Lompoc Unified School District

Measure E2018 - 55% Approval Required

Measure E2018 is the key to providing Lompoc students with a learning environment that is free of crumbling drywall and leaking walls/roofs. A Yes vote on Measure E demonstrates to the youth of Lompoc that we value their education and are investing in them; our future.

Measure E2018 is a vote of confidence in our students. It will repair aging schools, enhance security, increase opportunities for our children to play safely, and provide much needed maintenance to our 50-year old facilities.

Measure E2018 provides dedicated, locally-controlled funding to support a safe and modern learning environment for local students – without increasing taxes above what we already pay.

In the past, communities have shown their support for education and children by voting for bonds that were used to build or repair schools. We are asking you to vote for our future, our children, and help us provide them quality facilities. A detailed plan outlining projects by school can be found at https://www.lusd.org/domain/2401.

Our students deserve to have the same educational opportunities as others in the region.

Vote Yes on Measure E2018 to:

·         Repair/replace crumbling drywall.

·         Remove & replace broken blinds that scream inner-city school.

·         Paint interior walls that haven’t been painted in over 2 generations.

·         Repair roofs and wall systems to prevent leaking and flooding.

·         Replace heating and air-conditioning systems to prevent sweltering/freezing classroom environments.

·         Improve student safety and campus security systems

Mandatory Fiscal Accountability:

·         All funds must stay in our Lompoc schools

·         Independent citizen oversight and annual reports are required

·         No money can be used for administrator salaries

Measure E2018 will fund needed repairs and safety improvements in our Lompoc schools by extending, not increasing, the tax rate currently paid to support schools facilities.

Our town supports our youth, show your support by voting YES on Measure E2018.

The undersigned authors of the Argument in Favor of ballot measure E2018 at the Consolidated General Election for the Lompoc Unified School District to be held on November 6, 2018, hereby state that such argument is true and correct to the best of his/her/their knowledge and belief.

/s/ Edward G. Casarez 7/27/18 
Retired Lompoc Fire Chief, LUSD Alumni  

/s/ Susanne Boyer 7/27/18
58-year Lompoc resident; LUSD alumni & parent LUSD students  

/s/ George Bedford 7/27/18 
46-year Lompoc resident; grand-parent LUSD students  

/s/ Wendy Knowles 7/30/18 
Parent; grandparent LUSD students  

/s/ John Lizarraga Jr. 7/30/18
Business owner AceCo Rentals; LUSD Alumni; lifelong Lompoc resident 

We’re your neighbors, not some “Shadowy group” conceived in someone’s wild imagination. It’s District’s backers that hide in the shadows.

You told District “No” in 2016, again in June. Did District respect your wishes? Is it about school facilities or freeing up money earmarked for maintenance to pay wildly generous salaries, pensions, and benefits. It’s a scam.

Facilities contractors paid $37,200 to fund Q2018 campaign. (Isn’t that called pay-to-play?) Parents, teachers, and community leaders? Zero! Who got paid? Slick San Francisco marketer that sells bond elections all over California that District also paid $60,568.66 with your taxes for sleazy “information” campaign. Local newspaper! Can you trust the news?

How much will District waste on Measure E2018? It’s not District’s money. It’s yours.

Why vote No on Measure E2018

-Did District change anything from failed Measure Q2018?

-Where’s the list of SPECIFIC projects REQUIRED BY LAW?

-Can you trust District? After wasting money on L2016, it wasted even more on Q2018. How much will it waste to get its way?

-Why did District violate oversight laws over many years for previous Measure N (2002)?

-Why did oversight committee mix $40,548,278 of state money with bond money?

Proposition 39 permits a bare majority of voter (55%) to approve these bonds. “To ensure that BEFORE they vote, voters will be given a list of specific projects their bond money will be used for,” it requires that Measure E2018 be a “list of specific school facilities projects to be funded.” (Source: Proposition 39 ballot measure.)

Measure E2018’s intentionally vague language gives District a BLANK CHECK with NO ACCOUNTABILITY.

The undersigned authors of the Argument Against ballot measure E2018 at the Consolidated General Election for the Lompoc Unified School District to be held on November 6, 2018, hereby state that such argument is true and correct to the best of his/her/their knowledge and belief.

