Vincent and Gross, 2015
K-12 public school facilities need regular investment to ensure student health and safety and support educational programming. Yet, the future of K-12 school facility funding in California is uncertain. A strong state-local partnership has existed that funded new construction, modernization, and other investments in public school facilities across the state since the passage of The Leroy F. Green School Facilities Act (SB 50) in 1998, which established the School Facility Program (SFP). Since then, four statewide school construction bonds have generated $35.4 billion and local school districts have leveraged these state funds, passing more than $80 billion in local general obligation bonds.2 Together with locally-generated developer fees, these sources formed the “three-legged stool” of financing for K-12 public school facilities under the SFP. Currently, there are no funds identified for the state’s “leg” in the partnership. The debate about the future of the state’s school facility funding will be taken up in the 2015-2016 legislative session.
