Prop 55 passage will bring some local relief Prop 55 passage will bring some local relief (March 10, 2004)

By David Boyce
Almanac Staff Writer

With the passage of state Proposition 55 -- the $12.3 billion bond measure for school modernization -- officials in some local school districts can breathe easier.

It was a neck-and-neck contest culminating in a razor thin victory on Tuesday, March 2, with 2,818,319 votes -- 50.6 percent of the statewide total -- approving the measure and 2,758,319, or 49.4 percent, opposing it.

San Mateo County voters showed stronger support. The measure passed with a 57 percent majority of 75,178 votes, with 56,864 voting against it.

Proposition 55 money -- all matching funds -- include $10 billion for K-12 facilities, with about half going for new construction and 25 percent each for modernization and to relieve critically overcrowded schools. About $2.3 billion is marked for higher education, with 40 percent for community colleges and 30 percent each for UC and CSU campuses.

Districts must apply for funding and targeted projects have to have already begun. The state contributes 60 percent of the cost, with districts expected to come up with the remaining 40 percent.

Local school districts that plan to apply include the Sequoia Union High School District and the Menlo Park City School District, district officials have said.

The Menlo Park district is entitled to about $1.86 million, superintendent Ken Ranella told the Almanac in an earlier interview. The funds would go to Laurel School in Atherton, the only district school eligible since the others have already used state funding for modernization.

Ed Lavigne, the assistant superintendent of administrative services for the Sequoia district, did not have specific information on the amount of state funds the district may be seeking.

The Las Lomitas Elementary School District expects to receive about $3 million, said superintendent Mary Ann Somerville. The district applied for a grant under Proposition 47 -- the $13.05 billion school bond measure passed by voters in 2002 -- but was put on a waiting list when the money ran out, Ms. Somerville said.

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