Repairing our schools and sound fiscal management go hand in hand. Recent news that the Oakland Unified School District is having difficulty managing its financial affairs is cause for great concern. Yes we need new schools! We also need board members who can ensure that we get what we pay for!
Oakland Public Schools are in need of major repairs. Measure A, the $303 million school bond measure on the ballot is severely needed to begin to address our schools current state of disrepair. The news that the state controller's office has alleged that the Oakland Unified School District overbilled the state by $2.4 million does not help that effort. Why didn't the district catch this error before the state did? Could it be because the district doesn't have an internal audit department? Why don't they? Because the Board decided that a school district with a $515 million annual budget doesn't need one. Our mayor has stepped in and spoken to state officials to convince them to allow the district to keep the money, if the city and the district promise that "this kind of thing will never, ever happen again." The state may forgive the district for the errors of its ways. The citizens of Oakland may not be so forgiving. We must be able to restore the confidence of the voters that members of the board in particular and the district at-large can both monitor and manage its financial affairs. $303 million is a significant and necessary investment in the future of our schools. We must insure that the hands that receive that money are capable of making wise investment decisions and providing sound fiscal management.
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