A $9 billion bond issue for the Los Angeles Unified School District has been approved by voters.
The facility funding for the district, the nation's second largest, will be in addition to its share of the statewide $10 billion bond issue that also was approved by voters. Los Angeles estimated earlier this year that it could be eligible for about $700 million from the state's bond issue.
Before placing the Los Angeles bond proposal, labeled Measure US, on the ballot, district leaders asserted that the needs “are great — more than 60% of school buildings are over 50 years old and desperately in need of upgrades, which means most of Los Angeles Unified students are attending school in deteriorating and aging facilities that do not meet today’s standards for learning and safety.”
About $5 billion of the $9 billion would be allocated for “major modernizations, upgrades and reconfigurations to school campuses.”
Other funding areas: $75 million for electric buses; $461 million for cafeteria upgrades: $258 million to make spaces accessible for those with disabilities; $70.5 million for security cameras.
About $1.25 billion is to go toward school greening projects. These could include planting trees, removing asphalt from playgrounds, installing outdoor classrooms and erecting shade structures.
About $300 million is provisionally set aside for charter schools, which enroll about 22% of district students.
