Measure J contains strict financial safeguards, including a requirement that independent audits be
conducted annually to ensure that bond funds are spent only on the classroom and facility improvements as identified in the original ballot language.
Roxie Azparren, auditor for Matson and Isom, presented the annual YCCD Proposition 39 and Measure J General Obligation Bonds Performance Audit to the Measure J Citizens’ Bond Oversight Committee (CBOC) at its quarterly meeting on Feb. 2, college officials reported last week.
The performance audit verified that Measure J bond revenues were expended only for the construction, acquisition, furnishing, and equipping of the district projects approved by the voters and that no funds were used for salaries of school administrators or other operating expenses of the district.
In addition, the audit found that the District properly accounted for the proceeds and expenditures of Proposition 39 and Measure J General Obligation Bonds. As such, the CBOC approved the audit report.
Eleanor Mackensen, chair of the Measure J CBOC, presented the 2008-09 Proposition 39 and Measure J General Obligation Bonds Performance Audit to the YCCD Board of Trustees at their regular meeting earlier this month.
The Board of Trustees unanimously accepted the report.
The auditing firm also found that the bond fund financial statements presented fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Measure J Bond Program as of June 30, 2009, and the changes in financial position and cash flows thereof for the year then ended in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United State of America.
No material weaknesses were found and auditing tests disclosed no instances of noncompliance.
“I would like to congratulate the entire Citizens’ Bond Oversight Committee, our program management firm AECOM, and the YCCD staff who work on the Measure J bond construction program on a daily basis for doing a magnificent job,” said Dr. Nicki Harrington, YCCD Chancellor.
“Their oversight, management and hands on hard work has paid off with yet another clean audit,” Harrington said. “This audit and financial statements serve as overwhelming proof that the district and the CBOC are serving as financial stewards for our local taxpayers, ensuring that the facilities master plan as embodied in Measure J comes to fruition for the benefit of our students and the communities we serve.”
Measure J was passed by voters in the eight counties served by YCCD in November 2006 to repair, renovate, and add facilities for community college services.
The Bond Construction Program, scheduled to complete in 2014, is at its half-way mark, with projects progressing on time and on budget.
Our Program Managing (PM) partner, AECOM, architectural and construction firms, and the over 100 local businesses and subcontractors employed by the Measure J program are doing an outstanding job, providing jobs for our community, and contributing positively to the local economy.
The Yuba Community College District spans eight counties and nearly 4,200 square miles of territory in rural, north-central California. It has colleges in Marysville and Woodland, an educational center in Clearlake, and will be adding outreach facilities in Sutter and Colusa Counties as part of the Measure J facilities bond.
For more information on the Measure J bond construction program, including the CBOC and the
aforementioned audit, please visit the Measure J Web site at www.yccd.edu/measurej .
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