Measure GG: Some clarifications

The second school parcel tax, GG, that is on this ballot is a) a little confusing and b) a tough decision in the current economic climate.  Having said that, some clarification is in order.  On another post, a commenter asked, "I just read in John Horgan’s column that the school tax GG “can be increased or decreased, depending on fiscal circumstances.”  Can this be true!?

I made an inquiry to one of the measure's supporters who provided the exact language in question:

The Board will determine, on an annual basis, the amount of the levy for the following fiscal year, up to the maximum allowable rate shown above. If, in any given year, the Board elects to levy an amount less than the maximum allowable rate, it may, in subsequent years, levy the maximum allowable rate.

I take that to mean if the Board decided on a lower levy in one year, the levy the following year could go back up, but still not exceed the maximum allowable rate.  The essential part of that rate is:

The tax, at the uniform rate of $0.14 per square foot of building improvements per year, capped at $2,500 per parcel per year for 8 years.

The other confusing wrinkle is this 8-year tax overlaps the last parcel tax (Measure L that you see on the property tax bill you just got in the mail) for the next three years--i.e. two taxes for three years, then just the GG version for five more.  The reason for that is the district has to budget out three years and the state funding is erratic and mostly erratic not in our favor.

Voting for Measure GG may be a tough call for some property owners who are struggling with insurance increases, energy cost increases, building material cost increases, labor cost increases, the SALT tax cap, the three state bond measures also on the ballot and who knows what else.  As usual, I consider that all of the GG revenue stays in town and has to go straight into classroom resources.  That's your decision framework.

Comments

[Paloma Ave]

Here is what one of my neighbors pays in EXTRA school taxes here in Burlingame:

BURLINGAME ESD BOND - $2558.00 + SAN MATEO UHSD BOND - $2092.47 + SMCCD BOND - $836.99 + BURSCHDST PARTX - $256.00 = $5,743.66 (This is on top of regular property tax) AND THEY ALWAYS WANT MORE MONEY! NO ON GG. And to all of you renters, if this passes, "Your landlord will raise your rent to pay for yet another tax". You can count on it.

[Spurinna]

For sure the tax will increase and never decrease.

My grandmother knew that the “temporary” federal income tax would become permanent.

No on GG.

[Man Up Burlingame]

I'm flipping a coin.

[Bruce Dickinson]

When all else fails, read the actual measure vs reading some people's interpretations of it, which can oftentimes be wrong. Think it's fair to assume that the district will be asking the maximum allowable rate of $0.14 psf or $140 for every 1,000 sq ft. So for a 3000 square foot "Burlingame Special" house that's $420 per year. If that's what it takes to keep some of the best schools in the US funded, which then helps Burlingame real estate values, think that's relatively cheap "value protection insurance" for homeowners.

While business/building owners (really the ones who own the underlying real estate which not every business does) will need to contribute, again, these building owners also benefit from the value preservation impacts of having excellent neighborhood schools.

Bottom line: think about asset value preservation and what drives it. Bruce Dickinson didn't get to where he is by not considering the entire picture! When you're offered cheap insurance, take it!

[Handle Bard]

The voter guide on this is a page and three quarters of legalese in small print. Thanks for your guidance. I'm still not sure about the double hit for the next few years.

[Concerned]

Naïveté, accompanied with a large ego, has always been very dangerous.
There is zero accountability in CA government for the spending of our taxes.
Assuming that more taxes results in better education outcomes and, therefore, higher resultant property values is baseless.

https://www.mountainstatespolicy.org/comparing-education-spending-and-outcomes-in-the-mountain-states

[Joe]

I'd like to give John Horgan the benefit of the doubt on the original statement that kicked off my original post. In that one column, he did a yeoman's job of assembling all of the various tax proposals in the county! He didn't have space to catch the nuance. And his overriding point, not explicitly stated, is perhaps similar to Concerned's. But that's just me guessing.

Here at the Voice, we just focus on B'game--with a splash of San Mateo, Millbrae and Hillsborough once in a while. We get to go a bit deeper and have the discussion we are now having.

