BILL ANALYSIS �
SB 477
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Date of Hearing: August 16, 2012
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Mike Gatto, Chair
SB 477 (Wright) - As Amended: July 3, 2012
Policy Committee: Education
Vote:11-0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
Yes Reimbursable: Yes
SUMMARY
This bill determines tax liability, bonding capacity, use of
bond proceeds, and allocation of bonds related to the
reorganization of the Wiseburn School District (WSD) and the
Centinela Valley Union High School District (CVUHSD) to form the
Wiseburn Unified School District (WUSD), as specified.
FISCAL EFFECT
Unknown, potential increased GF/98 revenue limit (general
purpose) funding costs, likely between $500,000 and $800,000, to
reorganize school districts pursuant to this measure. The cost
is attributed to the increased revenue limit funding a unified
district receives versus an elementary district (WSD). School
districts receive revenue limit funding based on what type of
district they are: elementary, high school, and unified
(elementary and high schools). The average revenue limit in the
2010-11 fiscal year (FY) for elementary school districts is
slightly less ($6,110 per ADA) than the average unified rate
($6,393 per ADA). As a result, the state will incur increased
GF/98 costs per ADA due to the district reorganization.
SUMMARY CONTINUED
1)Requires any tax for repayment of bonds of WSD to be levied on
all taxable property of the newly formed school district
(WUSD).
2)Requires, commencing with the fiscal year that begins on the
effective date of the school district reorganization, any tax
for repayment of CVUHSD bonds approved by voters before
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January 1, 2012 to be levied on both of the following:
a) All taxable property located within CVUHSD as the
district exists following the effective date of the
reorganization.
b) All taxable property located within WUSD that was
formerly part of the territory of CVUHSD.
3)Requires CVUHSD (in recognition of the tax liability related
to voter- approved bonds) to transfer $4 million from the
proceeds of the sale of bonds approved by voters on November
2, 2012 and issued after January 1, 2012 to WUSD, as
specified. Further requires the $4 million to be expended for
purposes consistent with the original voter authorization for
the bonds.
4)Requires WSD and CVUHSD to establish a joint powers authority
to deal with bonding limit issues and the ability to hold bond
elections, as specified.
5)Establishes a formula to calculate a blended revenue limit
(general purpose funding) per ADA for the reorganized
district.
6)Authorizes a pupil eligible to attend any of grades 9-12
residing in WUSD to attend CVUHSD without an interdistrict
attendance agreement if CVUHSD accepts that pupil for
attendance.
7)Requires the election to approve the reorganization plan for
WUSD to be conducted within the territory of WSD and approved
upon a favorable vote of a majority of all votes cast on the
reorganization proposal.
COMMENTS
1)Rationale . Centinela Valley Union High School District
(CVUHS) is located in Los Angeles County and enrolls
approximately 6,600 pupils in grades 9-12 in five schools.
Wiseburn School District (WSD) is located in Los Angeles
County and enrolls approximately 3,000 pupils in grades K-8 in
six schools. Currently, CVUHS's territory includes three
school districts - Hawthorne School District, Lawndale
Elementary School District, and Lennox School District.
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This bill reflects an agreement between the affected schools
districts, WSD, and CVUHS regarding issues related to
reorganization - bond indebtedness, tax liability, and the
allocation of bond proceeds. According to WSD, sponsor of
this bill, "�This bill] contains statutory changes needed to
implement the unification proposal for the Wiseburn School
District. The district started the process eleven years ago
in 2001. Since then the district and the other three
elementary school districts (Hawthorne, Lawndale, and Lennox)
and CVUHSD have been working on an agreement that would be
acceptable to all the districts."
2)Existing law defines school district reorganization as any of
the following:
a) Dissolving two or more existing school districts
of the same kind and forming one or more new school
districts of that same kind from the entire
territory of the original districts.
b) Forming one or more new school districts of the
same kind from all or parts of one or more existing
school districts of that same kind.
c) Unifying school districts, including the
consolidation of all or part of one or more high
school districts with all or part of one or more
component school districts into one or more new
unified school districts.
d) De-unifying a school district, including the
conversion of all or part of a unified school
district into one or more new high school districts,
each with two or more new component districts.
This bill proposes statute to aid in the reorganization of
school districts pursuant to (b) above.
Statute also establishes a method for calculating a revenue
limit per ADA for the new district. First a blended base
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revenue limit is computed based on the weighted average
revenue limit for the districts involved in the
reorganization. Second, an adjustment is calculated based on
classified and certificated employee salary and benefit
differentials among the districts involved in the
reorganization. The purpose of this second adjustment is to
raise the base revenue limit to a level necessary to support
the level of average salaries and benefits provided by the
district with the highest average cost per full time
equivalent employee.
Analysis Prepared by : Kimberly Rodriguez / APPR. / (916)
319-2081