Today the State Allocation Board (Board) deferred action on a proposed regulation to cease accepting applications once bond authority has been exhausted. Approval of this proposal would essentially eliminate the School Facility Program (SFP) for projects outside of Proposition 51 bond authority. New Construction Proposition 51 bond authority is expected to be exhausted by October 2018, and Modernization bond authority is expected to be exhausted by September 2019.

CASH urged the Board to defer action and to thoroughly vet the proposal and its significant impacts. Chair Jacqueline Wong-Hernandez stated that she would like the proposal to come back before the Board in August 2018, and indicated that she intends to involve stakeholders in the review process.

CASH thanks all of our members who wrote or called legislators, and those who attended the Board meeting to request the deferral. It is clear that the future of the SFP is in question. This is why it is essential that CASH members and the school community participate in the discussion over the next few months. CASH will be calling on our members to directly engage in efforts to preserve the SFP.

Click here for the Item with the proposed regulation which provides more detail about the proposal. The analysis outlines the Office of Public School Construction’s concerns with maintaining a project list outside of bond authority.

~ CASH Staff