Yes on school Measure R

It's important that Oak Park residents understand the truth about Measure R, the school bond measure to repair Oak Park schools on the November ballot, and the tax rate.

The school board carefully weighed the tax burden on homeowners before voting to place Measure R on the ballot. The tax rate on the existing bonds from 1977 spiked this year to $183.80 per $100,000 of assessed value, not market value, due to an anomaly when the bonds were issued many years ago. The 20-year average for this rate has been $169.70.

Next year, the rate drops dramatically to $89.10 and continues to plummet until it disappears completely in 2017. The new Measure R tax rate of $44.87 will not be applied until the existing rate drops.

This means that if Measure R passes the facilities bond total will be $133.97 next year, a lower rate than homeowners are now paying and well below the average that homeowners have been paying over the life of school district. This rate will continue to drop yearly as the old bond phases out.

This is why Measure R is a win-win for our schools and the community. The school district will have funds to repair our schools, ensuring that our buildings are safe for our children, and the taxpayers will actually pay less than they are paying now or have paid over the life of the existing school bonds.

If you have any questions about the tax rate, please do not hesitate to contact our superintendent, Dr. Tony Knight, at tknight@opusd.k12.ca.us or (818) 735-3206, or visit www.opusd.k12.ca.us to see a chart that depicts the rates past, present, and future. Cindy Vinson Oak Park

Vinson is the president of the OPUSD Board of Education