Malibu Tax Money Flowing To SM May Become Issue

School may be out this week …. but two vital public meetings are coming up next week.

The Monday … the Malibu city council will meet to discuss Santa Monica’s terms of surrender for an independent Malibu School District.

The Santa Monica-based school board voted 6 to 1 last month to allow Malibu to have an independent school district under six conditions …. which seem reasonable to AMPS … the Advocates for Malibu Public Schools.

Santa Monica wants an equitable sharing of property taxes between both districts … which means a continued flow of Malibu property tax revenue to Santa Monica over 50 years.

AMPS members say Malibu will be able to afford a top notch school district even with the subsidy to Santa Monica … which is intended to ensure that schoolchildren there are not shortchanged by Malibu school district independence.

And on a week from Thursday … the school board will examine construction plans at Malibu High School.

The question … is it worth the money to continue modernizing older buildings at the school … and removing the sealed up hazardous chemical P C B in the floors and walls …

Or should they be torn down and replaced.

Of course … there is not enough money to finish that job.

The district officials say they are balancing modernization … P C B remediation … the diminishing money in the district’s construction fund … a potential bond issue … and whether repairs are just wastes of money.

Boiled down … the problem may be this:

Santa Monica has raided Malibu property tax bond money to rebuild schools in Santa Monica … to the tune of tens of millions of dollars.

And now … Santa Monica is in effect asking Malibu to continue to subsidize education in Santa Monica …. after Malibu has paid to rebuild Santa Monica’s schools.

The Malibu school independence effort may hinge … on a public vote.

And that may hinge … on how this issue is resolved.

The city council talks Monday … the school board … a week from Thursday.