[Bruce Dickinson]

So, just because Bruce Dickinson is wealthier "than the average bear" as it were, make no mistake when yours truly donates to causes such as BCE or happily votes for and pays parcel taxes, he does it with vigorous research and analysis....well I task my staff to do it, but alas I digress!

It turns out BSD is one of the most productive school districts in CA. It receives among the lowest per pupil funding in San County by the state funding formula or its property taxes--it shifts from basic aid (property tax funded) to excess revenue funding (state funded) methodology due largely to high mix of multifamily housing...this is a whole other topic where we can have another teach-in. Regardless of the methodology in any given year, Burlingame receives funding from the state or its property taxes at about $9k-10k per student. In comparison Hillsborough school district gets about $17k per student all through its own property taxes.

However, when you adjust for demographics (effectively income), Burlingame schools have test scores that are just as high as Hilsboroughs! How can this be so? First, you have a dynamite organization such as BCE that helps fund the district, and two you have parcel taxes which together help close the funding gap. So when looking at actual educational outcomes, BSD does a LOT with very little. Excluding any demographic adjustment, consider that Burlingame has fantastic test scores overall including both higher income and lower income students. The schools serve the largest percentage share multifamily community on the Peninsula (yes a higher percentage of people rent in Burlingame vs even RWC) and BSD have an award winning Spanish Immersion program that serves as a model for other schools/districts. I beg anybody to find a school district ANYWHERE in the USA where over 50% of the community rents and the schools are in the top 5-10% of the state. It doesn't exist, except here!

If Burlingame City Hall employees think City Hall is too old and crowded (as they keep crowing about getting a new building) they need to spend some time at the Burlingame School District office. It is so bare-bones, with barely any office space and meeting rooms. It's pretty clear that every dollar is going to exactly where it belongs..to the schools and the teachers!

$300-$500 per year Parcel Tax for your average Burlingame house is peanuts when you consider where your dollars are going, the impact that it has, and the big beautiful benefit of it all is that it enhances property value!

Keep in mind friends, when you attempt to tussle with Bruce Dickinson, you better be armed with your facts...otherwise, it's guaranteed to be game over!

[Dad of 3]

Father of 3 in BSD.(1 McKinley, 2 BIS)
Average donation to BCE last 10yrs is $7500 per year. Wife and I are very active in both schools to volunteer help in anyway possible.
We are voting NO on GG. Our reasons why:

1)We see the Yes on GG lawn signs on the houses in our neighborhood that are renters, don't volunteer at school or other community activities(AYSO, BGS, BYBA, etc) and contribute ZERO to the BCE fund yearly.

2)The City of San Mateo Planning Commission Chair has 2 children in the BSD. I still can't get an answer from anyone in the know as to why this is allowed. Isn't the goal to have smaller class sizes, but BSD is filling them with non residents? And now BSD is asking me to vote to spend our hard earned money for her children's benefit, but her tax bill won't see an increase? No thank you. We don't care how much she and her husband donate to BCE or volunteer at school. San Mateo government/residents are greatly divided right now on many issues, and she part of the faction that is not well liked by a majority of residents. She is all in on stacking and packing them in, in San Mateo to other residents demise on quality of life. But she can't send her kids to a SM public school , but a Burlingame Public school works for her needs?

3)Chris Mount Benites
District handling of COVID
Too many Administrators with bloated
salaries


Its probably going to pass, and the approx $400 on our tax bill isn't going to break us in anyway. We will be saving money as we've decided that this was the last year we are are donating to BCE. We can spent the net $7100 on our families educational needs instead of other non participating families needs.

Thank you for letting me get on my soapbox and scream a little.

[Washington Mom]

Literally every family I know moved to or is staying in Burlingame because of the outstanding public schools. Why would we not do everything we can to keep them excellent for everyone?

Chris Mount Benites has been gone for two years, and schools have been operating normally post covid shut down for longer. How long are you going to hold those grudges that help no one? Administrator salaries are not at all bloated when you consider the cost of living in the Bay Area. Also, renters are not second class citizens, and people can have a zillion reasons for not volunteering in ways that are visible to YOU. Like work. Like special needs at home. Like caring for an aging parent. Like illness. You can never see someone else’s full load. Maybe they’re doing volunteer work at home (like all of BCE’s work and much of PTA work) or at another school.

