Measure A - Peralta Community College District
To continue funding for community colleges in Alameda, Berkeley, and Oakland at existing tax rates, support affordable education to prepare students for jobs/ careers and university transfer; attract/ retain high quality faculty; shall Peralta Community College District's measure be adopted, reauthorizing the existing $48 per parcel annually for 9 years, providing $8,000,000 annually, with oversight, funds that cannot be taken by the state or used for administrator salaries, all benefitting local colleges?.Yes Votes Needed to Pass: 2/3 of the total votes cast on the measure by eligible voters.★★★ IMPORTANT ★★★EXPAND this compressed “About This Race” window (by clicking "Read More") for valuable information. Don't miss it!……………………………………………………………….................................MEASURE A ESSENTIALS ☆Placed on the Ballot By: Peralta Community College District Governing BoardMeasure Type: Special Parcel Tax"Yes" Votes Needed to Pass: two-thirds of the total votes cast on the measure by eligible voters.....................................................................................................☆ QUESTION ON THE BALLOT ☆To continue funding for community colleges in Alameda, Berkeley, and Oakland at existing tax rates, support affordable education to prepare students for jobs/ careers and university transfer; attract/ retain high quality faculty; shall Peralta Community College District's measure be adopted, reauthorizing the existing $48 per parcel annually for 9 years, providing $8,000,000 annually, with oversight, funds that cannot be taken by the state or used for administrator salaries, all benefitting local colleges?☆ WHAT YOUR "YES" OR "NO" VOTE MEANS ☆A “YES” vote is a vote to approve the proposed parcel tax.A “NO” vote is a vote not to approve the proposed parcel tax.……………………………………………………………….................................★ LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS ANALYSIS (PROS & CONS) ★Source: The League of Women Voters of Oakland.Other formats: PDF, Video.THE SITUATION:In 2012, voters approved Measure B, a $48 parcel tax to fund affordable higher education across these Peralta Community Colleges: Oakland’s Laney and Merritt Colleges, College of Alameda and Berkeley City College. Voters reauthorized the tax for 10 years in 2018. The tax yields eight million dollars annually. Revenues from the tax help prepare students for jobs and careers as well as for transfers to four-year colleges. Funds from the measure also support retraining programs, ensure the preservation of core academic programs and facilitate the recruitment and retention of faculty. An independent citizen oversight committee monitors expenditures. The most recent financial and performance audits in 2024-25 certified that funds have been spent in accord with voter approved requirements.THE PROPOSAL:Measure A proposes that the existing $48 parcel tax be renewed effective July 1, 2027, with an expiration date of June 30, 2036. The proposal sets the same purposes and goals for funding as were set in the original measure and the current extension: preparing students for jobs and careers as well as for transfers to four-year colleges, ensuring the preservation of core academic programs and facilitating the recruitment and retention of faculty.The existing Citizen’s Parcel Tax Oversight Committee will continue to examine revenues and expenditures for compliance with the voter approved requirements. As part of the oversight, trustees will review an annual presentation on parcel tax plans, expenditures and progress toward student success and measurable outcomes. The measure mandates an annual audit report stating the amount of money received and expended from parcel tax proceeds, and the status of projects and programs funded by the parcel tax. Each of the colleges must also develop two-year expenditure plans. THE FISCAL EFFECT:Measure A would extend the current $48 parcel tax for nine years until 2036. The measure raises eight million dollars in annual revenue.SUPPORTERS SAY: Voting YES on A will maintain critical funding that supports students at Oakland’s Laney and Merritt Colleges, College of Alameda and Berkeley City College in obtaining quality career training and avoiding high-interest debt.In times of increasing educational costs and reduced state and federal funding, this measure provides critical funding that stabilizes these colleges’ finances and enables students to learn skills for future employment.OPPONENTS SAY:No opposition statements appear on the Registrar of Voters’ website, nor have we identified other statements or articles in opposition. ..........................................................................................................★ OFFICIAL INFORMATION ★The source of this information is pages PCCMA 1-4 in the Alameda County Voter Information Guide ☆ BALLOT TITLE ☆PERALTA COLLEGES AFFORDABLE EDUCATION REAUTHORIZATION MEASURETo continue funding for community colleges in Alameda, Berkeley, and Oakland at existing tax rates, support affordable education to prepare students for jobs/ careers and university transfer; attract/ retain high quality faculty; shall Peralta Community College District's measure be adopted, reauthorizing the existing $48 per parcel annually for 9 years, providing $8,000,000 annually, with oversight, funds that cannot be taken by the state or used for administrator salaries, all benefitting local colleges?"