Schools and Communities First Earn a Ballot Spot
Back in April, backers of Schools and Communities First submitted a record-breaking 1.7 million signatures to the Secretary of State to qualify the funding measure for the fall ballot. While the state had to verify the signatures, less than 1 million were needed so it was all-but-certain the measure would earn its ballot spot.
And over the weekend, the state made it official. Schools and Communities First will be on the ballot.
“With the steep cuts in our county budget we’ll be faced with really difficult decisions that will jeopardize people’s access to these critically needed services,” writes Los Angeles County Supervisor Sheilia Kuehl.
The State of California estimates that Schools and Communities First would raise an estimated $8-$12.5 billion a year for education, public health and other local infrastructure by changing the state constitution and raising property taxes on California’s largest businesses.
The State of California estimates that Schools and Communities First would raise an estimated $8-$12.5 billion a year for education, public health and other local infrastructure by changing the state constitution and raising property taxes on California’s largest businesses.
“I was supportive very early on of Schools & Communities First before the COVID-19 pandemic, but now this initiative is needed more than ever, because we simply can’t afford these corporate tax loopholes that have gone on for decades.”
The State of California estimates that Schools and Communities First would raise an estimated $8-$12.5 billion a year for education, public health and other local infrastructure by changing the state constitution and raising property taxes on California’s largest businesses.
If passed, the measure would raise money by repealing a portion of the iconic “Proposition 13”, a 1978 ballot initiative that changed how property taxes are collected and led to the slow steady retreat of California’s fiscal support for public education.
The landmark Proposition 13 initiative overhauled how the state taxes property, capping property tax increases at no more than 2% each year on homes, businesses and farmland. Properties were to be reassessed only when sold.
The impact on California’s schools was stark. When Proposition 13 was first passed, California’s public schools were a national model, bolstered by some of the most impressive per-student funding in the country. Today, the exact amount spent per student is somewhat in question, CONTINUE READING: Schools and Communities First Earn a Ballot Spot - LA Progressive