School Districts Place Bond Measures on the November Ballot

Last month, in a post on Instagram with the hashtag #WednesdayWisdom, the Brea Olinda Unified School District shared a picture showing the facade of Brea Junior High. The caption said the campus is more than 100 years old. 

“Several of our facilities were built so long ago that they don't meet today's safety standards, have hazardous materials, leaking pipes, and the underground infrastructure is failing, resulting in gas leaks, water leaks, and sewage backups 🫣,” the caption continued (the emoji was part of the post).

Now the district is turning to the community for help.

On July 18, the BOUSD Board of Education voted unanimously to place a measure on the Nov. 5 ballot asking voters to support the selling of $160 million in bonds to pay for upgrades at the district's ten schools, which serve 6,000 students from preschool through high school.

"Think about what you're investing for the future, for our future citizens, our future community, our future kids," BOUSD board member Chris Becerra, Ed.D, whose trustee area includes Brea Junior High, said at the July 18 meeting before the vote.

If passed by at least 55% of voters in the district, the measure would allow the BOUSD to sell bonds specifically to fund improvements and repairs at campuses. The bonds would be repaid with money collected through a levy on local property owners. For BOUSD, that would amount to $39 per every $100,000 in assessed value (not market value) for a property, or an estimated $229 a year for the typical homeowner, according to the district. Proposed BOUSD bond measures were defeated by voters in 2012 and 2016,

In 2024, the BOUSD isn’t the only school district in Orange County looking to local taxpayers to fund improvements at educational facilities. Nine other school districts have placed, or have explored placing, a bond measure on the November 5, 2024 ballot.

Local school bond measures require support from 55% of voters to be approved and they must also meet certain requirements enacted under Proposition 39, including having a citizens' oversight committee. Bond money cannot be spent on teachers or general administrative salaries.

While California does guarantee funding for public school districts based in part on student attendance with Proposition 98, it does not dedicate ongoing funding to repair school buildings. Districts can apply for state matching funds for new school construction and renovations, but money for that program was recently slashed in a deal to help shrink California's budget deficit, reports EdSource.

In addition to BOUSD, here’s a brief look at other districts in O.C. backing bond measures as of July 26:

• The Anaheim Union High School District approved placing a $496 million bond measure on the Nov. 5 ballot to "repair and upgrade older local schools and improve quality education" at its 21 campuses that serve 31,000 students, according to the website. Property owners would face a tax of $30 per $100,000 of assessed valuation.
• The Buena Park School District is asking for voters to support an $84 million bond measure to fund repairs and improvements at its seven schools which serve 4,000 students. The BPSD bond measure seeks to levy $30 per $100,000 of assessed property value which the district estimates would amount to $129 per year for a typical homeowner.
• The La Habra City School District is asking voters to support a bond measure worth $73 million to fund repairs at its nine campuses that serve roughly 5,000 students. The rate for property owners would be $25 per $100,000 in assessed value. 
• The Lowell Joint School District, covers parts of O.C. and L.A. counties. It's asking voters to approve a bond measure worth $54 million to improve its school facilities. The typical homeowner would pay around $142 a year for the duration of the bond measure, according to the district.
• The Fullerton Joint Union High School District has placed a $284 million bond measure on the 2024 ballot to fund upgrades at its six high schools that serve 12,500 students. District voters last approved a $175 million bond measure in 2014.
• The Santa Ana Unified School District is seeking voters' approval of a $355 million bond measure.
• The Tustin Unified School District's proposed bond measure would seek to sell $261 million in bonds.
• The Fullerton School District, which has 20 campuses, is seeking authorization to issue $262 million in bonds to repair aging classrooms, remove asbestos and lead pipes, among other projects. If passed, property owners would pay $30 per $100,000 in assessed property value. 

“Most of our 20 schools were built in the 1950s and 1960s and are in desperate need of repair,” Fullerton School District board trustee Ruthi Hanchett wrote in an email to Spotlight Schools. Hanchett and her fellow board members voted unanimously to put the bond on the November ballot at a meeting last month. 

In 2020, FSD voters rejected Measure J, a $198 million bond measure. FSD voters last approved a bond measure in 2002 with Measure CC, which was worth $49.7 million, according to the district's website.

Hanchett said FSD would not collect any funds from the new bond measure until the last one is paid off. “I feel good knowing that we are asking our community to fund this much-needed investment only after the completion of our previous bond,” she wrote. According to the tax analysis for the proposed measure, the taxes for the new bond could be collected until fiscal year 2059-60.

The Newport-Mesa Unified School District explored putting a bond measure on the 2024 ballot.

According to the Daily Pilot, citing survey results received from the community, a consultant last month advised the district to wait until the midterm ballot in 2026 to attempt to float a bond. NMUSD voters last approved a $282 million bond measure in 2005, according to the district.

Local school boards have until Aug. 9 to submit a bond measure resolution to local election officials in time to appear on the Nov. 5 ballot. Voters can stay updated on what measures have qualified for the ballot by checking the Orange County Registrar of Voter's office website.

And it isn't just local school bond measures voters will consider this fall. California lawmakers voted to put a $10 billion school bond measure known as Proposition 2 on the Nov. 5 ballot. If passed by a simple majority of voters, Proposition 2 would provide $8.5 billion to cover new construction and facility improvements at TK-12 schools, and $1.5 billion for upgrades at community colleges. In order to receive the state's bond money, school districts must have local sources of funding and apply for matching dollars, a process some argue benefits wealthier districts, reports the L.A. Times.

California voters opposed the last statewide school bond in March 2020 which was seeking to sell $15 billion in bonds. It only garnered 47% of the vote.

Editor's Note: This article has been updated to include information about additional school districts placing bond measures on the Nov. 5, 2024 ballot.