Olivia Soares

Measure Q yard signs are seen in front of houses around the neighborhoods of San Ramon. The parcel tax requires a two-thirds majority in the Nov. 5 election in order to pass.

As the San Ramon Valley Unified School District approaches the expiration of a long-time parcel tax at the end of the school year, voters must decide next month whether to renew this funding source that educators say has significantly contributed to the district’s quality over the past decade.
If passed on Nov. 5, Measure Q will require district homeowners in San Ramon, Danville and Alamo to continue to pay $144 annually for the next nine years and help generate about $6.5 million annually before expiring in 2034, according to DanvilleSanRamon.com.
Measure Q would renew an existing parcel tax, Measure A, which was approved in 2015 and has generated about $6.8 million annually since it came into effect on July 1, 2016, according to the school district’s website.
Voters will cast their ballots next month for Measure Q, which requires two-thirds support in order to pass. Senior citizens who are 65 and older are exempt from paying the parcel tax, but they are still eligible to participate in voting.
The district says the measure will continue to support critical school programs for years to come.
“I think the biggest thing [about the parcel tax] is the impact on our academics,” Principal Demetrius Ball said. “The parcel tax is supporting about 48 teachers district wide. There are multiple teachers who are technically funded through that parcel tax.”
Educators point out that the parcel tax is relatively small compared to what other Bay Area school districts have asked of their homeowners. For example, homeowners in the Mill Valley School District in Marin County are paying $1,250 annually as part of a 12-year parcel tax they approved in 2016. This appears to be the most expensive school parcel tax in the Bay Area.
Homeowners in the San Ramon Valley school district would continue to pay $12 a month, compared to more than $100 a month for Mill Valley homeowners. Parcel taxes in a half dozen other Bay Area school districts range between $335 to $958 annually.
“I think they said it would cost the average household $12 [a month], which is practically nothing for the households in our San Ramon district,” history teacher Jackson Collins said.
According to the Public Policy Institute of California, the parcel tax supports teacher training and development programs, which are essential in attracting and retaining top-of-the-line educators and ensuring they are equipped with the latest instructional and educational strategies.
The parcel tax funds also will provide a stable revenue stream which supports high-quality educational programs, including teacher salaries, classroom materials, and extracurricular activities, according to the district website.
“Without the parcel tax, many teachers would lose their jobs and move to other schools, which would reduce the amount of educational opportunities available,” junior Vishesh Verma said. “This would suck.”
Junior Logan Ramey agrees with Verma.
“I think the tax was good for the school and community actually because it provides extracurriculars and things of that nature for kids that may be underprivileged,” Ramey said.
Measure Q will contribute to core academic programs in reading, writing, math, and science, AP courses, and extracurricular clubs and activities, all of which are designed to prepare students for college and career success, according to the district website.
“The tax [failing] would lead to a lot of elective classes having to drop, which isn’t good,” junior Brayde Kuykendall said. “I’m in AP [Computer Science Principles], and I would hate for that class to get shut down.”
Many students believe that the outcome of Measure Q will have a significant effect on the quality of education and availability of programs in the district.
“Everybody should vote for this tax to be renewed and continued,” junior Siria Trinidad said. “This tax helps everybody.”
Many local educators believe community involvement is crucial to ensuring the district continues to provide exceptional educational opportunities for all students.
“I am a teacher who wants the best for every student in the district,” statistics teacher Bob Allen said, “so I am very invested in continuing the parcel tax.”
Last May, voters rejected Measures E and F, both of which failed to receive the required two-third majority vote. Measure E would have renewed the district’s $144 parcel tax but it was supported by only 63% of voters.
Measure F would have created a new $98 annual parcel tax to replace $6 million of expiring one-time state funding that was specifically used for educational support programs. Measure F received about 58 percent of the vote in the special, mail-in election in which only 27,601 out of 107,257 ballots (25.73 percent) were cast, according to DanvilleSanRamon.com.