LWV League of Women Voters of California
Smart Voter
Santa Clara County, CA November 6, 2001 Election
Measure E
Bond Issue
Orchard School District
55% Vote Required

391 / 70.7% Yes votes ...... 162 / 29.3% No votes

See Also: Index of all Measures
Information shown below: Yes/No Meaning | Impartial Analysis | Arguments | Tax Rate Statement |

In order to prevent overcrowding resulting from increasing enrollment, shall the Orchard School District, with annual audits and citizens oversight, purchase land and construct and furnish additional classrooms and school facilities by issuing $40 million of bonds within legal interest rates?

Meaning of Voting Yes/No
A YES vote of this measure means:
A "yes" vote is a vote to authorize the issuance and sale of the general obligation bonds not to exceed the aggregate principal amount of $40,000,000 for the uses specified.

A NO vote of this measure means:
A "no" vote is a vote not to authorize the issuance and sale of said bonds.

Impartial Analysis from the County Counsel
The California Constitution authorizes school districts to issue bonded indebtedness for the purpose of acquiring or improving real property, upon approval of fifty-five percent of the votes cast by voters in an election. The Constitution permits the debt service on such bonds to be paid through the imposition of ad valorem property taxes on property located within the district. The Orchard School District proposes to issue general obligation bonds not to exceed $40 million. The maturity of any such bonds issued would not exceed 40 years at a rate of interest within the legal limit. With annual audits and citizen oversight, proceeds of the bonds would be used to furnish and equip school facilities, to purchase land, and to construct classrooms and school facilities. Bond obligations would be repaid through a tax on property within the district, based upon the taxable value of such property. A "yes" vote is a vote to authorize the issuance and sale of the general obligation bonds not to exceed the aggregate principal amount of $40,000,000 for the uses specified. A "no" vote is a vote not to authorize the issuance and sale of said bonds. Ann Miller Ravel, County Counsel
by Kathryn A. Berry, Deputy County Counsel

  
Suggest a link related to Measure E
Links to sources outside of Smart Voter are provided for information only and do not imply endorsement.

Arguments For Measure E Arguments Against Measure E
Our community is growing rapidly, causing severe overcrowding at Orchard School. Just 7 years ago our student enrollment was 440. Today approximately 800 children attend our school. In 2007 our student enrollment is projected to be over 1,500. While great progress has been made to improve the quality of education, finding adequate space to serve the ever-increasing number of students in the one school in our community is a significant and growing challenge. To relieve severe overcrowding, keep class sizes small, and continue to improve the quality of education available to our students, we need additional classroom space. Last November Measure D was approved by voters with 77.5% support. With no increase to current tax rates, Measure D authorized adding additional classrooms, expansion of our library, and improving school facilities to accomodate the growing student population and a more rigorous curriculum. Now we have an opportunity to complete our school. Measure E will:
  • Authorize the purchase of land next to the school for expansion of our school.
  • Authorize funds to build new classrooms and facilities. All money raised by Measure E will remain in our community to benefit local students. By law, no money can be used to pay for salaries or administrators. Measure E requires that an annual independent audit be performed and an independent oversight committee of local citizens be established to monitor all Measure E expenditures to ensure funds are spent properly. Local businesses, not homeowners, will pay for 80% of this bond. Measure E will help us continue to relieve severe overcrowding and improve the learning environment for our children. Measure E will help maintain property values. Measure E is supported by Orchard parents, teachers, community leaders, and senior citizens. Please vote yes on Measure E this Election Day. /s/ Helen Diane Lund, August 15, 2001

Teacher /s/ Erin P. McCarthy, August 15, 2001
Teacher /s/ Chuck Reed, August 15, 2001
San Jose City Councilmember

Rebuttal to Arguments For
No on Measure E:
As stated by those who favor this measure, local businesses will also be taxed for this bond measure. From where will this money be taken? It will be taken from our pockets through higher prices and additional strain on local businesses in our community. Our children will benefit more from us spending this money on them rather than this wasteful bureaucracy spending it on itself. Last year alone Orchard Elementary School received $6,672 per student. That's $133,440 per 20-student classroom. We invite you to see where this money goes by visiting http://www.ed-data.k12.ca.us More space will not improve the quality of education to our students if they do not have the current curriculum lesson books, basic school supplies, and popular student programs. There are still the same problems as in the old school site on Gish road. We need to address and fix the current problems instead of adding more space and busing in more students. We are parents and community members concerned with our children's education being neglected. Let's not reward this negligence with a $40 million blank check. Will oversight protect us from the district wasting the millions allocated to them by the federal and state government? Shouldn't all the expenses be watched? Well, we are watching and we say No to Measure E. Involved Orchard parents, teachers, and community leaders support No on Measure E. /s/ Travis Jones, August 21, 2001
Local Organizing Chair, Santa Clara County Libertarian Party /s/ H. Raymond Strong, August 21, 2001
Chair, Libertarian Party of Santa Clara County /s/ Celestina Vigil, August 22, 2001
Past School Site Council & Safetey Focus Group Member /s/ Michelle M. Riley, August 22, 2001
Chairperson, Orchard School Site Council /s/ Mark W. A. Hinkle, August 22, 2001
Member Executive Committee, Libertarian Party of California

