN Bucks administrations, LEAs will be required to re-submit for the 2026 SUN Bucks administration, records from the 2025 SUN Bucks administration dated July 1, 2025 – September 2, 2025. For the 2026 SUN Bucks administration, LEAs must submit records for students with UBA, NSLP, local direct certification, or extended benefits dates between July 1, 2025 and August 31, 2026 (inclusive). LEAs may submit these records beginning April 2, 2026; submissions will close on September 30, 2026, at 5:00 p.m.

Because SUN Bucks eligibility periods may overlap across administrations, some records may need to be submitted again in a future collection. Additional guidance will be provided prior to the next administration.

Go back to the main CDE EDCS page