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LWV League of Women Voters of California Education Fund
Smart Voter
Sacramento County, CA November 7, 2006 Election
Measure M
School Facilities Improvement Bond Measure
Folsom Cordova Unified School Facilities Improvement District 3

2/3 Approval Required

Fail: 61 / 64.89% Yes votes ...... 33 / 35.11% No votes

See Also: Index of all Measures

Results as of Jan 4 9:37am, 100.0% of Precincts Reporting (10/10)
Information shown below: Fiscal Impact | Impartial Analysis | Arguments | Full Text

To utilize state funding and developer fees, shall the School Facilities Improvement District No. 3 of the Folsom Cordova Unified School District construct elementary, middle, and high schools, libraries, computer labs, support facilities, acquire land, and acquire equipment and computer technology, by issuing $750 million in bonds at legal interest rates and appoint a citizens oversight committee to monitor expenditures?

Fiscal Impact from Patrick Godwin, Superintendent School Facilities Improvement District No.3 Folsom Cordova Unified School District:
An election will be held in the School Facilities Improvement District No. 3 (the "Improvement District No. 3") of the Folsom Cordova Unified School District (the "School District") of Sacramento County on November 7, 2006, to authorize the sale of up to $750,000,000 in bonds of Improvement District No. 3 to finance school facilities as described in the proposition. If the bonds are approved, the School District expects to sell the bonds of Improvement District No. 3 in series over time. Principal and interest on the bonds will be payable from the proceeds of tax levies made only upon the taxable property in Improvement District No. 3. The following information is provided in compliance with Sections 9400-9404 of the Elections Code of the State of California.

1. The best estimate of the tax which would be required to be levied to fund this bond issue during the first fiscal year after the sale of the first series of bonds, based on estimated assessed valuations available at the time of filing of this statement, is $0.03731 per $100 ($37.31 per $100,000) of assessed valuation in fiscal year 2007-08.

2. The best estimate of the tax rate which would be required to be levied to fund this bond issue during the first fiscal year after the sale of the last series of bonds, based on estimated assessed valuations available at the time of filing of this statement, is $0.08204 per $100 ($82.04 per $100,000) of assessed valuation in fiscal year 2032-33.

3. The best estimate of the highest tax rate which would be required to be levied to fund this bond issue, based on estimated assessed valuations available at the time of filing of this statement, is $0.09991 per $100 ($99.91 per $100,000) of assessed valuation in fiscal year 2040-41.

These estimates would result in an average annual tax rate over the life of the bonds of $0.07361 per $100 of assessed valuation. Based on these tax rates, the estimated average annual tax over the term of the bonds would be $73.61 for $100,000 of assessed valuation in Improvement District No. 3.

Voters should note that the estimated tax rates are based on the assessed value of taxable property on the County's official tax rolls, not on the property's market value. In addition, taxpayers eligible for a property tax exemption, such as the homeowner's exemption, will be taxed at a lower effective tax rate than described above. Certain taxpayers may also be eligible to postpone payment of taxes. Property owners should consult their own property tax bills and tax advisors to determine their property's assessed value and any applicable tax exemptions. Attention of all voters is directed to the fact that the foregoing information is based upon the School District's projections and estimates only, which are not binding upon the School District. The actual tax rates and the years in which they will apply may vary from those presently estimated, due to variations from these estimates in the timing of bond sales, the amount of bonds sold and market interest rates at the time of each sale, and actual assessed valuations over the term of repayment of the bonds. The dates of sale and the amount of bonds sold at any given time will be determined by the School District based on need for construction funds and other factors. The actual interest rates at which the bonds will be sold will depend on the bond market at the time of each sale. Actual future assessed valuation will depend upon the amount and value of taxable property within Improvement District No. 3 as determined by the County Assessor in the annual assessment and the equalization process.

Impartial Analysis
Measure M, if approved by the voters, would allow the School Facilities Improvement District No. 3 of the Folsom Cordova Unified School District to incur bonded indebtedness up to a maximum amount of $750 million. The proceeds from the issuance and sale of such general obligation bonds may only be used for the acquisition, construction, reconstruction, modernization or replacement of school facilities, including the furnishing and equipping of school facilities, within School Facilities Improvement District No. 3. No funds derived from bond sales may be used for general school operating expenses, including administrator and teacher salaries. Measure M requires the appointment of a citizen's oversight committee and the completion of annual financial audits.

