Patch Primer: Alameda Public School Parcel Taxes and Bonds

The Alameda Unified School District has responded to California's mounting school budget crisis by putting a series of parcel tax and bond measures before voters.  

But despite successfully implementing several fundraising measures since 2001, AUSD, like nearly all other California districts, continues to struggle financially. The defeat of Measure E in June 2010 and ongoing cuts to education in the state's budget mean that in the fall of 2010 AUSD is preparing for deep cuts, possibly including school closures. 

Parcel Taxes vs. Bonds

In California, communities can raise funds for local school districts in two ways. They can pass measures to issue general obligation bonds or to impose parcel taxes. 

Parcel taxes must receive two-thirds approval by voters to pass, a legacy of California's far-reaching Proposition 13.  There have been many efforts to eliminate this requirement in the decades since it was imposed, but none have passed.  In 2010, a group called Californians for Improved School Funding failed to qualify a measure for the November ballot that would have reduced the threshold for passage from two-thirds to 55 percent 

For many years, districts also needed two-thirds approval to pass local bond measures. In 2000, however, California voters passed Proposition 39, which reduced the percentage of votes needed to pass a bond measure from two-thirds to 55 percent. Since Proposition 39, the passage rate of bonds has increased significantly. By law, school bond dollars can only be spent on facilities and equipment — not on teacher salaries or other operating expenses.

Alameda Bond and Parcel Tax History

Measure A:  Passed in 2001 with 71.3 percent, $109 per parcel.

Bond Measure C: Passed in 2004 with 71.9 percent of the vote and authorized up to $63 million in bond obligations. 

Measure C also qualified Alameda schools to receive $17 million in state matching funds, and C dollars have gone toward renovating the school district's aging facilities, most of which are more than half a century old.  Bond funding has also been used to bring elementary schools into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and upgrade school electrical and heating systems.

Measure A: Passed in June 2005 with 67.2 percent of the vote. Measure A increased Alameda's 2001 parcel tax to $189 per parcel. Set to expire in 2012, the proceeds from Measure A have been used to retain teachers, especially those who specialize in math, science and reading.  Measure A also helps fund the district's music, art and physical education programs. 

Measure H: Passed in June 2008 with 66.9 percent of the vote, authorizing an annual tax of $120 to $9,500 per parcel. Measure H is a four-year tax that is set to expire in 2012.

Measure H was intended to offset the effects of budget cuts by funding special programs like music and AP courses, small class sizes and athletics. With the passage of Measure H, Alameda school taxes went up to $309 per residential parcel.  Under H, commercial and industrial parcels are taxes at 15 cents per square foot, with a $9,500 cap. Because H taxes residential properties differently than commerical properties, this kind of assessment is sometimes called a "split-roll" tax.

Legal challenges to H: Opponents have challenged the legality of Measure H, charging that its structure is unfair.  In June of 2010, a judge ruled that the measure was legal but the plaintiffs say they plan to appeal.   

Measure E: Failed in June 2010 with 65.62 percent of the vote. 

Measure E would have taxed homeowners $659 annually for the next eight years and commercial property owners 13 cents per square foot up to $9,500 per parcel (down from Measure H's 15 cents per square foot). Measure E received almost 3,000 more votes than Measure H received in 2008 but fell several hundred votes short of the two-thirds vote threshold. The measure was intended to replacing two existing parcel taxes, Measures A and H, both of which are set to expire in 2012.

Spring 2010 Parcel Tax? Following the failure of Measure E, the school board has begun taking steps toward placing a new parcel tax measure on the spring 2011 ballot.