At the beginning of this school year, a number of classrooms across the District did not have teachers. This is largely because neighboring Peninsula school districts pay more and teachers can’t afford to work here because they just like Burlingame. Like everyone, they need to pay bills. There is no other profession where we expect people to work for karma and donuts. Burlingame kids deserve the best teachers on the job market. Our teachers are what makes our schools amazing and makes us want to be in this District, which in turn benefits all of our property values.

PLEASE TELL YOUR RETIRED NEIGHBORS: Seniors and low income folks are exempt. They can vote yes, keep our Burlingame schools strong, and not see a rise in their taxes.

[SadWhenDadsAreBad]

Dear "Father of 3 in BSD",

1) Why do you think renters shouldn't have a say in funding schools? You do realize the outrageous rents in the area go well far beyond profits and paying for the assessed taxes, therefore renters are often paying a greater percentage of taxes to cities than the owners. Some cities have larger renter populations therefore renters are funding more than owners.

2) What does this have to do with a bond measure? A single person with kids at a school cause you a funding conniption fit? Are you deranged? The state law allows families to request transfers to other districts. When those schools see that there is a fit for classrooms for whatever reason, it is legally allowed (not to mention good for the kids in most situations, situations you clearly don't know about or understand). If you "haven't gotten an answer", clearly you haven't read the state law about the subject (very easy to find) and aren't talking to the right people. Many people do transfers for many reasons, and it's literally not your business why. There are Burlingame students that transfer to other districts, are you tracking down their parents and harassing them online to come back so that more funding is provided by the state?

Don't like the high taxes? Encourage more housing supply. The high rents and housing costs mean it is drastically more expensive to run anything, including schools. It won't help near term, but maybe those less fortunate (lucky) than you could possibly get to have their kids to buy something local and live here. That would be an economically healthy city.

Don't like GG? Fine, there's valid criticisms of the funding and where it goes in schools. I have complaints! But somehow making it about one person's kids is really low and calls your character very much into question. The "renter" comment, too. Shame on you. Do better, at least for your kids.

[Mom]

This one is going to be close. My friends are 50/50 on it.

[MadAboutSad]

Dear Father of 3 in BSD,

You are spot on with your point #2 which obviously has made an impression with Sad who is probably Seema Patel. Totally an elitist attitude with the name calling and making San Mateo less livable and then expecting us to pick up the tab. Sorry but nothing is added by having her in Burlingame.

[Coniq]

I’m sure you received your property tax bill this month. You may have seen a chart that shows where our tax $ is distributed. Schools receive around 52% of property tax. That, in addition to already existing parcel taxes and school bonds is quite a lot of money 💰
Yes, I am grateful that we have wonderful schools, teachers, staff and students, but sometimes I have to ask when is enough enough?

[Dad of 3]

SadWhenDadsAreBad-

1)I was not demeaning renters in any way. I fully understand that Burlingame is 50% renters and renters obviously make our community thrive. I was giving examples of renters that our family has interactions with in our neighborhood, on a daily basis, who don't contribute to BSC or volunteer anytime or money to the schools their children attend.

2) Deranged? A conniption fit? My comments towards the SM Planning Commissioner Chair seemed to strike a nerve with you and throw you into a 'conniption fit' in your response.
I never(and will continue not to) use her, her husbands or her children's name. Readers are smart enough to research who I'm talking about. My opinion is obviously different than yours, but i didn't demonize anyone, unlike you did with your comments towards me and my opinion.

You are correct, I haven't read state law in regards to school transfers. My guess is 99.9% of the voters/residents haven't. You are also correct that Burlingame students transfer to other districts. My question is how many Burlingame resident students transfer to the San Mateo/Foster City school district?? Especially one that is a self admitted San Mateo "Super Fan". Burlingame residents also have many kids that go to the local private elementary/middle/high schools(St Cats, OLA, St Dunstin, St. Matthews, SHP Schools, Serra, St. Ignatius, etc)

The SM Planning Commision Chair on her Facebook page states that she is a San Mateo 'Super Fan'. I guess she just isn't a 'Super Fan' of the SM/FC school district. Do her and her family participate in anything in Burlingame, outside of school? Sure doesn't seem like it...

