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Ross Valley School District
Ross Valley School District Measure E
I will cover a few topics.
- What is Measure E?
- The case for Measure E
- Are RVSD teachers fairly paid? underpaid?
- How has RVSD managed its finance so far?
- Does RVSD need the money?
- What is Measure E?
Measure E on the May ballot is an extension and increase over the existing Measure E, a parcel tax to partially fund the Ross Valley School District (RVSD). The existing or older Measure E passed in 2018, and it raised a parcel tax of $621.66 kicking on July 1st, 2020 associated with a 3% increase over the next 8 years.
The new Measure E on the May ballot is structured differently. It is set at 52 cents per square foot of a home. The average size of a home in San Anselmo and Fairfax (among the largest RVSD's voting cities) is 1,900 square feet. So, the average parcel tax can be estimated at:
1,900 x 0.52 = $988
The new Measure E's term is 9 years. And, it will also rise by 3% a year.
Below, you can see how the old and new Measure E parcel tax levels rise over time.
Just to be clear, the new Measure E replaces the old one. Homeowners starting in July will only have to pay the new one.
At a high level, the new Measure E represents a 37.1% increase in this parcel tax.
988/720.67 - 1 = 37.1%
We will explore at the end if this increase is justified. We will find that it is.
The new Measure E parcel tax structure is much fairer. Using the old structure, every parcel could have been assigned the same parcel tax level of $988 regardless if the homeowner(s) owns a 900 square feet condo or a 4,000 square feet home. It is obviously much fairer to raise the parcel tax in proportion to the size of the home that correlates closely with the value of the home and the financial means of the homeowner(s).
- The case for Measure E
The Ross Valley School District (RVSD) advances several key arguments in support of Measure E, the parcel tax renewal on the May 6, 2025 ballot:
Preserving Educational Quality
The district emphasizes its commitment to maintaining "excellent, well-rounded education" through core programs in STEM, literacy, and arts, while retaining small class sizes and school libraries. Test scores have rebounded to pre-pandemic levels, and White Hill Middle School recently earned the Schools to Watch Award.
Addressing Funding Shortfalls
RVSD highlights its status as one of Marin County’s lowest-funded districts per pupil, which has led to teacher salaries ranking among the county’s lowest. The district warns that without Measure E, it risks losing educators to better-paying neighboring districts and cutting academic programs.
Tax Structure and Accountability
The proposed tax of 52¢ per building square foot (or $95 annually for unimproved parcels) shifts costs proportionally to larger property owners, with exemptions for seniors and disabled homeowners.Funds would be restricted to classroom needs—explicitly barred from administrative salaries/pensions—and subject to independent audits.
Continuity of Local Control
Measure E renews an existing parcel tax, ensuring revenue remains locally controlled and protected from state redistribution. The district notes this approach has voter precedent, citing the 2018 parcel tax approval with 77% support.
By framing the measure as essential for retaining teachers, stabilizing programs, and distributing costs equitably, RVSD seeks to align the tax renewal with community values of educational excellence and fiscal responsibility.
- Are RVSD teachers fairly paid? underpaid?
The RVSD states that their teachers' salaries are among the lowest within Marin County. I wanted to verify and confirm this statement. So, I looked at the actual salary schedule for the current school year and compared RVSD with a few neighboring elementary school districts that happen to be of similar size. I used the midpoint of credential levels. So, if a district had 5 different such levels, I focused on the 3d one. If they had 4, I took the average of the 2nd and the 3d. I also looked at teachers with 1-, 5-, and 10-year of experience. And, here is how such districts compare.
As shown above, MVSD is an outlier. This was due to this district conceding a 10% raise back in the 2023-2024 school year. The other 3 districts are really pretty close. Out of the 4 districts, RVSD is in 3d place. So, their statement that their teachers' salaries are among the lowest is well fairly reasonable.
- How has RVSD managed its finance so far?
Reviewing RVSD's operating statement covering the most recent 6 school years, we can tell that it has done a pretty good job managing its financial affairs.
RVSD was profitable in 4 out of the 6 most recent school years. And, in the 2 years when it incurred losses, those were small. For a nonprofit school district this is a very good performance.
If we compare the 2019 vs the 2024 school years, we can tell that RVSD runs a tight ship regarding managing its expenses.
Look at Teachers' expenses, they rose by only 1.3% per year over the reviewed 5 year period. G & A expenses decreased by - 3.5% per year.
That's pretty impressive. I am not sure we will uncover another school district in Marin County matching such cost control.
As a benchmark, it is also interesting to compare RVSD with MVSD cost per student over time.
As shown above during the 2020 school year the cost per student between the two districts was only about $600. By the 2024 school years, MVSD cost per student was nearly $7,000 higher than RVSD. That's the difference between one district who has done a good job at controlling its cost and another one who has not.
- Does RVSD need the money?
The RVSD anticipates an abrupt $6 million drop in revenues between the 2024 school years and the next 3 school years. As a result, RVSD projects that it will experience fairly large and unsustainable losses averaging about $2 million a year going forward.
I am documenting below the abrupt drop of over $6 million in revenues. The top box is from the most recent audited financial statements dated June 30, 2024. It shows $36.6 million in revenues. The box below is from the most recent 2nd budget interim statement released in February. And, it shows revenues of only $30.1 million during the school year ending June 30, 2025. And, revenues are projected to remain flat near that level over the next two school years.
As shown, RVSD is short about $2 million a year to operate on a sustainable basis. Otherwise, as shown earlier it would incur unsustainable losses resulting in RVSD depleting 67% of its general fund balance from $9.5 million on July 1, 2024 to only $3.1 million by June 30, 2027.
Let's see ow much additional funds will the new Measure E raises above the old one.
As mentioned earlier, we estimated that the new Measure E would raise 37.1% more than the old one. Remember our straightforward calculation of:
988/720.67 - 1 = 37.1%
The RVSD indicated that the new Measure E would raise an estimated $7.8 million. Given that, we can figure that the old Measure E was raising about $5.7 million.
7.8/(1 + 37.1%) = 5.7
Thus, we can estimate that the new Measure E will raise an additional $2.1 million during the 2026 school year starting on July 1st, 2025.
Next, let's revise the forecast over the next three school years including the impact of the new Measure E.
As mentioned, the new Measure E will kick in on July 1st, 2025 at the start of the 2026 school year. At such time, the Measure E will greatly assist in stopping the red ink, and allow the RVSD to operate near break even in the 2026 school year, and earn an adequate surplus in the 2027 school year. As a result, the RVSD could rebuild its general fund balance.
As you can see by any stretch of the imagination the new Measure E does not raises too much funds. It is just about the minimum adequate level for the RVSD to continue operating on a sustainable level. In support of this statement, notice that the projected expenses are expected to remain perfectly flat over the next two school years (and representing a marked decline over the 2024 one). How long can such extraordinary cost control last?
In view of the above, I would not be surprised that the RVSD will come back to voters within five years with an updated Measure E that is higher than the proposed one.
THE END
Gaetan Lion is an independent researcher with expertise in economics, econometrics, investments, risk management, statistics, and quantitative analysis. His areas of interest include demographics, economics, investments, Climate Change, health care, sports, and politics.