Measure H update: Bonds for Sacramento school renovations winning support

Sacramento voters were approving a bond to fund updates to city school classrooms, science labs and technology in early returns .

As of Wednesday morning, Measure H had 59 percent of the vote. The measure needs 55 percent to pass.

“It’s good to know our community knows what our students need and they’re stepping up for them,” said Sacramento City Unified board member Christina Pritchett, who helped lead the campaign for Measure H.

Most of the schools in the Sacramento City Unified School District were built more than 50 years ago and need repairs and renovations, according to the district. The older schools are costly and inefficient to operate, and are also equipped with outdated HVAC systems.

The $750 million in bonds, which the school district already voted to put on the ballot, would also provide high quality classrooms for music, visuals and performing arts.

“Currently, in our district, we cannot pay for these upgrades,” Pritchett said. “Our schools are aging more and more. So this will give our students a high-tech environment so they could be able to compete, learn in-demand careers and skilled trades.”

District-wide projects will also include improvements to classrooms and labs, improved Americans with Disabilities Act code compliance, new construction, and tree planting.

“People have a good understanding our school sites are old, and they need new facilities and safe learning environment,” Pritchett said.

Measure H would cost property owners 5 cents per $100 in assessed (not market) value per year, or about $88 per year for a typical homeowner, according to the district.

The funds cannot be spent on administrator salaries or pensions and must be spent on schools.

Sacramento schools’ Superintendent Jorge Aguilar called the funding “critical.”

“This indicates that our community wants to invest in our students and our schools,” Aguilar said in a statement to The Sacramento Bee Tuesday night.

The Sacramento Taxpayers Association said while they did not submit an argument opposing Measure H, because schools will receive financial support through Proposition 13, a $15 billion bond to repair and modernize aging schools throughout California.

Proposition 13 would designate $9 billion for preschool through high school and $2 billion each for the University of California, California State University and community colleges.

Pritchett said both Proposition 13 and Measure H must pass for Sacramento City Unified to qualify for $80 million in state matching funds that would otherwise go to other school districts.

This story was originally published March 3, 2020 at 8:39 PM.