Residents Will Vote on Tax to Fund Millbrae Schools

The Millbrae School Board on Monday unanimously approved placing a $30 million bond measure on the November ballot to renovate aging infrastructure. 

The measure needs 55 percent voter approval, and would tax homeowners $25 per $100,000 of assessed home value. 

“About 46 percent of properties in Millbrae are valued at less than $400,000,” said Millbrae School Board Clerk Jay Price. “And 32 percent of the homes are less than $200,000.”

Therefore, a home valued at $400,000 home would pay approximately $100 per year.

The bond money would fund projects such as new roofs, new restrooms, fire alarms and a new cafeteria at Taylor Middle School.

The current Taylor cafeteria, built to accommodate about 350 children, currently squeezes about 850 students, according to the district. Some of the money would finance a new 14,000-square-foot dining hall to meet demand.

The November election will present voters with the new tax only three years after they passed another $30 million school bond in November 2008.

“We spent our first bond on a lot of site work, a lot of roofing, heating and ventilation,” Price said. “We were very prudent with our first 30, and we look forward to being very prudent with an additional tranche.”

Millbrae School Board President Don Revelo acknowledged the tax burden on low and fixed income residents, but said the $5-10 monthly amount is still minimal.

“$5 is a couple of fancy coffees,” he said.

Some community members preferred a parcel tax instead of a bond because the district can apply levied monies toward educational needs, such as class size reduction and additional teachers, rather than structural needs that bond funds must be allocated to.

However, a parcel tax requires two-thirds voter approval, and the board dismissed the idea months ago since voters struck down a parcel tax in 2008, even if by only 42 votes. If the measure lost during stable economic times, the board reasoned in March, it certainly would fail now.

“We have a much better chance of getting the bond passed,” Revelo said. “In an ideal world, it would be great to have both a bond and a parcel tax.”

The board is optimist that with savings from infrastructure improvements, such as efficient lighting and heating, the district can redirect funds directly to the classroom.

If Millbrae voters pass the measure, the district would issue the bond in 2012 and in 2014. 

Although the bond market is currently very competitive, Millbrae should fare well in securing low interest bonds because of its competitive school district and conservative debt structure, according to Andy Ach, a financial consultant.

He said bond buyers are weary because they expect many municipalities and school districts in California to default on loan repayments as a result of declining property values, but Millbrae and many other Bay Area cities are considered stable.

A citizen oversight committee will be created to supervise proper spending if voters approve the bond issuance in November.

Monday’s school board meeting will be replayed on Millbrae Community Television on Saturday at 11:30 a.m. and on Aug. 1 at 3:30 p.m.