Local education officials fear that the State Parks accounting scandal could endanger a crucial November tax vote.
By Melissa Caskey / The Malibu Times
During an election year in which Gov. Jerry Brown is asking voters to approve tax increases, his office’s handling of the state’s finances has come into question after auditors recently uncovered a hidden $54 million surplus in the State Parks Department. Brown’s staff is now under greater scrutiny following reports that the accounting discrepancies could stretch across multiple state departments and total about $2.3 billion in special fund accounts.
The State Parks money was held onto even as the agency opted to close 70 parks and cut services in order to make $22 million in budget cuts. It is not currently known whether the discrepancies are illegal or an attempt by state departments to hold onto funding through elaborate accounting measures in a down economy. But local public officials say the revelations could severely undermine public confidence that elected officials are telling the truth about state finances just months before voters decide on key state funding items.
Ben Allen, the school board president for the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District, said this type of news may not bode well for ballot items that could severely hinder schools across the state.
“This kind of thing does impact people’s confidence,” Allen said. “But at the end of the day, the stakes are too high for us to look at one incident. The money wasn’t stolen, the money is going to be recaptured by the state, so it’s not gone.”
The school district is banking on Brown’s key ballot item, Proposition 30, which would raise statewide sales taxes and taxes on high-income earners. If that item and another tax raise proposition by activist Molly Munger do not pass, SMMUSD could lose $5 million in funding in Fiscal Year 2012-13 alone. Additionally, the district may end up placing a $385-million bond measure on the local ballot for voters to consider.
“It’s frustrating for everybody when these kinds of things happen, particularly for those of us who work in public institutions. We know that public confidence is important in terms of our work,” Allen said. “Those that care about public schools are going to work like crazy and make sure people understand the implications of not supporting these measures.”
Craig Sap, the Angeles District Superintendent for State Parks, said State Parks’ involvement in Malibu should not be affected by the surplus discovery.
The Malibu Lagoon Project currently underway is funded by bond money, Sap said, and is unrelated to the department’s regular budget. Other projects coming down the pipeline in Malibu will be funded with proposition funds and Coastal Commission mitigation money, according to Sap.
As far as upcoming projects, Sap mentioned the replacement of pilings on the Malibu Pier, construction of low-cost cabin accommodations in Sycamore Canyon and a revised Master Plan for Topanga State Park. Malibu Pier concessionaire Alex Leff is required to pay for the new pilings, Sap said. The cabin constructions fees would be paid by the Coastal Commission and the Master Plan is funded by Proposition 84, he added.
“I haven’t had any indication that any of the projects are affected because of the money that was found,” Sap said.