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Community Corner

No Info on Bonds

On Tuesday a committee met to discuss the WCCUSD bond sale and on Wednesday the board discussed it. However neither meeting had streaming video. There were no useful attachments. I went to the district’s bond page and found no useful information.

Last week I contacted Executive Director, Business Services, West Contra Costa Unified School District. He said he would answer my questions by Wednesday. Then on Wednesday he said he would answer my questions on Thursday.

 

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This morning I received his response: “Mr. Sharenow,

 

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I was hoping to get some information last night from our financial advisor.

 

I did not get this information. I am going to be out of the office until Tuesday.

 

I will respond to all you questions by Wednesday, September 18th.”

 

If WCCUSD was a publicly traded company I wonder if it would be in violation of federal transparency laws. The district has a billion dollar bond program, yet the public seems to be left in the dark, lacking basic information.

 

Below are the questions that were left unanswered.

 

Martin,

 

It was good talking with you a few minutes ago.

 

Below are my questions relating to the bond sale.

 

What committees will discuss the bond sale?

 

When will the board vote on the bond sale?

 

What will be the amount sold at this time?

 

Will there likely be a period when the bonds will be interest only?

 

How much will repayment of the bonds cost the average homeowner as measured in $100,000 per assessed value?

 

When will the rest of the bonds be sold?

 

Why is the district not selling all of the bonds now?

 

Interest rates have increased since the November 2012 election. Did the district anticipate that? What interest rate scenario did the district predict for the bond sales prior to the election? Please provide documentation.

 

Currently what is the district expecting the interest rate to be when it sells the bonds for both the upcoming sale and the future sale?

 

What are the costs associated with a bond sale?

 

Will the bonds be sold at a premium in order to cover the costs of the bond sale?

 

Have construction costs increased since the November election? If so were those costs planned for?

 

Are there documents and videos available to help the public understand the district’s bond program?

 

How much does the district currently owe? How much does it expect to owe 5, 10, and 15 years from now?

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