Beyond Props 30 & 38: Education ballot measures you need to know about before voting
Credit: Jessica Kourkounis/Getty ImagesThis week Gov. Jerry Brown launched a media blitz supporting Proposition 30. If we can glean anything from the commercial breaks between the wall-to-wall coverage of Hurricane Sandy, Molly Munger has also stepped up her TV ad campaign for Prop 38. But a lot of other ballot measures that could have a big impact on education may glide under your radar screen.
Let’s get to them.
In Los Angeles County, 15 bond measures seek to benefit local schools. Districts are asking voters’ approval to borrow from $18 million to $385 million to repair leaky roofs, make seismic retrofits, modernize science labs, and construct new buildings. For the most part the districts with the greatest need aren't asking for the most money. It’s the opposite. The smaller the bond the more modest (and sometimes dire) the improvements seem to be. Um…asbestos removal?
Two ballot measures aim to renovate community colleges. El Camino and Cerritos Colleges want to raise $350 million for facility upgrades.
All these initiatives assure voters that bond money will be spent only in their districts and only on specific