http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/12/us/california-today-school-construction-bond-measure.html 2016-09-12 14:02:48 California Today: School Bond Measure? Why You Should Care Welcome to California Today, a morning update on the stories that matter to Californians (and anyone else interested in the state). === Good morning. Welcome to California Today, a Tell us about the Want to receive California Today by email? As we take a closer look at the Backers have raised more than $9 million to fight for its passage, according to Most of the proceeds from Proposition 51 would go toward upgrading the state’s K-12 buildings, with another $2 billion set aside for community colleges. Those bankrolling the effort are mostly deep-pocketed construction groups that have a profit motive to see it pass. Supporters say the measure comes at a time of dire need. It’s been 10 years since the last statewide school bond measure and many of California’s roughly 10,000 public schools are A couple weeks ago, for example, a school in Daly City Dozens of school districts, state lawmakers and business groups have endorsed Proposition 51. Last week, the editorial board of While many opponents acknowledge a need to upgrade infrastructure, they say Proposition 51 is the wrong way to go about it. In February, Gov. Jerry Brown called it a “developers’ $9 billion bond” that would deepen “It’s a blunderbuss effort that promotes sprawl and squanders money that would be far better spent in low-income communities,” Critics argue that local districts are more than capable of issuing bonds of their own for schools and housing developers should shoulder more of the costs. The editorial boards of The bond would Californians tend to approve bonds for school upgrades, and a If opponents hope to turn that tide, they have work to do. Want to go deeper? Dive into analyses by the What are • Kamala who? Many voters remain undecided or unaware of the candidates in the • How a • Economists may not like it, but rent control is spreading to the • • Apple is helping revive Nintendo’s great franchise with • Kim Chambers set off on a record bid • Recovery on Cobb Mountain: Nearly a year after the • • A deadly fungus has moved inexorably across the Sierra Nevada, leaving • Separating financial reality from the romantic vision of • A • On Monday, Defense Secretary • • The • The Research centers at U.C. Davis are interrogating some of the planet’s most pressing problems. There are the Comprehensive Cancer Center, the Center for Poverty Research … the U.C. Davis recently announced what it said would be the world’s first university research hub focused on post-harvest studies of coffee. Plans for the center grew out of the popularity of the undergraduate course called Design of Coffee. Introduced in 2013, it now has the highest enrollment — more than 1,500 students a year — of any elective course at Davis, surpassing favorites like Introduction to Human Sexuality. The Coffee Center is being financed with a $250,000 gift from William Ristenpart U.C. Davis also offers courses in Asked what beverage the university might turn its attention to next, Professor Ristenpart said a colleague was soliciting funding for a distillation center. “So, I suppose craft cocktails could be next,” he said. California Today goes live at 6 a.m. Pacific time weekdays. Tell us what you want to see: The California Today columnist, Mike McPhate, is a third-generation Californian — born outside Sacramento and raised in San Juan Capistrano. He lives in Davis. California Today is edited by Julie Bloom, who grew up in Los Angeles and attended U.C. Berkeley.