[NSD] – Officials of the Newhall School District breathed a little easier today with the passage of Proposition 30, the governor’s tax initiative that was designed to head off deep cuts to education.

“We are grateful that the voting public kept us from deeper cuts by passing Prop. 30,” said Christy Smith, president of Newhall’s school board. “However, we’ve lost over 20 percent of our revenue in the last five years and Prop. 30 taxes will not restore those losses, the programs we’ve eliminated or the jobs that have been lost; Prop. 30 taxes just keep us from being cut deeper.”

“We are not out of the woods yet – just getting through them a little more easily,” said Superintendent Marc Winger. “Like everyone else, we have rising costs and shrinking reserves and we will have to balance our budgets in the next few years as the economy as a whole slowly improves. That is still a challenge we face.”

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Tom Torlakson, State Superintendent of Public Instruction, issued the following statement regarding voter approval of Proposition 30:

Tom Torlakson

“Passage of Proposition 30 means parents and students across the state can breathe a collective sigh of relief, knowing that our schools will have the resources to stay open for the remainder of the year.

“My heartfelt thanks to the Governor and the volunteer army of parents, teachers, school employees, administrators, and school board members, who stood together to stop further devastating cuts to education.

“The people of California have given our schools a well-earned vote of confidence. We intend to make the most of it by continuing our work to give all children the world-class education they deserve.”