For the last 10 years I have been actively involved in reviewing and granting scholarships for high school students in the Santa Ynez Valley. A good education is one of the most vital elements of a thriving community. We have been fortunate, until recently, that there has been community and county support for superior education.
In just three short years, Joan Hartmann’s votes and policies have cut millions of dollars of revenue that should have gone to schools in the Santa Ynez Valley and surrounding areas. That number will grow every year until Hartmann is voted out of office and replaced by Bruce Porter.
Supervisor Hartmann concocted a plan that effectively diverts money away from local schools and into the county general fund. In 2017, Hartmann chose to negotiate the terms of the Camp 4 agreement in secret, and the results have devastated local schools. The agreement included $178,000 to be paid to Santa Barbara County for 10 years, in lieu of paying property taxes. Normally, about half of the property tax goes to local schools (where the Camp 4 children will attend), so $89,000 should have been designated for Santa Ynez Elementary School and Santa Ynez Valley High School every single year. But instead, the agreement called for every penny to be sent to the county general fund and none (or nearly none) of it will reach local schools.
But it gets worse. New construction planned for Camp 4 would normally add additional dollars to local schools through developer’s fees, as 143 new homes will undoubtedly generate more students. At current rates, 143 new homes would have added about $1.2 million to local schools. The new homes would ordinarily also generate higher property tax rates as new homes were built on raw land, but there is no provision in the Hartmann agreement to take that into account. At approximately $1 million per home for 143 homes, that’s another $1.43 million every single year in lost revenues, not even accounting for allowable increases under Proposition 13. But Hartmann chose not to include any of this in her agreement and none of the money will be used in the classroom.
Elsewhere, Hartmann’s policies on the Santa Ynez Unit in Las Flores Canyon have already resulted in losses of over $2 million to Santa Ynez High School, almost resulting in bankruptcy for the school district on the Gaviota coast, and resulted in increased class size in Buellton schools. A study done by UCSB calculates losses to Santa Ynez High School of about $494,000 every single year—which is the equivalent of six teachers. The UCSB study calculated losses to Goleta schools at $2.2 million per year and county fire at $1.2 million per year. The same policies have nearly bankrupted Vista Del Mar School District on the Gaviota Coast, in existence for 93 years. Some Gaviota students are already being bused to school in Buellton.
Interestingly, Supervisor Hartmann never bothered to pick up the phone to talk to elected school board members or school district superintendents to discuss the impact of her actions or ways to mitigate them. I guess it wasn’t a good photo op.
I am supporting Bruce Porter for 3rd District county supervisor because he fully understands the issues, supports improved local schools, can dialogue with educational leaders, and has the financial acumen to solve these financial issues. Bruce was a member and president of the Santa Ynez High School District and understands the impact of county funding on the futures of our children, the leaders of tomorrow. As an engineer, he has deep experience with roads, highways, parks, and utilities. He has built a business and created jobs for local residents. He has served and supported numerous nonprofits to serve our community’s most needy families. He is not beholden to any political party or special interest group. Bruce Porter is the best choice for 3rd District supervisor.
Richard Nagler writes from Solvang. Send comments through the editor at clanham@santamariasun.com, or write a letter for publication to letters@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Feb 6-13, 2020.
