On March 2, California voters will be asked to pass Proposition 55, a $12.3 billion bond measure which would provide funding for new construction and repair school facilities for K-12 and higher education. The California State University system will receive $690 million if the proposition is passed.

Sacramento State spokesman Frank Whitlatch said the university has requested a portion of the bond money to finance minor capital outlay projects around campus, and that $2.3 million would be used for major renovations in Shasta Hall. He also said $930,000 would be used for planning and preparation for a new Science II building.

Another $2.3 million would be used for smaller remodeling projects. Currently, renovations are planned for the third floor in Sequoia Hall, remodeling of two rooms in Capistrano Hall and a department office in Kadema Hall, and work in Santa Clara, Riverside and Mariposa Halls.

Whitlatch said the money would be dispersed for the projects over the next year and a half. The bond will be repaid from state revenues over the next 30 years, primarily from income and sales tax. The total cost of the bond to the state will be approximately $24.7 billion, which includes interest of $12.4 billion. Bond money can only be used for eligible construction projects.

“Bonds are usually used to spread out the costs of big projects so taxpayers won’t feel a big hit in the short-term,” said government professor James Shoch. “It allows us to spend now while putting much of the cost on others.”

The proposition has been endorsed by over 400 various organizations and individuals, including the CSU Board of Trustees, the California Teachers Association and the Sac State Faculty Senate.

CSU spokeswoman Clara Potes-Fellow said that the bond is needed to improve and upgrade all of the CSU campuses, and to help relieve overcrowding.

“Most of the CSU buildings are more than 30 years old, and the funding will be used to build classrooms and laboratories so we have better facilities for the students and faculty,” Potes-Fellow said.

Republican Sen. Rico Oller, the California Taxpayer Protection Committee and the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association oppose the proposition.

Jon Coupal, president of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, said that the association opposes Proposition 55 because it is additional debt that the state cannot afford right now, given California’s poor credit rating.

“School infrastructure should be paid for with existing revenue that is being squandered and wasted away by the government, not with new debt,” Coupal said.

Bonds pay for much of the infrastructure costs for Sac State. In 1998 voters passed Proposition 1A, a $9.2 billion bond that helped fund the new Academic Information Resource Center, which is currently under construction south of the library.

In November 2002 voters passed Proposition 47, which provided an additional $13 billion for school facilities. The money from that bond is currently being used at Sac State to improve the telecommunications system, electrical system and water and sewage pipes.

Overall, passage of Proposition 55 would bring nearly $1 billion to the general Sacramento area, including all the K-12 school districts, UC Davis, Sac State and the local community colleges.