Redwood City to decide on school tax

During an editorial endorsement interview with the Daily Journal, tax advocate Gabriel Swank detailed a rocky financial road ahead for the district if the tax does not meet the supermajority threshold required for approval.

“It is definitely not going to get better,” he said. “It is probably going to get harder if this parcel tax doesn’t pass.”

The district historically has struggled with budget problems which grew so severe that last year officials approved shuttering campuses in an effort to overhaul the limited budget.

Tax opponent Jack Hickey said he believes the money saved by closing the campuses should have left enough revenue to rectify the financial issues.

“The district closed four campuses in response to a drastic decline in enrollment. The economies from those closures should have balanced their budget,” he said in a ballot argument filed with the county’s Elections Office.

Officials decided last year that Adelante will be folded into a similar Spanish immersion program offered at Selby Lane Elementary School, Fair Oaks will merge with Taft Elementary School, Hawes students will be primarily distributed between Henry Ford and Roosevelt campuses and the Orion program will be moved to John Gill Elementary School.

Discussions are underway to identify tenants to rent the closed campuses, which Hickey suggested could further shrink the budget shortfall.

Officials reconfigured the district in hopes of overhauling a historically limited budget which struggled to operate a system comprised of neighborhood schools. Dwindling enrollment, popularity of local charter schools, concerns of inadequate state funding and rising pension costs were among the financial constraints which ultimately forced the decision by officials.

The district is primarily funded through state allocations based largely on average daily attendance, rather than local property taxes as is the case with some of the more affluent neighboring school systems.

Hickey claimed costs associated with the district’s special education program and staff pensions, both state mandated payments, are also to blame for the district’s budget struggles.

To fix the issue, Hickey suggested state and federal funding should be responsible for operating the special education program and he would prefer the district to raise salaries for teachers in exchange for lucrative pension programs.

In response, district Trustee Alisa MacAvoy said the district is bound by state regulations in terms of special education operations, as well as the obligation to fund pensions.

“Every school district in California is dealing with this, it’s not just us,” said MacAvoy.

Should the tax pass, officials agreed it should be used to give raises for teachers, reduce class sizes and improve reading and science, technology, engineering and math programs. The district has another parcel tax, passed in 2012, which generates about $1.9 million annually, and the district’s community foundation raises another $500,000 annually.

Jason Galisatus, president of the foundation, said he expects to raise more money in coming years as he attempts to resurrect the organization. Local corporations provide additional, separate funding to the district too.

With speculation officials will allocate the money toward administrative salaries, Hickey encouraged voters to oppose the initiative, while MacAvoy committed to assuring the revenue raised will be used in the classroom.

“It is really designed to help all kids in the district,” she said.

austin@smdailyjournal.com

(650) 344-5200 ext. 105