https://www.facebook.com/seemapatelSMPC/

She also wants to have her opinions heard at the school board level, when her family has zero financial skin in the game. SadDadBad seems to think my opinion is 'demeaning' or a 'conniption fit'. I guess as a tax paying resident my opinion shouldn't matter, but hers should? Hypocrisy

https://x.com/cupcakerobot_/status/1833676800704356533

https://x.com/cupcakerobot_/status/1829363539053789364

Family seems like it wants its own private bike path from their home in San Mateo to McKinley. 4 miles to travel to a 'local public' elementary school. Sunnybrae Elementary school is less than a quarter mile from there house. Approx 7 miles to BIS by bike. Long way to go to a 'local' middle school for a San Mateo 'Super Fan' and her kids on the back of their fathers bike.

https://www.smdailyjournal.com/news/local/families-biking-back-to-school-in-san-mateo-county/article_1cdd3b54-64e4-11ef-9a11-5f876e76af11.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=user-share

Your last paragraph is just typical YIMBY talking points, that don't resonate with my family. I wasn't 'lucky' as you state to able to own and raise our family in Burlingame. It takes alot of hard work and sacrifice. Yes, I instill hardwork and sacrifice in my children so hopefully someday they are able to own a house and raise a family of their own, no matter if it is here in Burlingame or in any other part of the country/world they chose to make a life for themselves.

[Coniq]

Over focusing on one family in San Mateo having their kids attend school in Bgame is super unkind.
Move on.
Just because you contribute to school fundraisers/volunteer etc. and renters don’t is none of your business. You have no idea what people circumstances are.

[Grace]

Coniq, I think Dad nailed it. He is honest enough to point out the frustration many of us feel. There is a lack of accountability for funding and the same people that think we should continue to build more housing without having the adequate resources in place always seem to find a way to skirt the mess they create. Compounding the frustration is the name calling by Sad who is most likely Seema given the tone. Typical elitist attitude just like when Newsom shut down public schools while his kids still attended in person. And while there are valid reasons for a transfer to another district such as daycare, special ed, parents work, I would bet this is not the case in this situation. I’ve seen enough people that lie about their addresses and day care providers to know recognize an elitist mentality, claiming it hurts no one. Yet it does displaces valid transfer requests and shortchanges students and teachers. I started to do exactly what Dad plans to do. After giving thousands a year I started to directly buy items for my kids classrooms and saved the rest of the money for college. Sorry but when I am footing the bill, more housing and more congestion is being shoved down my throat, it is my business.

[Just Visiting]

Donors like Dad of 3 (and many others) are incredibly generous to BCE and help provide many of the additional services that make the Burlingame School District as strong as it is.

But comparing the revenue a property tax generates to the amount of money that BCE raises through all of those very generous donors shows how much more effective (and democratic) taxation is than charity.

On the one hand, very generous parents with direct interests in the school district's outcomes giving $7500 and more results in ~$2.5M of additional revenue for the schools. On the other, taxation at ~$300-500/household brings in ~$3.6M. (Likewise the Parcel Tax already in place at $256/parcel brings in $2.1M). And each of the tax measures is much more reliable than the amount of money donors will give, particularly given economic fluctuations.

All of this is against a ~$54M budget--so these additional funds make up about 9% of the total funds (now, without GG). That's a significant amount.

[Paloma Ave]

A house just sold in Burlingame today. The property taxes for 2023 were:

2023 $1,797 -

In 2025 they will be approximately $28,880.00

[Joe]

Also from Shapethefuture.org (the County), Measure GG has a comfortable margin of victory at 71.92% (7,070 for, 2,760 opposed).

[Joe]

Today's Nov. 11 update has GG at 73.22% in favor (26.78% opposed). Countywide there are about 15% left to be counted, so this is a done deal. Total turnout countywide is 63.5%.

[Cassandra]

Gas to go up 65 cents a gallon due to environmental concerns pushed by Gavin’s government…

[Joe]

Here's the final vote count on GG:

YES 11,200 74.01%
NO 3,934 25.99%

It passes by about 7%.