$9B CA school construction bond measure up for November vote

Dive Brief:

The California construction industry is backing a $9 billion bond measure called Proposition 51, which would help the state's schools add new facilities and repair and replace aging ones, The San Francisco Chronicle reported.
State officials are calling the $9 billion a "down payment" on what will shake out to be a $22 billion construction need for primary, secondary and community college buildings over the next 10 years.
There is no official opposition to the measure, but California Gov. Jerry Brown says taxpayers can't afford any more debt, even though state funding for school construction dried up four years ago. Prop 51 would add $500 million to the state's $2.4 billion annual payment on general obligation bonds for education.

Dive Insight:

State contractors have come under fire from the California Taxpayers Action Network, which says the measure was "created by the construction industry to benefit the construction industry." In fact, the industry has invested more than $6 million to help garner public support for Prop 51. According to The Chronicle, however, local school officials complain that they have done all they can at the district level to meet their construction requirements and need state help. Some school districts – Dublin, CA, for example – have reached their maximum, state-imposed limitations on bond financing.

Outgoing San Francisco Unified School District Superintendent Richard Carranza told The Chronicle that just because the construction industry is pushing for the measure doesn't mean it isn't good for schools.

Schools and universities all over the country are facing shortfalls in their maintenance and construction budgets. Just this month, the University of Washington announced that it had $1 billion in building maintenance backlogs, not unusual after the Great Recession saw state school budgets slashed. In response, the University of California Merced took financing matters into its own hands and entered into a public-private partnership (P3) to make a $1.34 billion campus expansion possible. The Plenary Group will lead the team in designing, building and maintaining the project, which will double the size of the campus.

Revenue bonds are making possible a $1.1 billion school construction and renovation initiative in Baltimore. The Maryland Stadium Authority, which has oversight responsibilities for the school construction program, will manage seven school projects, all scheduled to begin construction this year. In total, the plan will result in 28 new or renovated schools.