By Jorge Casuso
July 13, 2009 – The School District this week will take the initial step in placing an “emergency” parcel tax on the ballot that would test the generosity of Santa Monica and Malibu voters during the worst economic downturn in a quarter century.
The Board on Thursday is expected to vote to establish a citizens committee “to examine the feasibility of an emergency parcel tax to offset all or a portion of the budget deficit due to the State budget crisis.”
The committee, made up of no more than 25 members, would gather community input and report back to the board in December.
The tax -- which would help fill a projected $10 to $12 million reduction in state funding -- comes less than a year and a half after local voters handily approved a measure that renewed two existing parcel taxes that were due to expire.
“The parcel tax would save teachers and programs,” said School Board President Ralph Mechur. The district already has increased class sizes and eliminated one of the houses at Samohi, he said.
With State officials still fighting over a $26 billion budget shortfall, the fiscal picture could become even more bleak, Mechur warned.
“Who knows what the state budget would do in the next six months,” he said. “We could be asked to make cuts in September.”
The committee, which would be authorized to spend as much as $50,000 to poll voters, will recommend the amount of the proposed parcel tax and whether it should be placed on the ballot of the general primary in June or in a special election.
District officials said a $100 parcel tax would pump some $3 million into the cash-strapped district and avert cuts in core education programs.
The district received a strong vote of confidence in February 2008 when 73 percent of the voters -- far more than the two-thirds needed -- approved Measure R, which extended the existing $346-a-year parcel tax.
In June 2003, voters narrowly approved Measure S, a $225 parcel tax that pumped $6.5 million a year for six years into the district,
Santa Monica and Malibu voters have consistently approved parcel taxes over the past quarter century, with only one of nearly ten placed on the ballot having failed. The failed measure was defeated by voters in 1993, when the economy also found itself in dire straits.
Mechur, however, is confident local voters would come through if a parcel tax is placed on the ballot.
“They understand the value of education,” Mechur said. “Education keeps property values up.”
Peter Tigler, a community activist who has been a vocal opponent of previous parcel taxes, said District officials need to answer some key questions before they can expect to win voter support.
The questions include: “Will District staff and teachers take a pay cut? And how much? What is the District willing to eliminate?
“Will the District ask permit families to contribute what SM property owners contribute to the schools?” (Permits are granted to students whose parents work but do not live in Santa Monica.)
“What do SM low-income tenants, who pleaded with the Rent Board they could not afford a 1 percent rent increase, have to say about more pass through taxes?”
The district is expected to begin taking applications on Friday for a seat on the committee, District officials said. Completed applications would be due to the Superintendent’s Office no later than August 7, 2009.
A School Board subcommittee would then review the applications and recommend a list of committee members for board approval at the August 20, 2009, meeting.
