What’s Really Fueling The L.A. School Board Race — The Most Expensive Board Contest In U.S. History

What’s Really Fueling the L.A. School Board Race — the Most Expensive Board Contest in U.S. History

This piece has been created in collaboration with LA School Report; please visit LASR for complete coverage of the 2017 school board race.

Los Angeles is nearing the end of what is considered to be the most expensive school board race in American history.

But what exactly is the focus of this race? Is it the $11.4 million spent on campaigning? Or is it the projected deficit of $1.6 billion for LA Unified? Could it be the nearly $1 billion that has been lost from the district due to students choosing charter schools or other districts over traditional neighborhood schools?

According to experts and district observers, the real concern comes down to the value of LA Unified’s union contracts, an issue that has barely been addressed during the campaign.

Although pro-charter groups have poured millions of dollars into this race, the teachers union has also spent aggressively. The union’s main worry is that if reform-minded candidates win, it will become much more challenging to secure significant salary increases or protect generous retiree benefits.

Eleven union contracts, including the one for the district’s 33,000 teachers, will expire this summer. Teacher salaries account for 42 percent of the district’s $7.6 billion budget. In the previous round of negotiations, the school board, which currently holds a 5-2 pro-union majority, approved a 10 percent salary increase for teachers, surpassing the union’s demands, despite projected deficits for the district.

Another crucial issue is whether LA Unified will continue providing free lifetime health care benefits for retirees and their dependents. This benefit sets LA Unified apart as the only school district in the state to do so, based on a district report. The district estimates the unfunded liability for retiree health care benefits to be $13.6 billion. District staff has consistently warned that this debt needs to be addressed, but no action has been taken.

Pedro Noguera, a professor at UCLA’s graduate school of education, and an advisor to LA Unified, commented on the situation, stating, "They’re going to have to do something. They have too many different competing agendas and priorities." Noguera pointed out that municipalities and school districts across the country are dealing with similar pension obligations but haven’t established clear strategies on how to tackle them.

On May 16th, voters will choose two school board members. If reform-minded candidates win both seats, the balance of power on the board will shift away from the union majority. The campaign has seen a staggering amount of spending and a deluge of negative advertisements, which experts believe is due to the organized opposition in the charter community to the teachers union. In other cities, unions tend to dominate and have an easier time securing victories. In cities like New York and Chicago, the mayor appoints the school board, so unions focus their financial support on mayoral elections.

However, the LA union, United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA), is determined to stand up against these challenges. UTLA has spent at least $3.6 million to re-elect board president Steve Zimmer in District 4 and Imelda Padilla in District 6. Investigations are currently underway by the state’s Fair Political Practices Commission to determine whether the union violated campaign finance disclosure laws in some of its advertisements. The actual amount UTLA has spent on these ads remains unknown.

The LA union has been preparing for this election battle for a minimum of two years, engaging in verbal confrontations, funding their cause, and flexing their political muscles. UTLA President Alex Caputo-Pearl delivered an impassioned speech at a UTLA leadership conference last summer, urging members to be prepared for a "state of crisis." He emphasized the importance of the upcoming school board election, noting that the new board would be responsible for voting on a new contract. Caputo-Pearl stressed the need to elect a board that would resist any attempts to reduce their benefits by district leaders.

Over a year ago, UTLA’s members voted to increase their dues by one-third, amounting to approximately $1,000 per year, to bolster their resources in preparation for the school board elections.

Caputo-Pearl secured his second term in February, with a key promise to safeguard the health and retirement benefits of teachers.

UTLA, the teachers’ union, declined to provide a comment in response to a request.

Richard Garcia, spokesperson for the California Charter Schools Association, which endorsed candidates Nick Melvoin and Kelly Gonez, stated that the timing of the UTLA contract expiration aligning with the election period is a strategic move by the union to encourage its members to participate in the election.

Garcia noted, "It appears to be a deliberate political maneuver, used in past years to rally their supporters."

Ben Austin, former director of Parent Revolution and current member of an independent expenditure committee supporting reform candidate Melvoin, reports hearing concerns from parents when he drops off his daughters at school.

Austin expressed, "Parents are worried." He believes that the school district is at a critical point where it could potentially fall into bankruptcy.

Austin further states, "If Steve Zimmer and his allies prioritize the interests of the downtown bureaucracy over the well-being of the students, it could have serious consequences. If Zimmer wins, he will then negotiate multi-billion dollar contracts with the same special interests that just elected him."

Zimmer acknowledges that the issue of retiree health benefits needs to be addressed. However, he has made a commitment to preserve the current benefits of existing employees. Instead of taking immediate action, Zimmer emphasizes the importance of building trust with the district’s negotiating partners.

On the other hand, Melvoin, Zimmer’s opponent, deems the situation a crisis and proposes a plan to provide higher upfront pay to new hires in exchange for reduced retirement benefits.

Larry Sand, a former LAUSD teacher who founded the nonprofit organization California Teachers Empowerment Network, supports Melvoin. Sand believes that if Melvoin and Gonez are elected, they would be inclined to address the district’s unfunded retiree benefit liabilities.

According to Sand, "If both of them are elected, which is a big if, it could yield positive outcomes for all residents of Los Angeles because both Gonez and Nick prioritize the well-being of students."

The candidates have not extensively discussed the upcoming union negotiations or contracts. The issue has only been raised twice in approximately twelve candidate forums. The various mailers and advertisements funded by external groups have largely neglected to address this concern.

All four candidates agree that the current benefits are unsustainable. The question now is how quickly they will act to negotiate with union partners.

Pedro Noguera, a professor at UCLA, expressed his uncertainty regarding the matter, stating, "I am unsure how they can avoid making difficult decisions involving layoffs and school closures."