District Dilemma

Why are our salaries so low compared to other districts in Marin County ?
It's all about funding from Sacramento. As the table indicates, Novato schools are at the bottom of the funding pack. This is a problem that has been around for decades and its origin is rooted in the funding stream provided to Novato schools decades ago when the Hamilton military base was in operation. At that time adults residing on the Hamilton Base did not provide property tax revenue to support their kids' education in Novato public schools. In response to this lack of tax revenue, Hamilton gave money directly to our district to help with the added cost of educating the children of military families. Proposition 13 passed and decimated property tax income to local governments and dictated the rate of future property tax increases for both residential and commercial property. In the years that followed school funding began to flow from Sacramento. The new revenue stream to local districts was based on a formula derived from an analysis of pre-Prop 13 tax expenditures for schools. However, the extra money provided by Hamilton to NUSD was not acknowledged in this formula. The basic parameters of this formula continue to impact our funding to this day. The table demonstrates the inequity that having a military base has had on this community.

Won't equalization help ?
This year NUSD received 1.13% of equalization funding. Imagine a "Low Wealth" district like NUSD receiving 2% in equalization money in a year with a 6% COLA. Based on a funding per student formula of $7000 , Novato would receive only $420 more per ADA, whereas a "Basic Aid" district with a funding formula of $10,000 would receive $600 more per student--without receiving the 2% equalization money from the state. As you can see, equalization at the rates provided is inadequate to change the inequality beween Low Wealth districts like ours and Basic Aid districts like Tamalpias.

What can be done?
Are we relegated to this low funding status forever ?
Funding flows from Sacramento. If we can help change the mindset in the California legislature and the governor's office then we will ultimately change our district's financial status.