Ryan ChartrandA proposition that will infuse $10.4 billion into California’s education system, including $16.7 million for Cal Poly over two years, was headed toward approval as of deadline Tuesday.
Despite trailing earlier in the night, Proposition 1D was up by a margin of five points, 54.6 percent to 45.4. As of 11:02 p.m. on Tuesday, 3,667,064 votes had been totaled.
The proposition will send $7.3 billion to K-12 schools while the remaining $3.1 billion will be sent to higher education such as community colleges, Universities of California and California State Universities like Cal Poly.
The funds will be used to repair older facilities, provide earthquake safety and deal with the constant problem of overcrowding in California’s educational facilities.
Funding for the bill will arrive via obligation bonds sold by the state. It will cost the state $20.3 billion to pay off the loan, including $9.9 billion in interest payments.
The primary concern over the bill was the strain to repay nearly $10 billion in interest. Critics of the bill contend that the burden is too much for California to bear and that ultimately the beneficiaries of the bill, California’s schoolchildren, will be forced to deal with such a burden.
Larry Kelley, Cal Poly vice president of student affairs, was rather disappointed with the proposition’s early showing. Kelley vowed that he and others would persevere, if the proposition was voted down, saying he “would continue to work toward that (getting the proposition passed).”
The bill would benefit Cal Poly in various ways including replacement of Anderson Pool and providing equipment and furniture for the new Construction Management building.
Nearly $5 million of the $16.7 million Cal Poly will receive is earmarked for the new Science building.
Kelley called the project “extremely important to Cal Poly students, academic programs and administration.”