Chico Unified School District – No on Measure K Chico

Voters approve Measure K – what now?

Chico Unified School District voters have approved Measure K, now we are left with the task of keeping an eye on the school district to see that the money goes to good ends – we need to see that they keep their promise to repair and modernize the schools, and then they need to maintain them properly with funding already set in place.

What’s ahead for the future? Another bond in 2018? 2020?

It is my hope to see district employees paying 50 percent or more of their pension shares within the next ten years. I’d like to see Kelly Staley replaced with a better superintendent a lot sooner than that. I’d also like to see a complete turnover on the school board over the next four years.

If just a fraction of the 30 thousand or so people who voted against this measure would start attending school board meetings, just think how things would change.

CATO Institute: “Bonds don’t magically make these spending projects free.” Are the voters really dumb enough to think bonds aren’t taxes?

From Bob (thanks again Bob!)

I hope everyone gets a chance to read the information below before this election.

Voters typically approve state and local bonds by large margins. Bond Buyer data show that bond approval rates in presidential election years have been more than 80 percent. Apparently, voters think that there are prudent and practical reasons for governments to issue general obligation bonds. But there usually aren’t.

Using debt allows politicians to claim credit for spending while evading responsibility for the resulting higher taxes, which hit citizens down the road. By putting bonds on the ballot, politicians are really asking voters to hike taxes, to enrich finance industry middlemen, and to make government budgets more complex and opaque.

https://www.cato.org/publications/commentary/bonds-are-taxes

Sacramento Bee: “School bond campaigns rely heavily on donations from campus contractors”

I posted a blog regarding donations to the Measure K campaign last month

https://noonmeasurekchico.wordpress.com/2016/10/22/who-is-funding-measure-k/

and a week later the Sacramento Bee reported,

“The building industry is pouring money into campaigns to pass local school bonds that would lead to hundreds of millions of dollars in Sacramento-area campus construction.”

Really? Are the taxpayers that dumb? Don’t be a patsy, a dunce, or a shill – Vote NO on all the school bonds on this November 8 ballot. NO on Measure K.

Dan Walters: “Some sneaky borrowing in billions of bonds up for voter OK”

I got this comment and link from Bob –thanks Bob, and thanks Dan Walters.

Must read article from Dan Walters…it describes exactly what CUSD has done.

This from his article “Some sneaky borrowing in billions of bonds up for voter OK”

“School districts and other local governments often neglect maintenance of their facilities to meet demands for other spending, particularly pressure from unions for increases in pay and fringe benefits. Then, after the deferred maintenance results in deterioration that can no longer be ignored, officials draw up bond issues to make repairs that could have been avoided with proper maintenance.”

Yes, our district staff have refused to plan for the inevitable failure of infrastructure and the inevitable failure of equipment, instead pouring money into their own salaries and benefits.

Regardless of the results of this election, we need to start thinking about 2018

When I set out to do some research on Chico Unified School District finances, I realized how much I’d forgotten about incidents that have happened over the last 15 or 20 years. Not only have I read old news stories involving problems and scandals in the district, I’ve heard from past employees, I’ve seen court documents, and I’ve come to realize there has been a pattern of malfeasance and mismanagement at CUSD that persists today.

I have heard from people who have told me about fake e-mail addresses routed through Chico State to avoid public scrutiny of staff and board conversations, much like the current scandal involving Hillary Clinton. I’ve heard from people who report being pressured by their superiors to keep their mouth shut about declining enrollment while the district was making claims of overcrowding to get bonds passed. And, I just saw the records from the Butte County Superior Court files regarding a lawsuit Chico Unified undertook to stop Chico State from handing over e-mails that are supposed to be public information – sent from clandestine accounts to avoid just such disclosure.

I’ve also heard the district spent about $1 million on that lawsuit.

The e-mail request and subsequent lawsuit stem from the district’s firing of Principal Jeff Sloan over 10 years ago. What in the hell could be in those e-mails that is worth $1 million of “the children’s” money to withhold from public examination? Wow, that makes me want to know even more!

