School Chiefs Rally for June Tax Vote

As time runs out for California lawmakers to put tax extensions critical to K-12 education on a June ballot, local school superintendents met in front of the Capitol Monday to press legislators to act soon.

One of the main points superintendents wanted to make was urging Republican lawmakers to accept Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposed June election for tax extensions.

Sacramento City Unified School District Superintendent Jonathan Raymond said those gathered simply want lawmakers to give voters the choice to vote for or against the tax extension.

"I have two kids in the system," Raymond said. "Last year my son’s teacher received a pink slip, so I have to live with that for weeks."

The reductions in school budgets have already put a stranglehold on school districts across the state, Fresno Unified School District Superintendent Michael Hanson said.

“We will spend the ’11-’12 school year decimating, devastating and tearing down programs for students across this entire state,” Hanson said.

Raymond called the issues facing school districts "very real."

"We’re facing large increases in class size, reductions in counselors, athletics," he said. "We need to keep our class size down. We need to keep sports, drama, and music classes. These aren’t frivolous expenses. These keep kids in school."

Brown will need at least two Republican votes in each house to reach the two-thirds majority necessary to put the taxes on the ballot. Without the taxes, it is likely Brown will consider the “all-cuts” budget as well as a simple majority vote and another November ballot initiative.

Echoing similar sentiment from her constituents that a November ballot initiative would do California school districts little good, San Juan Unified School District Superintendent Pat Jaurequi said putting the vote off until November "is just unfair to the children in school.”