As California鈥檚 fund to fix crumbling schools dwindles to nothing, lawmakers are negotiating behind the scenes to craft a ballot measure that would be the state鈥檚 largest school construction bond in decades.
But some beleaguered school superintendents say the money will not be nearly enough to fix all the dry rot, leaky roofs and broken air conditioners in the state鈥檚 thousands of school buildings. And it won鈥檛 change a system that they say favors wealthy, urban, left-leaning areas that can easily pass local bond measures to make needed repairs.
鈥淭he big question is, why can鈥檛 our kids have school buildings that are safe and as nice as other kids鈥� schools, just a few miles away?鈥� said Helio Brasil, superintendent of Keyes Union School District, a rural TK-8 district in a low-income area south of Modesto. 鈥淭his school is in such bad shape it can feel like a jail. 鈥� I鈥檓 speaking up about this because I feel the system needs to be fixed. I don鈥檛 want the next generation of students to have to experience this.鈥�
Two bills are currently under consideration in the Legislature, both of which would bring in billions to repair school facilities. would raise $14 billion for K-12 schools and community colleges, while , at $15.5 billion, includes the University of California and California State University, as well.
Legislators are likely to pick only one bill to send to Gov. Gavin Newsom for approval. AB 247 might have the advantage because it doesn鈥檛 include the state鈥檚 four-year university systems, both of which have means to raise their own revenue. So far it鈥檚 garnered little opposition, while SB 28 is opposed by two contractors鈥� associations because the bill prioritizes projects that use union labor.
The California Taxpayers Association is neutral on AB 247 but opposes SB 28 because it would increase the amount of money school districts could borrow, leading to higher property taxes. AB 247 doesn鈥檛 change the borrowing limit.
鈥淚t should also be remembered that the school districts get to write the ballot questions, and they always use wording that encourages a 鈥榶es鈥� vote and buries the part about the tax increase,鈥� said association spokesman David Kline.
Addressing 鈥榯he new reality鈥�
Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi, chair of the Assembly education committee and a co-author of AB 247, said he鈥檚 confident the governor will approve a school bond for the November 2024 ballot, despite competition from addressing housing, the fentanyl crisis and flood protection.
鈥淭he big question is, why can鈥檛 our kids have school buildings that are safe and as nice as other kids鈥� schools, just a few miles away?鈥�HELIO BRASIL, SUPERINTENDENT OF KEYES UNION SCHOOL DISTRICT
For Muratsuchi, a Democrat from Torrance, fixing broken schools should be a top priority for California, especially as wildfires and extreme weather intensify.
鈥淥ur classrooms are aging, but we also need to address our new reality,鈥� he said. 鈥淐lassrooms of the 21st century should not only address students鈥� technical needs, but the reality of climate change.鈥�
Unlike most other states, California does not have a permanent funding stream for repairing school facilities. Money comes from state and local bonds, which generate finite amounts of money, usually through property taxes. Although California has lavished money on schools in the past few years, most of that money is earmarked for efforts to help students recover from the pandemic. It can鈥檛 be spent on construction.
Typically, larger, urban and more affluent districts, which also tend to be more liberal, have an easier time raising funds. Not only are voters more likely to approve new taxes 鈥� the usual way that districts repay bonds 鈥� but property values are higher, thereby bringing in more money. In addition, districts can qualify for matching funds from the state, so 鈥渢he more you have, the more you get,鈥� said Julien Lafortune, a researcher at the Public Policy Institute of California.
In 2022, for example, the Mill Valley School District in Marin County was able to raise $194 million through a that taxed local property owners just 2.6 cents per $100 of a property鈥檚 assessed value 鈥� in a city where the average home price hovers around $2 million.
Meanwhile, the same year in rural San Lucas, south of King City in Monterey County, the that would have taxed property owners more than twice that rate, but because the average home price is below $300,000 the bond would have raised only $3.6 million. Regardless, voters said no.
鈥淭he system is inequitable. More (school facilities) money goes to higher-income students than lower-income students,鈥� Lafortune said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 an understanding in California that we shouldn鈥檛 have these big inequities when it comes to books, supplies, resources. There鈥檚 all these efforts to correct inequities. And yet that鈥檚 not something that exists for school facilities.鈥�
The state has a hardship fund for school districts that can鈥檛 cover their share of the matching funds. But the process to get hardship money is complicated, time-consuming and can be overly burdensome for rural superintendents who may also be teaching classes, driving the bus and serving lunch.
In , the Public Policy Institute of California recommends that California survey the condition of the state鈥檚 thousands of school buildings and adopt a system that ensures the neediest districts get more money.
