Bad news was delivered to a number of education advocates hoping to place a California school bond on the November ballot.
During the Senate Appropriations hearing on Monday, the California Department of Finance came out opposed to AB 2235 by Assemblywoman Joan Buchanan. AB 2235 was the vehicle for the school bond.
The California school bond measure subsequently went to the Appropriations suspense file which means there will be no immediate action taken on it.
This kills the hopes of it reaching the ballot as the legislature has created a deadline of Wednesday to pass measures to be placed on the November ballot.
This is all occurring while there are crucial negotiations going on over placing a water bond on the ballot. While there is no consensus on the language for the water bond, there is a mad rush to meet the Wednesday deadline meaning negotiations are constantly ongoing.
Though there was never administration support for a school bond, supporters made a strong push in the press over the last two weeks to shore up support and refine their message.
But pressure to do a water deal and the administration’s unwillingness to add more debt to the state coffers finally sunk the measure.