A coalition of parents, teachers and students is asking a California judge to halt billions of dollars in school modernization funding until the state adopts a more equitable system for distributing the money.
Plaintiffs in Rodriguez v. State of California argue the state favors wealthier districts when awarding roughly $4 billion in Proposition 2 funds for school repairs and modernization projects.
California requires districts to contribute local funding to qualify for state matching funds. The lawsuit argues that wealthier districts can raise more money through property taxes and bond measures, giving them an advantage when competing for state dollars.
The complaint also alleges that the program's first-come, first-served structure favors higher-income districts with more staff and resources to prepare applications and plan projects.
"The more that the local districts can come to the table, the more projects they can put up, the more the state will give them," said John Affeldt, an attorney with Public Advocates, which represents the plaintiffs.
Affeldt said the funding system violates California's constitution and decades of court precedent aimed at reducing disparities between school districts.
“In the last 50 years, we have been fixing and improving the operations side of our finance system for schools,” he said. “But California has never addressed or fixed the very same problem of wealth-based discrimination that happens in our capital finance system.”
The Eureka- and Crescent City-based True North Organizing Network is among the plaintiffs. Amy Campbell-Blair, the organization's organizing director and a parent in the Del Norte Unified School District, said many schools in the region struggle with deteriorating facilities, including leaking roofs and peeling paint.
"This is not a problem isolated to one school," she said. "It's widespread. It's across all school sites."
Campbell-Blair said Del Norte County districts face challenges raising local money because much of the county's land is owned by state or federal agencies and is not subject to local property taxes.
The lawsuit cites other examples from far Northern California. In Shasta County's Fall River Joint Unified School District, every school has encountered asbestos problems, according to the complaint.
“Students must learn in the same modular classrooms that were present when their grandparents attended school, many over 55 years old, despite being intended for 20 years of use,” according to the complaint.
The state has opposed the request to pause funding, arguing that delaying money for school repairs would harm districts with urgent facility needs. State attorneys have also pointed to hardship exemptions intended to help low-income districts. Plaintiffs argue that those exemptions are difficult and costly to obtain.
A judge is expected to rule on the request for a funding pause in June. Affeldt said he expects the case to go to trial early next year.
