What Is Proposition 2: The $10B California School Bond Measure

CALIFORNIA — Voters in the November election will decide whether the state should borrow $10 billion to help pay for public school construction and renovation projects with Proposition 2, a measure that would also shift the cost burden for such projects onto the state and away from local communities.

Lawmakers put Proposition 2, on the ballot, saying many California schools are badly in need of repair due to hazardous conditions such as mold and leaks as well as facility updates to best prepare students for the future. Among those in favor are the California Teachers Association and the Community College League of California.

“These are critical dollars that we’ve been waiting on for too long, unfortunately, for our districts,” Dorothy Johnson of the Assn. of California School Administrators told the Los Angeles Times. “For some schools this will mean they will have a gymnasium. For some schools this will mean that they can have indoor plumbing. But it will mean something for every district.”

Those opposed to the measure, such as the staunchly anti-tax Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, have sounded off against the principle of the state taking on more debt. Some critics have also voiced concerns that wealthy districts will see an outsized benefit from the proposition compared to the neediest schools.

The $10 billion bond would cost the state $500 million annually for 35 years. The debt would be paid out of the general fund. There is no tax hike associated with the measure.

The bulk of the money, 85 percent, would be earmarked for the state's 10,000 TK-12 schools, including charter schools. The state's 115 community colleges would be eligible for the remainder, according to the state Attorney General's Office.

Districts that want a slice of the pie would need to apply for funding, with money awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. Career technical education and charter schools would need to apply through a competitive application process. Community colleges would be awarded funds following a review of proposals by the governor and legislature, according to state officials.

Currently, the state splits the cost evenly with school districts for their new construction projects and pays 60 percent of renovation costs. But under Proposition 2, the state would cover as much as 55 percent for new construction and 65 percent for renovations. As is the case currently, districts would pay for their share through local bond measures.

That system of local borrowing benefits more affluent districts, where voters are more apt to approve borrowing because property values are higher. Rural districts and those with a higher numbers of English learners, Latino and low-income students often struggle to secure school-improvement funds, according to a recent report from the Public Policy Institute of California.

Proposition 2 would establish a sliding scale in which disadvantaged districts would see the state pay a higher percentage of their school projects. While lawmakers say they attempted to address inequities with that sliding scale, critics — including those very districts the scale is meant to help — say the changes don't go far enough to change an education-funding system that depends on communities' ability to pay.

Districts such as Los Angeles Unified and San Francisco United, which have high property values are flush with local bond money and ready to put forward their share for new projects, positioning them to benefit from the measure while lower-income districts such Lynwood Unified could miss out, Public Advocates managing attorney John Affeldt told Cal Matters.

“We’re sending a message and a wrong message that some kids matter more than others,”Lynwood Unified Superintendent Gudiel R. Crosthwaite told the LA Times.

Voters last approved a statewide public education bond measure in 2016, with the $9 billion Proposition 51. Another bond package, for $15 billion, was voted down in 2020.