Kevin Crowe, Mello-Roos Districts - YouTube

>> >>JOANNE: ACROSS CALIFORNIA, A LAW CALLED MELLO ROOS ALLOWS SPECIAL DISTRICTS NEARLY

ALL IN NEW DEVELOPMENTS TO CHARGE HOME OWNERS THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS A YEAR TO BUILD NEW SCHOOLS,

BUY BUSES, EVEN PAY FOR IPADS.

HERE'S A LOOK AT ONE SAN DIEGO NEIGHBORHOOD THAT BENEFITS FROM THE EXTRA TAX DOLLARS.

ABOUT 7 MILES EAST OF THE COAST IS A NEW NEIGHBORHOOD CALLS DEL SUR.

HOMES CAN COST UP TO A MILLION DOLLARS.

THE NEIGHBORHOOD HAS FIVE SWIMMING POOLS, PARKS INFUSED WITH THE COUNTY'S ROLLING HILLS.

THE BIGGEST DRAW HERE ARE THE SCHOOLS.

DESPITE BEING IN THE CITY OF SAN DIEGO, SCHOOLS HERE BELONG TO THE ACCLAIMED POWAY UNIFIED

SCHOOL DISTRICT.

THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL ATD FIRST GLANCE LOOKS MORE LIKE A COUNTRY CLUB.

IT'S A PUBLIC SCHOOL.

BUT THE PEOPLE WHO BUY HOMES IN THIS NEIGHBORHOOD PAY EXTRA TAXES SO THEIR KIDS CAN ATTEND.

>> >>: WE LOVE THE NEIGHBORHOOD, LOVE THE SCHOOL, AND AGREED IT'S WELL WORTH IT.

>> >>JOANNE: HOW MUCH EXTRA DO YOU PAY FOR THAT ON YOUR TAXES?

>> >>: YOU KNOW, WE HAVEN'T GOT A BILL YET, BUT I WANT TO THINK 700, 800 DOLLARS.

>> >>JOANNE: SEVEN OR 800 DOLLARS A MONTH IN EXTRA PROPERTY TAXES.

THE TAX IS CALLED THE MELLO ROOS, NAMED AFTER TWO CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURES WHO CAME UP WITH

THE IDEA IN THE EARLY 80S.

IT ALLOWS LAND OWNERS, USUALLY A SMALL GROUP OF DEVELOPERS, TO CREATE MEN MINI GOVERNMENTS

THAT HAVE THE POWER TO COLLECT TAXES FROM THE PEOPLE WHO BUY THEIR HOMES.

ABOUT ONE IN EVERY 10 SAN DIEGO PROPERTY OWNERS PAYS THE MELLO ROOS, RANGING FROM 50 DOLLARS

TO AS MUCH AS 13,000 DOLLARS PER HOME, PER YEAR.

SOME OF THE MONEY PAYS FOR ROADS AND SEWER LINES, BUT MOST OF IT PAYS FOR SCHOOLS.

POWAY UNIFIED COLLECTED MORE THAN 40ÊMILLION DOLLARS IN EXTRA TAXES FROM HOME OWNERS LAST

YEAR ALONE.

ROCKY ROY'S SON IS IN KINDERGARTEN AT DEL SUR ELEMENTARY.

ROY PAYS MORE THAN 5,000 DOLLARS A YEAR IN MELLO ROOS TAXES.

>> >>: I DON'T REALLY AGREE WITH THE IDEA THAT, YOU KNOW, DEVELOPERS CAN JUST DICTATE

WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN AND WHAT THEY'RE GOING TO HAVE HERE.

I THINK IT DEFINITELY SHOULD HAVE MORE OF A DEMOCRATIC PROCESS AND HAVE THE PARENTS

INVOLVED.

>> >>JOANNE: INEWS SOURCE REPORTER AND DATA SPECIALIST KEVIN CROWE JOINS ME.

HE HAS BEEN GATHERING AND ANALYZING MELLO ROOS DATA.

KEVIN, WE'RE GOING TO GET TO THE NUMBERS SOON, BUT FIRST OF ALL, AS WE JUST HEARD IN THE

STORY, DEVELOPERS GET TO FORM MINI GOVERNMENTS AND CHARGE PEOPLE TAXES.

HOW DOES THAT WORK?

>> >>KEVIN CROWE: DEVELOPERS NEED TO BUILD COMMUNITIES AROUND THE HOUSES THEY WANT TO

SELL, SEWERS, SCHOOLS, MAYBE SOME POOLS.

SO THEY FORM THESE LITTLE GOVERNMENTS AND THEY CAN THEN ISSUE BONDS TO PAY FOR ALL OF

THAT NEW INFRASTRUCTURE, THEN THEY PASS THE COST OF THOSE BONDS ON TO THE NEW HOME OWNERS.

