League of Women Voters of California Education Fund
	Sacramento County, CA November 6, 2012 Election
	Measure R Bond Measure Sacramento City Unified School District 55% Approval Required Pass: 71,820 / 67.86% Yes votes ...... 34,014 / 32.14% No votes See Also: Index of all Measures

Arguments For Measure R

Arguments Against Measure R

Measure R is a companion to Measure Q to upgrade our local schools. While Measure Q will provide funds to make significant repairs to classrooms and educational facilities at our high schools and middle schools, Measure R gives voters the opportunity to go a step further by funding improvements at all schools for less than an additional $2 more a month per average homeowner. Measure R would fund the renovation of facilities that support learning, extra-curricular activities and ensure student safety, including: repairing worn-out playgrounds and playfields; improving physical education facilities and bathrooms to meet modern safety standards; repairing irrigation systems and water drainage to reduce water consumption to save money; removing asbestos, lead paint and other unsafe conditions; upgrading kitchen facilities to improve nutrition and nutritional education and safety improvements to all schools. The total cost of Measures Q and R is less than $7 a month for the average homeowner. The entire cost is tax deductible. All of the projects to be funded by Measures Q and R have gone through extensive review. Measures Q and R will only fund priority projects that are necessary to ensure the health and safety of Sacramento children and maintain the learning environment necessary to support excellent student instruction. Every penny from Measures Q and R will stay in our community and cannot be taken away by the State. By law, funds may only be used for the specific facility projects included in the voter approved project list. No funds can be used for school administrator salaries. Measures Q and R require an independent citizens' oversight committee and mandatory independent annual audits to ensure funds are spent properly. Please vote YES on Q & R. s/Deborah Ortiz, Los Rios Community College Trustee s/Anne Rudin, Former Mayor of Sacramento s/Phil Serna, Sacramento County Supervisor s/Greg Purcell, Principal, Sam Brannan Middle Rebuttal to Arguments For The politicians who run the City Schools want more of your money. Voters are being asked to approve a blank check to remedy failures to plan for and conduct routine maintenance and updates, and the refusal to employ sound fiscal policy in the District's construction contracts. With aging infrastructure, the need to fund repairs, maintenance, and upgrades is no surprise. However, rather than budgeting for facilities maintenance and repair on an ongoing basis, the District asks for a taxpayer bailout. The District owes $556 million on past borrowing and $552 million for unfunded employee benefits, and has deferred maintenance and routine facility updates. Through Measures Q and R the District seeks to borrow nearly half a billion dollars, but the cost to Sacramento taxpayers will ultimately be closer to and may well exceed one billion dollars. It's easy to like the idea of improving our schools+but it needs to be done responsibly, and another taxpayer bailout is not the answer. As important as the projects may seem, the District admits that its listing of projects is "not a guarantee that the project will be funded or completed." Given past failures to ensure that construction contracts were awarded under fair and open competition to those providing the best value at the best price, taxpayers can't afford another blank check for this School District. The District shouldn't continue to spend money it doesn't have and ask taxpayers to fund projects that cost more than they should. Vote NO on Measure R. Stephen R. McCutcheon, Jr. Concerned Parent Eric Christen, Executive Director Coalition for Fair Employment in Construction Nicole Goehring, Government Affairs Director Associated Builders and Contractors, Northern California Chapter Terry Seabury, CEO Western Electrical Contractors Association Tracy Threlfall, Interim Executive Vice President Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors Association of California

Politicians don't get it, and Measure R is an excellent example. Bureaucrats want you to pay more taxes in an economy worse than any since the Great Depression. And California is at the top of the unemployment rankings. The politicians who run Sacramento City schools want to borrow $68 million to repair facilities that the district hasn't maintained, while they still owe $556 million on past projects. This District has declining enrollment, but it rarely consolidates schools to save money. Instead, they cut teachers, counselors, music, sports, transportation, and otherwise preside over a decline in the quality of education our children receive. And the State of California says the District "may not meet its financial obligations" in the future. Worse, the District has refused to temper this request with reform that could save taxpayers considerable money. They could allow construction to be performed under fair and open competition, allowing all contractors to compete with each other for the project Instead, the District shows every indication that they will rely on a contracting process, which, according to a recent study, costs taxpayers up to 15%, more than necessary and excludes many local workers from working on these construction projects. Meanwhile, this District is accused of illegal teacher layoffs. It fired its 'Teacher of the Year.' It has an unfunded benefit obligation of $552 million, and despite declines in enrollment, will close only 2 schools out of 127 facilities. Maintenance on existing schools is deferred, and yet they ask taxpayers to fund this grandiose new spending, all while insisting that the construction be at a rate 15% higher than necessary. The District shouldn't continue to spend money it doesn't have and ask taxpayers to fund projects that cost more than they should. Vote NO on Measure R. For more information, see http://www.fairandopencompetitionsacramento.com. Eric Christen, Executive Director Coalition for Fair Employment in Construction Nicole Goehring, Government Affairs Director Associated Builders and Contractors, Northern California Chapter Stephen R. McCutcheon, Jr Concerned Parent Terry Seabury, CEO Western Electrical Contractors Association Tracy Threlfall, Interim Executive Vice President Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors Association of California Rebuttal to Arguments Against The same out-of-town special interests that oppose Measure Q also oppose Measure R. They are not concerned about our local schools or our community. Our local teachers, community leaders, parents and business leaders urge you to vote yes on both Measure R and Measure Q. Together, these measures will provide renovations at every school in our community. The projects that Measure Q will pay for are straight forward: renovate classrooms, upgrade computer systems, science labs, and libraries, provide career training and classrooms for advanced courses in math, science and technology and repair of roofs, floors, walkways, bathrooms, sewer lines and plumbing systems. In addition Measure Q will upgrade heating, ventilation and electrical systems to save energy and reduce costs to allow funding for programs like art and music. Measure R would allow the district to do a little more on projects that are important but less critical. These projects include repairing worn-out playgrounds and playfields,improving physical education facilities, repairing irrigation systems to reduce water consumption and upgrading kitchen facilities to improve nutrition and nutritional education for children. ALL of the money raised by these measures will stay in our community. The economic well-being and quality of life in our community are dependent on good schools. Good schools protect and enhance property values and shape our community's future. Please vote Yes on both Measures Q and R. s/Curry Mayer, John F. Kennedy High School PTA President s/Dr. Richard Pan, Member, California State Assembly / Pediatrician s/Carrie Rose, McClatchy High School Parent s/Aubry Stone, President and CEO, California Black Chamber of Commerce

Full Text of Measure R

Ballot Pamphlet with Full Text http://smartvoter.org/2012/11/06/ca/sac/measurer.pdf