Although both bills in the Legislature include tweaks to make funding more equitable, they don鈥檛 go far enough, said Jeff Vincent, co-founder of the Center for Cities and Schools at UC Berkeley. Nearly 40% of California鈥檚 school districts can鈥檛 raise enough through local bonds 鈥� those that manage to pass them 鈥� to cover necessary repair costs. Any statewide bond should include significant aid for rural, small and low-income districts.
鈥淒istricts in areas with lower property values are really struggling,鈥� Vincent said. 鈥淭his means that children in more disadvantaged communities tend to have schools in a greater state of disrepair. 鈥� It鈥檚 not just a matter of aesthetics. It鈥檚 an issue of environmental health and safety.鈥�
Better facilities, higher achievement
The stakes are high: students whose schools are in good condition perform 5% to 17% higher on standardized tests, are less likely to be suspended, and are more likely to attend school regularly, . The reason, according to researchers, is that students focus better and have more pride in their school when buildings are comfortable and safe, with good air ventilation and temperature control.
鈥淭his school is in such bad shape it can feel like a jail. 鈥� I鈥檓 speaking up about this because I feel the system needs to be fixed.鈥�HELIO BRASIL, SUPERINTENDENT OF KEYES UNION SCHOOL DISTRICT
Eric Gross, superintendent at Pacific Elementary School District in Santa Cruz County, has noticed that firsthand. For at least two decades, the roof has leaked so badly that staff have had to put trash cans in classrooms and hallways to collect rainwater during storms. Two engineers have recommended that a classroom be condemned, but the state took years before it finally approved the project earlier this month.
鈥淭he other day a teacher came to me and said, 鈥楾he siding in my room is rotting.鈥� I said yeah, I know. She said, 鈥極K, just wanted to make sure you knew.鈥� 鈥� Our staff is great but there鈥檚 a level of demoralization. It鈥檚 frustrating but everyone just accepts it,鈥� Gross said.
He鈥檚 come to rely on parent volunteers to perform basic maintenance at the 150-student school in the town of Davenport. Parents replace broken door handles, prune blackberry bushes, fix broken windows and build benches.
鈥淥n the first day of school I tell the families, there are no passengers on this ship. Everyone rows,鈥� he said.
Small districts like his desperately need more assistance from the state, he said. Not just more money, but help managing large projects. Gross is too busy running the school to hire consultants, negotiate with contractors, submit the reams of required paperwork or oversee major projects.
鈥淚 can teach your kids to read, but I am not a construction manager,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he state needs to step in to help superintendents like me, because we don鈥檛 have the time or expertise to do this on our own.鈥�
Dry rot and gophers
Keyes Union School District, where Brasil has been superintendent for seven years, is a patchwork of deferred maintenance and jerry-rigging. Any money for repairs is long gone: The last time local voters passed a school construction bond was in 2005, and the state fund is depleted, as well. The elementary school gym, for example, doubles as a cafeteria, which means staff haul dozens of folding tables in and out daily. The middle school gym was never finished, so it lacks seating and locker rooms; students change in small, stuffy portables across the playground. Some of the roofs are 40 years old. A decade ago, an electrical malfunction sparked a pre-dawn fire in the Head Start building, engulfing it in flames.
But for the past two years, Keyes鈥� most pressing issue has been gophers. Lured by the adjacent almond orchards, gophers invaded the middle school soccer field 鈥� one of only two fields in the town and shared with the community. The field was so pocked with divots and holes that anyone running across it risked an ankle injury or worse. The only way to make it usable again was to dig it up, regrade it and install new sod.
Brasil didn鈥檛 have many financing options. The state rejected the district鈥檚 request for repair money, so it had to borrow $700,000 to complete the project.
鈥淚 wanted kids to have a nice, safe place to play, to run, to blow off steam after the pandemic. I would have rather spent that money on tutoring or after-school programs, but to me, this felt like the most important thing,鈥� Brasil said.
Jeff Roberts, superintendent of Plumas Lake Elementary School District in Yuba County, has a different problem. His school buildings are in good shape, but the district is growing so fast he needs to build an entire new school 鈥� or risk cutting programs and increasing class sizes.
In the early 2000s, the district had only 100 students. But due to a housing boom in the region, he anticipates 2,200 students by 2030. The amount of money needed to build a new school is daunting: a new school will cost $70 million to $100 million. The district can only raise $18 million through a local bond. Developers鈥� fees will bring in an additional $20 million, but that still leaves the district with only half the money it needs. Roberts is relying on the state to pass a new school construction bond so he can apply for the remainder of the funds.
鈥淚 went into education for teaching and learning. Now, what I spend most of my time on is worrying about housing students,鈥� Roberts said. 鈥淚f we can鈥檛 figure this out, we鈥檙e going to have to cut things like P.E., art, music to make room for students. It鈥檚 extremely frustrating because we know that鈥檚 not what鈥檚 best for students鈥� education.鈥�
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