MARTINEZ -- On the heels of a
whistle-blower's mismanagement allegations in the West Contra Costa school
district's $1.6 billion bond construction program, a new grand jury report
criticizes its bond oversight.
"It appears that the board
of education of the West Contra Costa Unified School District has failed to
create a truly independent and effective bond oversight committee," the
Contra Costa County civil grand jury report states.
"The system appears to
have been hampered by lack of essential cooperation from the ... school
district, conflicts of interest may have existed and the school district may
have imprudently spent millions of taxpayer dollars."
Property owners in the district
pay three times more than the state average in taxes related to bond
assessments, the report says.
It also says the district's
school construction costs are three times the state average and the district is
running out of money before all of its planned projects can be finished.
To avoid conflicts of interest,
the grand jury recommends eliminating five board representatives on the
19-member committee, along with the Contra Costa Building and Construction
Trades Council representative, and converting the Public Employees union
representative to an at-large position.
After finding that some
committee members never filled out applications, the grand jury recommends that
a selection committee choose representatives "through a transparent
process to ensure public confidence."
Alluding to documents released
in April by whistle-blower Dennis Clay, as well as committee observations, the
grand jury said bond construction financial reports have not been accurate or
complete.
The district should provide the
committee with "complete, detailed and comprehensive financial data"
related to bond spending and board votes at least one week before trustees act,
to allow for "meaningful and effective review and oversight," it
said.
The oversight committee should
also receive reports at least monthly, the grand jury said.
Other recommendations include:
• giving the committee complete access to its district-run
website;
• requiring that the panel chairman OK all changes to the website;
• creating a master facilities plan;
• giving committee members comprehensive training;
• following board policies related to bond oversight;
• ensuring that the committee includes all legally required
members.
The oversight panel's situation
has somewhat improved during the past year, after two new board members were
elected in November, the grand jury said.
The board must respond to the
report by Sept. 11.
District spokesman Marcus
Walton said in an email that the board has taken some actions to improve bond
oversight.
These include authorizing the
appointment of legal counsel for the committee, providing monthly financial
reports, streamlining responses to committee requests for information and
posting them on the website, and updating the website.
The board has also begun
discussing trimming the committee's membership, Walton said.
Trustee Randy Enos said the
board is committed to transparency. He supported a formal selection process for
committee members.
Enos also said the school board
has agreed to hire a consultant to create a facilities master plan and the district
provided training for committee members during the past year.
The board is also pursuing a
forensic audit of the bond program, based on Clay's allegations.
June
18, 2015
Contra
Costa Times
By Theresa
Harrington
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