IRVINE : Political Opposites Unite to Advocate Tax to Benefit Schools

Political opposites Hugh Hewitt and Mark Petracca found common ground Tuesday night at the Irvine school board meeting, where they advocated a citywide parcel tax to help save Irvine schools from a bleak financial future.

Hewitt is the conservative co-host of public television’s “Life & Times” public affairs program. Petracca is a liberal UC Irvine political scientist and newspaper columnist. Both encouraged school board members to move quickly in placing a parcel tax proposal on the ballot.

“My goodness, if Mr. Hewitt and I can work together, then some of you can work with us to assist community members throughout the parcel tax campaign,” Petracca said.

A $100-a-year parcel tax on the city’s 36,820 eligible parcels could generate $3.7 million a year for the Irvine Unified School District, Petracca said.

Hewitt and Petracca, both Irvine residents, say they realize it will be tough to build the two-thirds support necessary for passage of a parcel tax. “This is like herding cats--it’s going to be fun,” Hewitt said.

“It’s not just students who will suffer if the current (school district) funding crisis extends into the next year,” he said. “Every single person who lives in Irvine is going to lose a significant amount of their net worth if they own property.”

The school board has targeted $3 million in potential cuts to next year’s $100-million budget and has sent notices of potential layoffs to 30 administrators and 120 temporary teachers. With $107 million in the county investment pool at the time of bankruptcy, Irvine Unified could lose up to $11 million under proposed recovery plans, according to school district budget analysts.