/s/ William H. Heath     7/26/18
Parent of LUSD Students, LUSD Board VP

/s/ Gavin Allred         7/26/18
Parent of former LUSD students

/s/ Greg Doyle    7/26/18
Former LUSD Board President

/s/ Ann W. Ruhge      7/27/18
Retired Teacher, Former Lompoc City Couselor

/s/ Ron Fink      7/27/18
Tax Payer

Let’s talk law. Law says Measure N could tax you $60 per $100,000 maximum. Why is your tax rate $75.98? District issued CABs (capital appreciation bonds, like those in Poway Unified scandal}.

Constitution prohibits operating costs like repairs and painting.

NO ADMINISTRATION SALARIES?

Constitution says no salaries. Statutes say no salaries. Question, measure, and argument say no salaries. Guess what lawyers sneaked in? Hint: Read kitchen-sink paragraphs. Salaries will be paid. You can take that to the bank.

PENSIONS?

Shifting salaries and operating costs to bonds means more money for extravagant pensions.

OVERSIGHT?

Have you ever seen expenditure reports from Measure N? Good Stewardship? It’s all fake news.

FACTS

How did District get to $79,000,000? It’s maximum it can take in one measure.
Measure E2018 is a contract. Have you read the fine print? Besides District salaries, what else does it pay for? – “staff training,” “outstanding lease obligations,” “performing arts buildings,” and on and on.
Are our schools REALLY “crumbling?” See School Accountability Report Cards. (sarconline.org) Not a “leaky roof” in the lot.
Who’s being deceptive and dishonest?
Should you believe SARCs required by law? Or District’s deceptive sales pitch?

District spent $38,000,000 from Measure N plus $40,548,278 from State.
Why are you buying Measure N promises again?

BOTTOM LINE

Can you trust District? When you’re not looking, will District breach law, its promises, and your trust?
Would you really agree to a written contract where promises weren’t explicitly and unambiguously written into it?

You’re being deceived! Don’t sign a blank check.
Vote NO!

The undersigned authors of the Rebuttal to Argument in Favor of ballot measure E2018 at the Consolidated General Election for the Lompoc Unified School District to be held on November 6, 2018, hereby state that such argument is true and correct to the best of his/her/their knowledge and belief.

/s/ Caleb Stewart                            8/12/18
Parent of Former LUSD Students
/s/ Gavin M. Allred                          8/12/18
Parent of Former LUSD Students
/s/ Greg Doyle                                8/12/18
Former LUSD Board President
/s/ Justin M. Ruhge                         8/12/18
Retired Aerospace
/s/ Ron Fink                                    8/12/18
Taxpayer

Let’s be clear, a YES vote on Measure E2018 is a vote for our kids. Past generations invested in the construction of Lompoc Unified School District (LUSD) facilities 50 years ago. These schools are now showing their age and need significant infrastructure repair and modernization. A vote yes is a vote for our kids; our future.

Although Lompoc experienced low voter turn-out in June 2018, over half of the voters casted a YES vote for Measure Q which needed 55% to pass. Let’s rally behind our kids, vote yes on Measure E.

Specific projects, by site and approximate start date, are posted at each of our school sites and available at https://www.lusd.org/domain/2401. The Facility Master Plan is available at LUSD Office and the Lompoc and Vandenberg Village library branches.

State matching funds are available to LUSD if the community passes a local bond. Surrounding districts are tapping into those state funds to assist in upgrading their facilities. Utilizing state matching funds to maximize local resources is legal, ethical, and common. Other districts are benefitting from state matching funds, Lompoc youth deserve the same opportunities as others throughout the region.

An oversight committee, made up of community volunteers, oversees expenditures to ensure no funds are wasted, none are used for administrator salaries, and are used for critical repair and upgrade projects in our schools.

The youth make up approximately 25% of our population, but 100% of our future. Vote for our future, vote for our kids, vote YES on Measure E.

The undersigned authors of the Rebuttal to Argument Against ballot measure E2018 at the Consolidated General Election for the Lompoc Unified School District to be held on November 6, 2018, hereby state that such argument is true and correct to the best of his/her/their knowledge and belief.

/s/ Corey McIntyre                                  8/8/18
life-long Lompoc resident; LUSD alumni
/s/ Tom Blanco                                        8/9/18
37-year resident Lompoc
/s/ Robert K. Lawrence                            8/9/18
46 year Lompoc resident; parent LUSD;
/s/ Kurt S. Schmidt                                 8/9/18
life-long resident, California Highway Patrol; LUSD alumni
/s/ Rick Fridrich                                      8/10/18
local business owner; LUSD alumni; life-long resident