If Measure M is passed, the actual dates of sale and the amount of bonds sold would be governed by the School Facilities Improvement District. The number of years that the whole or any part of such school district bonds are to run could not exceed 25 years for bonds issued pursuant to Section 15300 et seq. of the Education Code and 40 years for bonds issued pursuant to Section 53506 of the Government Code, as calculated from the date of the bonds or any series thereof. If Measure M is approved, the tax rates necessary for payment of principal and interest on any bonds sold will be largely dictated by the timing of the bond sales, the amount sold at a given sale, market interest rates at the time of each sale (although in no event greater than the maximum bond interest rate allowed by law), as well as actual assessed valuation of taxable property in the District over the term of repayment. The tax levy authorized to secure the payment of the bonds issued pursuant to Measure M may not exceed the limit specified in Sections 15268 and 15270 of the Education Code.

  News and Analysis

The Sacramento Bee

Folsom Community Forum

FolsomForum.com:
Discussion group of Folsom residents about November 7 General Election
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Arguments For Measure M
Measure M will directly benefit residents of the Oak Brook Apartment Homes, the Twilight Mobile Home Park and other south of 50 residents by funding the construction of new schools and community facilities.

Measure M will truly help all students in the area by raising millions to fund first-class schools much closer to us than existing schools and will give us the unique opportunity to open new schools as more residents move into our area, before our existing schools become overcrowded. Each local dollar raised will be matched by more than one dollar from the state and developers as we invest in our future.

Every child deserves a good education in a clean, safe, and modern school. That's why so many parents, teachers, seniors, and community leaders are asking you to join them and vote Yes on Measure M.

An Oversight Committee composed of community representatives will ensure that every dollar is spent wisely. This measure prohibits any funds being used for administrators' salaries or operating expenses, guaranteeing that all money will directly benefit the education of our children.

We can all be proud of our students who have stepped up and improved their test scores. Now it is our turn to step up and give our kids the best possible learning environment to ensure that they will have the skills they need to succeed in the future. Let us continue our tradition of putting kids first by voting Yes on Measure M.

Thank you for supporting our kids and schools.

s/Andy Morin, Mayor of Folsom

s/Ed Short, Sacramento County Taxpayers League, Member

s/Barry Heilman, Senior Citizen/Folsom Bond Oversight Committee

s/Robert McGarvey, Mayor of Rancho Cordova

s/Brian Cooley, President, Sacramento County Board of Education

(No arguments against Measure M were submitted)

Full Text of Measure M
The following is the full proposition presented to the voters of the School Facilities Improvement District No. 3 of the Folsom Cordova Unified School District.

"To utilize state funding and developer fees, shall the School Facilities Improvement District No. 3 of the Folsom Cordova Unified School District construct elementary, middle, and high schools, libraries, computer labs, support facilities, acquire land, and acquire equipment and computer technology, by issuing $750 million in bonds at legal interest rates and appoint a citizens oversight committee to monitor expenditures?"

BOND SUMMARY

As the land south of Highway 50 develops over the next twenty-five years, the Folsom Cordova School District will experience incredible growth. The Cities of Rancho Cordova and Folsom and the County of Sacramento have plans that project housing growth that will generate 23,500 additional students.

Unless the District and community proactively plan for this growth, our current schools will become overcrowded and our children's education and welfare will be negatively impacted.

The District has developed a plan for building new schools. The plan includes state funding from the State Facilities Grant program and a commitment from developers that is at least double the current legally mandated contribution. This local bond will be needed to provide the additional funds needed to construct the estimated thirty new schools and support facilities needed to house the 23,500 new students. The total cost for all these new facilities is projected at $1.7 billion dollars. Each local bond dollar will be matched by more than one dollar from the state and developers as we invest in our future.

A committee comprised of local citizens will oversee the use of the bonds. The committee will determine when schools are to be built, the type of schools to be built, how to maximize the bond, state and developer dollars. The committee will also develop joint use proposals with the parks and cities.

Local bonds will only be issued as school facilities are needed. New homes and new businesses will be paying virtually all of the costs for new school facility construction and current residents and businesses will only pay based on their current assessed valuation. Our children deserve great schools. Please do your part to assure a bright future for our community.

FISCAL ACCOUNTABILITY. The expenditure of bond money on these projects is subject to stringent financial accountability requirements. Financial audits will be performed annually, and all bond expenditures will be monitored by a citizens oversight committee to ensure that funds are spent as promised and specified.

NO ADMINISTRATOR SALARIES. Proceeds from the sale of the bonds authorized by this proposition shall be used only for the acquisition, construction, reconstruction, modernization, or replacement of facilities, including the furnishing and equipping of school facilities, and not for teacher or administrator sal aries.


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Created: January 4, 2007 09:37 PST
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