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Approval of local school-facilities bond measures has been relatively high during the recent economic downturn

December 2010


School districts can issue general obligation bonds to build or renovate facilities with the approval of two-thirds of local voters or just 55% if they meet specific conditions related to the election and public oversight. They levy a tax based on property values to pay back those bonds. Districts gained the ability to pass bond measures with 55% voter approval in 2001. Since then, 79% of the 698 G.O. bond elections attempted have passed.

General Obligation Bond Measure Passage Rate: Jan. 2008–Dec. 2010


General Obligation Bond Measure Passage Rate: Jan. 2008-Dec. 2010

Data: EdSource, School Services of California, Inc., and League of Women Voters of California-Smart Voter

EdSource 12/10

Local communities have in recent years been even more likely to approve G.O. bonds. From January 2008 through December 2010, local voters approved 81% of the 221 G.O. bond measures attempted, despite only a 75% passage rate in the November 2010 election.

Districts often use a combination of locally raised funds plus monies raised through statewide bond elections for their facilities needs. Despite a diminishing pool of state bond funds, legislators in Sacramento did not pass a measure to put a state bond on the November 2010 statewide ballot. The earliest that the next kindergarten-university facilities bond measure can now be expected is in 2012.

SourceChallenging Times: California Schools Cope with Adversity and the Imperative To Do More