That lawsuit was approved, as well as the money spent on lawyer(s), by the current school board, which indicates the problems in the district have not gone anywhere.

Regardless of the approval or disapproval of Measure K, we need to continue to pay closer attention to our school district. In 2018 there will be vacancies on the school board – Eileen Robinson, Kathy Kaiser, and Gary Loustale are all up in two years. I’d say Kaiser, who has been on the board since 2006, is the first one who should go. She’s supported a lot of questionable decisions over the last 10 years, including the decision to spend a million dollars hiding clandestine e-mails.

I think the best way to dig up some candidates is start attending school board meetings whenever possible. I’ll make that a resolution for 2017.

How’s that for an inheritance – let’s leave the kids a QUARTER OF A BILLION in debt and schools still crumbling around their heads

Thanks Dave Howell for writing the following letter to Chico Enterprise Record:

Just four years ago voters approved a $78 million bond for Chico Unified School District. Now CUSD wants another $126 million for the same things the $78 million bond was supposed to fund. This despite declining enrollment and CUSD deferring maintenance on its facilities.

Where did all the money go? When the interest and fees are factored in for the new bond it will cost taxpayers $270 million. That is a staggering sum of money, especially at a time when the standard of living for most in this community is stagnant or falling. It amounts to over $3,100 in new taxes for every man, woman and child in Chico. Voters need to say no to over a QUARTER OF A BILLION dollar tax increase.

— Dave Howell, Chico

I was shocked when I read the last sentence, so I emphasized “QUARTER OF A BILLION”.

Thanks for pointing out Dave, the outrageous debt that will be incurred by this bond. These are people who aren’t spending their own money, so there’s no limit. This $153 million ($270 with interest) already won’t be enough, according to Editor David Little:

“on paper the $153 million is only enough for phases three and four. That would cover seven of the elementary schools, but five others would have to wait as part of the unfunded phase five.”

He assures us there’s still enough money left over from Measure E to finish Phase Five – really? That seems inappropriate – they haven’t even finished spending the money from E before they have their hand out for more, enrollment falling all around their ears. It’s just greed. If we give them this one, they’ll ask for another after another after another. They’re just a bunch of junkies.

The consultant who spoke to CARD about a month ago said just that – once the voters approve one bond, they’re on the hook indefinitely.

We need to force these people to live within our means. Please vote NO on Measure K.

David Little has announced tomorrow is the cutoff for letters to the editor, so if you have something to say get it to David Little at letters@chicoer.com

http://www.chicoer.com/opinion/20161026/election-letters-deadline-is-friday

Who is funding Measure K?

The campaign finance reports for the November 8 election are available, and really worth a look

First you go to Butte County Elections site –

https://clerk-recorder.buttecounty.net/elections/electhome.html

and click on Campaign Finance Documents, the second listing down on the left –

http://static.netfile.com/agency/bco/

Here you find the Public Access Portal, with an easy link – Get Started Now

If you know the name of the group that is funding the measure, you can fill in the search. Otherwise you follow links at the bottom to find the measure you want, starting with 11/8/16 General Election, then Measures, and there’s Measure K, among others.

When you click on the plus button next to Measure K you will see a menu of reports filed to date by Friends of Chico Schools. You have to download them to look at them, but it’s worth finding out who is really behind this measure. Form 460 gives all their contributions up to the end of the 9/29/16 filing period. The form 497’s are required whenever they received a contribution of $1,000 or more.

I started with the Form 460, an easy read, telling me who is acting as treasurer for this organization, and all their contributions to 9/29/16 – two contributions, totaling $10,700 – $10,000 from an architecture firm in Sacramento, another $700 from a company that helps public entities pass bond measures.

Don’t take my word for it, take a look at these reports for yourself. One after another construction company – United Building Contractors and Modern Building, both of Chico, gave $5,000 a piece. A roofer in Roseville gave $1,000 and a Roseville construction company gave $5,000 more.

Then there are a couple of telecommunication companies – remember all that language about modernizing the classrooms and improving the kids’ access to technology?

