Measure E: Measure E - Ferndale Unified School District
Ferndale Unified School District · Humboldt County · November 3, 2026
The question on your ballot
To prepare students for careers and college and qualify for state matching grants by: constructing/ modernizing Career Technology Education classrooms, labs and related facilities; and making related improvements for health, safety and security; shall Ferndale Unified School District's measure be adopted authorizing $7,000,000 of bonds at legal rates, generating on average $483,000 annually while bonds are outstanding at approximate rates of $49.70 per $100,000 assessed value, with annual audits, oversight, no money for salaries, all money staying local?
Impartial analysis
HUMBOLDT COUNTY COUNSEL FERNDALE UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT SCHOOL FACILITIES BOND MEASURE Measure E is a bond measure placed on the ballot by the Ferndale Unified School District, which would allow the district to issue bonds in the amount of up to $7 million to pay for specific school facilities projects. Measure E must be approved by a 55 percent vote. The California Constitution authorizes a school district to issue bonds for “the construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, or replacement of school facilities, including the furnishing and equipping of school facilities, or the acquisition or lease of real property for school facilities.” The use of the funds is restricted to these uses, and “not for any other purpose, including teacher and administrator salaries and other school operating expenses.” The measure must include “a list of specific school facilities projects to be funded by the bond.” Measure E complies with this requirement, listing projects related to creating and upgrading facilities for career technical education. By law, the district must “conduct an annual, independent performance audit to ensure that the funds have been expended only on the specific projects listed.” This audit is then provided to a citizen’s oversight committee, whose purpose is to inform and advise the public on the expenditure of bond funds. Measure E complies with these requirements as well. California’s Proposition 13 generally prohibits the imposition of an ad valorem property tax exceeding one percent. (An ad valorem tax is a tax on real property as a percentage of the cash value of the property.) However, there is an exception that allows a school district to levy an ad valorem tax which exceeds this one percent for the limited purpose of construction related to school facilities. The maximum tax allowed by law for a unified school district is $60 per $100,000 of assessed property value. As stated in the ballot question and the tax rate statement included with the ballot materials, the district estimates that the average tax levy necessary to pay for the debt obligation would be $49.70 per $100,000 of assessed property value. The bonds would allow the district to raise $7 million. The district estimates that total debt service, including principal and interest, required to be paid if all bonds are issued and sold, would be $15.4 million.
Official ballot arguments
Filed for the official voter guide by each side, printed as submitted.
The official arguments will appear here once both sides’ arguments are on file.
What supporters and opponents say — outside sources (not official ballot arguments)
Statements by campaigns, officials and news coverage, quoted with attribution and linked to the original. VoterDecoder did not write them and does not endorse either side.
Supporters say
No public statements in favor were found.
Opponents say
No public statements against were found.