Parcel tax to fund schools to be decided by voters today
By Daily Press staff
Residents of Santa Monica and Malibu head to the polls today to decide the city’s latest hot-button issue: funding for public schools.
Thanks mainly to a decrease in money from the state level, the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District will operate under a $13 million budget deficit next year.
And the situation is not expected to improve anytime soon.
Consequently, the district has been forced to look elsewhere to find funds not only to pay teachers, administrators and support staff, but to keep school libraries open, after-school programs running and music classes part of the curriculum.
This newest school-funding proposal is known as Measure S and it is the only issue that will be decided in today’s election.
If approved by two-thirds of voters in Santa Monica and Malibu, Measure S would levy a $225 flat tax on every parcel of land in the two cities and generate $6.5 million a year for the district for six years.
Supporters — who have been out in large numbers canvassing neighborhoods, manning phone banks and writing letters to the editor — say that while fiscal mismanagement may be to blame for the budget crisis, schools, children and the community in general deserve the added funds.
Opponents of Measure S — who have been outspent by nearly $200,000 by supporters — blame politicians for the shortfall and say the tax is unfair and that it should be based on square-footage or a business’ profit margin.
Polls will be open from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m. Be aware that some polling places have changed.
To find your polling place, go to http://regrec.co.la.ca.us/voter/where_vote.htm, then click the link entitled “polling place inquiry for all county/city elections” and follow the instructions from there.
For more information, call the Santa Monica City Clerk’s office at (310) 458-8211 or the L.A. County Registrar, which will be conducting the election, at (562) 466-1310.
Supporters of Measure S will gather at Moonshadows, 20356 Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, to await results. Opponents did not plan a gathering.
To receive updates on the ballot count, check www.lavote.net. Results are expected at about 11 p.m.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on June 3, 2003. Read the original PDF.