Esplanade Office Furniture kicks in $1,500. Wow, I am jealous – how many of these school district bureaucrats have desks from Esplanade Office Furniture (with my respects to Sparky) while the kids sit in crumbling classrooms under asbestos ceiling tiles with leaky plumbing and failing electrical systems?

Of course the Booster Club has some interest here, hoping the district will outfit the new sports field with bleachers and lights, but I have to wonder how far that $2,500 would have gone toward new bleachers and lights. In the old days it was the Boosters’ job to raise money for sports facilities through fundraisers. They crow about their annual car giveaway – why hasn’t that money been dedicated to new facilities? Does a new sports field really take precedence over removing asbestos and replacing rotten roofs and plumbing? Failing floor tiles? Etc?

Follow the money people.

Chico Unified asks $152 million in Measure K while looking forward to funding from both Prop 51 and 55

School districts licking their chops over four revenue measures – it’s a lose-lose-lose-lose situation for the taxpayers and win-win-win-win for the unions

Chico Unified made calwatchdog list of schools with “multimillion-dollar project requests from districts where student enrollment has declined”

One of the promises made by Chico Unified School District of Measure K is “To improve the quality of local public education by preventing overcrowding at the elementary schools…”

Just a year ago district finance superintendent Kevin Bultema was warning the school board that they were losing revenues due to “an ongoing decline in enrollment,” citing 1,763 students lost over the past decade and another 135 – 184 expected to be lost over the 2015-17 period.

In fact, our little school district made a distinguished list last year:

http://calwatchdog.com/2015/10/15/much-enough-look-schools-money-taxpayers/

“A proposed $9 billion state bond for school construction projects includes multimillion-dollar project requests from districts where student enrollment has declined, a CalWatchdog investigation has found.”

Chico Unified made the list because despite 10-plus years of declining enrollment, not to mention a recent $78 million bond passed by the voters, they had their hand out for $3.4 million of Prop 30 funding.

“2012: $78 million approved by 65 percent of voters. ‘The bond funds could be expended only for the purposes specified in the ballot measure, including: improving student access to computers and modern technology, repairing or replacing leaky roofs and plumbing systems, upgrading heating, ventilation and cooling systems.’ On the list: $3.4 million”

Now, get a load of that wording, taken from 2012 Measure E literature. Here’s an excerpt from the Measure K mailer I received the other day:

“repairing or replacing leaky roofs and outdated electrical and plumbing systems, upgrading, modernizing and constructing classrooms and science labs, improving student access to technology…”

Wow, how stupid do they consider the voters? They just re-arrange a few words and we won’t notice?

What I notice is they issued $78 million in bonds in 2012, and since then they’ve spent more than $100 million on pensions and benefits.

Will $152 million ($270 million with interest) be enough to bring the schools up to par? I don’t think they will ever get enough. If we pass this bond they’ll have another one on the ballot in four years. We have to cut them off now.

No on Measure K.

School district claims facilities are “sub-par” – why?

A woman identifying herself only as “Becky” came to an old post at Chico Taxpayers to make the following comment:

Many buildings in this district are not fit for students to attend. You can find a copy of the facilities assessment on the CUSD website. It was completed by a third party and shows many of our buildings are sub par. If you don’t believe me, I invite you to take a tour of Hooker Oak or Loma Vista school. Some of our buildings are severely overcrowded and others are unhealthy for our students with allergies and asthma due to poor air quality from outdated HVACs, leaky roofs contributing to mold problems, and general deterioration. The fact is that our buildings aren’t adequate for our next generation of community members to receive a quality education. There is no other funding to update and rebuild our schools at this time.

Becky,

WHY haven’t facilities been maintained? Why have they been allowed to sink into such a state of disgrace while $25, 26, 27, 28 million has gone out for pensions and benefits? More money for pensions and benefits every year, even as staff has been cut. More money for pensions and benefits every year, even when the number in the capital outlay column has been as little as ZERO.

Are you a school employee Becky? If so, how much of your own pension do you pay?