Vote NO on Measure A
If you pay property taxes or rent within the Le Grand Union High School District, this applies to you!
Vote NO on Measure A
Here’s why:
=> This New $9,100,000 bond will ultimately cost $21,046,910 to repay.
=> LGUSD currently has about $10,100,000 in bond debt that is projected to cost $16,143,730 to repay.
=> Current total property taxes collected for existing (Old) school bonds is ~ $800,000 per year
=> Annual property taxes potential increase 2-3X
DETAILS:
=> Current bond debt (principal + interest) held by LGUSD is $16,143,730 (ref: audit p.36 of 94)
=> State matching funds are not automatic nor guaranteed; and should not be a factor when voting
=> The current Tax Rate for LGUSD Bond is 0.041200 per $100K (ref: Merced County Tax Rates, pg 46)
=> District family population is approx. 7,400 people with approx. 2,000 total households (ref: ACS-ED Dashboard)
=> District student population is 507 (ref CDE Quest reporting)
=> The 10-year avg of student population is 511; making the 2026 level of 507 < avg (ref CDE Quest reporting)
=> This measure’s ‘Question’ to voters is misleading because this bond is NOT to ‘improve the quality of education’.
=> Per the Full Text, the measure is to fund the modernization, renovation, expansion, acquisition, construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, and or replacement of school district facilities; including furnishings and equipping school facilities at current and future sites and properties.
=> The ballot Question is misleading and may cause prejudice in violation of Elections Code § 13119(c) by using with the phrasing, “generating on average $672,300 annually” which might lead voters to believe the district is making money (a favorable scenario) vs receiving a loan through the sale of bonds that must be repaid (the actual scenario).
LINKS TO REFERENCES:
• 2025 District Audit: https://emma.msrb.org/P11938663-P11480181-P11931131.pdf
• Current LGUSD Bonds as reported in EMMA: https://emma.msrb.org/IssuerHomePage/Issuer?id=67579C3435ACDE63381E37903910AB5C
• 2001 Measure A Bond for $.1950,000 still being paid under Series A https://emma.msrb.org/MS195323-MS170631-MD330520.pdf
• 2014 Measure N Bond for $4,200,000 still being paid under Series A https://emma.msrb.org/EA888966.pdf and Series B https://emma.msrb.org/EP899922-EP697157-EP1098982.pdf
• 2020 Measure S Bond for $6,000,000 still being paid under Series Ag https://emma.msrb.org/P21436345-P11143952-P11557624.pdf and Series B https://emma.msrb.org/P21714672-P21318235-P21750913.pdf
• Merced County Property Tax Rates: https://www.countyofmerced.com/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/961
• US Govt ACS-ED Demographics Dashboard: https://nces.ed.gov/Programs/Edge/ACSDashboard/0621270
• CA Dept of Education Quest Enrollment reporting: https://dq.cde.ca.gov/dataquest/dqcensus/EnrGrdYears.aspx?cds=2465730&agglevel=district&year=2025-26
• CA Elections Code § 13119(c): https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=ELEC§ionNum=13119
• LGUSD Measure A - Question:
• LGUSD Measure A - FULL TEXT
• LGUSD Measure A - Independent Analysis
• LGUSD Measure A - Statement In Favor
