Editor’s note: The following letter was written before the Aug. 1 Saugus Union School District board meeting but was not received in time to be published before the meeting, in which the board voted to place a bond initiative on the ballot.
The Saugus trustees have made a decision to delay the vote on a general obligation bond proposal until tomorrow, Aug. 1. They are racing toward a deadline of Aug. 9 to place the proposal on the November ballot.
We learned last night that this proposal is not ready to be presented to the voters. The project list is not specific, a requirement to qualify for a reduced supermajority vote for passage.
Fear is being used to make voters believe that some schools may collapse in an earthquake. I am increasingly of the belief that the earthquake work is being used as a ruse to build more classrooms for the controversial dual immersion language instruction and state-mandated pre-kindergarten programs.
It was disappointing to me that the trustees and their highly compensated bond counsel desire to keep information away from the voters. The ballot label should disclose that the bonds are scheduled to last through 2057-58. The total payments of the $190 million bonds will be $421.48 million, a rather high ratio of 2.22. The estimated average payment rate is $29.84 per $100,000 assessed valuation. There is no exemption for seniors, veterans or low-income households.
This payment rate will be layered over what you already pay for Measure EE bonds.
Please read the tax rate statement.
There was an audible sigh in the room when the trustees learned that the cost to put the measure on the November ballot exceeds $300,000.
The trustees should not be rushed by the administration to approve this bond on such a short timeline. As my dear departed mother wisely said, “Haste makes waste, Stevie.”
What say you?
Steve Petzold
Former Santa Clarita resident
Douglas County, Georgia