Vote No on Measure E

On Friday August 10, 2001, the State Superintendent of Public Instruction Delaine Eastin called for an investigation into the Orchard School District's free spending of your money. The San Jose Mercury News reported such extravagances as a $79,856 BMW and $485 Cartier fountain pen. The Superintendent reportedly has spent approximately $24,000 in travel and $45,000 in credit card purchases during the past 16 months. He earns $133,000 a year in salary. All this for a one school district with only 3,300 voters! Last year we voted and approved $16 million for the Orchard School District. Now thanks to proposition 36 it will only take 55% voter approval to once more move money from your pockets and the pockets of your neighbors to the Orchard School District for BMWs and exotic travel. Have they squandered the $16 million approved last year? Regardless, they are back promising not to waste your money or betray your trust again. This $40,000,000 bond for this 780-student district on top of last years $16 million would be $71,794 per pupil. That's not even counting interest on the debt that you will be paying for 30+ years. The public education system gives us two alternatives: take it, or leave it. The only way to fix the problems with our educational system that has deteriorated here in California is to allow school choice to free our children from this bumbling bureaucracy. If you're tired of buying BMW's for superintendents instead of education for your children Vote No on Measure E They can't waste what they don't have For more information visit The Libertarian Party of Santa Clara County's Orchard school District page at http://www.sc.ca.lp.org/osd/ call 408-243-2711, or email info@sc.ca.lp.org /s/ H. Raymond Strong, August 14, 2001
Chair, Libertarian Party of Santa Clara County /s/ Christine Berg, August 15, 2001
District Resident /s/ Travis Jones, August 15, 2001
Local Organizing Committee Chair /s/ Mark W. A. Hinkle, August 15, 2001
Executive Committee Member, Libertarian Party of California

Rebuttal to Arguments Against
Do not be misled. There are a couple of things you need to know about the people who signed the ballot argument against Measure E:
1. They are officers and members of the extreme California Libertarian Party.
2. The Libertarian Party has submitted similar arguments against school bonds throughout California, regardless of the needs or specifics. Here are the facts about Measure E: Orchard School District is ranked among the most improved in the county. By any measure, student achievement is up. Test scores are up for the 4th year in a row. Reading scores have improved 15% and math scores have improved 23% during the last 3 years. Class size has been reduced along with many other educational improvements. This community is growing rapidly, causing enrollment to swell at Orchard School. Finding space to serve our continuously growing number of students has become increasingly difficult. We must have space in order to educate our kids. Now we have an opportunity to complete our school. This opportunity will allow Orchard School District to purchase land for additional classrooms next to our school. If we don't purchase this land for future Orchard School expansion, the land will inevitably give way to more housing or commercial development causing even more congestion in our neighborhood. Measure E is essential to our school and to our children's future. Please vote Yes on Measure E. /s/ Alan Fong, August 22, 2001
Board Clerk/Orchard School /s/ Gilbert D. Chioro, August 22, 2001
Boardmember/Orchard School /s/ Carol J. Orr, August 22, 2001
Board member/Orchard School /s/ Chuck Reed, August 22, 2001
San Jose City Council Member

Tax Rate Statement

Tax Rate Statement (Section 9401 of the Elections Code)

To: The voters voting in the November 6, 2001 election on the question of the issuance of $40,000,000 General Obligation Bonds of the Orchard School District: You are hereby notified in accordance with Section 9401 of the Elections Code of California of the following:
1. The best estimate from official sources of the tax rate which would be required to be levied to fund principal and interest payments during the first fiscal year after the first sale of bonds (Fiscal Year 2002?03), based on assessed valuations available at the time of the election and taking into account future growth, is the following:

$.01824 per $100 of assessed valuation, which is equal to $18.24 per $100,000 of assessed valuation.
2. The best estimate from official sources of the tax rate which would be required to be levied to fund principal and interest payments during the fiscal year after the last sale of bonds and an estimate of the year in which that rate will apply (Fiscal Year 2006?07), based on assessed valuations available at the time of the election and taking into account future growth, is as follows:

$.01824 per $100 of assessed valuation, which is equal to $18.24 per $100,000 of assessed valuation.

Year after last sale of bonds: 2006-07
3. The best estimate from official sources of the highest tax rate which would be required to be levied to fund principal and interest payments on the bonds and the year in which such rate would apply, based on assessed valuations available at the time of the election and taking into account future growth, is as follows:
$.01824 per $100 of assessed valuation, which is equal to $18.24 per $100,000 of assessed valuation.
Year of highest tax rate: Tax is projected to be the same every year.
Submittal of the foregoing statement has been approved by the Orchard School District.

Santa Clara Home Page || Statewide Links || About Smart Voter || Feedback
Created: December 3, 2001 02:34
Smart Voter <http://www.smartvoter.org/>
Copyright © League of Women Voters of California Education Fund   http://ca.lwv.org
The League of Women Voters neither supports nor opposes candidates for public office or political parties.