A small, semi-rural school district in the Santa Cruz Mountains has a parcel tax on the November ballot to boost teacher salaries and retention. But some residents are pushing back on the tax, saying it’s too high.
Loma Prieta Joint Union School District includes just two schools — Loma Prieta Elementary School and C. T. English Middle School — with a total enrollment of 450 students.
Its school board voted earlier this year to put Measure M on the November ballot. If it passes, an annual parcel tax of $348 would go toward teacher salaries and curriculum updates, bringing in around $640,000 a year.
“Primarily, it’s going to fund teachers, and our teachers are really the lowest (paid) in Santa Clara County schools, and we need help retaining and recruiting teachers,” school board president Erin Asheghian said. “It also … could be used on some curriculum upgrades and tech upgrades as those come up. Primarily, it’s going to be about teachers.”
Loma Prieta’s teachers are among the lowest paid in Santa Clara County, with teacher salaries ranging from $33,485 to $100,978, and community members worry that they will lose teachers to other districts with more money.
If that happens, Asheghian said, class sizes will increase and outgoing teachers will be replaced with newer, less experienced teachers.
Parcel taxes must pass by a two-thirds vote. The district attempted a similar parcel tax in 2020, for an annual tax of $164 per year that would have brought in an estimated $328,000 per year. It failed by 0.99%, with 65.67% of residents voting in favor and 34.33% voting against it.
Mark Hinkle, president of Silicon Valley Taxpayers Association, and Joe Dehn, of the Libertarian Party of Santa Clara County, wrote an argument against the ballot measure, and said 2020’s attempt shows residents aren’t interested in another tax increase.
Hinkle and Dehn, neither of whom are residents of Los Gatos, said enrollment and academic performance were falling in the district, while costs continue to rise.
“I’m sure there are people up here who are just going to vote against anything that’s a tax, but I think the community has been a little frustrated by the opposition and the fact that they don’t live here and won’t have to deal with any of the consequences,” Asheghian said. “It won’t be their kids that have a less robust education; it won’t be their property values on the line if the schools decline.”
Sean Rokni, a Los Gatos resident and member of the No on Measure M campaign, said he is also against a tax increase.
“The last four parcel taxes we’ve had (on the ballot), three of them failed,” Rokni said. “When they talked about these parcel taxes, they try to make the voters feel that if you vote no, you are not supporting the community or schools, which in fact we are.
“This time around, I think the amount of money they are asking is so high, obnoxiously high,” Rokni said.
Measure M is the only item for the school district on the November ballot. Asheghian said four seats on the board were open, and only four candidates decided to run, so an election wasn’t necessary.
“It’s been a really rough couple of years for teachers. They need some support and so yeah, a lot is riding on the parcel tax,” Asheghian said.
Source: www.mercurynews.com