School districts sue county for cash

A May 31 lawsuit filed on behalf of the County Office of Education and the county's school districts, accuse San Diego County and its auditor of taking property tax revenues that should have gone to schools.

At issue, according to the lawsuit, is a portion of property tax revenues called Educational Revenue Augmentation Funds which state legislators established in the 1990s for statewide budget shortfalls.

In addition to receiving a portion of property tax revenues, school districts receive a portion of redevelopment property tax revenues. In 1993 state legislators required taxing agencies such as the county of San Diego and local redevelopment agencies to issue "pass-through" payments to school districts.

But as school districts were receiving much cash infusions to help address funding shortages, counties and redevelopment agencies began holding on to the property tax revenues.

In 2010 Los Angeles area school districts sued the county of Los Angeles for holding on to the property tax revenues. A state appellate court found that the county did in fact withhold the portion of property tax revenues.

Yet, according to the lawsuit, despite the ruling, San Diego County continue to stiff the districts of cash.

The lawsuit says that a 2014 email from the county auditor’s office mentioned the withholding of Educational Revenue Augmentation Funds. Despite the awareness, the county did nothing to change its calculation of pass-through payments to local successor agencies.

"As a result of those miscalculations, [San Diego County has] denied [school districts] the benefit of well over one million dollars in statutory pass-through payments...."

The lawsuit seeks to force the county and other taxing agencies to start paying the Educational Revenue Augmentation Funds and refund the money that districts were shorted in previous years.