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SACRAMENTO — State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell today commented on the voter support for 30 local school bond measures approved in Tuesday’s election:

"As the state finds itself embroiled in a financial crisis with the threat of significant budget cuts to education, the support of local communities becomes crucial to ensuring schools receive the funds needed to serve their students. We saw that local commitment Tuesday," O’Connell said. "These bond funds will allow districts to seek matching funds from the state of California to build new schools and modernize older facilities. Investing in schools is a wise investment for California’s future."

More than 75 percent of the total 39 local general obligation school bond measures that required a 55 percent approval rate were approved in Tuesday's election. Those 30 successful measures will provide approximately $3.9 billion in local school construction funds.

Eighteen school bonds that would have failed to gain approval before the passage threshold was lowered from two-thirds to 55 percent were successful, thus providing more than $2.3 billion to schools and districts.

As a former state Legislator, O'Connell spearheaded the effort to reduce the two-thirds voter-approval threshold for the passage of local school facility bonds. Voters approved Proposition 39 in 2000 to lower the threshold to 55 percent.

Parcel tax measures that were on ballots in Alameda, Los Angeles, Marin, San Mateo, and Santa Cruz counties passed. A parcel tax measure in Mendocino County failed. Revenue generated from the parcel taxes will help school districts in these counties with such things as attracting and retaining highly qualified teachers, reducing class sizes, and improving education programs and services.