Proposition U on the ballot in the primary election, March 5, is a request for Malibu and Santa Monica voters to approve a bond issue for Santa Monica College. Voters and taxpayers living in the community college district which consists of Santa Monica and Malibu will be asked to approve (vote for) Proposition U and pay off the bonds if Proposition U passes.
Santa Monica College fills an important gap for those who need extra schooling necessary to enroll into a four-year college. However I am against the college bond issue. This is not about improving education as much as it is about giving the college a blank check for $160-million to use for expansion and growth both in Malibu and Santa Monica.
Santa Monica College is a state institution and gets the bulk of its funding from the state of California. If the college needs more funding, they should petition the state of California for additional funding, not just stick the taxpayers of Malibu and Santa Monica.
Santa Monica College (SMC) has a larger enrollment (33,259) than USC (28,000), twice the enrollment of Stanford University (14,248) and almost equal to UCLA’s enrollment (33,970). This is no small school and it is growing bigger each year. Only 15% of those enrolled at SMC live in the Santa Monica/Malibu Community College district whose taxpayers are being asked to carry 100% of the burden for these bonds – if Proposition U passes.
It is unfair of the college to ask local property owners to subsidize the education of the large percentage of SMC students who do not live in either community. In fact, the financial cost of the college bonds to the average homeowner will be an added $175 year based on property value of $700,000.I don’t think Malibu and Santa Monica property owners are getting a good deal on Proposition U and I urge voters to say “NO to Proposition U” and “No” to college expansion on March 5.
Bill Bauer