SMMUSD Board Votes Down Malibu's 'Best And Final' Offer

MALIBU, CA — The battle for the future of Malibu schools intensified this week after the Santa Monica Malibu Unified School Board voted 6-1 in a closed session meeting Thursday to deny what Malibu is calling its “best, final offer” for a fair separation. SMMUSD Superintendent Dr. Ben Drati called Malibu’s proposal “harmful to an entire generation of students with the very real and dangerous potential to harm Santa Monica students forever,” arguing that it would result in the need to cut nearly $30 million from programs serving Santa Monica students.

Malibu has not yet issued an official reaction to the vote, but has argued that per pupil funding would not decrease and the district is using "scare tactics" and "feeding the community a steady diet of misinformation and faulty projections about school funding to fuel emotional push-back to our petition," to quote Councilmember Karen Farrer.

Both sides of the divide continue to rally support heading into an April 17 LA County Office of Education hearing, where they will present a petition to form an independent school district.

In a 59-page analysis of Malibu’s March 12 offer, the district said that it agrees with many aspects, including the need for the two cities to have different school systems. It also endorses, among others:

• The distribution of redevelopment and sales taxes, as well as joint use funding sources, to Santa Monica schools
• The allocation of parcel tax revenues to the district where they were generated
• Sources of property tax
• Local donations remaining in the school district where they were contributed

However, the district disagrees on some major points of Malibu’s offer, notably:

• The transfer of additional property taxes for up to 10 years from the date of school separation, if Santa Monica per-pupil funding falls below current levels
• The allocation of property taxes to the school district where the property taxes were generated
• The transfer of property taxes to Santa Monica in an amount that will reduce state aid if basic aid status is lost

Drati said that he believes that Malibu’s offer to transfer additional taxes for up to 10 years makes its proposal more unfair than previous proposals, which offered money for longer periods of time. He said that this would result in a 21% reduction in funding after 10 years, and remain below where revenues would have been without a split. According to the district’s analysis, Santa Monica students would have $7,150 less per student than if the district remained intact, and the Malibu district would have 4.5 times the per pupil revenue of Santa Monica students after 10 years.

Drati said that the district has proposed another approach that would fund Santa Monica School District students at $18,520, and Malibu students at $21,529.

In a Wednesday news release, the city of Malibu said that the “School District persists in demanding Malibu’s property taxes in perpetuity. The School District is trying to extract billions of dollars from Malibu as the price for local control over schools in Malibu’s own community.” Malibu representatives also sent a letter to the Santa Monica City Council arguing that both districts will remain in the top five in the county in terms of per pupil revenue.

Malibu Councilmember Karen Farrer, who has represented Malibu in district negotiations, wrote in the Malibu Surfside News that the district is “feeding the community a steady diet of misinformation and faulty projections about school funding to fuel emotional push-back to our petition.”

Farrer claimed that separation would increase per pupil funding for both districts, and Malibu USD would rank third and Santa Monica USD would rank fourth in terms of per pupil funding after the separation.

“Rather than engaging in good faith negotiations, SM-MUSD made a preposterous demand suggesting the transfer of billions of dollars of Malibu tax base into Santa Monica schools in perpetuity,” she wrote. Interestingly, SMMUSD documents do not use a hyphen, while Malibu documents make sure to separate the SM and the M.

Farrer also argued that the cities are far apart, both in terms of geography and identity and Malibu students feel neglected by the district, resulting in a steady decline in enrollment. She argued that many programs are only offered in locations in Santa Monica, which puts Malibu students 22 miles away at a disadvantage. Further, Malibu only has one representative on the SMMUSD board, while Santa Monica has six.

For the past few weeks, the City of Malibu has been calling for parent testimony to highlight the need for an independent district. It has also been heavily promoting malibucity.org/musd, an official city website advocating separation. On Wednesday, April 14, the city is hosting a “Malibu School Unification Awareness Night” that will present its side of the argument.

SMMUSD held a similar event last week. On March 10, Santa Monica Mayor Sue Himmelrich and Mayor Pro Tem Kristin McCowan wrote a letter to the LA County Committee on School District Organization arguing that Malibu’s proposal would reduce funding for Santa Monica students and would be in “grave disservice to SMMUSD students.” Interim City Manager Lane Dilg made similar claims in an April 8 blog.

The April 17 hearing will leave time for public comment, and is a preliminary hearing to determine whether to send the petition to the state. If the state approves, it will go back to voters for a final vote.

Related coverage:

Will Santa Monica Students Pay The Price If Malibu Separates? | Santa Monica, CA Patch

Drati 'Deeply Skeptical' Of Malibu School Separation Plan | Malibu, CA Patch