Additional Financial Information
Minimum Funding Guarantee for Schools
In 1988, Proposition 98 established a minimum annual funding requirement for schools and community colleges, commonly known as the minimum guarantee. The guarantee encompasses state General Fund and local property tax revenues.
Funding Formula - Property Taxes
The State Constitution requires the proceeds of the property tax to be allocated to local agencies in the county where the revenue is collected. Recipients of property tax revenue include cities, counties, special districts, K-12 schools, and community colleges. The county auditor is responsible for allocating property tax revenue to these entities according to state law. The exact share of property tax revenue for each entity varies across the state. On average, statewide schools and community colleges receive about 40 percent of all property tax revenue and other local agencies receive about 60 percent.
Unrestricted vs. Restricted Revenues
The district’s total revenues are comprised of both unrestricted and restricted funds. Generally, when we report budget updates, it refers to our unrestricted budget since that is the majority of our funding and is used for all district general operations. Restricted funds are regulated and must be spent in accordance with education code guidelines and state law. Examples of restricted funds include funds for special education, afterschool programs, and food and nutritional services.
Education Revenue Augmentation Fund (ERAF)
In the early 1990s, the Legislature permanently redirected a significant portion of the property tax revenue from cities, counties, and special districts to schools and community colleges. The redirected revenue is deposited into a countywide account known as ERAF. Revenue from ERAF is allocated to schools and community colleges to offset the funding these entities otherwise would receive from the state General Fund.
After shifting property taxes into ERAF, the county auditor compares the amount in ERAF with the amount of state General Fund that schools and community colleges would need to fund their minimum funding guarantee. If the amount in ERAF is larger, the auditor allocates the difference to local agencies as excess ERAF. (If the amount is smaller, the auditor skips this step.) The specific distribution of ERAF among the school districts in the county is determined by the county superintendent of schools.
Developer Fees
Developer fees are charged to developers to cover public costs associated with private development. By law, school districts must keep developer fees separate and use them only to address facilities' needs. Developer fees are not consistent year to year as seen by the graph below and cannot be relied upon as a continued revenue stream.
Surplus Properties
The following NVUSD-owned properties are currently in the process of being sold. Per Education Code, revenue generated from property sales can only be used for facilities improvements. All proceeds from these properties will go directly to facilities improvements but will only cover a small portion of our district-wide, identified needs per our district Facility Improvement Plan.
| PROPERTY | STATUS |
|---|---|
| Harvest Middle School | For Sale - working with the city of Napa to agree to a shared model of development and community space. |
| Vintage Farm | In escrow |
| Carneros (former site of Stonebridge Elementary) | For Sale |
| Yountville Elementary |
Seeking entitlement change with the city so can receive the maximum return from the sale. |
District Bond History
Over the past 26 years, Napa County voters have approved 4 school bond measures providing improved facilities for teaching and learning. The bonds and interest payments are made on a regular schedule and some have been refinanced to take advantage of lower interest rates.