The Little Hoover Commission is examining the governance structure of the State Allocation Board (SAB).  The SAB is responsible for determining the allocation of bond and other state money used for new building and modernizing local public school facilities.  By statute, the SAB consists of 10 members, including the director of the Department of Finance, who is the chair; the director of the Department of General Services; the State Superintendent of Public Instruction; a citizen appointed by the Governor; and six legislative members.  The staff of the Office of Public School Construction implements and administers the SAB’s School Facility Program and other programs.  With a goal of improving the functioning and efficiency of the State Allocation Board and its staff, the Commission is examining the board’s governance structure, the composition of the board, its mode of operation and its interaction with the Office of Public School Construction and the Department of General Services.

If you would like more information regarding this study please contact the project manager, Nancy Lyons.  To be notified electronically of meetings, events, or when the report is complete, please send a request to littlehoover@lhc.ca.gov.

Previous Studies

The Commission’s work on school facilities and public school construction goes back more than three decades.

To Build A Better School (2000)
The Commission noted improvements the State had made in streamlining the regulatory process, but found that “the State’s multiple interests in safe and efficient school facilities are not optimally served by a divided oversight structure.”  The Commission recommended the Office of Public School Construction provide a seamless review and approval process.  The Commission also recommended that the State Allocation Board consider regulatory relief for well-performing districts and develop a range of graduated options for intervening in districts with poor-performing facilities programs.  This recommendation was linked to the Commission’s 1999 review of the Los Angeles Unified School District’s facility development fiasco.

Recommendations for Improving the School Facility Program in Los Angeles Unified School District (1999)
As part of the Commission’s review of several large urban school districts, the Commission found the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) to be a disturbingly dysfunctional organization -- too large to serve its students, staffed by an overgrown and inbred bureaucracy, and poorly governed.  The Commission urged the State Allocation Board not to convey any additional money to LAUSD until comprehensive school construction management reforms are fully in place.  The Commission also urged state leaders to partner with Los Angeles civic leaders; to fully develop structural alternatives, including the breakup of LAUSD into smaller districts; and, create a separate authority for school facilities.

No Room for Johnny:  A New Approach to the School Facility Crisis (1992)
The Commission found that too many agencies were involved in the approval process for school facility construction and recommended a streamlined approval process and more local control.

A Review of Impact Fees Used to Finance School Facilities (1985)
The Commission was concerned that a shortfall in state funding, antiquated funding regulations and unclear state laws were making school districts over-dependent on developer fees to fund new school construction.

Study of the Utilization of Public School Facilities (K-12) (1978)
The Commission concluded that school districts were not efficiently using buildings at a time of declining enrollment, and that districts were not maintaining buildings and not protecting the public’s investment.

A Study of the School Building Aid Program (1973)
In this study, the Commission found that the State’s oversight entities for school facility construction, including the State Allocation Board, were duplicative and unduly complicated.