Local school bonds generate nearly $16.8 billion

A record number of California voters approved a reportedly unprecedented number of local school bonds last month, racking up an unparalleled community investment in public schools, election results show.

Eighty-six school districts placed general obligation bonds on the Nov. 4 ballot, including two districts that each put two measures before the voters. The 78 bonds that passed will generate nearly $16.8 billion for school construction and renovation, property and equipment acquisition, class-size reduction, teacher recruitment, retention and professional development, and other purposes. Voters also approved 17 of 21 parcel taxes for K–12 education, adding to the stake that communities are investing in their pursuit of education excellence.

“I’m gratified to see the solid grassroots support that local schools continue to inspire among the parents and communities that they serve, even in difficult economic times like these,” CSBA Executive Director Scott P. Plotkin said. “But I’m not surprised. Time after time, voters signal their recognition that a high-quality public education system requires a corresponding investment. I hope our elected leaders in Sacramento will follow the voters’ lead as they adjust the already-inadequate state budget to direct resources where they’ll pay the greatest dividends. Public education offers the greatest return on investment available.”

Bonds, parcel taxes win voter approval

The largest local school bond in state history was Los Angeles Unified School District’s $7 billion Measure Q. Nearly 69 percent of voters approved the measure, which is the latest in a series of successful LAUSD proposals that began in 1997. All told, the LAUSD community has now agreed to back $20.3 billion worth of bonds for its schools, according to district statements.

Other successful bids ranged in size from Cold Spring School District’s $2.4 million bond in Santa Barbara County to San Diego Unified School District’s $2.1 billion measure. Lakeside Union School District in Kern County rolled up the largest margin of victory, winning 77.6 percent of the vote for its $22.5 million bond.

Altogether, 76 of the 83 school bonds that qualified for the ballot under Proposition 39’s standards requiring 55 percent approval surpassed that threshold, and two of the three bonds requiring a two-thirds majority met that requirement.

Parcel taxes, which all require two-thirds approval to pass, fared nearly as well as bonds overall. Of 21 parcel taxes for schools on the ballot, more than four out of five won, compared to more than nine of every 10 bond issues. The successful parcel taxes commit local property owners to as much as $193 in annual taxes (for Mill Valley Elementary School District’s four-year tax in Marin County), or for as long as nine years (in Santa Cruz County’s Live Oak Elementary School District, with an $84 annual parcel assessment, and in Santa Clara County’s Franklin-McKinley Elementary School District, with a $72 tax).

Related link:

Find school bond and parcel tax results under the Spotlight section @ www.csba.org.