HUSD Moves Ahead With Staff Cuts, Bond Measure

Healdsburg Unified School District will confirm cuts of the equivalent of for the 2012-13 school year at a special meeting Wednesday.

The meeting is set for 5 p.m. at the

Superintendent Jeff Harding said the layoffs, tentatively approved earlier this year, were due to a shrinking student population at .

"The senior class we're losing to graduation this year is a large class," Harding said.

HUSD board members also are scheduled Wednesday to approve an underwriter for the ballot. If approved by voters, the measure would extend the current school bond debt term and generate $35 million for school facilities maintenance and repairs.

A committee called Citizens for Quality Schools is distributing flyers in Healdsburg mailboxes. So far, two flyers have gone out explaining how money from the bond extension measure would be spent.

"The community's been overwhelmingly supportive," said Harding, who has been speaking on the ballot measure and success of the schools at local civic groups in recent weeks. "People understand that school buildings are an investment, just like if you have an old house, you have to go through and modernize."

Harding said the HUSD budget for 2012-13 "remains tight."

"We're waiting until after the November elections for news from Sacramento," he said, referring to two education funding initiatives -- one from Gov. Jerry Brown and another from organizer Molly Monger. "We're preparing for the worst and hoping for the best."

Harding said the worst case budget scenario would mean that the district would not replace the five days of school that it cut from the school calendar this year. If either tax measure is successful and the district gets enough money from the state, HUSD could add back the lost school days, he said.

On Tuesday, the Sonoma County Democratic Party announced they support Brown's initiative, the Schools and Local Public Safety Protection Act of 2012. The Democrats' Central Committee voted in favor of the act at its April 10 meeting, the announcement said.

See the text of the Democratic resolution below following this article.

Meanwhile, Harding said the district still is in limbo on its deal with the city of Healdsburg to building on Healdsburg Avenue due to the

"That's one of the issues that's yet to be determined," he said. "We're waiting on the state Department of Finance" to decide whether Healdsburg may go ahead with the purchase using redevelopment money.

On Monday, Healdsburg Assistant City Manager David Mickaelian said the Department of Finance has twice rejected Healdsburg's request for completing its redevelopment projects due to technicalities. is likely to vote to submit a third request to the state at its meeting May 15, Mickaelian said.

In other HUSD business, Harding said the district will be expanding its Charter School program to add in third, fourth and fifth grades. The program started in the current school year with kindergarten, first and second grades.

"It's been well-received," Harding said. "Currently all classes are filled."

Here is the text of the resolution supporting Gov. Jerry Brown's initiative.

Sonoma County Democratic Party Resolution supporting the Schools and Local Public Safety Protection Act of 2012

WHEREAS, the State of California faces budget deficits of over $20 billion, and an “all cuts” solution has resulted in huge cuts to education, and vital services to working families, seniors, the disabled, and the needy, and without new revenue, more than $5 billion in added cuts to schools, universities and public safety will have to be made, and

WHEREAS, the top one percent of the wealthiest Californians have doubled their share of California’s income while paying even lower tax rates than they once did, and the state’s financial plight can be remedied by requiring these Californians ($250,000 per year income and more) to pay their fair share, and

WHEREAS, a broad coalition of labor and grassroots organizations have come together and negotiated an agreement with Governor Brown to each set aside their separate ballot measures and join forces on a new initiative which, if passed, will raise $9 billion in the first year, $8 billion of which will be achieved through a progressive income tax increase for individual Californians making more than $250,000 a year, or households making more than $500,000 a year, and

WHEREAS, no one making less than $250,000 will see an income tax increase, and a sales tax increase, affecting all Californians, will be just 1/4 cent, representing approximately 15% of the new tax measure’s revenue;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Sonoma County Democratic Party endorses the initiative, the Schools and Local Public Safety Protection Act of 2012.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Sonoma County Democratic Party urges an unprecedented effort be made over the next 3 weeks to place this initiative on the ballot, and a sustained effort thereafter be made to pass this compromise measure to ensure that funding for public education, vital services, and public safety is restored.

Adopted by Sonoma County Democratic Party Central Committee on April 10, 2012