Prop 84 would allow all 4-year-olds to attend state-funded
preschools
San Jose – Santa Clara County Supervisors placed their stamp of approval on the Preschool for All initiative at Tuesday’s meeting.
Proposition 84, which would allow all California 4-year-olds to attend stated-funded preschools regardless of income, was supported by Supervisors Jim Beall, Blanca Alvarado and Pete McHugh.
Supervisors Don Gage and Liz Kniss were opposed.
The measure will appear on June ballots.
County staffers had recommended that the Board of Supervisors remain neutral on the issue because “it takes one of the few remaining sources of revenue and dedicates it to a single issue rather than augmenting the state general fund, which could benefit a number of programs, including many county services.”
But Supervisor Alvarado made a motion to support the initiative, said County Spokeswoman Gwendolyn Mitchell.
Rob Reiner, the actor who spearheaded the bill, pulled it from the previous election because approval for the measure was dwindling.
To bump up support, Reiner assembled a research committee comprised of business, education and labor organizations.
Supervisor Gage said he didn’t throw his support at Proposition 84 because the single issue would tap-out a lucrative funding source and thus abandon a number of key areas that need to be addressed.
“It wasn’t inclusive enough,” he said. ” I didn’t vote for it because right now I think they have a long way to go.”
The initiative would be funded through a 1.7-percent income tax increase on the wealthiest 1 percent of Californians, beginning with married couples earning more than $800,000 and singles earning $400,000 a year or more.
Gage also said he doesn’t think the monies earmarked for the initiative will fully fund it once its implemented.
Still, the supervisor said opposing the proposition was a difficult decision to make since he agreed with its objective.
“All my grandkids went to preschool and you need to get them social at an early age,” he said.