California local finance expert Michael Coleman reported that local school bond and tax measures had their worst showing Tuesday since he began tracking them in 2001.
According to preliminary election results compiled by Coleman, there were 63 school bond measures requiring a 55% vote to pass; voters approved 45. That 73% passage rate is lower than the historic rate of just above 80%, he said.
School parcel-tax measures, in which districts ask for a special property tax to fund operations, fared even worse: only two of 18 were approved. They require a two-thirds supermajority.
According to Coleman, the overall passage rate of non-school local tax measures this election was very close to that of previous elections over the last decade. Of the 79 majority-vote tax measures, 50 passed, or 63%. Since 2001, 65% of majority vote local tax measures have passed.
Of the 31 special tax measures requiring two-thirds voter approval, 13 passed, or 42%. This passage rate is comparable to the 46% historic passage rate for special taxes and bonds since 2001.
There were three non-school general obligation bond measures Tuesday, which require a two-thirds vote to pass. Voters approved only one, a $14 million bond measure for the Mayers Memorial Hospital District in rural northeast California.
Coleman's full report is available at
