Taxes, School Bonds & Math

Schools already have the money they're asking for.

Michael Snell | November 4, 2002

(Page 2 of 2)

It is a fact that some public schools are literally falling down, that others don't meet state mandated earthquake standards, and that a tremendous need for new classroom space exists. It is also a fact that the public school establishment has squandered and continues to waste billions upon billions of dollars. It is also a fact that the entrenched power within the system has no interest in any viable alternatives.

One sensible alternative that worked for Corona School District had the developer build an elementary school at the same time that the subdivision of tract homes was built. The developer traded the $3,500.00 per-home school tax fees for the out-of-pocket cost of building the school to the district's specifications. The developer saved big money and the school was finished in nine months and was ready for occupancy when the homes were sold. Batta Bing. You mean to tell me that you didn't know that every new dwelling built in California is already taxed at the rate of $3,500.00 to build schools?

With respect to all that hard cash, the real questions are but two. Given that somewhere between 39% and 80% of California's education budget has not been historically spent on classroom instruction, why has infrastructure been neglected? Secondly, what, exactly, did the public schools do with all that money, year after year after year?

But the here is a third and more personal question. The Riverside Press Enterprise reported that public school teachers dip into their own pockets to the tune of $200.00 to $500.00 per year to purchase classroom supplies that schools refuse to provide. The article didn't ask why teachers are forced into such generosity when California spends $280,000.00 per classroom on K-12 education. I'd like to know. Would anyone else?

The Press Democrat also carried a front-page pro-Prop. 47 puff piece a few days ago in which staff writer Maria Garcia asked us where the money should come from if Prop. 47 fails.

With a little careful thought, the question of where the money should come from if Prop. 47 fails becomes academic. The schools already have it.