☆ IMPARTIAL ANALYSIS ☆ANALYSIS BY THE COUNTY COUNSEL FOR THE COUNTY OF ALAMEDA OF A PERALTA COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICT SPECIAL PARCEL TAX MEASURE Measure A (“Measure”), a Peralta Community College District (“District”) special parcel tax measure, seeks voter approval to reauthorize the special parcel tax approved by voters as Measure B in 2012 and reauthorized as Measure E in 2018. If passed, the Measure would levy a special parcel tax at a uniform rate of $48 per parcel per year, for nine years, from July 1, 2027, to June 30, 2036. Properties exempt from ad valorem property taxes or on which no ad valorem taxes are levied in any year shall also be exempt from the parcel tax. The District estimates the parcel tax, if passed, will provide approximately $8,000,000 annually. Proceeds from the parcel tax may be used only to augment (not replace) existing funding for purposes listed in the Measure, which include, but are not limited to: attracting and retaining qualified faculty, supporting programs that prepare students for jobs and transfer to universities, job retraining programs, and core academic programs. Proceeds may not be used for administrator salaries. The Measure contains certain accountability provisions, including requiring the District to deposit parcel tax proceeds in a separate account and an annual report to the District’s governing board from the District’s Chief Operating Officer and its Chancellor or Deputy Chancellor stating the amount of funds collected and expended that year and the status of any projects funded by the proceeds. The Measure also requires the District to develop two-year plans, with measurable outcomes, for expending proceeds from the parcel tax, which must be reviewed and approved by the District’s governing board. In October of each year, District’s governing board will receive a presentation on the parcel tax plans, expenditures, and progress toward identified outcomes. A community college district has the authority to levy special taxes upon approval by two-thirds of the votes cast on the special tax proposal. (Cal. Const. art. XIII A, § 4; art. XIII C, § 2; Cal. Gov’t Code §§ 50075-50077, 50079.1, & 53722.) If two-thirds of the qualified electors voting on this Measure do not vote for approval, it will fail, and the District will not be authorized to levy the special parcel tax. This Measure is placed on the ballot by the governing board of the District. s/ ANDREA L. WEDDLE Interim County Counsel The above statement is an impartial analysis of Measure A, which is printed in full in this sample ballot pamphlet. If you desire an additional copy of the measure, please call the Elections Official’s office at (510) 272-6933 and a copy will be mailed at no cost to you. You may also access the full text of the measure on the Alameda County website at the following address: www.acvote.org.☆ FULL TEXT OF THE MEASURE ☆The full text of the measure may be found here, and on this page of the Alameda County Elections website (ACVote) ARGUMENT IN FAVOR OF MEASURE A Vote YES on A: Protect affordable education for East Bay students without increasing taxes. YES on A maintains local, affordable higher education across Oakland’s Laney and Merritt Colleges, College of Alameda, and Berkeley City College. As the cost of U.C., Cal State, and private colleges continues to skyrocket, YES on A ensures students continue to save thousands of dollars and avoid high-interest debt. Measure A does NOT increase taxes. Your YES on A vote simply reauthorizes locally controlled funding voters have approved twice before, supporting the Peralta Colleges for the past 13 years. We need YES on A to maintain our quality career training programs so students can learn skills to secure good-paying jobs in healthcare, technology, sciences and clean energy, firefighting, and other fields. Vote YES on A to: Maintain job, career, and university-transfer programs Maintain job retraining programs for 21st century jobs Prevent cuts to math, science, and English Continue to attract and retain high-quality faculty and educators All without raising taxes!Our local community colleges have always been severely underfunded. Funding cuts are worsening with the Trump administration’s dismantling of the U.S. Department of Education and political attacks on our education. We cannot afford to lose this funding. YES on A protects funding that is reliable, stable, and critical to the fiscal stability of the Peralta Colleges. YES on A retains its STRONG ACCOUNTABILITY requirements, including: Oversight by an independent citizen committee to monitor spending Independent financial and performance audits By law, Measure A funding must continue to be spent for our local community colleges. NO money can be taken by the State or used for administrator salaries. Join students, educators, labor, business and community leaders, and a unanimous Board of Trustees in voting YES on A! www.PeraltaYesOnA.com s/ DEREK O’BAR Class President, Nursing Program Merritt College s/ ANNIKA (ROSA) PEREZ Student Treasurer, College of Alamedas/ Peralta Federation of Teachers by JEFFREY SANCERI, Presidents/ALYSSE CASTRO Alameda County Superintendent of Schoolss/ZACHARY UNGER Frmr Peralta Colleges Citizen’s Oversight Committee Chair and frmr President of Oakland Firefighters