>> >>JOANNE: IN CALIFORNIA, ISN'T THERE SUPPOSED TO BE A TWO THIRDS MAJORITY VOTE FOR ANY PUBLIC

TAX?

>> >>KEVIN CROWE: THERE IS A PUBLIC VOTE.

WHEN THOSE DEVELOPERS GET TOGETHER AND THERE'S USUALLY ONLY A FEW, AND SOMETIMES THERE CAN

ONLY BE ONE, THEY TAKE A PUBLIC VOTE TO RAISE TAXES ON THEMSELVES OR THEIR PROPERTY, THE

PEOPLE WHO MOVE IN TO THE LAND BUY THE HOUSES THEY SIGN AGREEMENTS SAYING THEY KNOW ABOUT

THE TAX, THEN THE TAX IS THERE.

>> >>JOANNE: THEY TAKE A VOTE AND THAT'S CONSIDERED A PUBLIC VOTE?

>> >>KEVIN CROWE: CORRECT.

>> >>JOANNE: A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE AFFECTED BY MELLO ROOS.

I WANT TO SHOW SOME NUMBERS TO THE PEOPLE AT HOME.

IT'S ONE IN 10 PROPERTIES.

LET'S HAVE A LOOK, ONE IN 10.

DO WE KNOW HOW MANY PROPERTIES THAT AMOUNTS TO?

>> >>KEVIN CROWE: A LITTLE BIT MORE THAN A HUNDRED THOUSAND PROPERTIES IT'S HOME OWNERS,

BUSINESS OWNERS, COMMERCIAL.

THERE ARE DIFFERENT FEES DEPENDING ON THE SIZE OF YOUR HOUSE, WHERE IT'S LOCATED.

>> >>KEVIN CROWE: WE HEARD THIS STORY.

LET'S LOOK AT THESE NUMBERS AGAIN.

I THINK THIS IS SORT OF A BIG PART OF THE STORY NOW.

PEOPLE ARE PAYING PER YEAR BETWEEN 50 DOLLARS AND 13,000 DOLLARS PER YEAR PER HOME, FULL

DISCLOSURE HERE.

I'M IN THE POWAY UNIFIED DISTRICT, I HAVE A MELLO ROOS, MINE IS 800 DOLLARS A YEAR.

IS THERE A LIMIT TO HOW MUCH PEOPLE CAN BE CHARGED IN MELLO ROOS?

>> >>KEVIN CROWE: THERE S.THERE'S A FORMULA THAT THE DEVELOPERS, YOU KNOW, CREATE TO CHECK

OUT THESE TAXES AND ESTABLISH THOSE.

AND SO THAT FORMULA ALREADY HAS YOUR 1% ASSESSED TAX THAT GOES TO THE COUNTY, THAT'S ALREADY

IN THERE.

YOUR TAXES TYPICALLY CANNOT BE MORE THAN 2% TOTAL.

ALL OF THE MELLO ROOS FIGURED INTO THAT, IT MAY BE SOMEWHERE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD OF A

HALF OF A PERCENT OR THREE QUARTERS.

>> >>JOANNE: SO IT WOULDN'T BE MORE THAN WHAT YOUR NORMAL PROPERTY TAX BILL IS.

>> >>KEVIN CROWE: RIGHT.

>> >>JOANNE: SO WHAT'S THIS MONEY BEING SPENT ON?

IPADS, REALLY?

>> >>KEVIN CROWE: YES, IPADSÊ TYPICALLY IT GOES FOR SCHOOLS, LIKE ACTUAL INFRASTRUCTURE.

BUILDINGS, MAYBE SOME PRACTICE FIELD SAID, MAYBE SOME POOLS.

IT CAN ALSO BE USED FOR THINGS LIKE TECHNOLOGY, SCHOOL BUSES, IPADS.

>> >>JOANNE: BASICALLY ANYTHING THAT A SCHOOL CAN SAY HAS THE LIFE OF FIVE YEARS.

>> >>KEVIN CROWE: FIVE YEARS OR MORE.

>> >>JOANNE: I KNOW YOU'VE BEEN WORKING ON THIS ANALYSIS FOR A LONG TIME.

WHAT ABOUT OVERSIGHT?

BHOO IS KEEPING TRACK OF ALL OF THIS MONEY?

>> >>KEVIN CROWE: THE STATE KEEPS THE DEBT, AND THE COUNTY THE TAXES THEY COLLECT.

IN TERMS OF HOW THEY ACTUALLY SPEND THE MONEY IT'S TIP DLEA JUST THE SCHOOL BOARDS AND CONCERNED

CITIZENS.

>> >>JOANNE: THANK YOU SO MUCH.

THERE'S A LOT MORE OF YOUR REPORTING AT KPBS.ORG.