7 Districts Seek Funds; in Many, Backers Alter Tactics

Voters in seven school districts will be asked to render judgment Tuesday on school bond measures totaling $416.2 million.

In Inglewood, Santa Monica-Malibu and in the Antelope Valley’s Westside Union, bond supporters have introduced new measures that face little or no organized opposition.

In Compton, voters face the same measure they turned down in April. In Torrance, San Gabriel and Lawndale, bond advocates have tried to make previously defeated measures more appealing--slashing the amount asked for, shortening the time required to pay off bonds and creating detailed spending plans.

These days, school bond measures, which require a two-thirds approval, are a common fixture on local ballots. Districts face surging student enrollments and are juggling resources to accommodate class-size reduction. At the same time, a squeeze on budgets and intense competition for state funds have forced many districts to defer long-needed repairs.

Opponents generally acknowledge the need for repairs but argue that district bureaucrats cannot be trusted to frugally manage more taxpayer money. Instead, they say, districts should trim fat from existing budgets before pleading for more money.

The district bond measures are as follows:

Compton: $107 million.

Torrance: $42.5 million.

Lawndale: $26 million.

San Gabriel: $53 million.

Westside Union: $14.7 million.

Santa Monica-Malibu: $42 million.

Inglewood: $131 million.