June 2004

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Guest Commentary

Kevin McCarthy is the Republican leader of the California Assembly. He represents parts of Kern and San Bernardino counties.

More government and more bureaucracy is not the answer. Delivering a quality education should be the Legislature’s first, second, and third priority.

Clearly this was not the case with the Legislature passed Senate Bill 1419. This law, signed by Gray Davis during his 2002 re-election campaign, prohibits school districts from establishing public-private partnerships for non-instructional services such as transportation, landscaping, or maintenance.

Not surprisingly, this legislation was sponsored by the California School Employees Association which, according to Sacramento Bee columnist Daniel Weintraub, has showered Democratic legislators with millions of dollars in campaign contributions since 2001 (the union contributed $300,000 in an effort to defeat the recall of Governor Davis).

This is another example of what Californians wanted to end when they recalled Gray Davis: politics-as-usual. Standing with Governor Schwarzenegger, taxpayer advocates, and education leaders, I introduced Assembly Bill 2992, legislation that would repeal SB 1419. Ultimately, this bill would restore local control of school spending and ensure fiscal accountability for taxpayer dollars. Unfortunately, the Assembly Committee on Public Employees, Retirement and Social Security voted along party lines to kill the measure, protecting the union’s grip on school districts’ finances.

During the worst financial crisis in California’s history, we must ensure that every taxpayer dollar is spent efficiently in our schools. If SB 1419 is repealed, it is estimated that local schools can save $300 million a year without one teacher layoff, fee increase, or service cutback.

For example, Folsom Cordova Unified School District was set to save $700,000 annually by contracting for transportation services without reducing the services they provide. The union sued the school district, arguing SB 1419 prohibited them from contracting out for services. Thanks to the law, budget cuts have forced the district to recommend the elimination of all high school bus services. This frivolous lawsuit prevented hundreds of thousands of dollars in savings and cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands more in legal fees.

Another example is Reed Elementary School District in Marin County. They can afford only one groundskeeper to maintain school athletic fields, which are also used by the community. When community groups offered to hire additional groundskeepers to maintain the fields, the district was prohibited from accepting the assistance under SB 1419.

Governor Schwarzenegger strongly supports the repeal of SB 1419 as part of his effort to give school districts additional flexibility. Despite the recent legislative vote, he is firmly committed to repealing this harmful law.

I can’t tolerate the wasteful use of taxpayer dollars, and neither should Californians. Education leaders must be able to make financial decisions without being bound by unnecessary regulations. I will work aggressively to ensure that this harmful law is repealed as part of a budget compromise. It’s time for the Legislature to put Californians first.