After more than six years running Oakland’s schools, the state
returned the district to local control on Monday. The long-awaited move
came nearly seven months after state auditors recommended it. Oakland’s
school board will now have full authority over nearly all aspects of
the district for the first time since June 2003. Yet the state will
maintain veto power over financial decisions for years to come, because
the district still owes it about $80 million.
The state’s legacy was definitely mixed. The first administrator,
Randy Ward, instituted several important reforms, including making sure
that all schools are funded equally, ending a long tradition of giving
schools in the hills more money for teachers than flatlands schools.
Ward also launched a lottery system that gives students in lower-income
areas a better shot at attending high-performing schools. Previously,
those schools served just neighborhood kids and the children of
well-connected parents.
But the district also suffered under state control. Administrators
were more obsessed with implementing reforms financed by wealthy
businessmen Eli Broad and Bill Gates than returning the district to
financial stability. In fact, education superintendent Jack O’Connell
forced the district farther into debt. When the state took over Oakland
schools, the district was about $57 million in the hole, but the debt
has ballooned over the past several years.
California Is Almost Broke
In Sacramento, the state proved once again that it can’t balance its
own budget either. Controller John Chiang said things are so bad that
he will have to start issuing IOUs this week. Chiang issued his warning
as Democratic leaders continued to waste time pushing a budget with no
chance of passing. The plan sought to raise taxes to help bridge the
$24 billion budget gap, but Dems couldn’t muster enough GOP votes to
get it through the Legislature. Even if they had, the governor promised
to veto it. Chiang said he would issue the IOUs to local governments,
private contractors, state vendors, and to taxpayers awaiting tax
refunds. The move could be especially tough for local governments
already suffering because of the recession.
What’s Up with Berkeley?
One city that might not care much is Berkeley. According to the
San Francisco Chronicle, sales tax revenues in Berkeley actually
rose this year. City Manager Phil Kamlarz credited the increase to the
success of the city’s shopping districts, which are full of small,
diverse stores that tend to soften the impact of both economic
downturns and upturns. By contrast, cities that depend on big-box
retailers tend to experience booms and busts. Berkeley’s numerous
restaurants also helped boost tax receipts.
The increase in revenues has allowed the city to avoid layoffs and
steep budget cuts. In fact, the city’s budget is increasing next year,
which is amazing considering what other cities are going through. So
the next time someone in your town clamors for a big-box store, remind
them that cities are better off developing shopping districts full of
small, independent stores.
Give the IOUs to BART Workers
As employees throughout California started taking pay cuts or were
being laid off, BART operators and station agents had the temerity to
ask for a 3 percent raise over two years, according to the
Chron. Those workers, along with another union, also voted to
sanction a strike, although by early this week unions and management
brought in mediators and agreed to keep negotiating.
Meanwhile, the Chron also reported that BART cop Anthony
Pirone called Oscar Grant a “Bitch-ass Nigger,” just before fellow cop
Johannes Mehserle shot Grant to death as he lay face down on the
ground. Pirone was caught hurling the racial epithet on videotape, and
the revelation may further help explain how a routine arrest suddenly
turned deadly. Pirone, however, maintains that he was merely repeating
what Grant had said to him moments before. But Grant can’t be heard on
the tapes, while Pirone can. Moreover, the cop has a history of not
telling the truth.
Jerry Brown Sues Pleasanton
California Attorney General Jerry Brown made headlines when he sued
Pleasanton, alleging that its 1996 law capping the total number of
homes in the city violates state law. Pleasanton is on the verge of
approving a plan that calls for 45,000 more jobs there but no new
housing. Brown says the housing cap forces workers to live elsewhere,
thereby adding to sprawl and greenhouse gas emissions.
Brown also was in the news because LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
announced that will not run for governor next year against the attorney
general or San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom. According to a poll
earlier this week, Brown appears to have benefitted the most from
Villaraigosa’s decision.
Three-Dot Roundup
The Alameda County Board of Supervisors gutted the county’s criminal
justice system, laying off 14 prosecutors, 15 public defenders, and 49
probation employees. Supervisors said they will rethink the layoffs if
unions agree to pay cuts. … The Berkeley school district has
assembled a task force to deal with drug and alcohol use after 54
percent of eleventh graders reported being drunk or stoned on campus.
… Amazon.com threatened to sever
ties with hundreds of state businesses if a bill by Assemblywoman Nancy
Skinner of Berkeley forces the online giant to start charging sales
tax. … And Congresswoman Ellen Tauscher won confirmation for a top
post in the State Department, setting the stage for an election between
Lieutenant Governor John Garamendi and state Senator Mark
DeSaulnier.
